The Official Bruce Springsteen Website

Lyrics

Mary Queen of Arkansas, it's not too early for dreamin'
The sky is grown with cloud seed sown and a bastard's love can be redeeming
Mary, my queen, your soft hulk is reviving
No, you're not too late to desecrate, the servants are just rising
Well I'm just a lonely acrobat, the live wire is my trade
I've been a shine boy for your acid brat and a wharf rat of your state
Mary, my queen, your blows for freedom are missing
You're not man enough for me to hate or woman enough for kissing

The big top is for dreamers, we can take the circus all the way to the border
And the gallows wait for martyrs whose papers are in order
But I was not born to live to die and you were not born for queenin'
It's not too late to infiltrate, the servants are just leavin'

Mary queen of Arkansas, your white skin is deceivin'
You wake and wait to lie in bait and you almost got me believin'
But on your bed Mary I can see the shadow of a noose
I don't understand how you can hold me so tight and love me so damn loose

But I know a place where we can go Mary
Where I can get a good job and start all over again clean
I got contacts deep in Mexico where the servants have been seen

Also Appears On

• Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.

Lyrics

I had skin like leather and the diamond-hard look of a cobra
I was born blue and weathered but I burst just like a supernova
I could walk like Brando right into the sun
Then dance just like a Casanova
With my blackjack and jacket and hair slicked sweet
Silver star studs on my duds like a Harley in heat
When I strut down the street I could hear its heartbeat
The sisters fell back and said "Don't that man look pretty"
The cripple on the corner cried out "Nickels for your pity"
Them gasoline boys downtown sure talk gritty
It's so hard to be a saint in the city

I was the king of the alley, mama, I could talk some trash
I was the prince of the paupers crowned downtown at the beggar's bash
I was the pimp's main prophet I kept everything cool
Just a backstreet gambler with the luck to lose
And when the heat came down it was left on the ground
The devil appeared like Jesus through the steam in the street
Showin' me a hand I knew even the cops couldn't beat
I felt his hot breath on my neck as I dove into the heat
It's so hard to be a saint when you're just a boy out on the street

And the sages of the subway sit just like the living dead
As the tracks clack out the rhythm their eyes fixed straight ahead
They ride the line of balance and hold on by just a thread
But it's too hot in these tunnels you can get hit up by the heat
You get up to get out at your next stop but they push you back down in your seat
Your heart starts beatin' faster as you struggle to your feet
Then you're outa that hole and back up on the street

And them South Side sisters sure look pretty
The cripple on the corner cries out "Nickels for your pity"
And them downtown boys sure talk gritty
It's so hard to be a saint in the city

Also Appears On

• Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.
• Live 1975–85
• Hammersmith Odeon, London ’75

Lyrics

I stood stone-like at midnight suspended in my masquerade
I combed my hair till it was just right and commanded the night brigade
I was open to pain and crossed by the rain and I walked on a crooked crutch
I strolled all alone through a fallout zone and came out with my soul untouched
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd but when they said "Sit down" I stood up.
Ooh-ooh growin' up

The flag of piracy flew from my mast, my sails were set wing to wing
I had a jukebox graduate for first mate, she couldn't sail but she sure could sing,
I pushed B-52 and bombed 'em with the blues with my gear set stubborn on standing
I broke all the rules, strafed my old high school, never once gave thought to landing,
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd but when they said "Come down" I threw up
Ooh-ooh growin' up

I took month-long vacations in the stratosphere and you know it's really hard to hold your breath.
I swear I lost everything I ever loved or feared, I was the cosmic kid in full costume dress
Well, my feet they finally took root in the earth but I got me a nice little place in the stars
And I swear I found the key to the universe in the engine of an old parked car
I hid in the mother breast of the crowd but when they said "Pull down" I pulled up
Ooh-ooh growin' up. Ooh-ooh growin' up

Also Appears On

• Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.
• Live 1975–85
• In Concert - MTV Plugged Film
• 18 Tracks
• Live in Dublin
• Live in Dublin Film

Lyrics

Hey bus driver keep the change, bless your children, give them names,
don't trust men who walk with canes
drink this and you'll grow wings on your feet
Broadway Mary, Joan Fontaine, advertiser on a downtown train
Christmas crier bustin' cane, he's in love again.

Where dock worker's dreams mix with panther's schemes to someday own the rodeo
Tainted women in Vistavision perform for out-of-state kids at the late show.

Wizard imps and sweat sock pimps, interstellar mongrel nymphs
Rex said that lady left him limp. Love's like that (sure it is).
Queen of diamonds, ace of spades, newly discovered lovers of the everglades
They take out a full page ad in the trades to announce their arrival
And Mary Lou she found out how to cope, she rides to heaven on a gyroscope
The Daily News asks her for the dope
She says "Man, the dope's that there's still hope".

Senorita, Spanish rose, wipes her eyes and blows her nose
Uptown in Harlem she throw a rose to some lucky, young matador.

Also Appears On

• Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.

Lyrics

Bishop danced with a thumbscrew woman
Did a double-quick back flip and slid across the floor
The Catholic traffic flowed freely 'cross the river
And fiddlestick fiddled quick out the front door
Oh baby dumpling, mama's in the back tree
If the bow breaks mama might fall
Little sad and only, baby don't be lonely
Mama knows 'rithmatic, knows how to take a fall
Mama knows 'rithmatic, knows how to take a fall

CHORUS
And the kids are crying "Flapjacks, make'em fat, early in the mornin'
Little Jack, grab your hat, hear the breakfast call
Muskrat, bat a cat, kick him in the fireplace
There's someone in the kitchen blowing "Dinah" on their horn
There's someone in the kitchen blowing "Dinah" like they're born

Well maverick daddy got one-eyed bridge
She glides like a monkey-mule kicking on the back slide
Over hill, over hill, daddy don't you spill now
Papa got a switch stick, he's pumping little Bill
Papa got a switch stick, he's pumping little Bill
And Billy, he's crying "Tomahawk, tomahawk, daddy better duck now"
The Mohawks, the Mohawks, they're still out there in the woods
Monatuk, Ocanuk, runnin' through my dreams now
With fire on their fingertips and indian screams
With fire on their fingertips and feathers made of moonbeams

Well early in the morning the cannoneer cried
"I seen the sailor's warning in the western sky"
Well mountain man, if you can, cut me down a fir tree
Branches full of candlesticks for baby and me
And my darling cried, she said "Honey, the weathervane
lately it's been pointing the way to heaven
Scatterbrains, scatterbrains, watch out where you fall
Champagne, champagne, a round for all the old choir boys
They're busting off the altar chasing Dinah through the hall
They're bustin' off the altar chasing Dinah through the hall

CHORUS

Lyrics

From the tin rooftop the little boy did watch
The procession down through town
Through the museum where Daniel whupped the Devil
With them boys from the underground
Where the Giants of Science fight for tight control
Over the wildlands of New Mexico
Sam Houston's ghost's in Texas fighting for his soul
And the townsfolk rest uneasy beneath the guns of Kid Cole
And the kid says: "Hey, where's Santa Ana
He who could romance the dumb into talking
Take a chance with me tonight, my contessa,
If it don't work out I ain't lame, I can walk"
Now some folks think cancer's taken to the streets of this town
But Sandy eats her candy and then lays her money down
Them cats are in from the canyons to strut their stuff in town
But there's only secret sinners here
Lord, there's only secret thieves
Only a fool would try to save
What the desert chose to leave
And hey there se¡èorita,
With your playboys in their Spanish bandanas
French cream won't soften those boots, baby
French kisses will not break your heart

Oh painted night set free with light
Glows outside the Rainbow Saloon
Matching braces with a Spanish lady
'Neath a graduation moon
No more colleges, no more coronations
Some punk's idea of a teenage nation
Has forced Santa Ana to change his station
From soldier to cartoon
And the Giants of Science spend their days and nights
Not with wives, not with lovers, but searchin' for the lights
They spotted in the desert on their helicopter flights
Just to be lost in the dust and the night
Hey my Contessa, in your juke joint rags you always bring candy for the kids
Come waltz with me tonight se¡èorita
'Cause only fools are alone on a night like this

