Songs from Bruce Springsteen - The Demo Tapes

SONGS FROM "THE DEMO TAPES"

  1. street queen
  2. southern son
  3. henry boy
  4. if i was the priest
  5. vibes man
  6. song to orphans
  7. she's leaving
  8. the song
  9. arabian night
  10. cowboys of the sea

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STREET QUEEN

she got high class
she rides around in a cut down chevy machine
with eyes of plate glass and legs like a limousine
she comes stocked with sass and to ride her you'd better be mean
she's the baddest thing this town's ever seen
oh street queen
well she got a turbine engine, mama,
with maximum thrust cadillac hips,
she's the best on the strip
she knows how to use a clutch
she comes on shiny and black and, boys,
to hit her you better be tough
oh mama when she's around you can hear that engine roarin'
she says "come on, get in
hey baby you wanna go for a ride?"
and oh she sets your mind soarin'
oh and the boys they jump back as that engine unwinds
i'm glued to my seat, mama,
as i watch that speedometer climb
oh, she moves so fast she's almost obscene
street queen
well if you're gonna come streakin' down my street
baby like an angel with them chevy wings
if you're gonna come streakin' down my street
baby like an angel with them chevy wings
you better watch out, street queen
'cause you're messing with the king

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SOUTHERN SON

born on the hudson, twenty-two years gone bred
and raised in the city
from my daddy's knee i learned the union songs
but grandma sang lullabies of dixie
and though the northern winter filss my heart with joy
oh it's a southern sun that shines down on this yankee boy
mama dreamed of paris nights and boatin' on the seine
she said, we're gonna make it there too soon
as papa comes home again
and she's speak to me in broken french
dressed like a painting of lautrec's
in the night she'd clutch me to her breast and say,
we'll make it outta yet
and though the parisienne women strut so fine down the eiffel mall
it's a southern one
i sing my songs for well
with a local bunch of do-good boys
and an old man from the west
we crossed theland in an caravan
yes we travelled with the best
with circus acts and vaudeville hacks and a mississippi delta queen
she told me the news and sold me her blues
in an alley in new orleans
and though the western plains are still staines with the blood of great cowboys
it's a southern sun that shines down on this yankee boy

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HENRY BOY

they broke your toys this morning, henry
rode your board right into dust
surrounded you with strangers who you could not trust
and then they had the gall
to write your name up on the girls' room wall
and send you out to mama who spoke of babies and all
and wanted to shoot your joy
it's a hard world when you're the new kid in town
ain't it henry boy
well the north side is for diamond-studded women subtly selling their wares
and the west side is for debutants and would-be millionaires
oh the east side is for lost boys who know their moves too well
the south side is for gamblers, henry the train stops once for
hell it's a hard world when they're forcing you to live your life out on broadway
but henry i'm sure you're gona like it well
the constellation she points to gate eleven thats where you got your connections
let me take a look inside my magic book
i don't think you're beyond my inventions
oh these doctor's appendages i'm giving you for wings
i'm sure it'll meet the occasion
i'm gonna mix you some magic, you'll be spittin' sparks
and ready foir the invasion
oh and the milky way's a trip for dippers
they saw you coming a mile away
in the amusement park you'll get clipped by rippers hiding behind candy
'cades in the alleyway you'll get ripped by strippers all who know your name
in the stalls sit the soldier boy
kissers on leave for just a day
and henry couldn't take it
he's gonna be a submariner riding underground
for the pope gonna stand on the corner of broadway
and scream "up 'scope"

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IF I WAS THE PRIEST

well tehre's a light on yonder mountain
and it's callin me to shine
there's a girl over by the water fountain
and she's asking to be mine
and ain't that jesus, he's standing in the doorway
with a buckskin jacket, boots and spurs, so really fine
he says "we need you up in dodge city, son
'cause there's oh so manuy bad boys tryin' to work the same line"
well now if jesus was the sheriff and i was the priest
if my lady was an heiress and my mama was a thief
oh and papa rode shotgun for the fargo line
there's still too many bad boys tryin' to work the same line
now old sweet virgin mary she runs the holy grail saloon
where for a nickel they'll give you whisky and a personally blessed balloon
and the holy ghost, he the host with the most he runs the burlesqueshow
where they let you in for free but oh
hit you for your soul when you go
and mary serves mass on sunday and then she sells her body on monday
to the bootlegger who will pay the highest price
but he dont know he got stuck with a loser
mary's a stone junkie, what more she's a boozer
and she's only been made once or twice
by some kind of magic
well things ain't been the same in heaven
ever since big bad bobby came to town
he's been known to down eleven and then ask for another round
and me i got scabs on my knees from kneeling way too long
i gotta take a stand, be the man, up where you belong
and forget about the old friends and the old times
because there's just too many new boys tryin' to work the same line
now if jesus was the sheriff and i were the priest
if my lady was an heiress and my mama was a thief
oh and papa rode shotgun for the fargo line
there's still too many outlaws tryin' to work the same line
now there's a light on yonder mountain and it's calling me to shine
there's a girl by the water fountain and she's asking to be mine
and jhesus he's standing in the doorway with his six-guns drawn, and ready to fan
he says "we need you son, up in dodge city"
but i'm already overdue in cheyenne

