Gary U.S. Bonds' album version
| Gary U.S. Bonds: | Jole Blon, Delta Flower |
| You're my darling, you're my sunshine | |
| I love you, and adore you | |
| And I promise to be true | |
| Gary U.S. Bonds: | In the evening in the shadow |
| I'll be waiting by the river | |
| When I hear your sweet voice, I rejoice | |
| I save my kisses for you | |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | Sha la la, la la la la la |
| Sha la la la, sha la la la | |
| Sha la la, sha la la la la | |
| Sha la la, la la la la | |
| Bruce Springsteen: | Jole Blon, Cajun Angel |
| Let me tell you that I love you | |
| In the spring you swore we'd be married | |
| But I'm waiting still for you | |
| Bruce Springsteen: | When your hair turns to silver |
| I'll still call you Delta Flower | |
| Pretty Blon, I'll still love you | |
| And I will wait for you | |
| Gary U.S. Bonds: | Oh |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | Sha la la, sha la la la la |
| Sha la la la, sha la la la | |
| Sha la la, sha la la la la | |
| Sha la la, la la la la la | |
| Gary U.S. Bonds: | We'll go away from this city |
| We'll go back girl, back to our home | |
| Someday I promise I'll take you | |
| 'Cause so far away we've roamed | |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | And the bells they will ring |
| From the mountains through the valleys | |
| On the banks of the river | |
| There you will be my bride | |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | Sha la la, sha la la la la |
| Sha la la la, sha la la la | |
| Sha la la, sha la la la la | |
| Sha la la, la la la la la | |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | Sha la la, sha la la la la |
| Sha la la la, sha la la la | |
| Sha la la, sha la la la la | |
| Sha la la, la la la la la | |
| Bruce Springsteen: | Hey! |
| Bonds and Springsteen: | Sha la la, sha la la la la |
| Sha la la la, sha la la la | |
| Sha la la, sha la la la la | |
| Sha la la, la la la la la |
JOLE BLON is a traditional Cajun waltz. See the original Breaux Frères version for more details.
Gary U.S. Bonds released JOLE BLON on his 1981 album Dedication. The song is one of four on the album that were produced and arranged by Steven Van Zandt and Bruce Springsteen. The arrangement of JOLE BLON on Dedication is credited to Moon Mullican, who had a hit with a country version of the song in 1947, but his version doesn't have much in common with the Springsteen/Bonds version. See the original Breaux Frères version for more details.
The above lyrics are for Gary U.S. Bonds' album version of JOLE BLON as released in 1981.
Gary U.S. Bonds recorded the song as a duo with Bruce Springsteen during the Dedication album recording sessions in mid-1980 (see the "Dedication" section below for more details). Bonds and Springsteen actually overdubbed their vocals onto an E Street Band backing that was probably recorded in January 1980 at The Power Station in New York City, NY.
In addition to the official version that was recorded with Gary U.S. Bonds, three Bruce Springsteen studio takes of JOLE BLON have been circulating among Springsteen fans via the unofficial route. These were not studio recordings in the traditional sense; they were part of extensive song rehearsal sessions with the E Street Band that took place in 1978-1980 at Telegraph Hill Studios, a make-shift studio in a converted barn at Springsteen's property on Telegraph Hill Road in Holmdel, NJ. Unfortunately the audio quality from these rehearsals at Telegraph Hill Studios leaves much to be desired; it sounds as if a single boom recording mike was used. The three circulating versions of JOLE BLON from these studio rehearsals were recorded on 11 Jan 1980. See studio rehearsal version #1, studio rehearsal version #2, and studio rehearsal version #3.
According to Brucebase, a Bruce Springsteen vocal rendition of JOLE BLON was recorded at The Power Station in New York City, NY, in January 1980.
Gary U.S. Bonds released two studio albums and several hit singles in 1961 and 1962, three of which were top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Success was short-lived and Bonds relegated to playing the oldies circuit. In the early eighties, his career resurrected with two collaborations with Bruce Springsteen, Steven Van Zandt, and the E Street Band: Dedication in 1981 and On The Line in 1982.
Dedication is Gary U.S. Bonds' third studio album, released in April 1981 on EMI America Records. The musicians backing Bonds on the album include many members of the E Street Band and the Asbury Jukes. The album includes three songs written by Bruce Springsteen (THIS LITTLE GIRL, YOUR LOVE, and DEDICATION), one written by Steve Van Zandt, and several covers of songs from The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Jackson Browne, and others. Four of the album's songs (the three that Springsteen wrote plus JOLE BLON) were produced and arranged by Steven Van Zandt and Bruce Springsteen. Springsteen provided shared lead vocals on JOLE BLON and backing vocals on THIS LITTLE GIRL. He is also credited for providing guitar but it's not clear on which tracks; it is likely that he played guitar on some or all of the four tracks that he co-produced.