Lyrics

Well Billy bought a Chevy '40 coupe deluxe
Chrome wheels, stick shift, give her gas, pop the clutch
Girls on the corner like a diamond they shine
Someday Billy I'm gonna make 'em all mine
Hey girl, you wanna ride in Daddy's Cadillac?
'Cause I love the way your long hair falls down your back
Bo Diddley, Bo Diddley's at the Seaside Bar
We'll run barefoot in the sand, listen to his guitar
You say your mama's gonna meet you when the morning comes
And your papa's gonna beat you 'cause he knows you're out on the run
I'm gonna live a life of love and tonight you're the one
The highway is alive tonight so baby do not be frightened
There's something about a pretty girl on a sweet summer night
That gets this boy excited
The radio man finally understands and plays you something you can move to
You lay back, cut loose your drive power
Your girl leans over and says, "Daddy, can you turn that radio up any louder?"
The juke joint's hummin', everybody came down
Little Willie and his Soul Brooms laying all this stuff now
Well don't let that daylight steal your soul
Get in your wheels and roll, roll, roll, roll, roll, roll, roll
Oh that's all right now
Oh go on, go on, go on
Oh mama's gonna meet you when the morning comes
And your daddy's gonna beat you 'cause he knows you're out on the run
But I don't care, I wanna live a life of love while the night's still young

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

The Skulls met the Pythons
Down at the First Street station
Alliances have been made in alleyways
All across the nation
These boys live off the milk of a silver jet
And the love of sweet young women
Now the Pythons are down from old Englishtown
And they're looking to do some livin'
Well the leader of the Pythons
Is a kid they just call Zero
Now Terry's pop says these kids are some kind of monsters
But Terry says "No, pop, they're just plain heroes"

Zero and Terry they found a love that burnes like wildfire
Now Terry's daddy understood that this Zero was no good
A child, a thief and a liar
Well from out of the darkness that breaks the dawn
Zero rode like twilight
He said "Tonight's the night, Blind Terry, come on"
Terry come on, tonight is the night
Pack your bags, baby

And together they ran like reindeers through the street
Like tomorrow the earth was gonna catch on fire
Now Terry's dad hired some troopers to kill Zero and bring Terry back home
They crawled up in the night
Like firelight

Now snow-white troopers from the council of crime
Rode silver foxes through Terry's field
Oh they met the Pythons down on Route 9 but they refused to yield
The Pythons fought with buzz guns
And the troopers with swords like light
And Zero and Terry they ran away
And the gang fought all through the night

Well now some folks say Zero and Terry got away
Other said they were caught and brought back
But still young pilgrims to this day
Go to that spot way down by the railroad track
Where the Troopers met the Pythons
Old timers cry on a hot August night
If you look hard enough, if you try
You'll catch Zero and Terry and all the Pythons

Oh just hiking them streets of the sky
Just walkin', hiking the streets of the sky
Just hiking the streets of the sky
Hey Zero

Lyrics

Her brains they rattle and her bones they shake
Whoah, she's an angel from the Innerlake

Thundercrack, baby's back
This time she'll tell me how she really feels
Bring me down to her lightning shack
You can watch my partner reelin'

CHORUS
She moves up, she moves back
Out on the floor there just is no one cleaner
She does this thing she calls the "Jump back Jack"
She's got the heart of a ballerina

She's straight from the Bronx
Hung off the line
She slips, she slides, she slops, she bops, she bumps, she grinds
Even them dance hall hacks
From the west side of the tracks
Move in close to catch her timin'

CHORUS

She ain't no little girl, she ain't got no curls
Her hair ain't brown, and her eyes ain't either
Round and round and round and round

My heart's wood, she's a carpenter
She's an angel in the night, what she does is alright
Dance with me, partner, dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner, 'til the dawn

Thundercrack, baby's back
This time she'll tell me how she really feels
Bring me down to her lightning shack
You can watch my partner reelin'
CHORUS

She ain't no little girl, she ain't got no curls
Her hair ain't brown, and her eyes ain't either
Round and round and round and round

My heart's wood, she's a carpenter
She's an angel in the night, what she does is alright
Dance with me, partner, dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner, all night

Lyrics

I had a dream our love would last forever
I had a dream tonight my dream comes true
And if you'll hold me tight
We'll be riders, girl, on the night
Ooh, I want a rendezvous

Haven't I told you, girl, how much I like you
I got a feeling that you like me too
well if you hold me tight
We'll be riders, girl, on the night
Ooh, I want a rendezvous

You deserve so much more than this, girl
Well I'm riding on the power and livin' on the promise in your last kiss
Because I had a dream our love would last forever
I had a dream tonight my dream comes true
And if you'll hold me tight
We'll be riders, girl, on the night
Ooh, ooh, rendezvous
I want a rendezvous
I want a rendezvous

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks
• The Promise
• The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story

Lyrics

I ain't lookin' for just excitement
Baby that's just a fact
If you want to get to her heart
You better let her know just where you're at

CHORUS
It ain't written in the sky above
No fortune-teller told me this
You gotta tell her that you love her
Tell her that you need her
And give the girl a great big kiss
Give the girl a great big kiss

Now if you're such a fool you think
It don't matter, baby, what you say
maybe you better tell her how you're feelin'
It ain't gonna happen any other way

CHORUS

Now baby all I wanna do
Is darlin' make sweet love to you

Now I don't know what the meanin' is
Why you wanna hide the things you feel and say
But baby it's just a natural fact
Love was never meant to be that way

CHORUS

Now baby all I wanna do
Is darlin' make sweet love to you

Lyrics

Sleepy town ain't got the guts to budge
Baby, this emptiness has already been judged
I wanna go out tonight, I wanna find out what I got

You're a strange part of me, you're a preacher's girl
And I don't want no piece of this mechanical world
Got my arms open wide and my blood is running hot

We'll take the midnight road right to the devil's door
And even the white angels of Eden with their flamin' swords
Won't be able to stop us from hitting town in this dirty old Ford

Well it don't take no nerve when you got nothing to guard
I got tombstones in my eyes and I'm running real hard
My baby was a lover and the world just blew her away

Once they tried to steal my heart, beat it right outta my head
But baby they didn't know that I was born dead
I am the iceman, fighting for the right to live
I say better than the glory roads of heaven better off riding
Hellbound in the dirt, better than the bright lines of the freeway
Better than the shadows of your daddy's church
Better than the waiting, baby better off is the search

Lyrics

I lie in bed but baby I can't sleep no matter how hard I try
There's something bad, baby, wrong with me whenever I close my eyes
The dreams of Mary keep me awake with every little curve in place
When I walk home in the daybreak I pray come back home, baby, won't you give me
Darlin' bring on the night, oh yeah darlin', bring on the night
Oh now darlin', bring on the night

I walk the street, I'm lookin' for romance
I end up stumblin' in some stupid half-trance
As I watch the lovers mix with circumstance
We watch the disco dancers dance

I look for connection in some new eyes
But for protection they're tranquilized
Forbidding close inspection of who's tellin' who
Forbidding close inspection of who's tellin' who lies

Bring on the night, oh yeah darlin', bring on the night
Oh now darlin', bring on the night

Is it as simple as it seems
I don't know what I'm doin' here, is it as simple as it seems
Is it as simple as I fear, well if I'm right...

I look for connection in some new eyes
But for protection they're tranquilized
Forbidding close inspection of who's tellin' who
Forbidding close inspection of who's tellin' who
Baby of who's tellin' who lies

Bring on the night, oh yeah darlin', bring on the night
Oh now darlin', bring on the night, oh now darlin', bring on the night
Come on darlin', bring on the night
Oh now darlin' bring on the night

Lyrics

There's flying angels on your fire escape
They lie to your mama for you, try to keep you safe
You're with them fire alley virgins on a midnight vamp
Lost your heart on Main Street to a beautiful tramp
You lost your mind
She's sent from above
You're so young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love

Rat traps filles with soul crusaders
They're soppin' 'n' boppin' 'n' moppin' with Little Melvin and the Invaders
Missy's on the dance floor doin' her stuff
Leroy's dancin' doin' the continental strut
Sent from above
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love

Everybody's reelin' when the band hits the ceilin'
Don't you know you wanna go
The kids start rockin' when the boys start knockin'
And everybody wants to go
Let's go!

