Bruce Springsteen

Ever since Janet Jackson’s infamous “wardrobe malfunction” five years ago, the Superbowl halftime show has played it safe, replacing young unpredictable rockers with the tried-and-true—wrinkles and all. From Paul McCartney to the Stones, Prince to Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, geezers have been belting out 20-, 30-, even 40-year-old tunes to eager football fans. This year’s headliner, Bruce Springsteen, while clearly past his prime, doesn’t have to rely just on old, familiar hits; he is still producing quality new material. His latest album, “Working on a Dream,” may not be his finest, but The Boss has proven, yet again, that at least this old-timer can still rock.

“Working on a Dream,” like Springsteen’s other albums, features songs about the triumphs and downfalls of the low, the poor, the nobodies. Given the country’s current economic upheaval and political change, these songs seem more relevant than ever. The title song, “Working on a Dream,” is uplifting and embodies the spirit of optimism that is prevalent throughout the album. Springsteen sings, “Though it can feel so far away / I’m working on a dream / And our love will make it real someday.”

Throughout the album, Springsteen largely alternates between getting his rock on and slowing down for a softer feel. Like on Springsteen’s previous album “Magic,” the E Street Band is much more prevalent and fleshes out the songs, giving them an epic quality, like on the dark and eight-minute long opener “Outlaw Pete,” a harrowing western tale about a man unable to escape his past.

While their presence is well felt, one thing noticeably absent is Clarence “Big Man” Clemens, whose sax can only be heard at the end of the track “This Life.” This appearance disappoints and fails to even come within striking distance of previous work like that on “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out.”

On Springsteen’s softer songs, he continues to tap into the aesthetic of the common American, glorifying the love of everyday people in sympathetic and warmingly familiar terms. This shines through as he sings about a man in love with a supermarket worker in “Queen of the Supermarket.” This song, in collusion with a number of similarly heartfelt tracks on the album, smacks of classic Boss, poeticizing the seemingly banal and imbuing moments of tenderness into otherwise unnoteworthy situations.

Surprisingly, Springsteen’s crowning achievement on the album appears as a bonus track. “The Wrestler,” which is featured at the end of the movie of the same name, paints a hauntingly beautiful picture of a broken man. Throughout the song, Springsteen claims he’s many depressing figures, including “a one armed man punching at nothing but the breeze” and that his only “faith is in the broken bones and bruises I display.” The song is deeply moving, even more so in the context of the film; that it failed to get nominated for an Oscar is an incomprehensible crime.

The Boss will be turning 60 this year, but he still knows how to make a great album. “Working on a Dream” is meaningful, powerful, and thoroughly enjoyable. While he may not be producing the music he used to, no one should have been disappointed that the Boss threw in one of his new songs at the halftime show.

—Staff writer Edward F. Coleman can be reached at efcolem@fas.harvard.edu.