The album that opened up Bruce Springsteen for Tom Morello
Tom Morello is one of the finest guitarists of his generation, and his efforts to create music that delivers a clear message whilst still packing an aural punch have been game-changing. Morello is an incredibly unique musician with a style so unmistakable that whether it be in Rage Against the Machine or as a guest on other people’s records, his efforts are instinctively noticeable in what is the clearest testament to his skill.
Undoubtedly, however, Morello is best known for his work with rap-rock heavyweights Rage Against the Machine. A fan of the Telecaster and DigiTech Whammy, in many ways, he is the band’s driving force. Without his pounding, blues-based licks, frontman Zack de la Rocha would not have had the strong ballast on which to wake us up with his visceral political messaging.
Taking cues from the likes of The Clash and Public Enemy, Rage Against the Machine backed their unwavering political doctrine up with rousing music. With their self-titled 1992 debut album more vital than it was 30 years ago, its impact indicates just how ahead of their time the Los Angeles group were when they broke through. Together, they put heart back into rock music, and it is something that we should never forget. Duly, each of the band’s respective members is regarded as a genuine punk idol, more than earning their place in rock lore.
An unwavering creative, Morello has continued to shine outside of this format with a multitude of acts, such as the supergroups Audioslave and Prophets of Rage. However, one of his most high-profile endeavours arrived when he took up the role as the touring guitarist for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which might seem surprising.
Nevertheless, Morello playing for Springsteen makes a lot of sense, as ‘The Boss’ also ranks among the most authentic musicians in contemporary music. His politically charged anthems remain some of the most significant in the American canon of rock, invariably sticking up for the little guy in an ever-changing world.
To tour as part of Bruce Springsteen’s band requires a musician to be a fan of his work, and as Morello revealed when speaking to Pitchfork that he was 30 when he first properly delved into the extensive back catalogue of the ‘Born to Run’ singer. The acclaimed 1982 record Nebraska showed him the true power of New Jersey’s favourite son.
The guitarist explained: “I came to folk music late. The Nebraska record is the one that I discovered first. I saw Bruce play on an Amnesty International TV special. I knew the song ‘Born in the U.S.A.,’ but he just wasn’t in my world. But when I saw that concert, I was weeping in my living room. I’m like, “There might be more to this than I originally gave it credit for.” So I bought the Nebraska cassette and couldn’t believe it: It felt like it was written by someone who had endured the same town that I grew up in.”
Adding: “It wouldn’t be until years later that I would begin my own singer-songwriter career, but the seeds were certainly planted with Nebraska and Bob Dylan’s The Times They Are a-Changin’. The first line of any song I ever wrote in my acoustic guise as the Nightwatchman was, ‘You don’t have to be loud, son, to be heavy as shit.’ And that was the message that I got from both of those records”.
