Lyrics for the album "Born in the USA" by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Born in the USA

Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
You end up like a dog that's been beat too much
Till you spend half your life just covering up

Born in the USA, I was born in the USA
I was born in the USA, born in the USA

Got in a little hometown jam
So they put a rifle in my hand
Sent me off to a foreign land
To go and kill the yellow man

Born in the USA...

Come back home to the refinery
Hiring man said "Son if it was up to me"
Went down to see my V.A. man
He said "Son, don't you understand"

I had a brother at Khe Sahn
Fighting off the Viet Cong
They're still there, he's all gone
He had a woman he loved in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms now

Down in the shadow of the penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I'm ten years burning down the road
Nowhere to run ain't got nowhere to go

Born in the USA, I was born in the USA
Born in the USA, I'm a long gone Daddy in the USA
Born in the USA, Born in the USA
Born in the USA, I'm a cool rocking Daddy in the USA

Cover Me

The times are tough now, just getting tougher
This old world is rough, it's just getting rougher
Cover me, come on baby, cover me
Well I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me
Promise me baby you won't let them find us
Hold me in your arms, let's let our love blind us
Cover me, shut the door and cover me
Well I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me

Outside's the rain, the driving snow
I can hear the wild wind blowing
Turn out the light, bolt the door
I ain't going out there no more

This whole world is out there just trying to score
I've seen enough I don't want to see any more,
Cover me, come on and cover me
I'm looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me
Looking for a lover who will come on in and cover me

Darlington County

Driving into Darlington County
Me and Wayne on the Fourth of July
Driving into Darlington County
Lookin' for some work on the county line
We drove down from New York City
Where the girls are pretty but they just wanna know your name
Driving into Darlington City
Got a union connection with an uncle of Wayne's
We drove eight hundred miles without seeing a cop
We got rock'n'roll music blasting off the t top

Singing sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la
sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la

Hey little girl, standing on the corner
Today's your lucky day for shure, all right
Me and my buddy, we're from New York City
We got two hundred dollars, we want to rock all night
Girl, you're lookin' at two big spenders
Why, the world don't know what me and Wayne might do
Our pa's each own one of the World Trade Centers
For a kiss and a smile I'll give mine all to you
C'mon baby, take a seat on the fender, it's a long night
Tell me, what else were you gonna do?
Just me and you, we could ...

Singing sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la
sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la

Little girl, sittin' in the window
Ain't seen my buddy in seven days
County man tells me the same thing
He don't work, and he don't get paid
Little girl, you're so young and pretty
Walk with me and you can have your way
Then we'll leave this Darlington City
For a ride down that Dixie Highway

Singing sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la
sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la

Driving out of Darlington County
My eyes seen the glory of the coming Lord
Driving out of Darlington County
Seen Wayne handcuffed to the bumper of a state trooper's Ford

Singing sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la
sha la la, sha la la la la la
sha la la la la la la

Working on the Highway

Friday night's pay night guys fresh out of work
Talking about the weekend scrubbing off the dirt
Some heading home to their families some looking to get hurt
Some going down to Stovell wearing trouble on their shirts

I work for the county out on 95
All day I hold a red flag and watch the traffic pass me by
In my head I keep a picture of a pretty little miss
Someday mister I'm gonna lead a better life than this

Working on the highway laying down the blacktop
Working on the highway all day long I don't stop
Working on the highway blasting through the bedrock
Working on the highway, working on the highway

I met her at a dance down at the union hall
She was standing with her brothers back up against the wall
Sometimes we'd go walking down the union tracks
One day I looked straight at her and she looked straight back

Working on the highway...

I saved up my money and I put it all away
I went to see her daddy but we didn't have much to say
"Son can't you see that she's just a little girl
She don't know nothing about this cruel cruel world"

We lit out down to Florida we got along all right
One day her brothers came and got her and they took me in a black and white

The prosecutor kept the promise that he made on that day
And the judge got mad and he put me straight away
I wake up every morning to the work bell clang
Me and the warden go swinging on the Charlotte County road gang

Working on the highway...

