Review: "Letter to You" - Bruce Springsteen

A return to a more familiar sound is like a visit from a long-lost friend.

I’ve had a chance to hear Bruce Springsteen’s Letter to You album a few times over the last couple of days and my primary thought about it is that it’s great to hear the classic “E Street sound” again. It’s been a while since one of Bruce’s albums sounded like this and it’s fun to hear songs in that style again but not just copying what came before or sounding tired and by-the-numbers. Lots of bands try to recreate their classic sound at some point, but few do it as well as the musicians on this album.

It wasn’t hard for me to find something to like on any of Springsteen’s releases, but recently he’s chosen musical paths to explore that don’t align stylistically with my sweet spot. Some time in the late 1980s or early 1990s he started trying on other musical styles and even somehow found a kind of country drawl that he used while singing some of his songs, which is some feat for a New Jersey boy. I can’t say I like everything he’s done since Born in the U.S.A., but I’ve spent time with all of his works, and they hit in different ways. The highlights since his biggest albums (for me, anyway) are The Rising and Wrecking Ball. 

The good news is that Letter to You stacks up nicely with both of those releases and even if the songs aren’t familiar on first listen, there’s a sense of familiarity because you know the band. You’ve spent time with them. With the exception of Clarence Clemons, the sounds these musicians make stick out like a friendly face in the crowd. 

But those listening for the first time will wonder what all the fuss is about when people talk about this record because it doesn’t start out as a return to that classic E Street sound. Far from it.

The opening track isn’t representative of the album. It’s more of the same “countrified” Springsteen we’ve gotten the last several years. “One Minute You’re Here” is a good enough song, but it seems out of place on an album that often harkens back to the height of the E Street sound. It’s probably a better album closer than an opener, as it’s short and soft and would be a good play-out song. But maybe it would have been better as a stand-alone single or a bonus on some future compilation album.

The first hints of “old” E Street are front and center as the title track kicks off with a bang. “Letter to You” contains notes straight off of much older (read: “classic”) Springsteen albums but without sounding like a rehash. This would have been a better and much more energetic way to start the record. It’s hard to believe that this one or “Ghosts” didn’t get picked to open the album. Bruce doesn’t have quite the power in his voice that he once did but he also doesn’t sound like an old man. Roy Bittan and Charles Giordano on piano and organ, respectively, particularly shine here and Max Weinberg’s drums help give it that big E Street sound. The only thing missing is one of the Big Man’s trademark ripping saxophone solos. Alas. But hey, at least Clarence Clemons’ nephew Jake does appear on the album.

“Burnin’ Train” starts with a wash of guitars and chimes and Weinberg kicks in to launch things. It’s upbeat and another better choice for the album’s first track than “One Minute You’re Here” was. I’m not sure who’s playing what on the guitars, but Bruce, Nils Lofgren, Little Steven Van Zandt, and Patty Scialfa are layered nicely. Weinberg’s drumming, Gary Tallent’s bass, and some tambourine combine to turn the song into a bit of a gallop. 

A big-time E Street organ opening brashly announces that “Janey Needs a Shooter” is here and it’s going to get in your face. Bruce sings the crap out of this one, which sounds like it wouldn’t have been out of place among the songs on his classic albums. This one screams “E Street Band is back, baby!” It’s got plenty of bombast. Once again, Bittan and Giordano are like two halves of a keyboard whole. Bruce throws in some harmonica. Weinberg and Tallent lay the foundation and the guitarists do their thing without getting in each other’s way. It’s impossible to understate how well this song would fit into the catalog somewhere in the run from Born to Run to The River.

“Last Man Standing” sounds like one of those songs that modern day Bruce would slow down and countrify, but the full E Street treatment makes it an entirely different (and better) song than we might otherwise have gotten from Western Stars-era Springsteen, or indeed, any Springsteen since The Rising. It’s more upbeat and contains some good saxophone contributions from Jake Clemons. 