Joint's shut down but you don't wanna go home
You're in the shady side of town and you're all alone
Papa's chewin' your ear off 'bout hangin' out with trash
So fine, sent from above
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love
So young and in love

Lyrics

You stare in the mirror at the lines in your face
And you try to see, girl
The way things were when we were at your place
In the days it was just you and me, girl
And you cry because things ain't like before
Well don't you know they can't be that way anymore
But don't worry baby

CHORUS

I can't talk now, I'm not alone
So put your ear close to the phone
'Cause this is the last dance
This is the last chance for hearts of stone

If there was something, baby, that I could do
Something that would last, honey, I would
But we all know, girl, especially you do
How you can't return to your past, no
So girl close your eyes and I'll be there
Hold me once more and we can go anywhere
Ah, we could

CHORUS

And you cry because things ain't like before
Well don't you know they can't be like that anymore
Well I know it, baby

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

Cold rain running down the front of my shirt
I'm flat on my back wheels in the dirt
Angel makes her face up out on Baker Street
She's straddling the shifter in my front seat
There's nothing to lose, it's a heartbreak
The deck's stacked
So put your foot to the floor and darling don't look back

We're making night tracks through the blazing rain
Blowin' pistons, workin' the fast lane
Red line burnin', pocket's full of cash
Angel writes her name in lipstick on my dash
There's nothing to lose
It's a bad break but baby we're backed
Tonight we'll blow off the doors and honey we won't look back
We held it in our hearts in the pourin' rain
We made it through the heart of a hurricane
We tore it apart and put it together again

Well angel, won't you believe in love for me
C'mon and meet me tonight, darling, out in the street
We'll move with the city in the dark
You got to walk, it talk, it in your heart
There's nothin' to lose it's a heartache
The deck's stacked
So put your foot to the floor, darling
Tonight we'll blow off the doors, baby
We're gonna even the score
And honey we won't look back

Also Appears On

• Live in New York City
• Live in New York City (DVD)

Lyrics

Once we ran and lived as one
In another world, my little one
Where whispering trees and dark rivers run
I told a dream to you
Now outside the streets are gray
And the childhood games we played
Have faded away

CHORUS

My baby, she has restless nights
(She has restless nights)
My baby, she has restless nights

On late-night movie screens
Young lovers look so sure
Lost in wide-wake dreams
That they can't afford
Once I held you in my arms
On a bed of stone
Now we have grown

CHORUS

Once we ran and lived as one
In different world, my little one
Where whispering trees and dark rivers run
I told a dream to you
Now I pray, darling, for the night
We'll dance down these darkened halls
Once again to fall
Into a dream

CHORUS

Lyrics

It's cloudy out in Pittsburgh
It's raining in Saigon
Snow's fallin' all across the Michigan line
Well she sits by the lights of the Christmas tree
With the radio softly on
Thinkin' how a good man is so hard to find

Well once she had a fella
Once she was somebody's girl
And she gave all she had that one last time
Now there's a little girl asleep in the back room
She's gonna have to tell about the meanness in this world
And how a good man is so hard to find

Well there's pictures on the table by her bed
him in his dress greens and her in her wedding white
She remembers how the world was the day he left
And nw how that world is dead
And a good man is so hard to find

She got time now for Casanovas
Yeah those days are gone
She don't want that anymore, she's made up het minde
just somebody told her
As the nights get on
When a good man is so hard to find

Well she shuts off the TV
And without a word
Into bed she climbs
Well she thinks how it was all so wasted
And how expendable their dreams all were
When a good man was so hard to find
Well it's cloudy out in Pittsburgh

Lyrics

We left the toys out in the yard
I took my wife and kids and left my home unguarded
We packed what we could into the car
No one here knows how it started
Suddenly everything was just so out of control
Now I want some answers, mister, I need to know
I hear all the talk but I don't know what you're sayin'
But I think I got a good idea of the game that you're playin'

Roulette, that's the name
Roulette, that's the game now
Roulette, I don't know what they're sayin'
Roulette, everybody's playin'

I grew up here on this street
Where nothin' moves, just a strange breeze
In a town full of worthless memories
There's a shadow in my backyard
I've got a house full of things that I can't touch
Well all those things won't do me much good now
I was a fireman out at Riker's, I did my job
Mister, I've been cheated, I feel like I've been robbed
I'm the big expendable, my life's just canceled null and void
Well what you gonna do about your new boy

Roulette, you're playin' with my life
Roulette, with my kids and my wife
Roulette, every day the stakes get bigger
Roulette, a different finger on the trigger

Down by the river that talks
The night speaks in searchlights
And shortwave radios squawk
The police patrol the streets
But I've left behind the man I used to be
Everything he believed and all that belonged to me
I tried to find my way out to somewhere where I thought it'd be safe
They stopped me at the roadblock they put up on the interstate
They put me in detention but I broke loose and then I ran
They said they want to ask me a few questions but I think they had other plans
Now I don't know who to trust and I don't know what I can believe
They say they want to help me but with the stuff they keep on sayin'
I think those guys just wanna keep on playin'

Roulette, with my life
Roulette, with my kids and my wife
Roulette, the bullet's in the chamber
Roulette, who's the unlucky stranger
Roulette, surprise, you're dead
Roulette, the gun's to your head
Roulette, the bullet's spinning in the chamber
Roulette, pull the trigger, feel the click
No further danger

Lyrics

Well ever since you were a little girl
You set the rules in your little world
But girls grow up and throw their toys away
You're a big girl now but you still wanna play
(Girl we're living)
You dress them up the way you want to
(Girl we're living)
You make them do just what you want them to
(Girl we're living)
Once I thought we had a love that was true
But I'm just another doll in your dollhouse to you
We're living in a dollhouse
We're living in a dollhouse
Girl we're living in a dollhouse
You may feel safe and sound
But your dollhouse, girl, is falling down

It's all been neatly arranged in your mind
Every detail fits your own design
Every room is perfectly in place
But I can see the sadness, baby, on your face
You had a plan and darling like a child
You thought it's down to fashion, down to style
But your little dreamhouse is runnin' wild
Before your very eyes we're shrinking down to size
We're living in a dollhouse
We're living in a dollhouse
Girl we're living in a dollhouse
You may feel safe and sound
But your dollhouse, girl, is falling down

Everything's as you dreamed it would be
But there's something wrong that you can't see
Room by room you keep looking for some little flaw
A crack somewhere in your dollhouse wall
Something, girl, that will explain away
The hurt you feel, darling, when we play

Your little dolls they got grip on you
Until you're just another doll in your dollhouse too
We're living in a dollhouse
Girl, we're living in a dollhouse
Oh we're living in a dollhouse
We may feel safe and sound
But our dollhouse, girl, is falling down
Oh we're living in a dollhouse
Girl, we're living in a dollhouse
Yeah we're living in a dollhouse

Lyrics

I hear the guitars ringin' out
Ringin' out down Union Street
I hear the lead singer shoutin' out, girl
I wanna be a slave to the beat
Yeah, tonight I wanna break my chains
Somebody break my heart
Somebody shake my brains
Downtown there's something that I wanna hear
There's a sound, little girl, keeps ringing in my ear

CHORUS
I wanna be where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are
Where the bands are
I wanna be where the bands are

I get off from work and I grab something to eat
I turn the corner and I drive down your street
Little gray houses darling looks like nowhere
But hey I know you're hiding in there
Come on out for just a little while
You know that heart of stone, girl, it just ain't your style
Tonight I wanna feel the beat of the crowd
And when I tell you that I love you
I wanna have to shout it out loud
Shout it out loud

CHORUS

I hear the guitars ringin' out again
Ringin' on down Union Street
I hear the lead singer shoutin' out girl
I wanna be a slave to the beat
And I want something that'll break my chains
Something to break my heart
Something to shake my brains
There's a rocker's special on tonight
So meet me on down
'Neath the neon lights

CHORUS

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

We met out on open streets when we had no place to go
I remember how my heart beat when you said I love you so
Then little by little we choked out all the life that our love could hold
Oh no

CHORUS
It's like we had a noose and baby without check
We pulled until it grew tighter around our necks
Each one waiting for the other, darlin', to say when
Well baby you can meet me tonight on the loose end

We didn't count tomorrows, we took what we could and baby we ran
There was no time for sorrow, every place we went I held your hand
And when the night closed in I was sure your kisses told me all I had to know
But oh no

CHORUS

Our love has fallen around us like we said it never could
We saw it happen to all the others but to us it never would
Well how could something so bad, darling, come from something that was so good
I don't know

CHORUS

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

Early North Jersey industrial skyline
I'm an all-set cobra jet creepin' through the night time
Gotta find a gas station, gotta find a pay phone
This turnpike sure is spooky at night when you're all alone
I'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get my girl on the line
Livin' on the edge of the world
But I think it's just a waste of my time
Some jerk keeps breaking my connection, girl
'Cause I'm living on the edge of the world

