So Jersey or The Rising Of Asbury Park.....

This is yet another article that was first in my column for The Stall called The Static Page...........

“It takes a leap of faith to get things going. It takes a leap of faith you gotta show some guts. It takes a leap of faith to get things going. In your heart you must trust.” Bruce Springsteen “Leap of Faith” 1992

“We live our life in our own way, Never really listened to what they say, The kind of faith that doesn't fade away, We are the true believers. The Bouncing Souls “True Believers” 2001

Have you ever been to Asbury Park? I don’t mean driving down Main Street on your way to Belmar or Point Pleasant, I mean getting out and experiencing the urban renaissance taking place from Cookman Avenue all the way to the boardwalk.

The vibrant community that exists in newer places like America’s Cup, Twisted Tree, Langosta Lounge has brought and continues to breathe life into iconic landmarks like Convention Hall, The Berkeley Hotel and The Stone Pony. With all the new blood coursing through its veins, Asbury has climbed out of its proverbial grave and is showing off for the entire world to see.

The phoenix-like ascension of Asbury, like the music of Jersey’s unofficial bard, Bruce Springsteen and punk band The Bouncing Souls, is a perfect example of that certain “je ne sais quoi” that embodies the attitude of everyone that calls the great state home.

Asbury , like the vast majority of people who come from this great state, have what Jeff Raspe, the music wizard over at 90.5 The Night, calls “an imaginary chip that we Jerseyans carry on our shoulder.” For a lot of years, Asbury suffered the various indignities that came with being one of the worst places in this state. However, a different-thinking group of people saw the potential for the town as epic and sweeping changes were made to bring Asbury back to the “Glory Days” that Bruce sang about on the classic album “Born in the U.S.A.”

Amylee Sanders, a 19-year-old biology major from Manasquan, sums up the feelings that one gets from listening to Bruce Springsteen, “9/11 was a tragic event, which took a beating on our nation, if not, world, and I remember hearing Bruce played throughout the times of grievance, from the recovery concert to the memorial service for a good friend and die-hard fan. Today, I find myself at Springsteen shows, flailing my arms like those women at Baptist church in the South, because his music flows through my veins and brings me back to the greatest moments of my life. The energy, the passion, the hope. Whatever it is that keeps him kicking, keeps me kicking.”

What Sanders and all of the people who listen to both Bruce and the Souls hear is music that embodies who, what and where they are. The Bouncing Souls, much like Bruce, have been putting out music over two decades that embody that truly free spirit that resonates in the heart of every kid from Jersey.

The Souls are huge fans on Bruce’s and on their album “The Gold Record,” they wrote a song called “So Jersey” that’s probably the best Bruce song Bruce Springsteen never wrote. The song’s lyrics truly encapsulate everything that embodies the essence of being Jersey: “Stepping out of Asbury Lanes in a midnight snow, the skeleton of this old town feels like it's coming alive. Riots and corruption, beaches and Bruce, these songs were the keys to the engines of our growing up. And we wanna say thanks to the music in our lives. Forgive ourselves for all those lies. Send some love to all the lonely. Don't forget we're all one family. Thanks to the music in our lives for helping us to survive. Lost in one lonely dream, born to run and live free.”

Now, if that doesn’t sum up the fighting, care-free spirit that engulfs Asbury, and Jersey as a whole, I don’t know what does.