Dedication was recorded sometime between June and August 1980 at The Power Station in New York City, NY, during Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band sessions for Gary U.S. Bonds undertaken in the immediate aftermath of the final recording sessions for The River. According to a May 1981 article by Rolling Stone's Kurt Loder, the initial plan was to record an EP for Gary U.S. Bonds consisting of three songs that Springsteen had written for him. Loder wrote that "Bruce had a lot of wild ideas, and pretty soon the EP started looking more like an LP. Fifteen days later, they emerged with a whole album."
Dedication reached #27 on Billboard's Top LPs & Tapes chart and #34 on the Top R&B Albums chart and produced several singles, including THIS LITTLE GIRL which was a hit. Music writer Dave Marsh called Dedication "one of the most successful comeback albums in rock & roll history".
Dedication was re-released in 1991 on the Razor Edge label (catalog number RE-1986-2).
JOLE BLON was released as a single in July 1981. It peaked at #65 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The single was issued in the United States, the UK, and The Netherlands.
In addition to it's release on Dedication and as a single, Gary U.S. Bonds' album version of JOLE BLON was also included on a few other official releases.
Other versions of JOLE BLON were also officially released.
JOLE BLON is known to have been performed at least 17 times during The River Tour (138 dates, October 1980 to September 1981), all in the tour's last four months. A few setlists from that period are incomplete, and therefore, the song may have been played on some more dates during The River Tour, but that's very unlikely. The song featured a guest appearance by Gary U.S. Bonds on 03 and 09 Jul 1981 in East Rutherford, NJ. The live 05 Jun 1981 version of JOLE BLON was released on the Wembley Arena June 5, 1981 official live download in 2018. The live 09 Jul 1981 version of JOLE BLON was released on the Brendan Byrne Arena 1981 official live download in 2020.
JOLE BLON was performed once during World Tour 1992-1993 (104 dates, June 1992 to June 1993), on 26 Jun 1993 in New York City, NY. The 26 Jun 1993 show in New York City, NY, was billed as "Kristen Ann Carr Fund Benefit Concert". The song was played with Terence Trent D'Arby on guitar and vocals.
JOLE BLON was performed twice during the Working On A Dream Tour (83 dates, April to November 2009), on 12 Sep 2009 in Tampa, FL, and on 15 Nov 2009 in Milwaukee, WI.
JOLE BLON was performed 3 during the Wrecking Ball Tour (133 dates, March 2012 to September 2013), on 21 and 22 Sep 2012 in East Rutherford, NJ, and on 18 Jun 2013 in Glasgow, Scotland. Both East Rutherford performances of the song featured a guest appearance by Gary U.S. Bonds. The live 22 Sep 2012 version of JOLE BLON was released on the East Rutherford, NJ 09.22.12 official live download in 2019.
JOLE BLON was performed once during the High Hopes Tour (34 dates, January to May 2014). The song was played in a full-band arrangement. Audio recordings for most High Hopes Tour shows are officially available for purchase. See the live 25 Feb 2014 version for more details.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 14 Jun 1981 at Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, CA, during the fourth annual Survival Sunday anti-nuclear benefit. The song was played with Gary U.S. Bonds.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 15 Jun 1981 at Old Waldorf in San Francisco, CA, where Bruce Springsteen made a guest appearance with Gary U.S. Bonds, playing a five-song set. No audio recording of this show is known to exist.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 11 Jul 1981 at Big Man's West in Red Bank, NJ, where Bruce Springsteen made a guest appearance with Clarence Clemons on the opening night of his new nightclub, playing a six-song set.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 05 Jan 1982 at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ, during a guest appearance with the Lord Gunner Group.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 10 Apr 1982 at Big Man's West in Red Bank, NJ, during a guest appearance with Beaver Brown.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 08 May 1982 at The Fast Lane in Asbury Park, NJ, during a guest appearance with Beaver Brown.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 31 Dec 1982 at Harkness House For Ballet Arts in New York City, NY, during the wedding reception for Steven Van Zandt and his bride Maureen Santoro. Lester Chambers & The Chamber Brothers supplied the music at the reception. Best man Bruce Springsteen and various other guests, including Gary U.S. Bonds, Southside Johnny, and the E Street Band, joined the band for a six-song set. No audio recording of this show is known to exist.
JOLE BLON was performed off-tour on 29 Apr 2003 at Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank, NJ, during "The Hope Concert" benefit. The song was played with Gary U.S. Bonds.
JOLE BLON was performed during the third (2002) annual Light Of Day benefit. The song was played with Gary U.S. Bonds.
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help and Mark Bahlen for providing scans for some of the above singles.
Some of the above info about the studio recordings is taken from Brucebase. Info for some of the above releases is taken from the Nebraska website.
Please contact me if you have scans or info about any official release containing JOLE BLON that's not mentioned on this page. Any additions, comments, or corrections to this page are welcome. You can contact me via the below form or by email: .
List of available versions of JOLE BLON on this website:
JOLE BLON [Gary U.S. Bonds' album version]
