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Liner Notes

A weekly column by Tampa Tribune pop music critic Curtis Ross

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By CURTIS ROSS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 5, 2009

Updated:

Bruce Springsteen's Super Bowl halftime performance provoked some of the most divided opinions I've heard recently.

"Best halftime ever." "Worst halftime ever." "Couldn't believe his energy!" "Couldn't hear a thing." "He sounded great." "He's blown out his voice."

The harshest criticisms, or at least the most wounded-sounding, came from some who count themselves as Springsteen fans.

The consensus seems to be that Springsteen betrayed something about himself by performing at the Super Bowl.

The Super Bowl, some of his critics say, represents the sort of soulless, big-money, elitist spectacle the Boss has railed against.

It's a measure of the expectations fans have of Springsteen, and though he's had a hand in creating them, it seems to me that the fans have an equal, or even greater part.

A lot of people consider Springsteen a voice of the working class, and he's chronicled the struggles of the lower middle-class and working poor eloquently. But he's never made any pretense of having been anything other than a professional musician his whole life. He may be able to imagine wearing those workingman's boots, but he's never walked in them and never will.

Does that mean "Factory" or "Point Blank" or "Born in the U.S.A." are false? Of course not. Springsteen's an artist. We depend on artists to express what we feel, to help us make sense of our lives through their work.

But once you start depending on the artist to live his life in line with your interpretation of his work, things get sticky. Clear your shelves of the works of every author, musician or director who's done something that flies in the face of principles they've espoused in their work and you're going to be staring at some blank walls.

Trust the art, not the artist. Heroes? That's just asking for disappointment.

Curtis Ross can be reached at (813) 259-7568.

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