Big fan, since “Springsteen and the American Tradition.” My romance with rock ‘n roll continues, and we share a lot of experiences with record-chasing and love of R&R rituals: I was a sophomore in South Bend, IN in 1973, and my go-to that fall was Montrose’s “Rock the Nation,” another bag of cliches carried by an unforgettable superpowered riff. But, in September of 1978, you could have been playing “Prove It All Night” (much better lyrics) - or were you not quite a Bruce convert by then?
Thanks for this note. I was aware of Springsteen in 1978--I remember looking at "Darkness on the Edge of Town" in Sam Goody record store at my local mall -- but hadn't yet become a convert. My taste was a work in progress.
It was only 3 years earlier in August ‘75 that I heard Springsteen for the first time - “Thunder Road” - playing in my freshman dorm hallway at Indiana University. Hey Jim, great to hear back. I’m a teacher as well, a twelfth-grade English class at a large suburban public school near South Bend. I teach six sections each year, and my group is primarily students who have struggled in English or just school in general, with about 25% having IEPs. I use a lot of pop culture elements as entry points into the deeper ideas that we can then talk about, and eventually write about (or draw, or communicate in some way). I use mythology, comics and graphic novels (I teach V for Vendetta each year), stand up comedy, and of course music as bridges to history, art, poetry, and humanity - and hopefully some fun.
Big fan, since “Springsteen and the American Tradition.” My romance with rock ‘n roll continues, and we share a lot of experiences with record-chasing and love of R&R rituals: I was a sophomore in South Bend, IN in 1973, and my go-to that fall was Montrose’s “Rock the Nation,” another bag of cliches carried by an unforgettable superpowered riff. But, in September of 1978, you could have been playing “Prove It All Night” (much better lyrics) - or were you not quite a Bruce convert by then?
Thanks for this note. I was aware of Springsteen in 1978--I remember looking at "Darkness on the Edge of Town" in Sam Goody record store at my local mall -- but hadn't yet become a convert. My taste was a work in progress.
It was only 3 years earlier in August ‘75 that I heard Springsteen for the first time - “Thunder Road” - playing in my freshman dorm hallway at Indiana University. Hey Jim, great to hear back. I’m a teacher as well, a twelfth-grade English class at a large suburban public school near South Bend. I teach six sections each year, and my group is primarily students who have struggled in English or just school in general, with about 25% having IEPs. I use a lot of pop culture elements as entry points into the deeper ideas that we can then talk about, and eventually write about (or draw, or communicate in some way). I use mythology, comics and graphic novels (I teach V for Vendetta each year), stand up comedy, and of course music as bridges to history, art, poetry, and humanity - and hopefully some fun.
Anyway, dig your writings!
Sounds like a full quiver -- pop culture is a great teaching tool. Sounds like you've got a full plate!