Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain has criticised Bruce Springsteen, calling him "an annoying, bitter old man" and suggesting he "should shut up" about politics. The comments, made on The Complete Disaster Network podcast, come amid ongoing tension between musicians who mix political commentary with their art and those, like Cain, who prefer to keep the two separate.

Cain, who is releasing a patriotic song titled 'The Winds Of Freedom: A Salute To America' for the country's 250th anniversary, said he tries to keep politics out of his music and criticised celebrities including Robert De Niro for speaking out politically. He also took aim at Springsteen's 'Born In The USA', calling it "a diss to our country", and named himself and Kid Rock as rare conservative voices in music. The remarks follow Springsteen's recent PBS special in which he championed "critical patriotism" and discussed his new protest song 'Streets Of Minneapolis', written in response to an ICE incident in Minneapolis.