Lyrics

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE

Live 31 Jan 1998 version


Jon Bon Jovi:It's all the same, only the names will change
Every day, it seems we're wasting away
Another place where the faces are so cold
You drive all night to get back home

Jon Bon Jovi:I'm a cowboy
On a steel horse I ride
Wanted dead or alive
Wanted dead or alive

(Two... Three... Four...)

Bruce Springsteen:Sometimes I sleep, sometimes it's not for days
And the people that I meet, we always go our separate ways
Well sometimes you tell the day by the bottle that you drink
And times when you're all alone, and all you do is think

Bruce Springsteen:Honey, I'm a cowboy
Jon Bon Jovi:I'm a cowboy
On a steel horse I ride
Bruce Springsteen:On a steel horse I ride
Jon Bon Jovi:Wanted, wanted dead or alive
Wanted (wanted) dead or alive

[guitar solo]

[SPOKEN]Jon Bon Jovi:I'm a cowboy
On a steel horse I ride
I'm wanted (wanted) dead or alive

Jon Bon Jovi:And I'll walk the streets, I got my guitar on my back
I gotta play everyday for keeps, 'cause I might not make it back

Bruce Springsteen:I've been everywhere and still I'm trying to stand tall
I've seen a million faces, and I've lived through it all

Both:Honey, I'm a cowboy
Bruce Springsteen:I'm a cowboy
Jon Bon Jovi:On a steel horse I ride
Bruce Springsteen:On a steel horse I ride
Jon Bon Jovi:Wanted (wanted) dead or alive
Bruce Springsteen:Dead or alive
Jon Bon Jovi:I'm a cowboy
Bruce Springsteen:I'm a cowboy
Jon Bon Jovi:The night's on my side
Wanted (wanted) dead or alive
And I'll ride (and I'll ride)
Dead or alive
And I'll drive (I still try)
Dead or alive
Dead or alive
Dead or alive
Dead or alive
Dead or alive

Info

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE is a 1986 song by Bon Jovi. See the original Bon Jovi version for more details.

Live 31 Jan 1998 version

The above lyrics are for live 31 Jan 1998 performance of WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE at Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, NJ, during the "Come Together: Jon Bon Jovi & Friends" benefit concert. Jon Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen traded lead vocals on this song.

The 31 Jan 1998 Show

The "Come Together: Jon Bon Jovi & Friends" benefit concert was organized by the Long Branch Police Department, The Asbury Park Press, and FPI Concerts, along with Jon Bon Jovi. The concert was to honor slain Long Branch police officer Sgt. Patrick King and raise money for the Sgt. Patrick King Memorial Fund to provide for his family. King, 45-year-old father of two young boys, was fatally shot on 20 Nov 1997 by a fugitive who had vowed to kill himself and a police officer rather than be captured and returned to jail.

Twenty musicians with ties to the Jersey shore music scene answered Jon Bon Jovi's call, including Bruce Springsteen and several members of the then-disbanded E Street Band (Clarence Clemons, Danni Frederici, Patti Scialfa, Steven Van Zandt, and Max Weinberg), Southside Johnny, Bobby Bandiera, and Richie Sambora among others. Actor Danny DeVito was the event's MC. Tickets, which were priced at $125, went on sale on 17 Jan 1998 noon and sold out in just eight minutes. The concert that was organized in short order raised more than $112,000 for King's widow and his two sons.

Promotional poster for the 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ
Promotional poster for the 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ
Ticket stub for the 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ
Ticket stub for the 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ

"It was a chance to forget about [the murder] a little bit," Long Branch police Sgt. Bruce Johantgen, one of about 50 city police officers who attended the show, told The Asbury Park Press. "The outpouring of love from the performers to the audience was unbelievable". Johantgen said he found it ironic that Bon Jovi and other performers thanked the audience for coming to the sold-out show. "From the police perspective, I kept thinking, 'We should be thanking you for giving your time'," Johantgen said.

