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Costello, Yorn Play Bruce: Tribute album to benefit a pair of charities

Elvis Costello, Pete Yorn, Billy Bragg, Dan Bern and Patty Griffin are among more than thirty artists contributing tracks to a two-CD Bruce Springsteen tribute album that will benefit two charities.

Light of Day: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen, to be released in August, will also feature tracks by Graham Parker, Dion, Marc Broussard, the Clarks, Elliott Murphy, Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers, and E Street band member Nils Lofgren. A version was released this week in Spain, but the stateside album will include at least four additional tracks.

Sal Trepat, who publishes the Spanish Springsteen magazine Point Blank, and Bob Benjamin, organizer of the annual Light of Day fundraising concerts for the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, organized the project. Benjamin, who manages Springsteen's friend Grushecky, learned he had the disease seven years ago. His foundation and the Kristen Ann Carr Fund will split all proceeds from sales of the double disc. Carr, who died ten years ago of sarcoma (a form of cancer), was the daughter of Springsteen's co-manager, Barbara Carr.

Several artists recorded new tracks for the project, while others came from prior sessions. Costello's countrified version of "Brilliant Disguise" is an old B-side; Bragg and the Blokes' "Mansion on the Hill" is an outtake from the 2000 collection Badlands: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen's 'Nebraska'; Yorn's cover of "New York City Serenade" appeared on a limited-edition bonus disc that accompanied his first album, Musicforthemorningafter; and Griffin's "Stolen Car" is from her latest release, 1,000 Kisses.

Grushecky and the Houserockers were among those who made a new recording for the project. "We were kicking around some different songs, you know. Bruce has a lot of good songs to pick from," Grushecky deadpans. But Benjamin urged Grushecky to include "Light of Day," which Grushecky and Springsteen had performed together in the past. The Houserockers had also recorded the song for a previous Springsteen tribute, One Step Up/Two Steps Back, but chose to do a new arrangement for Light of Day. "We did an acoustic boogie version," Grushecky says. "It sounds more like a Rolling Stones Exile on Main Street track. It really swings . . . it's a pretty cool, rockin' little thing."

Cracker contributed a cover of "Sinoloa Cowboys" to the Spanish version of the album, but pulled the song from the U.S. release, because it's featured on the band's next album. But Cracker keyboardist/accordionist Kenny Margolis and lead guitarist Johnny Hickman each contributed tracks under the band names Lucky 7 and Crazysloth, respectively.

Murphy, who has the leadoff track, "Better Days," handed Bruce a copy in Spain, and according to Benjamin, Springsteen liked Murphy's version so much, he invited Elliott to perform it with him at his May 19th show.

"It's been a lot of fun to work on this project," Benjamin says. "It's very easy to get help from people when it's for a good cause."

Light of Day tentative track listing:

Elliott Murphy, "Better Days"
Dion, "Book of Dreams"
Lucky 7, "Valentine's Day"
Dan Bern, "Thunder Road"
Crazysloth, "Candy's Room"
The Mystic Knights of the Sea, "Johnny 99"
Nils Lofgren, "Man at the Top"
Cindy Bullens, "If I Should Fall Behind"
Matthew Ryan, "Something in the Night"
Mike Rimbaud, "Atlantic City"
Sid Griffin, "Highway Patrolman"
Billy Bragg and The Blokes, "Mansion on the Hill"
Joe D'Urso and Stone Caravan, "Badlands"
Steve Wynn, "State Trooper"
Gary Lucas' Gods and Monsters, "Ain't Got You"
Elvis Costello, "Brilliant Disguise"
Pete Yorn, "New York City Serenade"
Graham Parker, "Pink Cadillac"
Garland Jeffreys, "Streets of Philadelphia"
Jason Ringenberg, "My Hometown"
Joe Grushecky, "Light of Day"
Rosie Flores, "Lucky Town"
Willie Nile, "I'm on Fire"
Kirk Kelly, "Downbound Train"
Patty Griffin, "Stolen Car"
Paradise Brothers, "Souls of the Departed"
Mark Wright, "Two Hearts"
Graziano Romani, "The Promise"
The Clarks, track TBA
Joe Ely, track TBA
Marc Broussard, "Back in Your Arms Again"
John Cafferty and the Beaver Brown Band, "E Street Shuffle"

LYNNE MARGOLIS
(May 22, 2003)