Downbound Train

I had a job, I had a girl
I had something going, mister, in this world
I got laid off down at the lumber yard
Our love went bad, times got hard
Now I work down at the car wash
Where all it ever does is rain
Don't you feel like you're a rider on a downbound train

She just said, "Joe, I gotta go
We had it once, we ain't got it anymore"
She packed her bags, left me behind
She bought a ticket on the Central Line

Nights as I sleep, I hear that whistle whining
I feel her kiss in the misty rain
And I feel like I'm a rider on a downbound train

Last night I heard your voice
You were crying, crying, you were so alone
You said your love had never died
You were waiting for me at home
Put on my jacket, I ran through the woods
I ran till I thought my chest would explode
There in the clearing, beyond the highway
In the moonlight, our wedding house shone

I rushed through the yard
I burst through the front door, my head pounding hard
Up the stairs I climbed
The room was dark, our bed was empty
Then I heard that long whistle whine
And I dropped
to my knees
hung my head and cried

Now I swing a sledge hammer on a railroad gang
Knocking down them cross ties, working in the rain
Now, don't it feel like you're a rider on a downbound train

I'm on Fire

Hey little girl, is your daddy home?
Did he go away and leave you all alone? Mhmm
I got a bad desire
Oh oh oh, I'm on fire

Tell me now, baby, is he good to you?
And can he do to you the things that I do? Oh no
I can take you higher
Oh oh oh, I'm on fire

Sometimes it's like someone took a knife, baby
Edgy and dull and cut a six inch valley
Through the middle of my skull

At night I wake up with the sheets soaking wet
And a freight train running through the middle of my head
Only you can cool my desire

Oh oh oh, I'm on fire
Oh oh oh, I'm on fire
Oh oh oh, I'm on fire

Woo ooh ooh
Woo ooh ooh
Ooh ooh ooh
Woo ooh ooh
Woo ooh ooh

No Surrender

Well, we busted out of class
Had to get away from those fools
We learned more from a three-minute record, baby
Than we ever learned in school

Tonight I hear the neighborhood drummer sound
I can feel my heart begin to pound
You say you're tired and you just want to close your eyes
And follow your dreams down

Well, we made a promise we swore we'd always remember
No retreat, baby, no surrender
Like soldiers in the winter's night with a vow to defend
No retreat, baby, no surrender

Well, now young faces grow sad and old
And hearts of fire grow cold
We swore blood brothers against the wind
Now I'm ready to grow young again

And hear your sister's voice calling us home
Across the open yards
Well maybe we'll cut someplace of our own
With these drums and these guitars

'Cause we made a promise we swore we'd always remember
No retreat, baby, no surrender
Blood brothers in the stormy night with a vow to defend
No retreat, baby, no surrender

Now on the street tonight the lights grow dim
The walls of my room are closing in
There's a war outside still raging
You say it ain't ours anymore to win

I want to sleep beneath
Peaceful skies in my lover's bed
With a wide open country in my eyes
And these romantic dreams in my head

Once we made a promise we swore we'd always remember
No retreat, baby, no surrender
Blood brothers in a stormy night with a vow to defend
No retreat, baby, no surrender
No retreat, baby, no surrender

Bobby Jean

Well I came by your house the other day
Your mother said you went away
She said there was nothing that I could have done
There was nothing nobody could say

Now me and you we've known each other
Ever since we were sixteen
I wished I would have known
I wished I could have called you
Just to say goodbye
Bobby Jean

Now you hung with me when all the others
Turned away turned up their nose
We like the same music we like the same bands
We like the same clothes
We told each other that we were the wildest
The wildest things we'd ever seen
Now I wished I could have talked to you
Just to say goodbye Bobby Jean

Now we went walking in the rain talking about the pain
From the world we hid
Now there ain't nobody nowhere nohow gonna ever understand me
They way you did
Maybe you'll be out there on that road somewhere
In some bus or train traveling along
In some motel room there'll be a radio playing
And you'll hear me sing this song
Well if you do you'll know I'm thinking of you
And all the miles in between
And I'm just calling one last time
Not to change your mind
But just to say I miss you baby
Good luck, goodbye
Bobby Jean

I'm Going Down

We sit in the car outside your house
I can feel the heat coming 'round
I go to put my arm around you
And you give me a look like I'm way out of bounds
Well you let out one of your bored sighs
Well lately when I look into your eyes
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down

