'Light of Day' originates with Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen has been in the news a lot lately. He headlined President Barack Obama’s “We Are One” Inauguration Celebration, he brought the house down during a half-time performance at this year’s Super Bowl and he released a stellar new album, “Working on a Dream.”
For Springsteen nuts, like me, these are good times. In fact, this entire decade has been great, as he’s released three albums with the majestic E Street Band, a solo acoustic album, a bluegrass album with the Seeger Sessions Band, two live albums and a bunch of DVDs. He’s also toured extensively, making a number of stops in Wisconsin including ones I saw in Milwaukee in 1999 and 2002.
Seeing Springsteen live is literally like being “baptized in the glory of rock and roll,” as he sometimes refers to the experience, and anyone who has seen him live knows exactly what he means. It’s an exhilarating experience that will leave many people dripping in sweat, and many non-believers suddenly finding themselves metamorphically worshipping at his musical altar.
People that don’t believe me can ask two non-Springsteen fans I’ve taken to these concerts. My friend Tim in 1999 knew only Springsteen’s biggest hits from the “Born in the U.S.A.” era, and he only came with me to see what all the hype was about. At the end of the three-hour concert, he was ready to quit his job and follow Springsteen around like a Deadhead. I would, too, if making money to live on weren’t a factor in my life.
My wife, Jenny, was even more skeptical than Tim, and when she went with me in 2002 it was more to support someone I liked than to see someone she wanted to see. Springsteen converted her, and now she is as much a die-hard as I am. Her favorite song of his, “Trapped,” is an obscure one that has only been released as a live version on a limited-edition album. It’s a good thing she’s now a hardcore fan, so I don’t have to worry about her tuning me out when I start rambling on about him.
My second favorite Springsteen song is also an obscure one that is difficult to find. It’s on several of his live albums, and a studio version doesn’t officially exist. It’s a song I named this column after – “The Light of Day.” Some lyrics include:
“Well I’m a little down under, but I’m feeling OK.
Got a little lost along the way,
I’m just around the corner to the light of day.
Well, I'm just around the corner to the light of day.”
In concert, Springsteen sings a verse in which he incorporates some of the cities he’s traveled to, and when in Wisconsin, he includes many of this states cities – Sheboygan, Milwaukee, Fond du Lac and Oshkosh are a few of the ones I remember him saying when he performed this song in 1999. He may have said Stevens Point, but I wasn’t living here at the time so I wasn’t listening for it. I was hoping he would give a shout out to Wautoma, but that didn’t happen.
I named this column “Light of Day” because it hints at the optimism that can be in store for people in the near future if they should choose to look for it, which is what Springsteen’s song is about.
My favorite song, “Thunder Road,” is one of his most well-known songs and it hints at the same optimism, but only by leaving the past behind. I figured calling this column “Thunder Road” wouldn’t be appropriate, as I often celebrate the past in sharing my memories and past experiences with readers. I don’t want to leave it behind.
The appeal of Springsteen, and why he continues to be a presence despite being at an age most rock stars aren’t usually relevant anymore, is he acts and seems like an ordinary person. He’s shared stories in concert about his upbringing, and he had a tough father who expected him to work hard and not follow his rock-and-roll dreams.
Instead of listening to his father, Springsteen locked himself in his room and spent countless hours practicing his guitar and learning his craft. And like a superhero after first discovering his powers, Springsteen emerged as a man that would change the world, or at least as someone who would make it more interesting and entertaining.
I’m going to continue enjoying his current moment in the spotlight, as it’s bound to go away. Ten years from now he’ll almost be 70 years old, still making music if he’s able to, but he probably won’t be doing microphone bends, stage slides and piano jump-offs, as he did during the Super Bowl. He’ll probably let a younger rocker find the “light of day” to do them.