Radio, radio, hear my tale of heartbreak
New Jersey in the morning like a lunar landscape
Got a counter girl at the Exit 24 HoJo
Down past teh refinery towers where the great black river flows
OI'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get a message through
I gotta make a connection, girl
Because I'm living on the edge of the world
Living on the edge of the world

Radio's jammed with gospel stations
Lost souls callin' long distance salvation
Hey mister deejay gotta hear my last prayer
It's a hey ho rock and roll, deliver me from nowhere
I'm living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get back to you, girl
Living on the edge of the world
Tryin' to get a message through
I gotta make some connection, girl
Because I'm living on the edge of the world
Living on the edge of the world

Now my boss don't dig me 'cause he put me on the night shift
It takes me two hours to get back to where my baby lives
In the wee wee hours my mind gets hazy
Relay towers, won't you lead me to my baby
'Neath the overpass the trooper hits his party lights switch

Good night, good luck, one, two powershift

Lyrics

When we fight and I wanna talk it out
You won't say nothing, nothing at all
You just sit there, you won't open that pretty mouth
I think you like keeping my back up against the wall
Wages of sin, you keep me paying
Wages of sin for wrongs that I've done
Wages of sin, you keep me paying
Wages of sin, one by one

I walk in the apartment, there's clothes thrown all over the place
You're crouched in the corner with makeup running down your face
I don't wanna believe what my heart keeps saying
You keep me on the line so you can keep me paying
Wages of sin, we keep paying
Wages of sin for the wrongs that we've done
Wages of sin, we keep paying
Wages of sin, that's how we have our fun

I remember when I was a little boy out where the cottonwoods grow tall
Trying to make it home through the forest before the darkness falls
Baby all the sounds I heard, even if they weren't real
I was running down that broken path with the devil snapping at my heels
I tried so hard, so hard in every way
Swore someday I'd grow up, just throw it all away
Cried all the tears, baby, that I could cry
Stomached all my fears 'til they came rushin' up inside
darlin' I'm losin' and it's a mean game
Still I play on just the same
Wages of sin, I keep paying
Wages of sin for some wrong that I've done
Wages of sin, well I keep paying
Wages of sin, one by one

Lyrics

Last night I dreamed we was running through the outlands
Tears streaming, your pretty face all a wreck
(I held your daddy's gun in my tremblin' hands
And down the highway another stranger comes
You gotta take 'em baby when they come.

Little girl put on your best dress
'Cause we're goin' out on the town tonight
(Better bring along your switchblades)
'Cause for sure some fool's gonna wanna fight
You've got to take 'em baby as they come

CHORUS

You gotta take 'em, take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em baby as they come

God save the rider in the black night
Save the man who taught that it was right
To do what they have done
To become what we have become
You gotta take 'em when they come
Little girl, gone are the days
Faded away into a clear blue night
And all the vows that we made
Lie shattered and broken in the morning light;
You gotta take 'em when they come

CHORUS

I know your heart is breaking
I can feel it too
Though my finger on the trigger's shakin'
Here I swear to you
If I could take all your sorrow so that you'd never cry, girl, or be blue
(Come tomorrow)
That's what I'd do for you, pretty one
I swear I'll take 'em baby when they come

CHORUS

Lyrics

Your scrapbook's filled with pictures of all your leading men
Well baby don't put my picture in there with them
Don't make us some little girl's dream that can't ever come true
That only serves to hurt and make you cry like you do
Well baby don't do it to me and I won't do it to you

You see all the romantic movies, you dream and take the boys home
But when the action fades you're left all alone
You deserve better than this, little girl, can't you see that you do
Do you need somebody to prove it to you?
Well you prove it to me and I'll prove it to you

Now every night you go out looking for true love's satisfaction
But in the morning you end up settling for just lights, camera, action

And another cameo role with some bit player you're befriending
You're gonna go broken-hearted looking for that happy ending
Well girl you're gonna end up just another lonely ticket sold
Cryin' alone in the theater as the credits roll
You say I'll be like those other guys
Who filled your head with pretty lies
And dreams that can never come true
Well baby you be true to me
And I'll be true to you

Also Appears On

• Chimes of Freedom

Lyrics

Well look out mama, your little girl she has changed
She cut her baby curls and she's got her act rearranged
Well look out daddy, what she needs now she can't find at home
Oh Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own

Mama says her little girl won't talk to her anymore
She just goes in her room, turns on the radio, and shuts the door
She's got her own bathroom, TV, stereo, extension phone
Oh but Mama, Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own

Well daddy says when he drops her off Friday night at the gym
She slides way down in the front seat so the kids won't see her with him
She don't do no work, she won't tell nobody when she's coming home
She makes poor daddy wait down on the corner at midnight all alone

She used to like me to take her to a ball game or a movie show
She used to make daddy take his little girl where she wanna go
Now we're left peeking through the curtains every time that we hear a horn blow
I guess Ricky wants a man of her own

Well my folks say "Son, talk to her, she'll listen to you"
Yeah, she listens real nice and she does what she wants to do
Daddy says she wears her jeans so tight, "Well you change 'em or you're stayin' home"
Oh but daddy, Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own
She's almost grown
Ricky wants a man of her
She wants a man of her
Ricky wants a man of her own

Lyrics

Let the frozen cities crumble, crumble and fall
That's alright, I don't mind at all
Let 'em all tumble right into the sea
Well that's just fine, that's alright with me
Since you came down the line
I can't sleep at night, I got one thing on my mind
That's every day, every night
I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you, that's what I wanna do
'Cause you're just so out of sight
I wanna be with you, that's what I wanna do
Now I lost my job at the Texaco station
'Cause instead of pumping gas I'd dream of you
I got thrown out of my house, I got such a bad reputation
'Cause all I wanna do is be seen with you
They gave me my pay and said walk
I don't care what they say, go ahead and let 'em all talk

'Til the world falls apart
I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you
That's what I wanna do
Until they will rip out my heart
I wanna be with you, I wanna be with you
Well that's all I wanna do

Hold tight, love me just a little bit
Alright, a little bit more
Tonight, tonight give me just a little kiss
No I don't know, I don't know, I don't
I just can't understand it, you're not pretty at all
But I come when you whisper, I run when you call
When I see you on the street I fall on my face
I drop to my knees, I plead my case
Oh, oh I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you, that's what I wanna do
Oh, oh I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you, that's all I wanna do
Oh, oh I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you, darlin', don't you know
Oh, oh I wanna be with you
I wanna be with you because I love you so

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

You're scrapbook's filled with pictures of all your leading men
Well baby don't put my picture in there with them
Don't make us some little girl's dream that can never come true
Oh baby don't do it to me I won't do it to you
Mary Lou, I'm not like all those other guys
Mary Lou, I won't fill your pretty head with their pretty lies
Mary Lou, and dreams that never, never, never ever will come true
Mary Lou, that'd only serve to hurt and make you cry like you do
You've seen all the romantic movies, you dream and take the boys home
But when the action fades you're left all alone
You deserve more than this, a real love that can grow
And I ain't playin' outtakes, girl, from some late late show, no
Mary Lou, you're not like all those others girls
Mary Lou, so afraid to shake up that real world

Every night you go out looking for true love's satisfaction
But you allways end up setting for just lights, camera, action
And another cameo role with some bit player you're befriending
You're gonna go broken-hearted looking for that happy ending
Mary Lou, I've seen all those movies too
Mary Lou, I know the hurt too much dreaming can do
Mary Lou, you're gonna end up just another lonely ticket sold
Mary Lou, crying alone in the theatre as the credits roll
Let's go

Lyrics

I met a little girl and I settled down
In a little house out on the edge of town
We got married, and swore we'd never part
Then little by little we drifted from each other's heart

At first I thought it was just restlessness
That would fade as time went by and our love grew deep
In the end it was something more I guess
That tore us apart and made us weep

And I'm driving a stolen car
Down on Eldridge Avenue
Each night I wait to get caught
But I never do

She asked if I remembered the letters I wrote
When our love was young and bold
She said last night she read those letters
And they made her feel one hundred years old

And I'm driving a stolen car
On a pitch black night
And I'm telling myself I'm gonna be alright
But I ride by night and I travel in fear
That in this darkness I will disappear

Also Appears On

• The River

Lyrics

Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
You end up like a dog that's been beat too much
Till you spend half your life just covering up

Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.

Got in a little hometown jam
So they put a rifle in my hand
Sent me off to a foreign land
To go and kill the yellow man

Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.

