Bruce Springsteen's "Only the Strong Survive": An hour of karaoke

“Someday We’ll Be Together”, “I Wish It Rain” and “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted” are three legendary songs in the Soul/R&B genre. Bruce Springsteen covers those and twelve more tunes in his new album “Only the Strong Survive.”

It’s been said that Springsteen loves this music and this is his way of honoring the songs and musicians who made them. Fine. After over forty decades of recording some of the most incredible music ever, he’s entitled to do whatever he wants. But, fifteen songs is more than a bit of overkill.

All of these songs stand on their own. The musicians who made the original records include The Supremes, Jerry Butler, Jimmy Ruffin, the Temptations and the Four Tops. They are all legends in their own right. These songs didn’t need covers by The Boss.

This is Bruce Springsteen’s twenty-first studio album. They all don’t have to be “Born to Run”, “Darkness on the Edge of Town” or “Nebraska.” But, for what it cost to buy a vinyl album, a cd or however you purchase your music, I need something more creative than this.

More important, Bruce & the E Street Band will be doing a worldwide tour next year. Ticket prices will expensive. If you want to see the first show in Tampa the cheapest price through Ticketmaster is $250. In Milwaukee, you can purchase a seat for $171…and those seats are behind the stage. If you want something better be prepared to dig into your grandchild’s college fund.

For that amount of money, I need something more than a guy standing on stage doing karaoke.