Live 12 Dec 1975 version
The ragamuffin gunner is returnin' home like a hungry runaway
He walks through town all alone
"He must be from the fort," he hears the high school girls say
This countryside's burnin' with wolfmen fairies dressed in drag for homicide
They hit and run, plead sanctuary, 'neath the holy stone they hide
Breakin' beams, breakin' crosses, making midnight connections
As sisters run bald in church halls, pleadin' immaculate conception
And everybody's wrecked on Main Street from drinking unholy blood
Sticker smiles sweet, and the gunner breathes deep, his ankles caked in mud
Someone says, "Hey, gunner, man, that's quicksand, that's quicksand, that ain't mud
You throw your senses to the war or did you lose 'em in the flood?"
That pure American brother, dull-eyed and empty-faced
He races Sundays in Jersey in a Chevy stock super eight
He rides her low on the hip, on the side he's got Bound For Glory in red, white and blue flash paint
He leans on the hood telling racin' stories, the kids call him Jimmy The Saint
Well, that blaze and noise boy, he's gunnin' that bitch loaded to blastin' point
He rides headfirst into a hurricane and disappears into a point
Till there's nothin' left but blood where the body fell
That is, nothin' left that you could sell
Just junk all across the horizon, a real highwayman's farewell
Someone said, "Hey kid, you think that's oil? Man, that ain't oil, that's blood"
I wonder what he was thinking when he hit that storm
Or was he just lost in the flood?
Eighth Avenue sailors in satin shirts whisper in the air
Some storefront incarnation of Maria, she's puttin' on me the stare
And Bronx's best apostle stands with his hand on his own hardware
Everything stops, you hear five quick shots, the cops come up for air
Now the whiz-bang gang from uptown, they're shootin' up the street
And that cat from the Bronx, he starts lettin' loose, but gets blown right off his feet
And some kid comes blastin' around the corner, but a cop puts him right away
He lays on the street holding his leg screaming something in Spanish
Still breathing when I walked away
Someone said, "Hey man, did you see that? His body hit the street with such a beautiful thud" ugh!
Wonder what that dude was sayin', was he just lost in the flood?
Hey man, did you see that? Them poor cats are sure messed up
I wonder what they was gettin' into, or were they all just lost in the flood?
Were they lost?
Whoa, oh, oh
Whoa, yeah, yeah
Oh, oh, oh
Aaah, whoa
Whoa, oh, oh
Whoa, yeah
Whoa, oh, oh, oh
Step, step, step, step, step, step, step, step, step
The above lyrics are for the live 12 Dec 1975 performance of LOST IN THE FLOOD at C.W. Post College in Greenvale, NY, during the Born To Run Tour. The concert was held at the college's Post Dome. The song was performed in a full-band version, featuring a piano intro and outro by Roy Bittan and a number of revamped lyrics.
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.
List of available versions of LOST IN THE FLOOD on this website:
LOST IN THE FLOOD [Album version]