Come back home to the refinery
Hiring man says "Son if it was up to me"
Went down to see my V.A. man
He said "Son, don't you understand"

I had a brother at Khe Sahn fighting off the Viet Cong
They're still there, he's all gone

He had a woman he loved in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms now

Down in the shadow of the penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I'm ten years burning down the road
Nowhere to run ain't got nowhere to go

Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a long gone Daddy in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a cool rocking Daddy in the U.S.A.

Also Appears On

• Born in the U.S.A.
• Live 1975–85
• Greatest Hits (1995)
• 18 Tracks
• Live in New York City
• Live in New York City (DVD)
• The Essential Bruce Springsteen
• Live in Barcelona
• Greatest Hits (2009)
• MusiCares Person Of The Year: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen

Lyrics

She drew out all her money from the Southern Trust
And put her little boy on a Greyhound Bus
Leaving Memphis with a guitar in his hand
On a one-way ticket to the promised land
Hey little girl with the red dress on
There's party tonight down in Memphis down
I'll be going down there if you need a ride
The man on the radio says Elvis Presley's died

We drove down into Memphis, the sky was hard and black
Up over the ridge came a white Cadillac
They'd drawn out all his money and they laid him in the back
A woman cried from the roadside "Ah he's gone, he's gone"
They found him slumped up against the drain
With a whole lot of trouble running through his veins
Bye-bye Johnny
Johnny bye-bye
You didn't have to die
You didn't have to die

Lyrics

The runway rushed up at him as he felt the wheels touch down
He stood out on the blacktop and took a taxi into town
He got out down on Main Street and went into a local bar
He bought a drink and found a seat in a corner off the dark
Well she called up her mama to make sure the kids were out of the house
She checked herself out in the dining room mirror
And undid an extra button on her blouse
He felt her lying next to him, the clock said 4:00 am
He was staring at the ceiling
He couldn't move his hands

CHORUS
Oh mama mama mama come quick
I've got the shakes and I'm gonna be sick
Throw your arms around me in the cold dark night
Hey now mama don't shut out the light
Don't you shut out the light
Don't you shut out the light
Don't you shut out the light
Don't you shut out the light

Well on his porch they stretched a banner that said "Johnny Welcome Home"
Bobby pulled his Ford out of the garage and they polished up the chrome
His mama said "Johnny oh Johnny, I'm so glad to have you back with me"
His pa said he was sure they'd give him his job back down at the factory

CHORUS

Well deep in a dark forest, a forest filled with rain
Beyond a stretch of Maryland pines there's a river without a name
In the cold black water Johnson Lineir stands
He stares across the lights of the city and dreams of where he's been

CHORUS

Lyrics

Cynthia, when you come walkin' by you're an inspiring sight
Cynthia, you don't smile or say hi but baby that's alright
'Cause I don't need to hold you or taste your kiss
I just like knowin', Cynthia, you exist
in a world like this

Cynthia, when you pass it seems like this whole town drops
Cynthia, or maybe it's just me, baby, and these fools stuck here punchin' this clock
Well you give us a reason to stop just for a while
Stop, stand and salute your style

Well now you ain't the finest thing I'll never have
And when you go the hurt you leave, baby, it ain't so bad
There ain't a man in this whole town who'd say you ain't fine
You hear them guys talkin', tell me baby do you mind
Well you make us happy, honey, when we feel sad
To see something so good in a world gone bad
There's still Cynthia

Cynthia, no one knows your number, no one knows where you live
Cynthia, I wonder do you understand this strange thing you give
Well baby is it your style, the mystery in your smile
Or just how cool you walk in a world gone wild
Tell me if you will, Cynthia

Well I gotta be pretty naÜve to believe in you
I know you ain't ever gonna be my dream come true
That's alright, I got other dreams as good as you, Cynthia
Yeah now baby, now this ain't no come-on
Just walk on, Cynthia, walk on
You make me holler, yeah, yeah, alright
I said yeah, yeah, alright
Well she's a yeah, yeah, alright
I said yeah, yeah, alright

Lyrics

At night I go to bed but I just can't sleep
I got something running around my head
That just won't keep
In the silence I hear my heart beating, time slippin' away
I got a time bomb ticking deep inside of me
I gotta tell you what I wanna say
I keep searching for you, darling
Searching everywhere I go
And when I find you there's gonna be
Just one thing that you gotta know
My love will not let you down
My love will not let you down

At night I walk the streets looking for romance
But I always end up stumbling in a half-trance
I search for connection in some new eyes
But they're hard for protection from too many dreams passed by
I see you standing across the room watching me without a sound
Well I'm gonna push my way through that crowd, I'm gonna tear all your walls down
Tear all your walls down
My love will not let you down
My love will not let you down

Well hold still now darling, hold still for God's sake
'Cause I got me a promise I ain't afraid to make
My love will not let you down
My love will not let you down

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks
• Live in New York City
• Live in New York City (DVD)

Lyrics

Hey there mister can you tell me
What happened to the seeds I've sown
Can you give me a reason, sir, as to why they've never grown
They've just blown around from town to town
Back out on these fields
Where they fall from my hand
Back into the dirt of this hard land

Well me and my sister
From Germantown we did ride
We made our bed, sir
From the rock on the mountainside
We been blowin' around from town to town
Lookin' for a place to stand
Where the sun burst through the clouds and fall like a circle
A circle of fire down on this hard land

Now even the rain it don't come 'round
Don't come 'round here no more
And the only sound at night's the wind
Slammin' the back porch door
Yeah it stirs you up like it wants to blow you down
Twistin' and churnin' up the sand
Leavin' all them scarecrows lyin' facedown
In the dirt of this hard land

From a building up on the hill
I can hear a tape deck blastin' "Home on the Range"
I can hear them Bar-M choppers
Sweepin' low across the plains
It's me and you, Frank, we're lookin' for lost cattle
Our hooves twistin' and churnin' up the sand
We're ridin' in the whirlwind searchin' for lost treasure
Way down south of the Rio Grande
We're ridin' 'cross that river in the moonlight
Up onto the banks of this hard land

Hey, Frank, won't you pack your bags
And meet me tonight down at Liberty Hall
Just one kiss from you, my brother
And we'll ride until we fall
Well sleep in the fields
We'll sleep by the rivers
And in the morning we'll make a plan
Well if you can't make it stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive if you can
And meet me in a dream of this hard land

Also Appears On

• Greatest Hits (1995)
• Live in New York City (DVD)

Lyrics

Dark weekends in the sun out on Chelsea Road
Descending the stairs, Frankie, my one
Check your makeup in the mirror c'mon babe let's go
We'll dance 'round this dirty town 'til the night is all done
Let all the finer things sleep alone tonight
Let all the minor kings lose their thrones tonight
Don't worry about us, baby, we'll be alright

Well everybody's dying, this town's closing down
They're all sittin' down at the courthouse waiting for 'em to take the flag down
I see strange flashes in the sky up above
Gonna spend the night at the drive-in with the one that I love
At dusk the stars all appear on the screen
Yeah, just like they do each night in my dreams
But tonight's no dream, Frankie, I can feel myself too
Well now and forever my love is for you

Walk softly tonight little stranger
Yeah into these shadows we're passing through
Talk softly tonight, little angel
You make all my dream worlds come true

Well lately I've been standing out in the freezing rain
Readin' them want ads out on Chelsea Road
I'm winging down the street in search of new games
Hustling through these nightlights' diamond glow
Well Frankie I don't know what I'm gonna find
Maybe nothing at all, maybe a world I can call mine
Shining like these streetlights down here on the strand
Bright as the rain in the palm of your hand

Walk softly tonight, little stranger
Into the shadows where lovers go
Talk softly to me, little angel
Whisper your secrets so soft and low

Lyrics

I woke up last night shaking from a dream
Fot in that dream I died
My wife rolled over and told me
That my life would be immortalized
Not in some major motion picture
Or great American novel, you see
No, they're gonna make a TV movie out of me

CHORUS
Well now, it's one two three you take the money
Yeah it's as easy as A B C
Yeah they're gonna make a TV movie out of me

Well They can change my name or they can leave it
They can change my story too
Or they can make me black or Chinese
And do things that I never do
They're gonna give my life a whole new ending
And put me in prime time first-run
And when it's over, what I did there will be what I done

Now I don't want my name in a history book
Nobody's ever gonna see
No, they're gonna make a TV movie out of me

CHORUS

Well I'm a shoe-in for sponsor
Goodyear blimp and radial wheels
Somebody had a meeting somewhere
Somehow somebody made a deal
Well I was one of them kinds of stories
That everybody liked to see
Yeah they're gonna make a TV movie out of me
Now I don't want no inscription on my gravestone
No long soliloquy
No they're gonna make a TV movie out of me

