Confessions of a Fanboy

It’s Round 2 of the Fanboy Tunnel of Love Big Tent Revival. We’ve covered “Ain’t Got You” in Round 1 and now we move on to “Tougher Than The Rest.” As determined by a pre-revival draft, 11 once again preaches first.

11:
I have a fantasy. No, not the one with Shirley Manson, black thigh-highs and 2 gallons of vanilla ice cream. No, I have a fantasy about this scene:

It’s the Super Bowl, moments before kickoff. The PA announcer takes the mic and says, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the playing of our National Anthem.’

And Max’s drums begin, stately and majestic: Boom. Cha. Boom Cha. Boom. Cha. And so the band falls in line until Bruce intones the first line, ‘Well it’s Saturday night, you’re all dressed up in blue …’

Yes friends, for many years now, I called certain songs by nicknames. ‘Incident on 57th St.’ may be the best song ever written. Therefore, I call it ‘Jesus’ Favorite Song,’ but that’s not to be confused with ‘God’s Favorite Song,’ which is what the mortals call ‘The Promised Land.’ (This psychosis is not limited to Springsteen. I call Oasis’ ‘Columbia’ ‘Our Beloved,’ but that’s another day on Donahue.)

Yes, some songs deserve nicknames, and some have questioned why a song about finding love late in life would qualify as a national anthem. Well, quite simply, ‘Tougher Than The Rest’ is about Americans, not America, and is therefore all the more appropriate. If love is the greatest thing the world has ever seen (See King, B.B.) then how Americans love should at least play a role in an anthem, right? I knew you’d follow me. But that’s lyrically. There’s time for that.

Back to Max’s drums. Particularly live (dig that ‘Chimes of Freedom’ ep version) the drum intro demands that you stand. You cannot sit and listen to those drums. They are subtle kicks in your ass compelling you to get up and do good, at least while the song is playing. The smooth bassline that kind of slips in. Naughty, huh? Nils’ understated, atmospheric guitar sits low in the background. And there’s more but that’s for later.

Now for some lyrics. Bruce slips in all seductive. You’re in a bar. Come on folks, he’s talking to you. You’ve been in this scene. It’s Saturday, it’s late. You’ve got one you’re watching. Just maybe it’s mutual. Now, if you both are there alone, all’s not well, so don’t pretend it is. Is your heart in a mess? Well, mine is too, but I’m game if you are.

This is a love song for a country with a 50 percent divorce rate. Now I am not divorced, and I never will be, but I’ve had my heart broken. Worse, I’ve broken one or two, and if you’ve been on both sides, you know the only feeling worse than having your heart stomped flat is smushing someone else’s.

Guys, we’ve all seen the pretty girl with the sad eyes. She’s been hurt, she’s been lied to, she’s been fucked and left, she’s trusted and then been abandoned. Or maybe they just couldn’t pass the test. Either way, she swears she’s done trying. So why is she all dressed up in blue? Because she ultimately believes, and she’s tougher than the rest.

Bruce is modest here. He’s no handsome Dan, nor good looking Joe. Just a guy who’s willing to give it a whirl if you are.

Bruce would effectively and thoroughly mine this territory on subsequent records and songs, particularly ‘All the Way Home’ and ‘Real World,’ but TOL is Bruce’s first foray into the adult love song, and ‘Tougher Than The Rest’ is most assuredly free of any of the idealism or perfection that usually springs from a good old silly love song. This song is a little older, a lot wiser, and quite cagey. But the optimism is still there, or our slick hero wouldn’t mention the fact that he’d walk that thin, thin line for the sad lady in blue anytime. Of course he would.

There’s a resiliency in this song, too. That the protagonist will not stay down for the count. He refuses to believe that love and life are hopeless, so there he is, after years of fights, bitterness, disappointing and being disappointed, alone in a bar, tracking a lonely beauty in blue. He’s not gonna stay down! He’s tougher than the rest.

Which brings us to the lyrical climax; ‘It ain’t no secret, I’ve been around a time or two/I don’t know baby maybe you’ve been around too/There’s another dance all you’ve got to do is say ‘yes’ …’ With these lines, our hero professes his imperfections and past failures while at the same time embracing those of the lady in blue. No illusions of saving yourself for your virtuous love, just the sense of the here and now. What is done is done. Let’s dance.

And what should the new couple dance to? How about a monumental, dramatic, passionate, heroic harmonica solo? Whew! Seem out of place? Believe me, it’s not. Again, if you’ve ever heard this one live, you know you’ll never hear a louder response for a harmonica solo.

This whole song, the couple has been eying each other. And at the moment when the finally embrace on the dance floor, the harmonica cries out to announce that the couple has ignited a flame of … passion? Surley. Love? I think so.But if that’s too much for you, can we agree that they at least find the HOPE of finding love?

Hmmm. Hope in the face of despair. Giving it another shot. Ain’t that America? And ain’t this the best damn love song you’ve ever heard?

Josh Hathaway

Brother 11 and I discussed this song last night before I’d read his sermon. I’m encouraged by the fact we think very much alike. No, not about Shirley Manson and the vanilla ice cream! Well, okay, not just about Shirley Manson and the vanilla ice cream. I mean about “Tougher Than the Rest.”

I’m not going to petition Congress to make this Our National Anthem, although if it will keep them busy that might not be such a bad idea. I mean about faith and hope. “I’m tougher than the rest” isn’t chest thumping or machismo run amok. This guy’s no handsome Dan or good-looking Joe. He’s a flawed slob just like the rest of us. What sets him apart is that rather than settling for whatever is available — a cheap fuck, a marriage where the love and passion have died, a two-fisted jerkoff to some Cinemax at 2 a.m. — he’s willing to go down in flames. Toughness doesn’t always mean you come out on top, sometimes it means you’re able to take your asswhooping like a man and get back up. He’s tough enough to take the beatdown for love. He’s willing to risk that it will all fall down around him for one more shot at the title, one more chance to find the love that strengthens, frees, and elevates.

Faith, hope, and love, right? You’ve gotta have the faith and hope to feel the love. You’ve gotta have the faith and love to give the love and sustain it. This isn’t our National Anthem. It’s a hymn for our Tunnel of Love Big Tent Revival. It’s our mission statement.

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