Band rehearsal #8
...four
One two three four
I was out driving, just taking it slow
Look at my tank it was reading low
At Texaco station out on Highway One
Whoa!
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Some damn fool with a guitar walks in off the street
Ain't got nowhere to go, ain't got nothing to eat
Man with a cigar says "sign here son"
Whoa!
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Now it's a sin, it's a crime
You know it happens buddy all of the time
Try to make a living, try to have a little fun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun
Thank you
The above lyrics are for a band rehearsal workout of HELD UP WITHOUT A GUN recorded on 22 Feb 1980 at Springsteen's Telegraph Hill Road property in Holmdel, NJ, nicknamed "Telegraph Hill Studios". This wasn't a true studio; it was a converted barn that Springsteen and the band used to practice songs around the time The River was being cut in studio. Working out arrangements cuts down pricey hours at The Power Station where the album was recorded.
A significant amount of The River sessions audio that has surfaced unofficially comes from these Telegraph Hill sessions. Unfortunately the audio quality leaves much to be desired. It sounds as if a single boom recording mike was used and Springsteen's vocals are buried under the instruments on virtually all these recordings.
This band rehearsal of HELD UP WITHOUT A GUN can be found on The Lost Masters Vol. 11 (Labour Of Love) bootleg. It's one of eight different band rehearsal takes of the song found on this bootleg. This take can also be found on The Lost Masters Essential Collection (Labour Of Love) bootleg, which mistakenly lists it as "take #4".
Liner notes from The Lost Masters Vol. 11 bootleg:
[...] Presumably, the taping was done on a large boom box, situated centrally so as to capture as much of the sound as possible (obviously). The purpose of taping these sessions (and supposedly dubbing copies for each band member) was unclear but one can venture a guess that Bruce used these as guides for how the band would eventually "tackle" a song in the studio. The fact that these sessions were taped on a boom box (albeit a good one, we'd presume) renders the sound is a bit strange, with the vocals not as "upfront" as we'd like, at times. One thing that is evident, however, is the incredible energy and enthusiasm that resounds from these tracks. These are not sloopy, disorganized sessions, but are serious attempts at finding the "groove", so to speak. [...] What is most interesting and enjoyable about these sessions, though, are the various takes of "Held Up" and "Two Hearts". Listening to these complete takes along with the between song chatter illustrates how well this group of musicians worked together and how sync they were. Miami Steve even takes the lead vocal on two razor sharp versions of "Held Up", and listen to how the guitars cook as the band works on several minutes of the ending guitar solos.
Some of the above info is taken from Brucebase.
List of available versions of HELD UP WITHOUT A GUN on this website:
HELD UP WITHOUT A GUN [Official studio version]
