3 Musicians Who Dislike Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen is one of those artists that is seemingly beloved by everyone. It’s hard to not vibe with The Boss’ sound with its anthemic drums, driving melodies, and relatable lyrics. However, he is not faultless, and a few of his fellow musicians have picked up on that. Find three musicians who dislike Springsteen, below.

[RELATED: Bruce Springsteen Speaks on Liam Payne’s Death: “It’s a Business That Puts Enormous Pressures on Young People”]

3 Musicians Who Dislike Bruce Springsteen

1. Keith Richards

Keith Richards is notoriously loose lipped when it comes to his opinions on other musicians. Among his list of slighted peers is Springsteen. The Rolling Stones guitarist once called The Boss’ music “pretentious.” Though many would argue the exact opposite, Richards found his appeal to the everyman a little heavy handed.

“That’s a tough one, because I like the guy,” Richards once said. “But the music…I don’t know. I’m the toughest taskmaster of all time. I’m going to annoy a lot of people. Bruce? To me, it’s pretentious.”

2. John Lydon

The Sex Pistols and Bruce Springsteen are on opposite ends of the sonic spectrum. However, thematically, their music is quite similar. While the Pistols yelled and screamed about the world, Springsteen is covertly disgruntled. They both seek to turn society upside down, just with very different approaches.

Nevertheless, Lydon once put down Springsteen’s “type of noise.” He found his music too boring to be consequential.

“I don’t like that Bruce Springsteen type of noise,” Lydon once remarked. “I just find it really boring. You know, when they’re just telling this banal story that you’re not very interested in.”

[RELATED: 4 of Bruce Springsteen’s Favorite Songs of All Time]

3. Van Morrison

Van Morrison’s qualms with Springsteen are far more personal than the first two inclusions on this list. The Irish singer felt that Springsteen was stealing his artistry–right down to his on-stage movements. Whether or not this is true, it was real enough for Morrison to speak out about it.

“For years people have been saying to me…’have you heard this guy Springsteen,” Morrison once explained. “I just ignored it. Then four or five months ago I was in Amsterdam, and a friend of mine put on a video. Springsteen came on the video, and that was the first time I ever saw him, and he’s definitely ripped me off. There’s no doubt about that…he’s even ripped my movements off as well.”

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