CHORUS

Lyrics

Well Jimmy Lee was hookin' 'round the far turn of a funky southern Florida dirt track
He had mud caked on his goggles and a screamin' 350 stacked up on his back
Well as he passed the stands he was feelin' all tuckered out,
When through the roar of his engine he heard somebody shout
"Stand on it, come on boy, stand on it"

Mary Beth started to drift, she hit the shift but she just couldn't get a hand on it
Racin' some Red Hill boys, she had the deed to the ranch and a grand on it
With eight grand blowin' hot on the red line
She blew past a hitchhiker out on Route 39
He hollered "Stand on it, go 'head baby, stand on it"

CHORUS
Well now when in doubt and you can't figure it out
Just stand on it
Well, if your mind's confused, you don't know what you're gonna do
Well buddy, stand on it
Well if you've lost control of the situation at hand
Go grab a girl; go see a rock and roll band
And stand on it
Come on man, stand on it

Well now Columbus he discovered America even though he hadn't planned on it
He got lost and woke up one morning when he's about to land on it
He wouldn't of got out of Italy, man that's for sure,
Without Queen Isabella standing on the shore
Shouting "Stand on it, go ahead man, stand on it"

CHORUS

Bobby was leadin' the pack, he settled back and he got ready for the long haul
Well fifty yards from the finish line somebody roared up and they blew him into the wall
Well he rolled over twice, lucky to survive
Layin' in the back of the ambulance more dead than alive
Somebody shouted "Man, you call that drivin'?
Why didn't you stand on it"

Lyrics

You broke my heart, tore it apart
Thought it was cute, thought it was smart
But now I'm back and I've got the strength of ten
So I got a message for you my friend

CHORUS
I'm Daniel waitin' in the lion's den
Daniel waitin'for that lion to come
Daniel waitin'in the lion's den
Dum dum dee dum dum dee dee dum dum

That old lion's mean and long in the tooth
And like you, baby, he's out on the loose
Messin' hearts up time and time again
Now it's the time for that messin' to end

CHORUS

At night I hear you out prowling around
Tearing guys up, scaring 'em down
Now all that growling's gonna come to no end
'Cause I'm just bidding my time, my little friend

CHORUS

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

Well my name is Catherine LeFevre
I work at the Astrowash on Sunset and Vine
I drop my kids at school in the morning
And I pick them up at Mary's just 'fore suppertime

CHORUS
Well I work down at the car wash
For a dollar and a dime
And mister, I hate my boss
It's at the car wash I'm doing my time
Pick up my water bottle and my towel, sir
And I take 'em one by one
From Mercedes to VW's
I do 'em all and I don't favor none

CHORUS

Well someday I'll sing in a night club
I'll get a million-dollar break
A handsome man will come here with a contract in his hand
And say "Catherine, this has all been some mistake"

CHORUS

Lyrics

Billy got out of prison but he wasn't right
Some like to drink or gamble, Billy liked to fight
He tracked back to his home state of Maryland
Went to his mom's mobile home where she took hin in, alright

CHORUS
Rockaway the days, rockaway the nights
Gimme something to last me, baby, 'til the morning light
I ain't lookin' for trouble, I ain't looking for a fight
Honey rockaway these days, rockaway these nights

Well at a picnic one Sunday Billy met Mary Dove
Mary lloked at Billy, Billy fell in love
Billy swore to Mary he'd always love het so
They were married in the valley where the river flows, alright

CHORUS

At a roadside bar Billy argued with a young man
And he settled that argument with a razor in his hand
With blood on his shirt back to Mary he did run
She sighed "Billy, oh Billy, what have you done?"

He ran to his ma's trailer but the lights were dim
He pounded on the door, she wouldn't let him in
Up the road to a neighbor's house he drew near
They said "Billy go away, we don't want no trouble 'round here"
Billy stole a car and headed out on the road
Pocketful of pills and his brain on overload
Seen some lights in his rearview mirror, panicked and gave her the gun
Wrapped himself 'round a telephone pole way out on 101

Well Billy got cut out by the highway patrol
Just lay there with the cars passing on slow
Sheriff told Billy's ma that Billy died
She buried his body by the riverside, alright

CHORUS

Well rich man want the power and the seat on the top
Poor man want the money that the rich man got
Honey tonight I'm feeling so tired and unsure
Come on in Mary, shut the light, close the door

CHORUS

Lyrics

Every spring when the weather gets warm
They come pourin' into town straight off of them farms
Driving 455s running hard and strong
They'd scratch built in them tool sheds all winter long
'Neath the trestless drinkin' the beer and the wine
Now some came on run, some just to pass the time
With the brothers under the bridges

Me and Tommy we was just fourteen, didn't have our licenses yet
Our walls were covered with pictures of cars we'd get
We'd listen and wait for that highway to rumble and quake
As they drove in through town when the weekend'd break
Bringin' girls with that distant look in their eyes
Now together 'neath the trestless they'd be laughing in the night
With the brothers under the bridges

Well me and my brother'd hitched a ride in Joey's pickup to the edge of town
And we watched from the tall grass as the challenges were made and the duels went down
We'd hitchhike back home, sneak in, get in bed before our mom'd come
And we'd lay there in the night talkin' about how we might someday be one
Yeah someday run with the brothers under the bridges

Well now I hear a cry in the distance and the sound of marching feet come and gone
Well I'm stittin' down here by this highway figuring, figuring just where I belong
Tonight up on Signal Hill
I watch a young man in a red shirt walking through a night so still
Put his jacket 'round his girl as the autumn wind send a chill
Through the brothers under the bridges

Lyrics

Here comes a fireman, here comes a cop
Here comes a wrench, here comes a car hop
Been going on forever, it ain't ever gonna stop
Everybody wants to be the man at the top

CHORUS
Everybody wants to be the man at the top
Everybody wants to be the man at the top
Aim your gun, son, and shoot your shot
Everybody wants to be the man at the top

Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief
Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief
One thing in common they all got Everybody wants to be the man at the top

CHORUS

Man at the top says it's lonely up there
If it is man, I don't care
From the big white house to the parking lot
Everybody wants to be the man at the top

Here comes a banker, here comes a businessman
Here comes a kid with a guitar in his hand
Dreaming of his record in number-one spot
Everybody wants to be the man at the top

CHORUS

Lyrics

You may think I'm foolish
For the foolish things I do
You may wonder how come I love you
When you get on my nerves like you do
Well baby you know you bug me
There ain't no secret 'bout that
Well come on over here and hug me
Baby I'll spill the facts
Well honey it ain't your money
'Cause baby I got plenty of that
I love you for your pink Cadillac
Crushed velvet seats
Riding in the back
Oozing down the street
Waving to the girls
Feeling out of sight
Spending all my money
On a Saturday night
Honey I just wonder what you do there in back
Of your pink Cadillac
Pink Cadillac

Well now way back in the Bible
Temptations always come along
There's always somebody tempting
Somebody into doing something they know is wrong
Well they tempt you, man, with silver
And they tempt you, sir, with gold
And they tempt you with the pleasures
That the flesh does surely hold
They say Eve tempted Adam with an apple
But man I ain't going for that
I know it was her pink Cadillac
Crushed velvet seats
Riding in the back
Oozing down the street
Waving to the girls
Feeling out of sight
Spending all my money
On a Saturday night
Honey I just wonder what it feels like in the back
Of your pink Cadillac
Now some folks say it's too big
And uses too much gas
Some folks say it's too old
And that it goes too fast
But my love is bigger than a Honda
It's bigger than a Subaru
Hey man there's only one thing
And one car that will do
Anyway we don't have to drive it
Honey we can park it out in back
And have a party in your pink Cadillac

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

It's one for the money and one for the show
I got one kiss for you honey so come on let's go
I didn't see it coming but girl now I know
It takes one for the running but two for the road

One thousand dreams whispered in the dark
But a dream's just a dream in one empty heart
It takes more than one to rev it up and go
So let's get it running, we're two for the road

Two one-way tickets and a diamond ring
Hell it don't matter what the rain might bring
When this world treats you hard and cold
I'll stand beside you, we're two for the road

When you're alone my love'll shine the light
Through the dark and starless night
I'll hold you close and never let you go
C'mon now girl 'cause we're two for the road
Well it's two to get ready, babe, c'mon let's go
Me and you, girl, we're two for the road

