Wake Up With Springsteen’s ‘The Rising’

I heard somewhere that Bruce Springsteen has said “The Rising” is not specifically about the FDNY first responders who laid down their lives on 9/11. I choose to ignore that. Maybe he just doesn’t want The song to be politicized or used as an anthem or something. Because how can it be about anything else?

It’s all there in the lyrics. The call to duty. The courage. The sacrifice. The dying thoughts of the wives and children left behind and then, an ascent into an afterlife. To me, it’ll never not be about those 343 souls. And I listen to it repeatedly this time of year the way I do certain religious hymns in December. To commemorate this day on the calendar. It was the first piece of truly great art to come out of 9/11 and remains one of Springsteen’s enduring classics. Never forget.