Went on a little solo adventure the other day to see the new Springsteen biopic, and it made me want to dust off my Boss tapes and plop them into the stereo of my truck. I’ve been going back to watch old concerts he’s done over the years, and I happened upon his Kennedy Center Honoree concert. During that concert, the one and only Sting covered “The Rising” for the attendees.
To be honest, I didn’t recognize the song at all, but Sting’s laidback vibes and voice doing a Springsteen song? My curiosity got the better of me, so I sat back and took it in. I was pleasantly surprised to say the least, more so by the performance than the song itself, but without the song, Sting would just be standing on stage with Bruce, the Obamas, and Mel Brooks just staring down at him from the balcony seats. Also, it’s always fun to see which hodgepodge of honorees are included each year, because I’m always jarred when I see them all seated together. Like, what did the Boss and Mel Brooks talk about? I bet it was a fun conversation.
I digress. “The Rising” is the title track from the Boss’s 2002 album of the same name. It makes sense that I’d never heard of it, as I’m more of a Nebraska, Born in the USA, Born to Run fellow, but after hearing it, I will probably go back and listen to the album while I’m driving around or walking around town with my hands in my pockets.
The song was written in the wake of September 11th, 2001, when everyone was feeling extra patriotic. My parents had window-mounted American flags on all their cars for the couple of years after the attack, as did everyone else. It was a dark time, but a time where Americans came together to heal, for the most part at least. There was a lot of war and Islamophobia going on as well, but that’s nothing really new for the good ol’ US of A.
I digress. The core of “The Rising” is its moving story of an NYC firefighter climbing the stairs of the World Trade Center on 9/11. Springsteen’s storytelling shines here: the song honors sacrifice while turning tragedy into an emotionally powerful musical experience. If you listen and read the lyrics, you’ll see how Bruce weaves hope and beauty into even the heaviest stories.
The song was critically acclaimed, being hailed as the 35th best song of the decade by Rolling Stone, earning Springsteen 2 Grammys out of 3 nominations, and was performed after Barack Obama gave his presidential victory speech in 2008.
The next year, 2009, Sting would perform it beautifully at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony. The song takes on a bit more of a melancholy feel as Sting starts the first lines, “Can’t see nothing in front of me, can’t see nothing coming up behind…” Accompanied by a sparse piano melody, Sting’s smooth yet raspy vocal delivery evokes a contemplative emotional response in the listener. In the video, we see the Obamas sitting with eyes closed, taking in these first lines.
As I watched it today, I reflected on that era and what it felt like to be in the wake of such a massive national tragedy. The fear, mourning, and trauma the nation endured in those years feel palpable as you listen to this first verse.
A single spotlight on Sting as he makes his way through the first verse and chorus, with a slowly building momentum. As the second verse kicks in, the entire stage and band are lit up, and the song is plowing ahead full force. We had our moments of sad reflection; now it’s time to come together to celebrate the life of the firefighter in the story.
The energy is uplifting as we make our way into the second chorus, where a false wall at the back of the stage rises to reveal an entire choir backing up Sting for the second half of the song. This is where I realized I was hooked on the song and performance, as I’m an absolute sucker for a choir accompaniment. They all sing the “La La La” bridge together and paint the entire room with the feeling of togetherness, or that we are all one being for a few short moments. A relation found through a shared experience and song.
By the end, everyone’s on their feet in full uproar, cheering and applauding. It was truly a masterful performance of a song by a master songwriter. Watching Sting and Bruce gesture their appreciation to each other—one from the balcony, one from the stage—was an emotional sight. For an interesting comparison, five years later, Bruce paid tribute to Sting at the 2014 Kennedy Center Honors by covering “I Hung My Head.” It’s the perfect Sting song for the Boss, and seeing Sting light up when Bruce takes the stage is guaranteed to put a smile on your face.