Some Songs Considered

“Bobby Jean” – Portastatic 
(Words/music: Bruce Springsteen, available on Autumn Was a Lark EP, Merge 2003)

Many of my favorite Bruce Springsteen songs make the world seem small.  This is strange given that his music fills stadiums on a regular basis, but many of his songs, particularly his “character” songs, feel like close up scenes that tightly frame the characters in the middle of a feature film.  Springsteen brings his characters to life with the right balance of detail and mystery, filling in the picture enough to get to know them while still leaving enough room for our imaginations to sketch in the rest.  Even on the Born in the U.S.A. album, when Springsteen’s music swelled to match the arenas he traversed, he never lost his fondness nor his respect for the characters who inhabited his songs.  It just was hard to find the intimacy at first when the drums boomed at a level appropriate for tens of thousands.

Mac MacCaughan’s take on “Bobby Jean” moved this intimacy right to the forefront.  Armed only with his acoustic guitar and a voice considerably thinner than Springsteen’s, MacCaughan’s version puts the focus onto the frayed relationship in the song.  This version amplifies the resignation in the narrator’s story, particularly in the “good luck, good bye” lyric near the end.  Where Springsteen sounds like he’s projecting the story out for us to watch on the screen, MacCaughan’s take puts the emphasis on the narrator.  While we may not know much about Bobby Jean, we know that the narrator’s sad to see her walk out of his life. 

More on Portastatic: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm

“Through with People” – Portastatic
(Words/music: Mac McCaughan, available on Bright Ideas, Merge 2005)

A few days ago, I wondered about the “burden of creativity,” or rather, when the need for self-expression becomes a duty rather than a privilege.  I’m not sure Mac McCaughan has ever felt this burden, as he has put out records (both his own and other people’s, but let’s focus on his own) fairly consistently for the last twenty years. If anything, McCaughan might need to decide how to put out a song – save it for Superchunk, or put it out under his Portastatic moniker.  I’m sure that he’s answered the question, and I’d imagine that the answer gives some difference between what makes a “Superchunk song” and what makes a “Portastatic song.”  Still, I’d love to ask McCaughan this question in order to learn more about his songwriting process.  If I ever get the chance to meet him (perhaps if I make it down to the Merge XX anniversary), this would be my first question for him.

While most of the early Portastatic albums were alternate settings for McCaughan’s songs outside of Superchunk’s buzzsaw pop, some of the later albums blur the lines between his flagship group and his “solo” work.  In particular, “Through with People” from 2005’s Bright Ideas seems like it could have been a Superchunk song.  It has all of the key elements – a catchy melody, McCaughan’s wry lyrics, and an upbeat tempo (even if the Portastatic recording would be a bit slow for Superchunk).  Aside from the tempo being turned up (only slightly), I imagine a Superchunk interpretation would be very similar.  If anything, it might have a bit more punch (especially if John Wurster was behind the drums) than this version.  That’s not to say this version doesn’t work – it’s an excellent song, and even if I hear it a bit faster in my head, the tempo gives the arrangement enough room to work behind McCaughan.  In particular, I love the way it shifts seamlessly from one part of the song to the next, even without a traditional “chorus” section.  Since it had been about four years since Superchunk put out a record (and now, eight years later, they’re only getting around to a new EP), I can’t help but wonder if “Through With People” and a few of the more uptempo songs on Bright Ideas became Portastatic sounds out of default.  It’s one of my favorite Portastatic songs and one of my favorite recent McCaughan compositions (and I also love Barbara Manning’s faithful cover on the covers disc in Merge’s SCORE! anniversary series), but every time I hear those muted power chords in the middle of the verse, a small part of me wonders what it might sound like played in the same setlist as “Precision Auto.”

More on Portastatic: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm