 Born To Run (1975) [ larger cover art ] |
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The screen door slams, Mary's dress waves
Like a vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays
[[Roy Orbison]]'s singing for the lonely
Hey, that's me and I want you only
Don't turn me home again, I just can't face myself alone again
Don't run back inside, darling, you know just what I'm here for
So you're scared and you're thinking that maybe we ain't that young anymore
Show a little faith, there's magic in the night
You ain't a beauty, but hey, you're alright
Oh, and that's alright with me
You can hide 'neath your covers and study your pain
Make crosses from your lovers, throw roses in the rain
Waste your summer praying in vain
For a savior to rise from these streets
Well now, I'm no hero, that's understood
All the redemption I can offer, girl, is beneath this dirty hood
With a chance to make it good somehow
Hey, what else can we do now?
Except roll down the window and let the wind blow back your hair
Well, the night's busted open, these two lanes will take us anywhere
We got one last chance to make it real, to trade in these wings on some wheels
Climb in back, heaven's waiting down on the tracks
Oh, come take my hand
We're riding out tonight to case the promised land
Oh, Thunder Road, oh, Thunder Road
Oh, Thunder Road
Lying out there like a killer in the sun
Hey, I know it's late, we can make it if we run
Oh, Thunder Road, sit tight
Take hold, Thunder Road
Well, I got this guitar and I've learned how to make it talk
And my car's out back if you're ready to take that long walk
From your front porch to my front seat
The door's open but the ride ain't free
And I know you're lonely for words that I ain't spoken
Tonight we'll be free, all the promises will be broken
There were ghosts in the eyes of all the boys you sent away
They haunt this dusty beach road in the skeleton frames of burned out Chevrolets
They scream your name at night in the street
Your graduation gown lies in rags at their feet
And in the lonely cool before dawn, you hear their engines roaring on
But when you get to the porch they're gone on the wind
So Mary climb in
It's a town full of losers, I'm pulling out of here to win
| boober (KC,Mo) | Posted: Apr 23, 2013 - 08:43 akaike wrote: One of the few people that makes me proud to be from Jersey! I've ALWAYS been proud to be from Jersey.....but yes,Bruce being from there does help(but there's hundreds more) Boober-Exit 9(NJ Tpk) |
| iTuner | Posted: Mar 22, 2013 - 21:18 jberko wrote: Way over rated. Thunder Load. Blech. |
| Lazarus (Bethany) | Posted: Mar 22, 2013 - 21:14 Cynaera wrote: So - I'm sitting here at 9:40 p.m. with the speakers cranked. Glad to be true to my roots - and I love this song in ways I cannot even describe.... Miss you so much, Cynaera... love this song... |
| fiddler | Posted: Feb 19, 2013 - 11:01 Like a 5 minute movie every time it plays...a really really good movie. |
| akaike (Down on the Bayou) | Posted: Feb 19, 2013 - 10:58 One of the few people that makes me proud to be from Jersey! |
| LPCity (Salt Lake City, Utah) | Posted: Jan 08, 2013 - 17:33 Perhaps this song is the single greatest concert "moment" that I have ever experienced. |
| On_The_Beach (The Blue Planet) | Posted: Dec 08, 2012 - 13:42 martinc wrote: Saw him a couple of weeks ago. Had not seen him since the early 80 (have seen him 5 times now) I was blown away. Tremendous energy, in strong voice, EStreet Band strong (16 peice band now). His artistry shown through all the Boss hype etc. Ditto. Bruce is still the hardest working man in show business! His recent Vancouver show was also awesome. |
| slieve (Strabane Co Tyrone N Ireland United Kingdom) | Posted: Dec 08, 2012 - 08:46 Great song one of the ones that made people sit up and listen |
| cosmiclint (romeotuma's hotel room) | Posted: Dec 08, 2012 - 08:32 Nine?? I had this at nine??? I've got to stop rating songs when I'm apparently outta my freakin' mind. |
| martinc (Ottawa Canada) | Posted: Dec 08, 2012 - 08:31 Saw him a couple of weeks ago. Had not seen him since the early 80 (have seen him 5 times now) I was blown away. Tremendous energy, in strong voice, EStreet Band strong (16 peice band now). His artistry shown through all the Boss hype etc. |
| Papernapkin (Mountain View, CA) | Posted: Nov 17, 2012 - 10:02 Cloyingly heartfelt. |
| westslope (BC coast) | Posted: Sep 15, 2012 - 12:18 I learned to love this CD in northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan shortly after it came out. My union went on strike at the open-pit coal mine where I worked in British Columbia. And there I went looking for work as a fishing guide and quickly ran into protectionist native Cree politics. It was an early lesson.
Then a couple of years later, it came on in a cargo truck as I hitch-hiked late at night out of a coal mine in the southern Argentinian Patagonia heading back north to Brazil and Bolivia.
Electric. American rock was on fire during the mid-1970s. FWIW, it takes a lot for pop music to stand out in either Argentina or Brazil. Argentina's folk music traditions are as rich and even more varied than those of Brazil! |
| rvarnfors | Posted: Sep 05, 2012 - 03:36 wolfian wrote: GODLIKE!!! Yes!  |
| wolfian | Posted: Sep 05, 2012 - 01:01 GODLIKE!!! |
| rdo (DC) | Posted: Jul 14, 2012 - 14:33 Byronape wrote: It's a sound argument, but I think you are giving the majority of modern music too much credit. A few more bands trying to sound like Whitesnake would be better than what we have now. Overly produced and drastically over sexualized Madonna rip offs are the highlight of today's pop music. Sure, there is good stuff coming out all the time, but most of everything I hear that is new is complete dross written for (or by, depending on how charitable you feel like being) 13 year old girls. It's like $$$ has become so much more important than real talent, that the music industry has stopped looking for actually talented people and is only looking for marketable people. Marketable of course, is a polite way of saying pretty and exploitable. I hear ya. But you don't like big corporations making decisions about music, do you? Nor should you. Times have changed. DJs like Bill used to have a lot more clout, and they could influence what got played on the radio stations that reached millions. Now, if you want, you can start a band and post your work on the Internet and get recognized with out the help of a recording contract. It happens. Music is that one thing where excellence almost always gets the notice it deserves. So, what's the problem? Why does the Madonna rip-offs bother you so much? Let it be. |
| MaryM (WeHo CA) | Posted: Jul 14, 2012 - 14:27 Ahhhh...I was 15 & living in New Jersey & never heard anything like it before |
| jberko (Franklin, TN) | Posted: Jun 29, 2012 - 03:40 Way over rated. |
| Byronape ("post-capitalist wreckageville") | Posted: Jun 02, 2012 - 06:55 black321 wrote: RKeaton wrote: I sometimes wonder if there is any room left in the sound spectrum for songs like this to be written...or did guys like Bruce use it all up. Pop music is usually derivative. Many of the "classic" bands got their sound from blues, jazz, pop standards...but made them their own. I think most music these days is still derivative, but derivative of other rock bands, which makes the tunes less exciting to me. I remember in the 80s when bands like Whitesnake were ridiculed for sounding too zeppelin like. Bands that do the same thing now, albeit in a "cooler" fashion, are complimented. It's a sound argument, but I think you are giving the majority of modern music too much credit. A few more bands trying to sound like Whitesnake would be better than what we have now. Overly produced and drastically over sexualized Madonna rip offs are the highlight of today's pop music. Sure, there is good stuff coming out all the time, but most of everything I hear that is new is complete dross written for (or by, depending on how charitable you feel like being) 13 year old girls. It's like $$$ has become so much more important than real talent, that the music industry has stopped looking for actually talented people and is only looking for marketable people. Marketable of course, is a polite way of saying pretty and exploitable. |
| Josua (Cartagena, Spain.) | Posted: Jun 02, 2012 - 06:50 Why don´t Human Touch??? BRrrrrr!!! |
| Stingray | Posted: May 28, 2012 - 06:28 TERRIBLE! |
| Bobert_ParkCity (Park City Utah) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:27 God I don't know what year this was but my brother and I went down to the shore. You could stay in a decrepit rooming house in Ocean Grove - a religious community with blue laws etc - cheap, then walk over to Asbury for the action. After a few bong hits in the room, we wander over to The Stone Pony and they won't let me because I forgot my ID. SO I go back to get it and - a few more bong hits later - i'm in for the night. Now you know what happens next: at 3 am my brother is shaking me awake because Bruce showed up at the bar and played all night. |
| black321 (Perigee) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:09 RKeaton wrote: I sometimes wonder if there is any room left in the sound spectrum for songs like this to be written...or did guys like Bruce use it all up.
Pop music is usually derivative. Many of the "classic" bands got their sound from blues, jazz, pop standards...but made them their own. I think most music these days is still derivative, but derivative of other rock bands, which makes the tunes less exciting to me. I remember in the 80s when bands like Whitesnake were ridiculed for sounding too zeppelin like. Bands that do the same thing now, albeit in a "cooler" fashion, are complimented. |
| Kaisersosay (Mighty Mighty Bostown) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:08 Nice between Warren and Bruce ,I'm reliving my days at Jr High...... |
| lawfitzg (East Texas) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:06 There's a better version - live. |
| DearDM (Boston) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:06 msymmes wrote: Bruce Springsteen... In 50 years, he will have surpassed Paul Simon, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley in all aspects of Rock N Roll history. His career is just getting going! What are your criteria for defining "surpass"? |
| Imkirok (The Arctic Hinter Land) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:05 This may surpass Born to Run as my all time favorite Bruce song. |
| haljordan (probably at work) | Posted: May 01, 2012 - 13:04 This one goes all the way to 11. |
| msymmes (Toronto, CA) | Posted: Apr 26, 2012 - 12:58 Bruce Springsteen... In 50 years, he will have surpassed Paul Simon, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley in all aspects of Rock N Roll history. His career is just getting going! |
| KermitDfrog (Los Angeles, CA) | Posted: Apr 26, 2012 - 12:54 johnjconn wrote: I listen to RP all the time, an rarely hear Springsteen. When Bill does plays Bruce, it's the standard radio popular songs. Bill - try deeper cuts on BS albums, great songs remain untouched by RP Or some off the new CD? |
| johnjconn (chicago land) | Posted: Apr 26, 2012 - 12:53 I listen to RP all the time, an rarely hear Springsteen. When Bill does plays Bruce, it's the standard radio popular songs. Bill - try deeper cuts on BS albums, great songs remain untouched by RP |
| KermitDfrog (Los Angeles, CA) | Posted: Apr 26, 2012 - 12:52 Yay! I'm going to see Bruce tonight!  |
| lemmoth (NYC) | Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 10:59 Once again - the songs that get played here are the ones that Bill likes. And Bill likes good songs from all eras, some very popular and "overplayed" on terrestial radio and some that received far less attention. I don't listen to dial-in radio ever - and I think many here share that - so we do not mind one bit when Bill decides to play good - or great like this one - songs from the distant or recent past. We would suffer from not hearing this, alongside with Shivaree and Hooverphonic, and feeling the great continuity of good and great songs. Love RP |
| smackiepipe (Western North Carolina) | Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 10:57 sonicsurfer wrote: Sorry I don’t like to say anything bad about ‘radio paradise’ buy their products, donate regularly but….get so tired of plays such as rolling stones. GAACCKKK! Please dispose of these tired commercial tracks Yeah, and make sure you take out the 125 songs by the Beatles, too. No space for any of their commercial rubbish, either. /sarcasam |
| Aussieflicker | Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 10:56 A1 |
| amyjpr (kansas city) | Posted: Apr 10, 2012 - 10:53 most overrated artist of the past 50 years. blech. |
| sonicsurfer (Vancouver BC Canada) | Posted: Mar 30, 2012 - 19:58 Sorry I don’t like to say anything bad about ‘radio paradise’ buy their products, donate regularly but….get so tired of plays such as rolling stones. GAACCKKK! Please dispose of these tired commercial tracks |
| JrzyTmata | Posted: Mar 30, 2012 - 19:57 Bat wrote: I saw Springsteen right about the time this album came out, maybe just before. Palace Theater in Albany, NY. He wasn't big in the rest of the country yet but the University was mostly students from the NYC and Long Island area where he was already a big deal. I had a couple extra tickets for Boston (I'm ashamed to admit now) and traded them at the last minute straight up for two of the worst seats in the place for Bruce. I went with a guy who lived next door in the dorm. This guy was huge. Not only huge but he came to school at 18 years old already bald. He was on the football team and the first day at practice all the other players thought he was a coach. My story is this - since the seats were in the next to last row of the second balcony we hovered in the lobby and when the lights went out we ran up to the stage, along with a huge crowd of others. After the first song the bouncers/crew started clearing the area and sending people back to their seats. We moved to the side but basically right on the edge of the stage. The bouncers would push through the crowd, shine their flashlights in your eye and yell to get out. They did that until they got to my friend standing like a statue with his arms crossed. They shined their light in his face, paused for a couple seconds and said "OK, no closer". We watched the whole show sitting on the side of the stage - right in front of the huge stack of speakers. That was also the last time I saw him.  SO, HOW'S YOUR HEARING? |
