The singer Bruce Springsteen thinks has a “messianic complex” | CPT PPP Coverage

A short time after Springsteen began making waves on the scene, though, another band out of Ireland was beginning to lay claim to rock’s throne. U2 would storm onto the scene like seasoned veterans, with Bono going on to make every single show feel like a spiritual exercise, especially when making strides as a religious lyricist on albums like October.

When inducting U2 into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Springsteen would eventually call out Bono’s penchant for relying on Christian imagery in his music, “[He’s a] shaman, shyster, the greatest and most endearing messianic complexes in rock and roll. It takes one to know one. Every Irish frontman knows that before there was James Brown there was Jesus”.

Acting as the mouth of the band, the messianic complex has been one of the tools that has made U2 one of the biggest institutions in rock and roll. Aside from the politics behind some of his decisions, Bono has been able to use his platform to enact real change, whether that’s helping institute Martin Luther King Jr’s birthday as a national holiday in the US or tearing down the preconceived notions of what a rock star is supposed to be when working out his performances as ‘The Fly.’

Even though Springsteen may think that there are some prominent religious overtones to what Bono does, he believes that his power to relate to the audience stands above any preachiness, explaining, “He is gifted with an operatic voice and a beautiful falsetto rare amongst strong rock singers. But most importantly, his is a voice shot through with self-doubt. That’s what makes that big sound work”.

That kind of self-doubt is what brings authenticity to U2’s music. Although it’s easy to pass over a song like ‘Pride (In the Name of Love)’ or ‘With Or Without You’ as generic rock these days, the real power behind Bono’s voice is his ability to sound like the one human element in the mix, keeping the ideals of his faith present in every single word that he says. Although U2 has made more than a few missteps throughout their career, the immaculate tone in Bono’s voice and lyrics is what makes him seem all the more human to listeners.