Gary U.S. Bonds' album version
Tell me baby
Have we lost everything that we had before
What do you do in the day
When I walk out the door
I can see you made up your mind
And I know our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
With each passing day
I gotta watch more and more what I say to you
I can feel your eyes looking through me
As I sit at the table at dinnertime
I can feel our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Whoa, oh oh oh yeah
Yeah, yeah
I watch our kids
Growin' up, going to school
Is there anything else for us now
Are we both just fools
Wasting our precious time (love's on the line, our love's on the line)
At night we lay in bed (love's on the line, our love's on the line)
But it's like you're not even there (love's on the line, our love's on the line)
There's something real bad
Going wrong somewhere (love's on the line, our love's on the line)
Last night I heard you cry (love's on the line, our love's on the line)
And I know our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line, our love's on the line
Love's on the line
Whoa, oh oh oh oh
Mmm, mmmm
LOVE'S ON THE LINE is a song written by Bruce Springsteen and donated to Gary U.S. Bonds.
Gary U.S. Bonds recorded LOVE'S ON THE LINE for his 1982 album On The Line. It's one of eight songs on the album that were produced by Bruce Springsteen with Steven Van Zandt. It was recorded in January or February 1982 at The Power Station in New York City, NY, during Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band sessions for Gary U.S. Bonds from which the recording sessions Born In The U.S.A. flowed.
The above lyrics are for Gary U.S. Bonds' album version of LOVE'S ON THE LINE as released in 1982.
Gary U.S. Bonds wrote in the One Step Up / Two Steps Back: The Songs Of Bruce Springsteen tribute album liner notes:
Bruce: "You're gonna have to do something at the end."
Gary: "Like What?"
Bruce: "Try Humming."
Gary: "Humming? I've never done that before. I'm a screamer, not a hummer!"
Bruce: "Give it a shot."
Gary: "OK"
So I did and it felt good, so I hummed the whole ending of "Love's On The Line" and now I can rock forever. Thanks Bruce, you're the greatest.
According to Brucebase, a Bruce Springsteen vocal rendition of LOVE'S ON THE LINE was likely recorded at The Power Station in New York City, NY, during the January-February 1982 recording sessions with Gary U.S. Bonds — it's the same core recording with the E Street Band that's found on the Bonds album, but with the Springsteen lead vocal overdub.
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.
On The Line is Gary U.S. Bonds' fourth studio album, released in June 1982 on EMI America Records. The musicians backing Bonds on the album include many members of the E Street Band. The album includes seven songs written by Bruce Springsteen (HOLD ON (TO WHAT YOU GOT), OUT OF WORK, CLUB SOUL CITY, LOVE'S ON THE LINE, RENDEZVOUS, ANGELYNE, and ALL I NEED), one written by Steve Van Zandt, one written by Wayne Carson, and two written by Bonds and Gary L. Anderson. Although Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt are credited as co-producers of all of the album's 11 tracks, Springsteen was actually involved in only eight of them: the seven that he wrote plus The Box Tops' hit SOUL DEEP. Springsteen is not credited as playing or singing on the album but he did directly participate, along with the E Street Band, on most of these eight tracks.
The 1991 reissue of On The Line on the Razor Edge label includes album liner notes by Gary U.S. Bonds himself. He wrote that they "also recorded three additional cuts for the album which were never mixed including 'Action In The Street', a Springsteen song which I still do in my live shows." The three tracks are ACTION IN THE STREETS, LION'S DEN, and SAVIN' UP.
On The Line produced one single, OUT OF WORK which nearly reached the Top 20, but the album flopped and Bonds was dropped by his label.
On The Line was re-released in 1992 on the Razor Edge label (catalog number RE-1988-2).
LOVE'S ON THE LINE was released as a single in 1982. It was issued in North America with WAY BACK WHEN on the B-side and in Australia with RENDEZVOUS on the B-side.
In addition to its release on On The Line and as a single, LOVE'S ON THE LINE was also included on a few other official releases.
As far as it's known, Bruce Springsteen has never performed LOVE'S ON THE LINE live.
At least 2 artists have recorded and released Bruce Springsteen's LOVE'S ON THE LINE.
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help. Thanks Mark Bahlen for providing scans for the "Love's On The Line / Rendezvous" Australian promo single.
Some of the above info about the studio recordings is taken from Brucebase.
Please contact me if you have scans or info about any official release containing LOVE'S ON THE LINE that's not mentioned on this page. I also need scans for the following releases:
Bruce Springsteen is not credited as playing or singing on On The Line album but this may not be completely true. It has been reported that he contributed backing vocals and guitar on some tracks. 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 LOVE'S ON THE LINE on this website:
LOVE'S ON THE LINE [Gary U.S. Bonds' album version]