Lyrics

You got your book baby with all your fears
Let me, honey, and I'll catch your tears
I'll take your sorrow if you want me to
Come tomorrow that's what I'll do
Listen to me

CHORUS
Janey don't you lose heart
Janey don't you lose heart
Janey don't you lose heart
Janey don't you lose heart

Well you say you got no new dreams to touch
You feel like a stranger babe who knows too much
Well you come home late and get undressed
You lie in bed, feel this emptiness
Well listen to me

CHORUS

'Til every river runs dry
Until the sun honey's torn from the sky
'Til every fear you've felt burst free
And gone tumblin' down into the sea
Listen to me

CHORUS

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

When you need me call my name
'Cause without you my life just wouldn't be the same
If you want me come sunny skies or rain
When you need me just call my name

If you miss me, I'll be there
To brush the sunlight from your hair
I'll be there to guide you when trouble walks beside you
If you need me I'll be there
And when this dirty world has been cold to you
I got two strong arms waitin' to hold you
And when those mean days come along
We'll stand together and we'll take 'em on
So if you need me just call my name

When you need me call my name
'Cause without you my life just isn't the same
'Cause when this world kicked me around
You picked me up off the ground
So if you need me I'll be there

CHORUS

Lyrics

Dirty old street all slushed up in the rain and snow
Little boy and his ma shivering outside a rundown music store window
That night on top of a Christmas tree shines one beautiful star
And lying underneath a brand-new Japanese guitar

I remember in the morning, ma, hearing your alarm clock ring
I'd lie in bed and listen to you gettin' ready for work
The sound of your makeup case on the sink
And the ladies at the office, all lipstick, perfume and rustlin' skirts
And how proud and happy you always looked walking home from work

If pa's eyes were windows into a world so deadly and true
You couldn't stop me from looking but you kept me from crawlin' through
And if it's a funny old world, mama, where a little boy's wishes come true
Well I got a few in my pocket and a special one just for you

It ain't no phone call on Sunday, flowers or a mother's day card
It ain't no house on a hill with a garden and a nice little yard
I got my hot rod down on Bond Street, I'm older but you'll know me in a glance
We'll find us a little rock 'n roll bar and baby we'll go out and dance

Well it was me in my Beatle boots, you in pink curlers and matador pants
Pullin' me up on the couch to do the twist for my uncles and aunts
Well I found a girl of my own now, ma, I popped the question on your birthday
She stood waiting on the front porch while you were telling me to get out there
And say what it was that I had to say

Last night we all sat around laughing at the things that guitar brought us
And I layed awake thinking 'bout the other things it's brought us
Well tonight I'm takin's requests here in the kitchen
This one's for you, ma, let me come right out and say it
It's overdue, but baby, if you're looking for a sad song, well I ain't gonna play it

Lyrics

Two kids get married, same old thing
Folks congratulate you, church bells ring
Who's got the ring, who's gonna pay the priest
Get your mama in the paper, picture or two at least

And at the reception all the old records play
"Where you gonna live, are you gonna taker her away?"
In a corner my new nephew's showin' me his knife
You swore that you'd love her for the rest of your life

Went to kiss you at the altar we bumped heads
Honeymoon night we figured we best shake on it instead
Dressed kinda funny, laughin' we hop in bed
You can swear it on your feet, you can swear it on your head

Come mornin' my new famlily's sitting on the front porch swing
Smilin' kinda funny, nobody says a thing
My new brother-in-law's throwin' a football, he tosses me a pass
We all sit down on the front stoop, everybody happy at last

Lyrics

Running down the highway half past eleven
Waitin' for my odometer to roll straight sevens
I'm a lucky man
I went to see the gypsy the other night
She looked in my palm looked me in the eye
Said you're a lucky man
Some folks got fortune some got eyes of blue
What you got will always see you through
You're a lucky man
Pa went from the army to the factory to the killing yard
I make my living with my hands behind the wheel of this car
I'm a lucky man
Messin' with me man wouldn't be wise
Roll them dice son - ah snake eyes
I'm a lucky man
Had a girl in Calgary I gave her up
Man that love thing was messin' with my luck
I'm a lucky man
I'll wake up tomorrow morning in another state
Kiss me now baby before it's too late
If you wanna kiss a lucky man
I don't miss no girl I don't miss no home
He travels fastest who travels alone
He's a lucky man
A man with the world in the palm of his hands

Lyrics

When I asked you if everything is alright
You whisper "Don't worry" and you shut out the light
Now black is black in this bed we're laying
And I wanna believe the words that you're saying

CHORUS
But your eyes look like a leavin' train
They keep on dragging me down
Your eyes look like a leavin' train
They keep on draggin'
They keep on draggin'
They keep on draggin' me down

Well I did anything just to try to get close to you
I took it step by step like a man's supposed to
Tell me now, is this my
Is this my contrition
To have the love that I longed for fill me with suspicion

CHORUS

Now it's tellin' time, oh my little sister
Now can I believe the words, the words of love you whisper
Is my train in vain, has my soul gone to waste
Am I just a victim of, a victim of my lost faith

CHORUS

Lyrics

Seven angels got my number
Since I fell in love with you
Seven angels got my number
They're all telling me what to do
First angel says "Go on and love her"
Second angels says "Ain't you tired of being alone?"
Third angel says "Do the right thing, meat"
Fourth angels says "Check that other little angel walkin' on down the street"

Seven angels got my number
Since I fell in love with you
Seven angels got my number
They're all telling me what to do
Fifth angels says "Don't worry
Love's waitin' 'round the corner for you, son"
Sixth angel says "You better hurry
It don't take long for the good to get gone"
Walkin' on wings all sexy and blue
Seventh angel says I'm a fool
I got seven angels calling on my pride
Seven devils crawling around inside
Seven angels tellin' me which way to turn
One kiss and my soul wanna burn

Seven angels got my number
Since I fell in love with you
Seven angels got my number
They're all telling me what to do
The earth's so lonely, sad and blue
And without love, your soul's dyin'
Sixth angel says to believe you
When you say you'll never leave me cryin'
Seventh angel says you're lyin'

Lyrics

In the fields of the lord
Stood Abel and Cain
Cain slew Abel 'neath the black rain
At night he couldn't stand the guilt or the blame
So he gave it a name
So he gave it a name
So he gave it a name

Billy got drunk, angry at his wife
He hit her once, he hit her twice
At night he'd lie in bed, he couldn't stand the shame
So he gave it a name
So he gave it a name
So he gave it a name

Pa told me "Son, one thing I know is true
Poison snake bites you, you're poison too"*
At night I can feel that poison runnin' 'round my veins

Lyrics

Every day here you come walking
I hold my tongue, I don't do much talking
You say you're happy and you're doin' fine
Well go ahead, baby, I got plenty of time
Sad eyes never lie
Sad eyes never lie

Well for a while I've been watching you steady
Ain't gonna move 'til you're good and ready
You show up and then you shy away
But I know pretty soon you'll be walkin' this way
Sad eyes never lie
Sad eyes never lie

Baby don't you know I don't care
Don't you know that I've been there
Well if something in the air feels a little unkind
Don't worry darling, it'll slip your mind

I know you think you'd never be mine
Well that's okay, baby, I don't mind
That shy smile's sweet, that's a fact
Go ahead, I don't mind the act
Here you come all dressed up for a date
Well one more step and it'll be too late
Blue blue ribbon in your hair
Like you're so sure I'll be standing here

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

You treated me hard and made my heart ache
I know you're only human, and men they make mistakes
Your life with her turned to black
And now you want our love back
Well come into my arms and fall, my lover man

Was it a gypsy's curse or a hex sign
Or was it just that simple thing that led you from these arms of mine
Oh yes, I've had the days
To grow used to your foolish ways
And what is it really, after all, my lover man

I can see the change in your eyes
There's no need to apologize
We stood at the wishing well
Our dreams like coins into the water fell
The water so cold and black
There was no going back

I don't mean to cause you hurt or cause you pain
Life is short and love's a dirty game
Now there's no need for our game to end
Come close and we'll begin
To find our beautiful selves again, my lover man
My lover man
My lover man

Lyrics

I walk along the levee to see the gypsy man
The dirt 'neath my feet baby's turnin' to quicksand
He looked into my palm, then looked me in the eye
And told me you were gone, gone over the rise

Once we stood together at the wishing well
Our wishes like dreams, baby, into the water fell
Oh then I kissed your lips but when I looked into your eyes
They were gone, gone over the rise

