Live 04 Nov 1976 version
[Spoken intro:] Oh man. This is for Ronnie, and, uh, and my jacket for her tonight. This is, uh, it's to everybody, and I want to thank, you know, the grateful supporting the band the way you have. And here's to you from Asbury Park with love.
One, two, three, four
Sandy, the fireworks are hailin' over Little Eden tonight
Forcin' a light into all them stoned-out faces left stranded on this fourth of July
Down in town the Circuit's full with switchblade lovers, so fast, so shiny, and sharp
Them wizards play down on Pinball Way on the boardwalk way past dark
And the boys from the casino dance with their shirts open like Latin lovers along the shore
Chasin' all them silly New York girls
Oh, Sandy, the aurora is rising behind us, girl
The pier lights our carnival life forever
Love me tonight, 'cause I may never see you again
Whoa, oh, oh, Sandy, girl
Well, now the greasers, they tramp the streets or get busted for trying to sleep on the beach all night
Yeah, them boys in their spiked high heels, ah, Sandy, their skin are so white
And me, I just got tired of hangin' in them dusty arcades, oh, and bangin' them pleasure machines
Chasin' the factory girls underneath the boardwalk, where they all promise, friend, to unsnap their jeans
You know that tilt-a-whirl way down on the south beach drag
I got on it last night and my shirt got caught
That Joey kept me spinnin'
I didn't think I'd ever get off
Oh, Sandy, the aurora is rising behind us
The pier lights our carnival life on the water
Running crazy down the beach with my old boss's daughter
Sandy -- got no boss no more
Now, Sandy, the angels have lost their desire for us
You know, I can't figure it out
I spoke to 'em just last night; they said they won't set themselves on fire for us anymore
But every summer when the weather gets hot, they ride that crazy road down from heaven, on their Harleys they come and they go
You see 'em dressed like stars in all the cheap little seashore bars
And parked with their babies out on the Kokomo
Did you hear the cops finally busted Madame Marie for tellin' fortunes better than they do
This boardwalk life for me is through
You know, you ought to quit this scene too
Oh, Sandy, the aurora is rising behind us
The pier lights our carnival life forever
Oh, love me tonight and I promise I'll love you forever
Swear it, Sandy!
Oh, oh, oh
How 'bout it?
The above lyrics are for the live 04 Nov 1976 performance of 4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK (SANDY) at Palladium in New York City, NY, during what is known as The Lawsuit Tour. The song was played in a full-band arrangement.
Despite the marvelous reception received by both Born To Run and the tour which followed, the relationship between Bruce Springsteen and his now former manager and producer Mike Appel was deteriorating. In July 1976 the storm broke; Mike Appel wrote to Springsteen saying that he would not allow Jon Landau (Springsteen's friend and co-producer of Born To Run) to produce the next album, citing a particular paragraph from their original agreement. Springsteen replied on 27 Jul 1976 by firing manager Mike Appel and suing him and his management company Laurel Canyon Ltd. in Federal Court in Manhattan, claiming fraud, breach of trust, and undue influence. Appel counter-sued on 29 Jul 1976 in New York State Supreme Court, asking the court to prohibit Springsteen and Jon Landau from working together in studio. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band were slated to enter the studio that year for the recording of a new album, except that on 15 Sep 1976 the judge in the lawsuits case ruled that Springsteen was enjoined from any further recording with Columbia Records until Appel's suit was resolved. This would drag for about a year. Meanwhile, Springsteen continued gigging, and in the process broke his self-imposed rule of not playing the larger arenas. This was basically because he was not able to put a record out, and it was the only way his fans would be able to hear him at all. The tour became known as "The Lawsuit Tour" (62 know dates, August 1976 to March 1977).
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.
List of available versions of 4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK (SANDY) on this website:
4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK (SANDY) [Album version]
