Springsteen’s ‘Nebraska’ Like You’ve Never Heard It Before

Aoife O’Donovan

When Bruce Springsteen’s sixth album, Nebraska, came out in 1982, it was a shocking reminder just how profound the singer-songwriter could be. Originally intended as raw demo recordings for the E Street Band, Bruce ultimately decided to put it out as is. The stark reality of the title song, sung in the first-person by spree killer Charles Starkweather, who took his 14-year old girlfriend along for the thrill of killing 11 people in Nebraska and Wyoming, was a jarring indictment of the depths to which we humans can sink.

The songs lend themselves to interpretation. In 2000, a various-artists tribute—Badlands—proved that as Chrissie Hynde, Hank Williams III, Los Lobos, Ani DeFranco, Son Volt, Ben Harper, Aimee Mann, Johnny Cash and others lent their talents in service to these songs.

Now comes Aoife O’Donovan Plays Nebraska (Yep Rock Music Group) in which the Brooklyn songstress digs deep inside these lyrics to ferret out even more meaning…this time from a feminine perspective. Her voice cradles the songs in a softer ambiance without sacrificing drama or profundity. O’Donovan has been nominated for Grammy Awards five times, winning in 2020 for her band I’m With Her and their song “Call My Name” in the “Best American Roots Song” category.

O’Donovan, 40, originally from Boston, says of Bruce’s original Nebraska, that she “came back to the record as a collection of very finely crafted stories. It was this concept album in a way that was just so natural, it was so unforced. Springsteen found these characters and sort of placed them. It’s almost like the American Songbook or something. I just love the record:  from the opening moments to the final cut, `Reason To Believe,’ it has this beautiful arc. It’s almost novelistic in that way.”

Aoife O’Donova | Official Website

Mike Greenblatt

MIKE GREENBLATT has been writing for Goldmine magazine and New Jersey's Aquarian Weekly for more than 35 years. His writing subjects fill the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He's interviewed Joe Cocker, Graham Nash, David Crosby, Carlos Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash, and members of The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. He was 18 when he attended Woodstock in 1969.

In addition to writing about music, Greenblatt has worked on publicity campaigns for The Animals, Pat Benatar, Johnny Winter, Tommy James and Richard Branson, among others. He is currently the editor of The Jersey Sound.

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