LISTENING IN – THE REAL CADILLAC RANCH: And Springsteen’s boss classic

By Michael Baginski/ Bruce Springsteen’s “Cadillac Ranch” (1980) wasn’t a radio hit, but the upbeat rocker quickly became a beloved song in the Boss’s repertoire and a concert staple. But who knew it was based on a real place?

Located in Amarillo, Texas (which I visited recently), the Cadillac Ranch is an outdoor art installation that has been attracting visitors since 1974 to what is now a giant flat agricultural field about 15 minutes west of the city on I-40.

Created by the art group Ant Farm and sponsored by local benefactor, Stanley Marsh (later shunned amid accusations of moral indiscretions), the massive installation features 10 buried caddys in a row, nose down at the same angle as the great pyramids of Giza.

Today, the free site (it’s literally in a farmer’s field on the side of a highway with no human structures around) attracts large crowds each day, who come to leave their mark by spray painting graffiti on the cars to post a personal mark in time – at least until the next person comes along and paints over it.

When I was there, a team of young Canadian cowgirls, competing in the local rodeo, painted and posed with a Canadian flag (photo above).

No need to pack the paint, visitors can easily pick up a couple of cans at a nearby Home Depot, or later in the day from a small truck that arrives to sell cans and merch.

For his part, Springsteen saw the installation as a metaphor for his song’s darker theme; that the once elite cars were now entirely expendable. Not unlike the cars,  Springsteen’s song has continued to be covered by others, not least the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, adding to the many pop culture references across literature, TV and film (such as in the animated Pixar film “Cars”), and in music, from James Brown to the Sex Pistols.

But don’t this miss this amazing performance: it recalls the Boss at his best!