BACKSTREETS^©

Live 04 Mar 1977 version

One soft infested summer me and Terry became friends
Trying in vain to breathe the fire we was born in
Catching rides through the outskirts, tying faith between our teeth
Sleeping in that old abandoned beach house, getting wasted in the heat
And hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
With a love so hard and filled with defeat, hey!
Running for our lives at night on them backstreets

Slow dancing in the dark on the beach at Stockton's Wing
Where desperate lovers park we sat with the last of the Duke Street Kings
Huddled in our cars waiting for the bells that ring
In the deep heart of the night that set you loose from everything
To go running on the backstreets, running on the backstreets
We swore we'd live forever, hey!
On the backstreets we'd take 'em together

Endless juke joints and Valentino drag
Where dancers scraped the tears up off the streets dressed down in rags
Running into the darkness, some hurt bad some really dying
At night sometimes it seemed you could hear that whole damn city crying
Blame it on the lies that killed us or on the truth that ran us down
Blame it all on me, it don't matter to me now
When the breakdown came at midnight there was nothing left to say
I hated him and I hated you when you went away
Whoah, whoah

Now laying here in the park, you're like an angel on my chest
Just another tramp of hearts crying tears of faithlessness
Remember all the movies, Terry, we'd go see
Trying to learn how to walk like the heroes we thought we had to be
Well after all this time to find we're just like all the rest
Stranded in the park and forced to confess
To hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
We swore forever friends
On the backstreets until the end

Until the end
It's me and you, baby
It's me and you, girl
We were going to steal away
We were going to steal away
We were going to slip away
Damn it, we had it all figured out
You was going to quit your job
And I was going to quit my job, too
And I remember
Whoah, I remember
Those long weekends, we used to
This guy had abandoned this old car
In the middle of this field about
Two, three miles outside of town
And we used to hitchhike out there and
It was about two, three hundred feet off the tracks
I remember this night we were out there
Riding
We were out there riding in back
Oh, way down by the railroad tracks
Oh, in the backseat
In the backseat
In the backseat of that old Cadillac
Baby, used to ride in the back
Well darling, take me back
Whoah, won't you take me back
And I'm waiting down
And I remember this night
I remember there was this farmhouse
About a mile up the road
And these kids, they set
There was a van, these kids set fire to it that night
And they had these machines down there
And they had this fire down there
It was just burning out of control
And there was sitting in the backseat of the car and
And at night, we could see the flames shooting in the air
And see the water shooting in the air
And I remember you promised that you was never going to go
You swore you was never going to
Go anyplace in this town without me
And I remember you promised
And I remember how we swore to it
And I remember sitting on the hood of the car
And watching it rushing toward us
Watching the fire rushing toward us
Watching the fire rushing toward us
Watching the fields turn from red to orange
And I remember standing on the corner
Well I remember standing on the corner
My car
Yeah, my suitcase packed
Oh, we were gonna make some tracks, make some tracks
And the rain was falling down
I remember Joey the cop asking me what I was waiting for
And I stood there
And time went by
And the night went by
And I'm standing there, three in the morning,
And I was just wishing
Just wishing that God would send down some angels
And blow this whole town into the sea
Just wishing that God would send some angels
And blow this whole town right into the sea
Just wishing that God would send some angels
And blow this whole town right into the sea
Just wishing that God would send some angels
And blow us all away
And blow us all away
And blow us all away
And blow us all away
Because you promised
And blow us all away
Because you promised
And blow us all away
Because you promised
Just blow it all away
Because you promised
Just blow it all away
Because you promised
You promised
Because you promised
And because...
You lied!!!
You lied!!!
Whoooooaaaaaaahhhhhhh

Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
Hiding on the backstreets, hiding on the backstreets
It's alright
We'll go hiding on the backstreets tonight
Well on the backstreets, on the backstreets
Yeah
Whoah, whoah whoah whoah whoah whoah whoah
On the backstreets

Oh, alright
Whoah, whoah whoah whoah whoah
Whoah oh oh, oh, oooh oh oh uh uh uh uh

Page last updated: 00 Xxx 2008

The above lyrics are for the 04 Mar 1977 performance at The Auditorium, Jacksonville, FL.

List of available versions of BACKSTREETS on this website:

• Album's version (more details)

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