Tonight the blackbirds fly low on the water's edge
Oh we walked this path not knowing where it led
Now at the bottom of the river deep lies something shiny and gold
Is a promise that love couldn't keep same as a promise broken*

Well I woke last night to the sound of rain
The wind rustling branches against the window pane
I searched the pillow beside me for the tears we cried
Baby they were gone, gone over the rise

Lyrics

Now you say you have a friend, you trust him with your life
You trust him with your money, you trust him with your kids
You'd even trust him with your wife
You better watch what's goin' on when the lights are out
When the night is dark, when there ain't nobody lookin' around
Yeah when the lights are out, down in this dirty little town

Well now the world is dark and funny, better listen up to what I say
You ain't gonna know what's going on by what you see in the light of day
You gotta watch what's goin' on when the lights are out
When the night is dark, when there ain't nobody lookin' around
Yeah when the lights are out in this dirty little town

Now you swear that she trusted you
Within reason I understand
But you kept slippin' in late at night
And in the mornin' you had that smell on your hands

Well now the world is turning, Rome is burning
Me, I'm watching and I'm learning
They say sure as God's hand and the tickin' of the clock
The lord's light'll shine under every slimy rock
Well last night I slept the sleep of fear
And I heard God's voice whisper in my ear
He said you better watch what's going on when the lights are out
When the night is dark, when there ain't nobody lookin' around
Yeah when the lights are out, down in this dirty little town

Lyrics

Met her at a friendly little bar down along the coast
She said it was her birthday so we had us a nice little toast
Drove around for a while, smoked a few cigarettes
Took her back to my place, she slipped off her party dress
She sat for a while on the edge of the bed just talkin'
Loose change in my pocket
Loose change in my pocket

Pint of gin in my boot cuff, I'm drivin' for a drink and a dance
Sittin' on the next stool, miss a little time on her hands
Yeah I knew she was trouble, but trouble sure was lookin' fine
And when I pulled her close what I knew kinda slipped my mind
We lay in bed and watched the moon come up crawling
Loose change in my pocket
Loose change in my pocket

I pour another drink, wait for the night to get through
Stars are burning in that black void so far away and blue

Now I'm sittin' at a red light I feel somethin' tickin' way down
The night's moving like a slow train crawling through this shithole town
Got my bags packed in the back and I'm tryin' to get going again
But red just goes to green and green goes red and then
Then all I hear's the clock on the dash tick-tocking
Loose change in my pocket
Loose change in my pocket

Lyrics

You do the drying, I'll do the dishes
Who'll do the crying when all the wishes don't come true
You do the washing, I'll do the folding
Whose heart is breaking
When whose arms are holding someone new
Sittin' ona peaceful lake sunnin'
Didn't hear the roar of the waterfall coming
When it's all a storybook story
When it's all so easy and nice
Here comes trouble in paradise

You did the dusting, I did the sweeping
You did the driving oh and I did the sleeping a little too long
On a picnic 'neath the sky so blue
We didn't see the rain and heartache coming through
When it's all an old black and white movie
And you're sure you've seen the ending twice
Here comes trouble in paradise

You sais everything was fine
I'm sorry, baby, I didn't see the signs
Oh so beautifully you read your lines
But in a play where the hero has no vice
And love comes without a price
So does trouble in paradise

Don't matter who did the dusting or who did the sweeping
Who did the trusting or who did the cheating when it's all gone
Laying in a field on a summer's day
Waitin'for those gary skies to clear away
Knowing all love's glory and beauty
Can vanish before you think twice
Leaving trouble in paradise

Now we share the laughing, we share the joking
We do the sleeping with one eye open

Lyrics

Some need gold and some need diamond rings
Or a drug to take away the pain that living brings
A promise of a better world to come
When whatever here is done
I don't need that sky of blue
All I know's since I found you, I'm happy when I'm in your arms
Happy, darling, come the dark
Happy when I taste your kiss
I'm happy in a love like this

There's a house upon a distant hill
Where you can hear the laughter of children ring
Guardian angels, they watch from above
Watching over the love that they bring
But at night I feel the drakness near, I awake and I find you near
I'm happy with you in my arms
I'm happy with you in my heart
Happy when I tatse your kiss
I'm happy in love like this

In a world of doubt and fear
I wake at night and reach to find you near
Lost in a dream, you caught me as I fell
I want more than just a dream to tell

We're born in this world, darling, with few days and trouble never far behind
Man and woman circle each other in a cage
A cage that's been handed down the line
Lost and running 'neath a million dead stars
Tonight let's shed our skins and slip these bars
Happy in each other's arms
Happy, baby, come the dark
Happy in each other's kiss
I'm happy in a love like this

Lyrics

They prosecuted some poor sucker in these United States
For teaching that man descended from the apes
They coulda settled that case without a fuss or fight
If they'd seen me chasin' you, sugar, through the jungle last night
They'da called in that jury and a one two three said
Part man, part monkey, definitely

Well the church bell rings from the corner steeple
Man in a monkey suit swears he'll do no evil
Offers his lover's prayer but his soul lies
Dark and driftin' and unsatisfied
Well hey bartender, tell me whaddaya see
Part man, part monkey, looks like to me

Well the night is dark, the moon is full
The flowers of romance exert their pull
We talk awhile, my fingers slip
I'm hard and crackling like a whip

Well did God make man in a breath of holy fire
Or did he crawl on up out of the muck and mire
Well the man on the street believes what the bible tells him so
Well you can ask me, mister, because I know
Tell them soul-suckin' preachers to come on down and see
Part man, part monkey, baby that's me

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks

Lyrics

Well he'd been hearing too many voices and feelin'a little off-rack
Like there was something big pressing down on his back
So he called up his friends and they said come on out west
It's a place where a man can really feel his succes

So he pulled his heart and soul down off the shelf
Packed them next to the faith that he'd lost in himself
Said his good-byes and when the dirty work was done
He turned his wheels into the fading sun

For seven days and nights like a black-top bird he sped
Maintained radio silence 'cept for in his head
And just like his folks did back in '69
He crossed the border at Needles and heard the promised land on the line

Now where the Transcontinental dumps into the sea
There's a bar made up to look like 1963
Girl in the corner eyed him like a hungry dog a bone
As he brushed the desert dust off that Mercedes chrome
Bartender said "Hey, how's it hangin', tiger?"
He had a shot of tequila, smiled and whispered "lighter"

He went down to the desert city where the rattlesnakes play
And left his dead skin by the roadside in the noon of day
Sun got so hot it almost felt like friend
It could burn out every trace of where you been

There was a woman he'd met in a desert song
A little while later a son come along
Looked at that boy's smile and called it home
And that night as he lay in bed the only voice he heard was his own

Lyrics

In my dream our love was lost, I lived by luck and fate
I carried you inside of me, prayed it wouldn't be too late
Now I'm standin' on this empty road where nothin' moves but the wind

Once I was your treasure and I saw your face in every star
But the promises we make at night, oh that's all they are
Unless we fill them with faith and love they're empty as the howlin' wind
And honey I just wanna be back in your arms
Back in your arms again

You came to me with love and kindness
But all my life I've been a prisoner of my own blindness
I met you with indifference and I don't know why
Now I wake from my dream, I wake from my dream to this world
Where all is shadow and darkness and above me a dark sky unfurls
And all the love I've thrown away and lost I'm longin' for again
Now darlin' I just wanna be back in your arms
Back in your arms again

Lyrics

Saigon, it was all gone
The same Coke machines
As the streets I grew on
Down in a mesquite canyon
We come walking along the ridge
Me and the brothers under the bridge

Campsite's an hour's walk from the nearest road to town
Up here there's too much brush and canyon
For the CHP choppers to touch down
Ain't lookin' for nothin', just wanna live
Me and the brothers under the bridge
Come the Santa Ana's, man, that dry brush'll light
Billy Devon got burned up in his own campfire one winter night
We buried his body in the white stone high up along the ridge
Me and the brothers under the bridge

Had enough of town and the street life
Over nothing you end up on the wrong end of someone's knife
Now I don't want no trouble
And I ain't got none to give
Me and the brothers under the bridge

I come home in '72
You were just a beautiul light
In your mama's dark eyes of blue
I stood down on the tarmac, I was just a kid
Me and the brothers under the bridge

Come Veterans' Day I sat in the stands in my dress blues
I held your mother's hand
When they passed with the red, white and blue
One minute you're right there ... and something slips...

Also Appears On

• 18 Tracks