This was a near-reunion of the fabled E Street Band and Springsteen's first full-length electric gig following the acoustic The Ghost Of Tom Joad Solo Acoustic Tour. Springsteen spent much (or possibly all) of the night onstage, singing or playing guitar only. Soundboard recording for the complete concert is available among collectors.

31 Jan 1998 concert setlist

  1. THIS TIME IT'S FOR REAL (with Southside Johnny, Jon Bon Jovi, and Steven Van Zandt)
  2. TWO HEARTS (Bruce Springsteen with Steven Van Zandt)
  3. BAD MEDICINE (Jon Bon Jovi and Southside Johnny)
  4. UNTIL THE GOOD IS GONE (Steven Van Zandt)
  5. TENTH AVENUE FREEZE-OUT (Bruce Springsteen with Jon Bon Jovi)
  6. BROKE DOWN PIECE OF MAN (Southside Johnny and Bon Jovi)
  7. HARD TIMES COME EASY (Richie Sambora)
  8. LOVE'S GLORY (Patti Scialfa)
  9. THERE GOES MY BABY (Southside Johnny)
  10. THIS TIME BABY'S GONE FOR GOOD (Bruce Springsteen with Southside Johnny and Steven Van Zandt)
  11. YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME (Bruce Springsteen with Jon Bon Jovi)
  12. THE PROMISED LAND (Bruce Springsteen)
  13. ALL I NEEDED WAS YOU (Southside Johnny and Van Zandt)
  14. SOMEDAY I'LL BE SATURDAY NIGHT (Jon Bon Jovi and Southside Johnny)
  15. BOBBY JEAN (Bruce Springsteen)
  16. BLOOD ON BLOOD (Jon Bon Jovi)
  17. THE FEVER (Bruce Springsteen with Southside Johnny and Clarence Clemons)
  18. I'VE BEEN WORKING TOO HARD - LITTLE QUEENIE (Southside Johnny and Jon Bon Jovi)
  19. I DON'T WANT TO GO HOME (Bruce Springsteen with Southside Johnny, Jon Bon Jovi, and Steven Van Zandt)
  20. IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME (Bruce Springsteen with Southside Johnny and Van Zandt)
  21. WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE (Bruce Springsteen with Jon Bon Jovi)
  22. BACKSTREETS (Bruce Springsteen)
  23. FOREVER (Steven Van Zandt)
  24. LIVIN' ON A PRAYER (Jon Bon Jovi)
  25. BADLANDS (Bruce Springsteen)
  26. I PLAYED THE FOOL (Southside Johnny and Jon Bon Jovi)
  27. KEEP THE FAITH (Jon Bon Jovi)
  28. BORN TO RUN (Bruce Springsteen)
  29. ROCKIN' ALL OVER THE WORLD (Bruce Springsteen with all performers)
  30. TREAT HER RIGHT (Southside Johnny and Jon Bon Jovi with all performers)
  31. THUNDER ROAD (Bruce Springsteen with Southside Johnny, Jon Bon Jovi, Steven Van Zandt, and all performers)

The 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre was commercially released in Europe. Since 2005 some enterprising record labels in Europe (mostly in the UK) have been releasing Bruce Springsteen radio and TV broadcasts (and some soundboard recordings) from the seventies, eighties, and nineties. Though these releases are not authorized by Bruce Springsteen or his record company, they are lawful due to a legal loophole in Europe.

Bruce Springsteen & Bon Jovi -- Live On Air
Bruce Springsteen & Bon Jovi -- Live On Air

2xCD - Laser Media (1143272) - UK, 2016

This release contains part of the 31 Jan 1998 show at Count Basie Theatre.

Live History

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE was performed off-tour on 31 Jan 1998 at Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, NJ, during the "Come Together: Jon Bon Jovi & Friends" benefit concert.

List of off-tour performances

  1. 31 Jan 1998 at Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ

Credits

Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.

Available Versions

List of available versions of WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE on this website:

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE [Live 31 Jan 1998 version]
WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE [Original Bon Jovi version]
Page last updated: 01 Sep 2012