In Memory of Tim Russert: an MP3 Playlist of Bruce Springsteen Video Performances

If you try to find any one person in America and ask who is the perfect husband, father, son, boss, employee, political analyst, journalist, author, baseball fan, civic leader, man of faith, friend, and colleague, the only name that would come to mind is Tim Russert. Time Magazine named Tim Russert one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Tim Russert won an Emmy award for his coverage of Ronald Reagan's funeral.

Sadly, Tim's almost tearful friend and colleague, Tom Brokaw, announced the news of Tim Russert's death at 3:40 p.m. on Friday, June 13th. The tragic news of Tim Russert's shocking sudden death ripped our hearts out, as we could not imagine the intense grief that the family and close friends of Tim Russert must be experiencing. How do you cope with losing a person who represented all that is good in our American values system?

Tim Russert loved Bruce Springsteen and it is no wonder why. Both men rose from the streets of blue collar America but never forgot what that means and the pride in the people they grew up around. I am also a huge Bruce Springsteen fan so I thought the best memorial to Tim Russert is to build an MP3 playlist of Bruce Springsteen music video performances from YouTube. (click hear to view the music video Tribute to Tim Russert: Bruce Springsteen Songs)

The Bruce Springsteen MP3 playlist for my memorial to Tim Russert includes these songs:

Paradise- a song about feeling someone after they have passed like the movie, Ghost
My Father's House - a song about respecting where you came from just as Tim did
You're Missing - a beautiful song written after 9/11
The Promised Land - what Tim always thought about Buffalo, NY and America
Born to Run - Unplugged - a beautiful song version that describes Tim's passion for life
I'm On Fire - a Bruce Springsteen classic that represents Tim Russert's career
Roll of the Dice - one never knows how it will all turn out
The Rising - the famous album and hit song after 9/11
Lonesome Day - how the world felt on June 13, 2008
Long Walk Home - Tim Russert: you could not have lived a better life. Thank you for bringing your spirit, passion, and talent into each of our homes.

Almost everything has been said about the value Tim Russert brought to each person's life in both a professional and personal way. Tributes to Tim Russert fill the Internet with stories of how Tim valued his family, his heritage, his work, his town of Buffalo, New York, and his friends. The Washington Post has an excellent in depth look at the extraordinary career and accomplishments of Tim Russert.

We all looked to Tim Russert to help us understand the real meaning of our complex political election system and what the heck all those voting statistics really meant for our favorite political candidate. Everyone will remember the now famous white board showing us Florida, Florida, Florida during the 2000 Presidential Campaign that is now in the Smithsonian. I cannot imagine the 2008 Presidential Campaign coverage without Tim Russert guiding the American public through the truth behind the candidates and possible outcomes of the election.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Tim Russert's family, friends, and the NBC family as they struggle through the mourning of his death. I loved Tim Russert, and as a fan of Meet the Press and NBC News, I will greatly miss him. Rest in peace, Tim Russert.

Source:

Journalist Revitalized Washington Talk Shows, Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/13/AR2008061302423_pf.html