Springsteen's New "Magic"

The Boss slips in to save the day just when we couldn't take it anymore with a never-ending war on terror, fast food, SUVs, Intelligent Design and the Religious Wrong unknowingly crammed down society's collective throat while Britney, K-Fed, Rosie, Paris, Whoopi, Ann Coulter and other "biotches" and idiots suck up the headlines. Bruce Springsteen's new CD Magic is proof positive why we still need him. Finally there is someone who is willing to stand up and say, "What the f _ ck?" Well, the Boss doesn't exactly sing that on his new masterpiece, but then again, an American legend like this doesn't have to. After all, Bruce is the ultimate artist who uses words to inspire political and cultural change instead of bullets.

Magic starts off like a fierce kicking donkey with ADD on "Radio Nowhere." With its fist-pumping tempo and begging chorus, "I just wanna hear some rhythm," Bruce evokes tinges of Howard Beale from the 1976 film "Network," who once screamed, "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore!" Bruce wonders if there is anyone out there because he cannot believe the sanitized, "corporatized" state of his own business and the world.

"Last to Die" captures today's complex questions with, "Who'll be the last to die for a mistake/ Whose blood will spill, whose heart will break." One doesn't need to watch the news, read the paper or history books, because the Boss says it all right here. The last four-plus years of fighting, politics and emotions are tied up in this rich, warm tune that is long overdue.

Magic has its lighter moments with "Girls in Their Summer Clothes." A kinder, gentler Bruce breezes through this track that conjures up memories of pulling the top down on the convertible while cranking up the speakers on the Delco 8-track. The follow up cut, "I'll Work for Your Love" pulls out the best of Bruce and the band, but it is "Livin' in the Future" that has a serious strut that leaves a deep impression on the listener.

Sure, others have chosen the title, "Magic" for their singles including Pilot in the 1970s and more recently, Ben Folds. But it is the Boss' take on the word that will forever endure. His signature slow version is deep and soothing here -- like 1984's "I'm on Fire."

The ghost of early Bruce is woven throughout the CD in tracks like, "Long Walk Home" and "Gypsy Biker." All of this is evidence that even though the world has changed dramatically since the days of "Darkness on the Edge of Town", "The River" and "Born in the USA," Bruce and the E Street Band have retained that "Jersey Wall of Sound" that has been pumped into the America's collective consiousness for the past three decades.

Just like every project that came before this one, the Boss has created another classic CD ready-made for his long, massive stadium shows. With "Producer Extraordinaire" Brendan O'Brien at the helm, Magic carries on Springsteen's legacy.