Jackson Browne Brings Quiet Strength to “Some Bridges” in an Intimate Live From Home Performance
In 2020, at a moment when the world felt uncertain and physically disconnected, Jackson Browne offered a performance that felt both deeply personal and quietly unifying. His rendition of “Some Bridges”, recorded Live From Home for the Steel Bridge Songfest, stands as a reminder of Browne’s enduring ability to speak to collective experience through introspection rather than spectacle.
The performance was created for the 2020 Steel Bridge Songfest, an annual gathering that has, since 2005, brought together songwriters from across the United States and around the world. Founded to support the preservation of Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin’s historic Michigan Street Bridge, the festival is rooted in the idea that music can serve both artistic and civic purpose. At its heart is the Construction Zone, a collaborative songwriting and recording process that culminates in performances celebrating new music, creative community, and place.
Within this context, Browne’s “Some Bridges” feels perfectly chosen. The song reflects on distance, connection, and the emotional spans we attempt to cross in our lives. Performed from home, without a live audience, its message carries added weight. The absence of a crowd does not diminish the performance. Instead, it sharpens its intimacy.
Musically, the arrangement is understated yet elegant. Greg Leisz adds a lyrical pedal steel presence that gently frames the song, never overpowering its reflective core. Bob Glaub’s bass anchors the performance with warmth and restraint, while Mauricio Lewak’s drumming remains subtle and supportive, allowing the song’s emotional arc to unfold naturally. Browne’s vocal delivery is calm, measured, and honest, marked by the kind of phrasing that comes only from years of lived experience.
The production, recorded, filmed, and mixed by Kevin Smith, enhances this sense of closeness. The sound is clean but organic, preserving the human textures of the performance rather than polishing them away. It feels less like a broadcast and more like a private moment shared generously.
“Some Bridges” has always been a song about the connections we manage to keep and those we fail to sustain. In this 2020 performance, it becomes something more. It is a reflection of its time, a quiet acknowledgment of separation, and a gentle act of reaching out. For longtime fans of Jackson Browne, this performance reaffirms why his music continues to matter. It listens as much as it speaks, and in doing so, it builds its own bridge to the listener.