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VIBES MAN (New York City Serenade)

vibes man in the alley play me your spitball serenade any deeper blue
and you'll be playing in your grave
save your notes spend 'em on your blues
boy help your darlin' yearliun' blues
boy hit the church note
ring it
vibes man stink of trashcan
hear your junkman singing
fish lady, don't you bait those tenement walks
don't take corner boys because they're too easy
you were born black and blue
you didn't have to wait for somebody to hit you
take my arm, i'll move with you down broadway
take my arm, oh honey i'll walk with you down broadway
i'm a young man and i'll be proud
and i can talk real loud
and i'm from out of town too
won't you come home with me
won't you come home with me
but no, 'cause she won't take a train
no she won't take that train
oh no she won't take that train
oh no she won't take that train
oh no she won't take that train
oh no
oh no she won't take that train
lord she won't take that train
oh she won't take that train
oh no she won't take that train
'cause she's afraid those tracks are gonna slow her down
and when she turns around i'm gonna be gone
like the notes in any man's song

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SONG TO ORPHANS

the multitude assembled and tried to make the noise
them blank blind poet generals and restless loud white boys
but times grew thin and the axis was left somehow incooplete
where instead child lionswas left ageing junkies sheep
how many wasted have i seen signed "hollywood or bust"
oh left to ride those ever ghostly arizona gusts
oh cheerleader tramps and kids with big amps sounding helpless inthe void
high society vamps and extrawight champs mistaking soot for soil
so break me now big mama as old faithfull breaks the day
believe me my good linda let the aurora shine the way
oh the confederacy she's in my name now
and the hounds are held at bay
oh, the axis needs a stronger arm
do you feel your muscles play the doorstep blanket weaver
oh, madonna pushes bells from house to house
i see her giving last kisses and wishing well to every gypsy, mystic and hero
that all the babies might find a place
who've been lost to true fathers and mothers
on their time travels deep in space
now the sons return for fathers but the fathers are all gone
oh when the lost souls search for saviours
but saviours don't last long
those aimless, questless renegade brats who live their lives in songs
run the length of a candle
and in a goodnight whisper and a puff are gone
so break me now big mama as old faithfull breaks the day
believe me my good linda, help is on the way
'cause the confederacy she's in my name now
and the hounds are held at bay
oh the axis needs a stronger arm
i can feelmy muscles play
the missions are filled with hermits looking for a friend
the terraces are filled with cat-men looking for a way in
and orphans abandoned on silver mountains
or junked in celestial alleyways
wait for that old tramp dog man moses
'cause he takes in all the strays
he told me: "don't grow on empty legends, boy, or lonely cradle songs,
'cause billy the kid was just a browery boy who made a living twirling his guns
and this night she'll be long and lanky
and she'll speak in a mother tongue"
and then lullabied the refugees with an amplifiers's hum
so break me now big mama as old faithfull breaks the day
and believe me my good linda, oh help is on the way
the confederacy she's in our name now
and the hounds are held at bay
the axis needs a stronger arm
do you feel your muscles play
do you feel your muscles play

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SHE'S LEAVING

she's leaving, she's leaving
everybody knows she's leaving
and i feel like such a fool
she left me standing here just two feet tall
i just don't know how she could do it in front of our friends and all
she had better things to do and bigger plans
i thought we could make it with just us two
but i guess we can't 'cause she can't
and i'm only one man
but i love her
it's winter suddenly
it's winter and i feel so cold inside
it's different it could've been different
if only she didn't feel that need to lie
what's the matter girl
didn't you think i was that strong that you couldn't tell me
what was going on

