Bono and Bruce

From an editorial in the Chicago Tribune:

Rock star, poet, rebel

Published May 7, 2005

(Excerpts)

We'll admit it: We have a soft spot for Bono, the lead singer and frontman of the wildly popular Irish rock band U2.

He's a rocker who has something to say, something worth hearing. And he's back in town.

...Performers like Bono and Bruce Springsteen, who will be in Chicago next week for a solo performance, are unusual in an age when so much of popular music is prepackaged and uninspiring. Sure, Bono and Springsteen are older rockers who play the old hits. But they also take risks, musically and politically.

And that's what makes them interesting. Last year, Springsteen hit the road for John Kerry in the presidential campaign. Kerry lost, and Springsteen probably lost a few fans along the way. But like the characters he embraces in his songs, Springsteen made a stand and lived with the consequences.

Bono has been politically active for years, whether promoting peace in Northern Ireland or debt relief in the Third World.

...For four nights, Chicago, he's yours: a rock star with a poet's soul and a rebel's heart.
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On Saturday, I was at the first of the four Chicago U2 shows.

I also saw Springsteen during The Rising tour.

There is a dramatic difference between what Springsteen has become and what Bono and U2 are.

Of course, Springsteen is more than a decade older than the four Irish guys, and it shows. Although he manages to muster a decent amount of energy for someone his age, Springsteen's shows with the E Street Band pale in comparison to U2's performances.

It's an obvious distinction, but not the most important one.

In 2002, Springsteen babbled on and on about the evils of the Patriot Act. He warned the audience that Americans' civil rights were in danger. Last year, he jumped on Kerry's bandwagon and crashed.

On the Vertigo tour, last night in Chicago, Bono had plenty of political statements, focusing on poverty, disease, and debt in Africa. As opposed to Springsteen, he was able to garner support for his cause without being offensive, because his message was bipartisan and positive.

Bono appealed to the goodness of the people in his audience. He frequently mentioned God, both when he spoke and through his songs. I wonder how those on the secularist left felt about all the God talk.

A week ago on Saturday in Glendale, Arizona, touring to promote his newest release, Devils and Dust, Springsteen was more interested in bashing Bush than presenting a positive message and offering direction.

From the Arizona Republic:
Springsteen chose to be fairly economical with his comments between songs, although he did call for "a humane immigration policy" before playing the new "Matamoros Banks," lambaste the "dinosaur" mentality of the Bush administration (before "Part Man, Part Monkey") and talk about drifting away from the Catholic church (as a prelude to the new "Jesus Was An Only Son" ), among other ramblings. He ad-libbed a "That's right" after one audience member yelled "(Expletive) the president" at one point.

Although both men hold strong beliefs and use their celebrity status to encourage their fans to follow them, Springsteen obviously doesn't have the diplomatic skills that Bono has developed.

U2 put on a great show AND managed to relay their message without alienating their audience.

Bruce would be wise to follow Bono's approach. U2's message of love, our responsibility to care for those who are suffering, is much easier to embrace than Springsteen's divisive political rhetoric.