| RKeaton (South of Paradise) | Posted: Mar 25, 2012 - 19:38 I sometimes wonder if there is any room left in the sound spectrum for songs like this to be written...or did guys like Bruce use it all up. |
| slr242 (San Francisco) | Posted: Mar 09, 2012 - 18:50 To me, this song's lyrics are some of the most poetic and moving ones ever written. After more than thirty years, I can sing along from beginning to end, not having forgotten a word. After so many years going through punk, new wave, industrial, jazz, etc., it's nice to come back to my roots and enjoy this classic tune. The memories unfurl. |
| rickhoran (Eastern PA) | Posted: Feb 28, 2012 - 03:49 hencini wrote: Lolz... : ) But I disagree— I believe it sounds best on an old cassette, barreling down a lonely strip of asphalt well after midnight in late Spring— preferably in a vehicle that rolled out of Detroit some time before the advent of electronic fuel injection— with a howling exhaust note as a background chorus. That's just one man's opinion, though. But I disagree... I believe it sounds best after working a saturday night shift at a high end restaurant, the night was crazy busy. Its 2 am, customers are gone, the manager says the kitchen is clean. You and your workmates (under 21 mind you) are sitting at the bar getting wasted on various drugs and alcohol. And you have a "Almost Famous" bus moment and all start doing a sing-a-long to this song. That's what I remember... The sad thing is I am the last still on this earth who were sitting at that bar. That is what I think of when I hear this song. |
| hippiechick (topsy turvy land) | Posted: Jan 27, 2012 - 11:24 Maybe my favorite Bruce song |
| hencini | Posted: Jan 22, 2012 - 10:37 knice wrote: This song sounds best on vinyl at 3:00 am surrounded by empty beer cans, crushed cigarettes and toasted roaches. And the knowledge that you have to be up at 7:45 to make an 8:00 class. God I loved 3rd Grade! Lolz... : ) But I disagree— I believe it sounds best on an old cassette, barreling down a lonely strip of asphalt well after midnight in late Spring— preferably in a vehicle that rolled out of Detroit some time before the advent of electronic fuel injection— with a howling exhaust note as a background chorus. That's just one man's opinion, though. |
| knice | Posted: Jan 22, 2012 - 10:08 This song sounds best on vinyl at 3:00 am surrounded by empty beer cans, crushed cigarettes and toasted roaches. And the knowledge that you have to be up at 7:45 to make an 8:00 class. God I loved 3rd Grade! |
| hencini | Posted: Jan 22, 2012 - 10:04 One of the five greatest songs of all time. And I'm not even that big of a Boss fan. : ) |
| rdo (DC) | Posted: Jan 22, 2012 - 10:02 whtahtefcuk wrote: Bruce!!!  Free Bird!! |
| MiracleDrug (Earth) | Posted: Jan 06, 2012 - 06:49 there are many musicians...but only ONE Boss... |
| lawfitzg | Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 12:02 A much better version can be found on Live/1975-85. Incomparable piano accompaniment. |
| Bat (Austin) | Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 11:59 I saw Springsteen right about the time this album came out, maybe just before. Palace Theater in Albany, NY. He wasn't big in the rest of the country yet but the University was mostly students from the NYC and Long Island area where he was already a big deal. I had a couple extra tickets for Boston (I'm ashamed to admit now) and traded them at the last minute straight up for two of the worst seats in the place for Bruce. I went with a guy who lived next door in the dorm. This guy was huge. Not only huge but he came to school at 18 years old already bald. He was on the football team and the first day at practice all the other players thought he was a coach. My story is this - since the seats were in the next to last row of the second balcony we hovered in the lobby and when the lights went out we ran up to the stage, along with a huge crowd of others. After the first song the bouncers/crew started clearing the area and sending people back to their seats. We moved to the side but basically right on the edge of the stage. The bouncers would push through the crowd, shine their flashlights in your eye and yell to get out. They did that until they got to my friend standing like a statue with his arms crossed. They shined their light in his face, paused for a couple seconds and said "OK, no closer". We watched the whole show sitting on the side of the stage - right in front of the huge stack of speakers. That was also the last time I saw him. |
| Stratocaster (Bermuda) | Posted: Dec 05, 2011 - 11:44 I was a latecomer to the Bruce Springsteen phenomenon. I don't like all of it. To me, much of his catalog is boring. But I made a "Best of Bruce" mix CD with perhaps 24 songs on it, and I really like all of them. Some, like "The River", "Jersey Girl" and "Born to Run" actually choke me up! Then there is his new stuff. "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" completely blows me away! |
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