Official studio version
Got a '32 Ford, she's a 318, fuelie heads and a Hurst on the floor
And she's waiting tonight down in the parking lot outside the 7-Eleven store
Me and my partner Sonny built her straight out of scratch and he rides with me from town to town
We only run for the money, got no strings attached, we shut 'em up and we shut 'em down
Tonight, tonight the strips just right, I wanna blow 'em all out of their seats
Well come on out around the world, we're going racing in the street
Alright
Yeah we take all the action we can meet and we cover all the northeast states
And when the strip shuts down we run 'em in the street from the back roads to the turnpike gates
Well now some guys they do it for the money, other guys do it 'cause they don't know what else they can do
Well now there's just ain't nothing left at home, waking up in a world that somebody else owns
And tonight, tonight the strip's just right, I wanna blow 'em off in my first heat
Well now summer's here and the time is right for racing in the street
Alright!
I met her on the strip three years ago in a Camaro with this dude from L.A
Well I blew that Camaro off my back and I stole that little girl away
But now there's wrinkles 'round my baby's eyes 'cause she cries herself to sleep at night
And when I come home the house is dark, she sighs, "Baby did you make it all right?"
Yeah and she sits on the porch of her daddy's house, oh but honey your pretty dress is torn
She stares out alone into the night with the eyes of one who hates for just being born
For all the blown-off strangers and hot-rod angels stumbling through this promised land
Tonight my baby and me we're gonna ride to the sea and wash these sins off our hands
Tonight, tonight the strip's just right, I wanna blow 'em off in my first heat
Well come on out, the time is right, we're going racing in the street
Aww
The above lyrics are for the studio version of RACING IN THE STREET that was released on in The Promise 2010. It's the same take as unofficial studio version 2; it uses the same instrumental track, though the instrumental outro runs about 32 seconds longer and contains overdubbed viola by David Lindley, and the same vocal track, though a small portion was overdubbed in 2010.
| Lines in original take: | Yeah the truth it hurts, we turn out the lights and just to make it alright |
| Overdubbed lines: | And when I come home the house is dark, she sighs, "Baby did you make it all right?" |
As far as it's known, David Lindley's viola was used on two songs from the Darkness On The Edge Of Town sessions: RACING IN THE STREET and COME ON (LET'S GO TONIGHT). According to Sony's logs of Bruce Springsteen's studio sessions, the one date on which both songs appear is 09 Dec 1977. This leads to the conclusion that most likely Lindley's viola on this version of RACING IN THE STREET was overdubbed during the 09 Dec 1977 session at The Record Plant in New York City, NY.
David Lindley is a multi-instrumentalist musician who's notably known for his work with Jackson Browne, Warren Zevon, and other rock musicians. He is a premiere session musician and was involved in the early recording sessions of Darkness On The Edge Of Town. Before the release of The Promise in 2010, the only evidence of his involvement was a bootlegged studio outtake of FACTORY on which Lindley's viola was overdubbed. On The Promise, Lindley's viola appears on COME ON (LET'S GO TONIGHT) and RACING IN THE STREET.
The Promise is a Bruce Springsteen album that was released on 16 Nov 2010 as part of The Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story box set, and separately as a 2-CD set. The album was also issued on a limited edition 3-LP set pressed on 180-gram vinyl.
The Promise is a collection of 22 previously-unreleased songs from the Darkness On The Edge Of Town recording sessions. Depending on their level of completion back in 1977-1978, some were only remastered, some were overdubbed with 2010 vocals or music, and some were completely re-recorded in 2010. The album was mixed by Bob Clearmountain.
Side 1:
Side 2:
Side 3:
Side 4:
Side 5:
Side 6:
List of available versions of RACING IN THE STREET on this website:
RACING IN THE STREET [Album version]