HEARTBREAK HOTEL

Live 19 Aug 1978 version

[Spoken intro: I was gonna... There was a point where like... I was thinking of... We were looking for titles for the album, and we were gonna call it "Badlands". And then a friend of mine put out an album ??? Billy Chinnock and he called his "Badlands" (chuckles). And Vini, my old drummer, Mad Dog, he's, he's working up in Maine. He drummed on "The Wild And The Innocent" and on "Asbury Park". And uh, they're called the Billy Chinnock Band ??? and they're gonna be playing down around here, I think they have recently. So if you get a chance, you should go and see him and say hi. And uh, there was a while where... I was fooling around, I was gonna call it, was gonna title the album "Heartbreak Hotel". But I, I didn't have the guts so... But anyway, my zipper keeps coming down so until it stays up, we're gonna do, uh (chuckles). Let's just do "Heartbreak". Let me hear the E. Well, give me a little echo. One, one two, one, alright.

Well since my baby left me
I found a new place to dwell
Well down the end of Lonely street at Heartbreak Hotel
You make me so lonely baby
You make me so lonely
You make me so lonely I could die

Well bellhop's tears keep flowing
And the desk clerk dressed in black
I've been so long on Lonely street and I will be back
You make me so lonely baby
You make me so lonely
You make me so lonely I could die
Whoa!

Yeah although it's always crowded
And you still can find some room
For broken hearted lovers to cry in their gloom
You make me so lonely baby
You make me so lonely
You make me so lonely I could die
Miami Steve!

Whoa, if your baby leaves you
And you've got a tale to tell
Just take a walk down Lonely street to Heartbreak Hotel
You make me so lonely
It makes you so lonely
You make me so lonely I could die
Whoa!

Originally by Mae Boren Axton, Tommy Durden, and Elvis Presley. The first known Bruce performance of the song was on 02 Dec 1977 at NYU Loeb Student Center, New York City, NY, with Link Wray and Robert Gordon. Performed 19 times during the Darkness On The Edge Of Town tour:
- 07 Jul 1978 at The Roxy Theatre, West Hollywood, CA
- 28 Jul 1978 at Jai Alai Fronton, Miami, FL
- 19 Aug 1978 at Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA
- 21 Aug 1978 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
- 23 Aug 1978 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
- 25 Aug 1978 at Veteran's Memorial Coliseum, New Haven, CT
- 26 Aug 1978 at Civic Center, Providence, RI
- 30 Aug 1978 at Richfield Coliseum, Cleveland, OH
- 01 Sep 1978 at Masonic Temple Auditorium, Detroit, MI
- 03 Sep 1978 at Saginaw Civic Center, Saginaw, MI
- 06 Sep 1978 at Uptown Theater, Chicago, IL
- 10 Sep 1978 at Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati, OH
- 12 Sep 1978 at War Memorial Auditorium, Syracuse, NY
- 13 Sep 1978 at the Civic Center, Springfield, MA
- 29 Sep 1978 at Boutwell Memorial Auditorium, Birmingham, AL
- 01 Oct 1978 at Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA
- 01 Dec 1978 at Lloyd Noble Center, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
- 09 Dec 1978 at Dallas Convention Center Arena, Dallas, TX
- 01 Jan 1979 at Richfield Coliseum, Cleveland, OH

Also performed off-tour on 14 Mar 1979 at The Fast Lane, Asbury Park, NJ, with Robert Gordon, on 27 May 1979 at Paramount Theatre, Asbury Park, NJ, with Robert Gordon, and on 13 Jun 1982 at The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ, with Cats. The last known appearance of the song was during the sound-check of a Tunnel Of Love tour show on 05 Apr 1988 at Capitol Center, Landover, MD.

The above lyrics are for the live 19 Aug 1978 performance of HEARTBREAK HOTEL at Spectrum in Philadelphia, PA.

Available Versions

List of available versions of HEARTBREAK HOTEL on this website: