The Ghost of Tom Joad

Bruce Springsteen | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 21, 1995)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000002BFL
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MiniDisc  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (117 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #95,380 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Bruce Springsteen followed his muse on this haunting 1995 release. Perhaps that's why it barely made a dent in the marketplace, even while it thrilled the faithful who were willing to take another dark, Nebraska-like journey with him. It's abundantly clear that Springsteen had been soaking himself in the work of John Steinbeck and Woody Guthrie during the writing of The Ghost of Tom Joad, but their combined influence is found on more than just the title track. It's all over these windblown songs (including the haunting "Dry Lightning" and "the seminal "Youngstown") and their hard-scrabble protagonists. Not the Boss's biggest record, but certainly one of his best. --Michael Ruby

Product Description

CD

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A stark, dark brooding masterpiece September 23, 2002

By Bill R. Moore

Format:Audio CD

If there were any justice in this world, this album would've sold the 11 million copies that Born In The U.S.A. did, due in no small part to its widely misunderstood title track. Alas, as Springsteen proposes on this album, there is no justice. While Springsteen's best-known and best-selling music may always remain his early songs filled with cars, girls, and the dreams of youth, and while that may be the image that most people have of the man, this album is undoubtedly the work of a mature genius. Not since the early Bob Dylan records has the seamy underbelly of the American life been explored so thoroughly and heart-breakingly in popular song. Influenced, obviously, by John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath (actually, the movie adaptation, as one sees in the linear notes) as well as other literary and news items focusing on immigrants, the working class, and the downtrodden - as well as drawing upon previous songsters who have explored this territory, such as Dylan and Woody Guthrie - The Ghost of Tom Joad is a set of story songs, done in the heart-breaking and plaintive way that only Springsteen could do them. The stories are mosly set in California, often near the Mexican border, and involve the deeds of illegal aliens and other working class heroes involved in America's secret economy. Musically, this album is bleak and involved mainly Springsteen alone on acoustic guitar and occasionally punctuated with harmonica, as on his Nebraska album; however, a few songs feature other players, including some intriguingly subtle keyboard work that fits the mood so well you hardly know it's there. Springsteen sings these songs in the slurring drawl that they deserve, paying little heed to pitch or meter, and they can be hard to understand at times. This album doesn't make for easy listening. One cannot play this as background music, driving music, or at a party like one can many of The Boss's records with The E Street Band: this is definitely an album that you must devote your full attention to. It is one of the few records that truly deserves to be listened to when you're alone at night in your room with the lights off. Be prepared to cry, be prepared to feel your heart ache - be prepared to be moved. One of the true masterpieces of American rock music, and a criminally overlooked record which I hope some day will receive the praise it is due.

44 of 49 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Springsteen writes stories of and for the rest of us... December 17, 2002

By A. Ort

Format:Audio CD

I've listened to Springsteen only since Born in the USA (funny how many people miss the point behind that song...) but have since grown to appreciate him as another troubador for the rest of us.

I live in Youngstown, the town in the song on the album by the same name. It is a working class town devastated by the exit of the steel mills in the 70s and 80s, much like Springsteen sings about his hometown on Born in the USA. He sings it because he knows it. And it shows. He may not know Youngstown but he's pretty darn close to the reality of many living here.

He played here on his acoustic tour in support of this album (sadly, I din't have the connections to get tickets; ironically, the 'common man' doesn't really count when it comes to Springsteen tickets). Stranger yet (similar to Born in the USA being used as a political campaign song), radio stations here played it with pride! Guess they didn't listen to the lyrics.

Anyhow, Springsteen is a voice crying out in the wilderness of America, speaking for those whose voices are rarely heard and, if they are, they are generally heard as part of some political agenda or other. He gives voice to the homeless, to migrant workers, to released convicts trying to keep straight and to a whole host of other characters who really make up the American landscape.

It sounds stark only if you haven't been paying attention to what is going on beneath the surface in this country. While it is not overly joyous, there are moments of beauty and poetry to be found, even in the midst of this apparent bleakness. Springsteen, as always, captivates and tells stories that put you there; you can see, hear and even taste the characters he is singing about.

While there are more instruments present here than in Nebraska, it is still relatively bare and buoys the lyrics quite nicely.

On an aside, this album finds its roots in the book called Journey to Nowhere: The Sage of the New Underclass by Dale Maharidge (sadly, currently out of print) which begins in Youngstown and traverses the road and the rails to Texas. If you've read the book, you'll find the inspiration behind this album. Both are gripping and excellent.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An underappreciated masterpiece December 31, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Audio CD

It's remarkable how closed minded many pop music fans can be. When Dylan went electric, many in his audience castigated him. When Springsteen goes folk, many fans revolt (see below). Musicians, however, are creative people who must seek out new ground if they are to mature as artists, and continue to be relevant. In Tom Joad, Springsteen tones the music down, and sings serious lyrics. The result, for anyone open minded enough to really listen to a sparse, folk-influenced record, is brilliant. These songs, moreoever, are not depressing -- as frequently charged below -- but life affirming. They tell the story of the indomnitable human spirit which continues to thrive even in the face of harsh cirmcumstances. Springsteen wants us to see the human face of those who we might otherwise ignore: the homeless, the unemployed, the foreigners, and the illegal aliens. He wants to contemplate their plights. He wants us to see that they are flesh and blood, just like us, whose fates are very much tied to ours in ways we may not even perceive. This album is not a call for depression, but an appeal to our generous spirit. You can choose to ignore this record because it does not meet your expectations of what Springsteen should be doing, or you can embrace it because it defies expectations and demonstrates that Springsteen is willing to risk his popular appeal for the purposes of remaining in control of his music.