From The Vault: The Call

Let the Day Begin

Let the day begin indeed. Photo by author.

Good Morning!

Today we’re listening to “Let the Day Begin” by The Call

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Bruce Springsteen’s “Born in the USA” lyrics are often greatly misunderstood. People mistake the chorus and the anthem music as a hagiography of the working man and the idealized America that we’re sold in car commercials.

It never rains in those ads, and nothing bad ever happens. But The Boss was actually writing about the side Madison Avenue never lets us see. The part that doesn’t get mentioned in history class. The story that doesn’t end so well.

It’s pouring in that one.

At the risk of making the same mistake, “Let The Day Begin” by The Call should take that spot on people’s playlists. It’s a love letter to the working class and those who handle the (often) gritty business of keeping society moving. It’s the song I think most people like to assume Born in the USA is.

In lead singer Michael Been’s world, people haven’t yet run into the socioeconomic walls Springsteen is railing against. In this universe, it’s all about mom, apple pie, and baseball (the Brewers, probably).

And every sunrise represents not just the start of your shift but the promise of a new day. A chance to make things just a little bit better. Not just for you & yours, but for everyone.

Here’s to the teachers in the crowded rooms
Here’s to the workers in the fields
Here’s to the preachers of the sacred words
Here’s to the drivers at the wheel

Been squeezes in a shout-out to just about everyone he can. He raises a glass to them while ensuring we know they’re doin' the lord’s work.

But it’s a big tent, and he also makes room for the losers in the game and the lonely everywhere. To people we love, and people we’ve lost.

Here’s to the winners of the human race
Here’s to the losers in the game
Here’s to the soldiers of the bitter war
Here’s to the wall that bears their names

Missing from the list? The elite. No mention of CEOs, bankers, or other C-Suite denizens.

The Call does well to meld anthemic chords and hymnal lyrics with the idea of American Exceptionalism. Simple Minds lead singer Jim Kerr summed it up nicely, describing the song as “like a gospel for the working man.”

Kerr's on to something here. I think the reason this song resonated with so many is that it taps into one of the fundamental underpinnings America is built on; the faith that each day might just be a little bit better than yesterday as long as we’re willing to roll up our sleeves and get our hands dirty.

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More:

If there is one more route into the 90’s, it leads inward. That’s the Call’s unswerving direction. After a single play of their new album, “Let The Day Begin”, you understand immediately and intimately why peter Gabriel called them “The future of American music”. The Call’s music is not retrograde or nostalgic, but it does hearken heavily to the indwelling mysteries that Dylan and the Band and Van Morrison also heard. “The Call is a band for people who feel things extremely,” says Michael Been, the group’s songwriter. “We’re not for people who are extremely cool, for whom cool is the ultimate expression.”

Click here to read more about the record, reviews, etc.

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Listen:

“Let the Day Begin” by The Call | Let the Day Begin, 1989

Click the record to listen on the platform of your choice.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this track!

Thanks for being here,

Kevin—

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An earlier version of this article first appeared here.