Live 17 Jul 1970 version
Been down so long
I cannot look back up, oh to me, yeah
Oooh
I've been down so long
I cannot look back up to me, oh from down here
Since my honey left me
I've been so sad as any, any poor boy would be
She said that I treated her mean
She said I got too many women on the side
She said that I treated her so mean, yeah
She said I got too many of them, them young girls on the side yeah
Oh she's sweet sixteen
Said honey it don't mean a thing to me
Oh you're the best woman that I've ever seen
It made me feel so good when you love me
I just gotta let you know all about it
Ha ha hey hey hey
[Spoken:] So I figured, I figured, to make up with her, I was gonna have to take her out. So I took her, I said I'd take her to the boardwalk. To see the fireworks, right? This happened about in the middle of last week some time. So I took her on down the boardwalk, and we got about in the middle of town and all a sudden out in front of our car drops, jumps 30 state troopers and 67 Asbury policemen with the helmets on and the big long sticks and the guns on their side and the guy's aiming a shotgun in my window. "Let me see your driver's license and registration." That's hard to produce. Hard. I said, "You don't have to point that shotgun at me and jump out with all them 30 state troopers to see my license and registration, especially since I wasn't driving." It's fucking bullshit.
[Spoken:] So anyway, we're sitting there in the middle of the street, with the 30 state troopers, you know, and uh, everybody, you know, and they're making all kind of cracks at us and stuff. So I said, "What, what's going on?" You know, me being all unaware of the situation. So anyway, they let us ride through town. From what I've seen there must've been a, a bargain sale in Asbury, you know. Run in as fast as you can, take what you can get, and split, you know. Riot coat. What? Hey anybody want a television. Oh we got a TV in the bathroom now.
[Spoken:] Oh yeah, come on.
Oh you know I couldn't take her on down to the boardwalk
So she de-, she decided to, oh just cut on out of town
Oh I sure miss that woman
Oh she sure made me feel down yeah
And I've been down so long
You know it looked like up to me
She said, you know, I, I just might forgive you honey
But please won't you do me a favor
Won't you do me a little favor first
I said won't you do me a favor
[Spoken:] I said, "what do you want from me?" She said. She told me, and if I get into town to see if I can pick her up a color TV yeah.
[Spoken outro:] I want a color TV too, so I can watch the news and see what's going on in this town.
GIRLFRIEND BLUES is a song written by Bruce Springsteen. He performed it live with Steel Mill in 1970. The song's title is actually unknown, but, pending more information, this website has it listed under the title "Girlfriend Blues" following the blues riffs with the spoken word about a girlfriend.
Following the live performance of the song on 17 Jul 1970 in Asbury Park, NJ, a woman in the audience references Richard Fariña's 1966 novel Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me and then Springsteen confirms that he's familiar with the book. It is possible that he wrote some of the lyrics in GIRLFRIEND BLUES based on the book title or content.
Steel Mill may have recorded GIRLFRIEND BLUES at Challenger Eastern Surfboards in Asbury Park, NJ. The surfboard factory was also Springsteen's home from late 1969 thru late 1970, and a makeshift studio environment of sufficient standard to produce reasonable quality recordings. Although the song might have been recorded as part of ongoing rehearsals at Challenger Eastern Surfboards, none of these 1969 and 1970 recordings is currently in circulation. Due to financial restrictions the reel-to-reel tapes were often reused. Consequently there is a distinct possibility that much of what was recorded at Challenger no longer survives, even in Springsteen's personal archive.
The above lyrics are for the live 17 Jul 1970 performance of GIRLFRIEND BLUES at Sunshine In in Asbury Park, NJ. The parts in bold are by Vini Lopez.
SECTION NOT YET COMPLETED
Steel Mill performed on 17 and 18 Jul 1970 at Sunshine In in Asbury Park, NJ. These were double-bill shows, with Steel Mill headlining and Lotus opening. A good quality 58-minute soundboard recording of one of the two nights is in circulation among collectors. The tape does not represent the complete show; it seems to include the first three and last two songs of the night. Brucebase has attributed this audio to 17 Jul 1970, but it could also be from the following night's show.
In the banter during GIRLFRIEND BLUES, Springsteen referenced the 1970 Asbury Park race riots that happened between 04 Jul and 10 Jul 1970. The seven days of rioting, looting, and destruction were a major civil disturbance in Asbury Park, NJ. He joked: "From what I've seen there must've been a bargain sale in Asbury. Run in as fast as you can, take what you can get, and split." He also tells a story about an encounter with the state troopers and policemen that happened "about in the middle of last week some time." All this evidence supports the belief that this audio recording is from the two-night residency at Sunshine In.
GIRLFRIEND BLUES is known to have been performed at least once in Bruce Springsteen's early years (pre-October 1972). Very little is known about shows from this early period, and therefore, the song may have been played on some more dates.
Thanks Audio2575 (from Rare Springsteen) for the help on this page.
For comments, additions, or corrections, please contact me via the below form or by email: .
List of available versions of GIRLFRIEND BLUES on this website:
GIRLFRIEND BLUES [Live 17 Jul 1970 version]