ELOISE

Studio version

Well, what power of God does a nun use to hold a parish priest
And what makes a good cop let go a beautiful thief
Oh, and how does a queen know she can hold that man with honey
Oh, and what makes an old woman give a young man all her money
Well, late in the night 'neath them pale moonlight that power comes over me
And it's all, oh, Eloise, yeah

Info

ELOISE is a song written by Bruce Springsteen who recorded it in studio in spring 1972. The song has not yet been officially released. The above lyrics are for the only known studio version of ELOISE.

Writing and Recording

There is no indication to when ELOISE was written. One studio version of the song is in circulation among collectors. It's a studio take likely recorded around May-Jun 1972 at Pocketful Of Tunes Studios in New York City, NY. It features Springsteen solo on vocals and acoustic guitar. The May-Jun 1972 sessions at Pocketful Of Tunes Studios were produced by Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos, and Cretecos took the role of recording engineer. The above lyrics transcribed from that circulating studio version of ELOISE.

The music in ELOISE would later develop into the music in GROWIN' UP. It is possible that the available recording of ELOISE is only for the first verse of a potentially longer song.

Unofficial Releases

The studio version of ELOISE was released on the briefly-legal albums The Early Years (Early Records), Unearthed (Masquerade Music, both issues), and Before The Fame (Pony Express Records, all three issues). See PRODIGAL SON for more details.

Bruce Springsteen -- The Early Years (Early Records)

Bruce Springsteen -- Unearthed (Masquerade Music, first issue)

Bruce Springsteen -- Unearthed (Masquerade Music, second issue)

Bruce Springsteen -- Before The Fame (Pony Express Records, first issue)

Bruce Springsteen -- Before The Fame (Pony Express Records, second issue)

Bruce Springsteen -- Before The Fame (Pony Express Records, third issue)

Live History

As far as it's known, Bruce Springsteen has never performed ELOISE live.

Covers

At least one artist has recorded and released Bruce Springsteen's ELOISE.

Fred Gorhau -- Before The Fame

MC - Pony Express Records (C-0949) - USA, 1995

This is a Bruce Springsteen tribute album containing covers of 15 early songs. As Fred Gorhau told this website, he was "hired for the weekend to record everything".

References

Some of the above info about the studio recording is taken from Brucebase. Info and scan for the Fred Gorhau cover album is taken from the Nebraska website.

Request

The above lyrics may not be 100% correct, and they are open for revisions and corrections. If you can assist, or if have any additions or comments, please contact me via the below form or by email: .

Available Versions

List of available versions of ELOISE on this website:

Page last updated: 02 Feb 2013