Things I found out through hard times and good

52 days to go...

When I heard news of a new Springsteen album coming soon, my hopes were for commentary on our current political climate -- perhaps in the same vein as "Magic," which effectively captured the mood and psyche of America during the George W Bush years. Or....how "Nebraska" took stock of the Reagan years.

Well, the first single "Letter to You," while pleasant, is significantly underwhelming. It sounds like E Street, vocals are fairly strong and there's nothing offensive about it.

But it's lyrically weak, and honestly, Springsteen can write a song like this in his sleep.

That's the bad news. 

Here's the good news: it's only the first song we've heard from the new album, which will release Oct. 23 - only 10 days before the election. But with some of the material written 40-45 years ago, my expectations are somewhat muted.

But like the election, high hopes remain.