We get dressed up and we go out, baby, for the night
We come home early burning, burning, burning in some firefight
I'm sick and tired of you setting me up yeah
Setting me up just to knock-a knock-a knock-a me down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down, hey now

I pull you close now baby
But when we kiss I can feel a doubt
I remember back when we started
My kisses used to turn you inside out

I used to drive you to work in the morning
Friday night I'd drive you all around
You used to love to drive me wild yeah
But lately girl you get your kicks from just driving me down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down

I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, hey bopa d-d-down
I'm goin down, down, down, down
I'm goin down, hey bopa d-d-down
I'm goin down, down, down, yeah
I'm goin down, down, hey bopa hey bopa
Hey hey mmm bopa bopa well down
Hey babe mmm bopa bopa said down
Hey hey mmm bopa bopa well down
Hey hey mmm bopa bopa say
Hey unh say down, down, down, down, down
Hey down now, say down, down, down, down, down

Glory Days

I had a friend was a big baseball player back in high school
he could throw that speedball by you
Make you look like a fool
Saw him the other night at this roadside bar I was walking in
And he was walking out
We went back inside sat down
Had a few drinks but all he kept talking about was

Glory days well they'll pass you by
Glory days in the wink of a young girl's eye
Glory days, glory days

There's a girl that lives up the block
back in school
She could turn all the boys' heads
Sometimes on a Friday I'll stop by and have a few drinks
After she put her kids to bed
Her and her husband Bobby well they split up
I guess it's two years gone by now
We just sit around talking about the old times, she says
when she feels like crying she starts laughing thinking about

Glory days well they'll pass you by
Glory days in the wink of a young girl's eye
Glory days
Glory days

Think I'm going down to the well tonight
And I'm going to drink till I get my fill
And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it
But I probably will
Yeah just sitting back trying to recapture a little of the glory of
But time slips away and leaves you with nothing mister
But boring old stories of glory days

Glory days well they'll pass you by
Glory days in the wink of a young girl's eye
Glory days, glory days

Dancing in the Dark

I get up in the evening
And I ain't got nothing to say
I come home in the morning
I go to bed feeling the same way
I ain't got nothing but tired
Man I'm just tired and bored with myself
Hey there baby I could use just a little help

You can't start a fire
You can't start a fire without a spark
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

Message keeps getting clearer
Radio's on and I'm moving 'round the place
I check my look in the mirror
I wanna change my clothes, my hair, my face
Man I ain't getting nowhere just living in a dump like this
There's something happening somewhere
Baby I just know that there is

You can't start a fire
You can't start a fire without a spark
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

You sit around getting older
There's a joke here somewhere and it's on me
I'll shake this world off my shoulders
Come on now baby the laugh's on me
Stay on the streets of this town
And they'll be carving you up all right
They say you gotta stay hungry
Hey baby I'm just about starving tonight
I'm dying for some action
I'm sick of sitting 'round here trying to write this book
I need a love reaction
Come on now baby gimme just one look

You can't start a fire
Sitting 'round crying over a broken heart
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark
You can't start a fire
Worrying about your little world falling apart
This gun's for hire
Even if we're just dancing in the dark

My Hometown

I was eight years old and running with a dime in my hand
To the bus stop to pick up a paper for my old man
I'd sit on his lap
In that big old Buick
And steer as we drove through town
He'd tousle my hair
And say son take a good look around
This is your hometown
This is your hometown
This is your hometown
This is your hometown

In '65 tension was running high at my high school
There was a lot of fights between the black and white
There was nothing you could do
Two cars at a light
On a Saturday night
In the back seat there was a gun
Words were passed
In a shotgun blast
Troubled times had come to my hometown
My hometown
My hometown
My hometown

Now Main Street's whitewashed windows and vacant stores
Seems like there ain't nobody wants to come down here no more
They're closing down the textile mill across the railroad tracks
Foreman says these jobs are going boys and they ain't coming back
To your hometown
Your hometown
Your hometown
Your hometown

Last night me and Kate we laid in bed
Talking about getting out
Packing up our bags maybe heading south
I'm thirty-five, we got a boy of our own now
Last night I sat him up behind the wheel
And said son take a good look around
This is your hometown