There aren’t many musicians who have the luxury of taking ten years to complete an album. Much less still wind up with a job on the biggest tour in recent history, the reunion tour of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
However, Little Steven Van Zandt manages to do just such a phenomenon.
Best known for his work with Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes and Bruce Springsteen, especially for his mandolin solo in the “Glory Days” video, Van Zandt has been able to make a name for himself as a composer and a solo artist.
Following up 1995’s single “The Time of Your Life,” from the Nine Months soundtrack, Born Again Savage marks Little Steven’s fifth album, his first since 1989’s unsuccessful Revolution.
Much like his previous albums, Born Again Savage carries with it a strong political message. According to Little Steven (from the album’s liner notes), “this is the fifth and last of the political albums.”
Musically, this is a superb rock album. Recorded with a trio consisting of Adam Clayton (of U2) on bass and Jason Bonham on drums, it doesn’t appear as though it could get music better.
In a way, the listener is painted a bleak picture of reality. “When the churches feel like graveyards so solemn and so cold/Those who blaspheme passively have already lost their souls.”
The song “Salvation” has a Rolling Stones/Black Crowes edge that pulls listeners in. “I was born a sinner, I was born in sin/I was born with an alibi for the trouble I’ve been.”
In the end, Born Again Savage is a hard album with a hard message.
Grade: B+
-Todd DeFeo