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THE SONG

well you flash your tongue like diamonds
you tied me to your wildcat schemes
and you forced me into a power dive
and left your mark on my jeans
and i heard the word on your soldiers
and i heard the word on jesus too
i heard the word on the country
but i never heard the word on you
your love was like a machine gun
i wore you bugle in my belt
and i was your kid glove lover
all the cards were yours you always dealt
and i stood before your soap box noiseless and shoeless
playing my pantry boy's games
you had your hands raised up
you were raised up to the sky
shouting oh sunday deity oh big daddy longlegs
come down and bless your sister please
you were shouting orders about the construction
goning on down the highway doing the virginia reel
you were namin' names, blamin' blames and you blamed me
you wore your heart like a chellenge
far and apart for anyone who came
open and wide like the river
with rocks on both sides to keep the water tame
but i heard the word on your high tides
and i felt the pain when i tried to rip your flood
gates wide and pull your body on over to my side
where we both could hide
but you heard about the freedom ride
and you heard about the highway crew
who could cut the light a little bit than you
so you left me just your shoes
and i heard the word on jesus
and i heard the word on his marching troop
and i heard the word on the country
but i never heard the word on you

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ARABIAN NIGHT

shrieks of sheiks as they come run across the movie screen
a thousand soldiers led by an arabian queen
and the harem girls move like clancy dancers through my dirty dreams
and i wake up on the floor clutching the bed-lamp and mama comes in
she screams "hey, you been out with that tramp again last night
that silver-sequined arab black bitch the one that mama don't like"
but mama she sings me moontime melodies with this great top 40 hook
mama just stares and papa don't care
but he says look mama, the girl's alright, the girl's alright
he turns and says: "tell me son, what's the word?"
'cause you know he can't hear papa the words out on the kerb
but don't go near it it's criticised as too absurd
even the animals fear
papa says "fetch me my flashlight, son"
and he stumbles out the front door
so come out from behind your bunkers
'cause the lift-offs been bust
oh papa's gone and mama'sdead and buried in my rocket dust
you're alone now for the first time
don't worry 'cause that's all right
all fears will completely disappear
come the arabian night
well the soundman smiles and turns the dial to set the meter
readin' rising he pulls the singer's voice from out of his pocket
to see if the audience likes it
oh and in the very first row sits sweet jenny rue
with a bell on her shoe
and she wants him to make it
he flicks a switch but jenny moves too fast
and the audience sways to the sound of her shotgun blast
the manager comes running out from behind stage
and says: "check the band's arms for bullet holes
make that man roll up his sleeves"
the drummer shoots himself with cyanide and then asks to be relieved
and me, i say "well it's too crazy in here, which is stage door out
i gotta get up tomorrow morning for work"
and the promotor says "man once you're in they all lead out
what's the matter man, ain't you heard there's a war going on on the outside
and i'm paying you to sing like a bird
so get in and get tough or get up and get out
because things aren't to tight"
i said "don't worry, man, everything's gonna losen up
come the arabian night, come the arabian night"
well i get in bed
but outside my window i hear another gang fight
it's duke and the boys against the devil's best men
and both sides have drawn their knives
but duke, he's a well-known knife fighter
and with the one quick jab he brings the devil down
he smiles, 'cause he knows there's a good bounty on devils in any god-fearin' town
so duke sold the devil to some priest in pennsylvania to exhibit
on his alter christmas night
but the devil's eyes they still burn red with fire
as long as duke walks upright
and he swears there's going to be a showdown come sundown
on the arabian night
oh on the arabian night
arabian night

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COWBOYS OF THE SEA

they ride beneath the waces at 20.000 leagues
on stallions stitched to seaweed strands so smiling, so smiling
they heard the fishes of the deep
they ride for you and me
they ranch the rich and the sunken soil at the bottom of the sea
in the dead of night, alive in sleep
i hear them calling me
them deep sea desperadoes them midnight mealstrom freaks
the cowboys of the sea
on wings of sleep i pierce the deep
and ride like a hurricane at midnight
still i paid my bill and turned my back
on the land with the help of old paint, that seaweed nag
it's just jesse james
me we ride the depths and rob the banks at the bottom of the sea
oh and with a seaman's grip on navigation
and some fired hired hands
we ride out to confront the nation
and lend a cowboy's hand
we do the dolphins' dance duet my mermaid babe and me
then i ride off into the blue sunset at the bottom of the sea
and with a seaman's grip on submarining and some aqualing outlaws
our guns are made of solid dreamin'
and bullets from a broken cause
oh and with hands held high
to touch the sky
a good texas ranger i'll be
but sometimes i feel like a lone stranger
'midst the cowboys of the sea
oh and man above
he cannot make love
he must rape his mother the sea
and because of his greed
we're vanishing breed
we cowboys of the sea

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Berichtje sturen ? Opmerkingen ? Aanmerkingen ? Naar: Jeroen Boelhouwer (maroen@xs4all.nl)
Created: June 1995
Last Updated: Friday 23 February 1996 - 14:32:49