Though they aren’t completely set apart from one another, saying that Bruce Springsteen ripped of Van Morrison would generate pause. While Morrison is certainly an influential voice in the world of rock and folk, Springsteen’s music feels inherently his own. Nevertheless, Morrison thought The Boss veered into his lane a little bit too much. Find out why Morrison had issues with Springsteen, below.
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While Springsteen is mostly known for “Heartland rock,” he has corners of his discography that feel set apart from his name-making sound. According to Morrison, some of those corners feel a little too reminiscent of his sound.
“I have my own preferences for music and my own albums that I play,” Morrison once said. “So I’m not really influenced by what the media are running through. For years people have been saying to me, ‘Have you heard this guy Springsteen? You should really check him out! I just ignored it.’
Then four or five months ago I was in Amsterdam, and a friend of mine put on a video,” Morrison continued. “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. Not only did Springsteen…I mean, he’s even ripped my movements off as well. My seventies movements, you know what I mean?”
In the same interview, Morrison spoke about how “pissed off” it made him feel that the younger singer was borrowing elements of his own performance style. Though we’re not sure everyone would agree with Morrison’s take, Springsteen is an avid Morrison fan–which could add stock to those claims.
E Street Band member, Steve Van Zandt, once said Morrison’s music was “like a religion to us”–the “us” being Springsteen and his backing band. With that in mind, elements of Morrison’s musical direction and performance quirks could have seeped into Springsteen’s subconscious.
What do you think? Is Morrison right?
(Photo by David Redfern/Redferns)
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