“The Power of Prayer” is of similar tempo to “Last Man Standing” and probably shouldn’t follow it directly in the running order, but it’s a good song. Clemons again shines here. The best description I can give of Jake is that he sounds like a less powerful version of his uncle, but maybe that’s just how he’s being mixed into the whole. I can’t really overstate how much Roy Bittan’s piano playing makes the E Street sound. He’s essential and his playing here is one of the best parts of the song (again).

I think a lot of people will like “House of a Thousand Guitars” when they first hear it and hopefully it will stay with them. I find it a bit repetitive in terms of melody and, at one point, the lyrics. There’s a section when the arrangement becomes sparser and Bruce just keeps singing “House of a thousand guitars, house of a thousand guitars, house of a thousand guitars, house of a thousand guitars.” The song also ends with the instruments dropping out and Bruce repeating “A thousand guitars, a thousand guitars, a thousand guitars, a thousand guitars.” It’s a great phrase but the use of it in those two sections seems a bit overkill. I like the way Bittan’s piano and Tallent’s bass play together on this song. I cringe a bit at the soft middle section but otherwise it’s an enjoyable tune.

“Country Bruce” returns for the start of “Rainmaker,” after a six-song reprieve from “One Minute You’re Here.” This song is at least a bigger, bolder, louder track. It doesn’t quite rock, but it could have fit onto an album like Wrecking Ball. It doesn’t exactly sound like the classic E Street Band, but it’s not a bad track. It just doesn’t have the same vibe of the previous several songs. Bruce sounds strong on it and the country in his voice is less pronounced once the song kicks into gear. 

Speaking of “country Bruce,” he’s back again for the beginningof “If I was the Priest.” The start of this one too is more in line with Western Stars than an E Street revival. It does kick into a higher gear that surpasses “Rainmaker” and actually rocks. You get the hints of E Street courtesy of Bittan and Giordano. Those two craftsmen work so wonderfully together throughout the album. Springsteen throws in some tasty harmonica near the end, too. At just under seven minutes, it’s the longest track on the album but it doesn’t seem like an overly long listen.

Next up is “Ghosts,” which starts with a booming Weinberg drum beat before the E Streeters jump in and Bruce wails “I hear the sound of your guitar!” The chorus features a great harmony vocal as these longtime bandmates all join forces. As I stated above, this would have made a kickass opening track. Most of this album draws a direct line from the present to Springsteen’s most highly regarded and classic albums and it just seemed so odd to kick things off with another slow country/folk style song when it belies what the listener should expect the rest of the way.

“Song for Orphans” is E Street goes country…kind of. There’s some definite twang in the guitars here, but there’s power too. There’s some extremely Bruce harmonica and the unmistakable Bittan piano and Giorgano’s organ sneaks in and out of the mix like a stray ghost from the previous track. It all works well together and creates a big sound.

The album closes with “I’ll See You in My Dreams,” shuffling in behind acoustic guitar. Like some of the previous tracks, it picks up a bit after the first verse. It’s not quite formulaic but at the same time it might have been used once or twice too often on this particular album. Guitars drive this one and the organ washes over it all at times. This is a great track to close with. 

In fact, the more I think about it, “One Minute You’re Here” simply doesn’t fit on this album at all. It doesn’t mesh with the whole, it provides a plodding start to the album, and it probably would have been best served holding it for a future release or just sticking it onto something as a bonus track. I don’t dislike it, but the vibe is all wrong for the rest of the album. That vibe seems to be a joyous E Street class reunion and I’m extremely here for it.

On the whole, it only took a couple of spins for this to become my favorite Springsteen album since The Rising. But this one is more cohesive (opening track notwithstanding) than The Rising. I was listening to this on Spotify just today and “The River” played randomly after the album finished up and it was a smooth transition. That says a lot about the quality and the style of Letter to You. 

That titular “letter” is a love missive to Springsteen’s fans who lifted him to stardom during those earlier albums when he and the E Street Band ruled the earth with their power and blue-collar work rate. I recommend this album and can see myself playing it a lot in the coming years. And I can't wait to watch the Letter to You documentary on Apple TV.