Unofficial studio version 2
Johnny works in a factory and Billy works downtown
Terry works in a rock and roll band looking for that million-dollar sound
Me sometimes I don't do nothing, some spend a lot of time alone
Some nights I go to the drive-in and some nights I stay home
I followed that dream just like those guys do way up on the screen
Rode down the Challenger down Route 9 trough the dead ends and all the bad scene
When the promise was broken, I cashed in a few of my own dreams
Well now I built that Challenger by myself, but I needed money and so I sold it
And I lived a secret I should've kept to myself, but I got drunk one night and I told it
All my life I fought the fight, the one that no man can ever win
Every day it just gets harder to live the dream I'm believing in
Thunder Road, here one ride in the morning till it turns light
Thunder Road, there's something dying out on the highway tonight
Well now I won big once and I hit the coast, oh but somehow I paid that big cost
I feel like I was carrying the broken spirits of all the other ones who lost
When the promise is broken you can go on living, but, man, it steals something from down in your soul
Like when the truth is spoken, but it don't make no difference, something in your heart grows cold
Well I followed that dream in the southwestern flats to the dead ends and a two-bit bars
When the promise was broken I was far away from home sleeping in the backseat of a borrowed car
Thunder Road, here's one for the lost lovers and all the fixed games
Thunder Road, here's one for the tires rushing by in the rain
Thunder Road, remember me and Terry what we'd say
Thunder Road, we're gonna take it all and throw it all away
Whoaaa, whoaaa...
Whoaaa, whoaaa...
The above lyrics are for a studio take of THE PROMISE recorded, according to The Lost Masters Vol. 2 bootleg liner notes, in August 1977 at Atlantic Studios in New York City, NY. Comparing with Sony's logs of Bruce Springsteen's studio sessions, this take must have been cut on 24 and 30 Aug 1977 at Atlantic Studios.
This version is closer lyrically to unofficial studio version 1 than to unofficial studio version 3.
A snippet from the last verse from this studio version of THE PROMISE was used in The Promise: The Making Of 'Darkness On The Edge Of Town documentary.
This unofficial studio version of THE PROMISE can be found on several bootlegs, including The Lost Masters Vol. 2 (Labour Of Love) [track 12], The Definitive Darkness Outtakes Collection (E. St. Records) [disc 2, track 03], and Darkness Outtakes 1978 Vol. 3: The Promise (Scorpio) [track 01].
The Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story is a Bruce Springsteen box set released in 2010 on Columbia Records. It was originally expected to be released for the Darkness On The Edge Of Town album's 30th anniversary in 2008, but that didn't happen, possibly due to Springsteen's touring schedule. The box set was officially announced on 26 Aug 2010 and released to retail on 16 Nov 2010.
The 8.5"x11" box set contains three CDs, three Blu-Ray discs or three DVDs, and an 80-page spiral-bound notebook containing facsimiles from Springsteen's original notebooks from the recording sessions, which include alternate lyrics, song ideas, recording details, and personal notes, in addition to a new essay by Springsteen on the album and never-before-seen photographs. The box set won the 2012 Grammy Award for Best Boxed Or Special Limited Edition Package.
Disc 1 consists of a digitally remastered version of the Darkness On The Edge Of Town album. Disc 2 and 3 consist of The Promise, a collection of unreleased songs from the Darkness On The Edge Of Town recording sessions.
Disc 4 is The Promise: The Making Of Darkness On The Edge Of Town, a documentary that was produced for the box set. It was directed by Grammy- and Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Thom Zimny. The ninety-minute film combines never-before-seen footage of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band shot between 1976 and 1978, including home rehearsals and studio sessions, with new interviews with Springsteen, E Street Band members, manager Jon Landau, former manager Mike Appel, and others closely involved in the making of the record.
The documentary premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on 14 Sep 2010 and also aired on HBO on 07 Oct 2010. It was first exclusively available as part of The Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story box set, but was then released separately on 03 May 2011, in both DVD and Blu-Ray formats, with some bonus features.
Disc 5 consists of two parts: Darkness On The Edge Of Town, Paramount Theatre, Asbury Park 2009 and Thrill Hill Vault 1976 - 1978. The former is a Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band's live performance of the Darkness On The Edge Of Town album in its entirety, shot in HD on 13 Dec 2009 at Paramount Theatre in Asbury Park, NJ, without an audience.
Thrill Hill Vault 1976-1978 is a collection of archival footage from Springsteen's personal vault It consists of an about-an-hour's worth (it clocks at about 56 minutes) of home rehearsals footage from 1976, studio sessions footage from 1978, and live in concert footage from 1978. It was produced and edited by Emmy- and Grammy-winner Thom Zimny and the audio for the live 1978 footage and some of the 1978 studio footage was mixed by Bob Ludwig. Zimny re-edited the 1978 concert footage making use of previously unseen camera angles. The home rehearsals and studio session footage was originally produced and directed by Barry Rebo, while the live in concert footage was originally directed by Arnold Levine.
Disc 6 is Houston '78 Bootleg: House Cut, a video of the complete 08 Dec 1978 concert at The Summit in Houston, TX. The footage was taken from the in-house video screen at The Summit, which was one of the first arenas in the United States to have this system at the time. This gave the release its title "Houston '78 Bootleg: House Cut". Considering that it was taken from the mono soundboard, the sound is only available in PCM stereo and not in 5.1 surround. The video was produced by Emmy- and Grammy-winner Thom Zimny and the audio was mastered by Bob Ludwig. It clocks at around 176 minutes.
Some of the above lyrics might be guessed or not correct, and they are open for revisions and corrections. If you can assist, please contact me via the below form or by email: .
List of available versions of THE PROMISE on this website:
THE PROMISE [Official 1977 studio version]
