The Ghost Of Tom Joad - Bruce Springsteen

The Ghost of Tom Joad by Bruce Springsteen This 1995 album is best understood as the musical equivalent of a book of short stories. The title is named for the hero of John Steinbeck's novel The Grapes of Wrath, and Springsteen's stripped down acoustic style owes its biggest debt to American folk pioneer Woody Guthrie. It tends to get overlooked in his oeuvre, sitting uncomfortably alongside the minor records that emerged in between his old heyday and his resurgent period of creativity in the wake of the World Trade Centre bombings. But it would be a mistake to underestimate the power of Springsteen's bold and stark story telling, and perhaps the natural ...  Read the complete review

The ghost of tome joed is a album that is a million miles away from the likes of born in the usa or born to run This is a acoustic album with minimal backing which just the gentle hum of keyboards or other instruments that acompany these songs. This album is more about the story it is telling and the feel the sound the isolation or drama of the charactures than melody or tunes. With this largely solo album springsteen is in genius story telling mode, The sound of the album is very low which was a attempt at making you listen to the lyrics. There are some great songs as always with springsteen but you are after dancing int he dark or hungry ...  Read the complete review

Bruce is great...this album isn't. The Boss is NEVER boring...this album is the exception. On any Springsteen collection there is a wide range of music..apart from the Ghost of Tom Joad. I had this album for christmas one year and I doubt I've played it a dozen times and I've NEVER played it all the way through in one sitting...I can't stay awake for long enough. Just for once, Bruce lets the message get in the way of the music, and with a very sparse sound to the tracks (which he can normally carry off very well)there really is little to hold the interest. It seems that one idea is stretched over a whole album. I always remember Simon ...  Read the complete review

First off, this album is not the same Bruce Springsteen music as in his other albums. This album is one that is quite different to his others, and I think the result of that is that people either really like this style of his music, or they really don?t like it. As opposed to the other reviewer here, who didn?t like it, I think this album is one of his best. The main complaint I hear about this album is that all the tracks are the same, and that they are too boring. I think that the tracks are not the same, but the differences between them are subtler, and you have to listen more to appreciate them. The lyrics are thought provoking and deep, and when listened ...  Read the complete review