A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL

Official studio version



Hear me now!
I was born 13th child, 'neath the 13th moon
Spit out hungry and born anew
Daddy drag me to the river tie me in rocks
Throw me in where it's deep and wide
I go down, I don't die
Hole in the river bottom, I crawl through
Come back kill six brothers and sisters, kill Papa too
Sway down Mama, sway down low
They gonna know me wherever I go

Into my bed with her kerosene my mama creep
Set my flesh to burning, whilst I sleep
I burn, burn, burn, till my soul burn black
Black rains fall, I come back, I come back
Get down Mama, get down low
They gonna know me wherever I go

16 witches cast 16 spells
Make me guitar outta skin and human skull
Sing you a song like the wind in the sandy loam
Bring you baby out'cha your happy home

Ram's head, forked tail, clove hoof, love's my trail
I sup on your body, sip on your blood like wine
Out world theirs, this world mine
So kiss me baby till it hurts
God lost in heaven, we lost on earth
Sway down Mama, sway down low
They gonna know me wherever I go (yeah)
Wherever I go (yeah), wherever I go

Well I got a brand new lover
I love her, yes I do
Yeah she's my one and only and her name is Baby Blue
Now baby, baby, baby
Baby, baby, baby, blue
That's right
Whoah, ha!
Well now baby, baby, baby
Baby, baby, blue


Info

A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL is a song written by Bruce Springsteen and first released on Halloween 2008's night as a free download-only single. The song is a blue tune with bullet mic vocals. It contains portions of the Gene Vincent 1958 song BABY BLUE, and therefore, Bruce Springsteen shares the writing credit of A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL with the two co-writers of BABY BLUE, Robert Jones and Gene Vincent.

When the Working On A Dream album was officially announced on 17 Nov 2008, along with its track listing, A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL was originally listed as a bonus track on the album. However, about a week later, the track was pulled back from the press release for unknown reasons. When the album was released, the song's music video was included as bonus content on the DVD of the deluxe edition of the album.

Halloween release

A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL was first released on Halloween 2008's night (30 Oct 2008) as a free download-only single on Springsteen's official website. A Halloween-themed streaming music video was also released at the same time.

This digital release featured a handwritten note by Springsteen that reads:

Dear Friends and Fans,
If you grew up in central or south Jersey, you grew up with the "Jersey Devil."
Here's a little musical Halloween treat. Have fun!
- Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen handwritten release note
Bruce Springsteen handwritten release note

Working On A Dream

Working On A Dream is Bruce Springsteen's 24th album (and 16th studio album). It was officially announced, along with its track listing, on 17 Nov 2008, and released on 27 Jan 2009 on Columbia Records. The album was produced by Brendan O'Brien and recorded with the E Street Band during breaks on their 2007-2008 Magic Tour. It was recorded and mixed at Southern Tracks in Atlanta, GA with additional recording in New York City, Los Angeles, and New Jersey.

Bruce Springsteen said about the album, "Towards the end of recording 'Magic,' excited by the return to pop production sounds, I continued writing. When my friend producer Brendan O'Brien heard the new songs, he said, 'Let's keep going.' Over the course of the next year, that's just what we did, recording with the E Street Band during the breaks on last year's tour. I hope 'Working on a Dream' has caught the energy of the band fresh off the road from some of the most exciting shows we've ever done. All the songs were written quickly, we usually used one of our first few takes, and we all had a blast making this one from beginning to end."

Bruce Springsteen -- Working On A Dream
Bruce Springsteen -- Working On A Dream

The album features 12 new Springsteen compositions plus a bonus track and clocks at 51:08.

A deluxe edition of Working On A Dream features a bonus DVD that contains a 38-minute behind-the-scenes footage of the recording of the album. Produced, directed, and edited by Thom Zimny, it includes studio footage edited to the tracks of MY LUCKY DAY, QUEEN OF THE SUPERMARKET, KINGDOM OF DAYS, WORKING ON A DREAM, LIFE ITSELF, and THE LAST CARNIVAL. It also contains demos and early band versions of the songs as they were worked up. The DVD also includes video for A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL.

Music Video

The music video for A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL was included on the The Complete Video Anthology / 1978-2000 home video and the Japanese Singles Collection -Greatest Hits- compilation album. It was posted on Bruce Springsteen's VEVO YouTube channel in October 2009.


Japanese Singles Collection -Greatest Hits-

Japanese Singles Collection -Greatest Hits- is a Bruce Springsteen compilation album released by Sony Music Japan in 2023. The compilation, which was exclusively released in Japan, consists of previously released 35 audio tracks and 62 video tracks. The collection is part of a 26-title reissue campaign to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Bruce Springsteen's debut album. The series, issued in three waves (25 Oct 2023, 22 Nov 2023, and 20 Dec 2023), includes 25 albums originally released between 1973 and 2014 plus a new compilation album that includes all of Springsteen's singles released in Japan from 1975 to 1999. All audio CD's were manufactured using Sony Japan's Blu-spec CD2 format.

Bruce Springsteen -- Japanese Singles Collection -Greatest Hits-
Bruce Springsteen -- Japanese Singles Collection -Greatest Hits-

Disc 1: (audio CD)

  1. BORN TO RUN
  2. TENTH AVENUE FREEZE-OUT
  3. PROVE IT ALL NIGHT
  4. BADLANDS
  5. HUNGRY HEART
  6. I WANNA MARRY YOU
  7. SANTA CLAUSE IS COMIN' TO TOWN [Live 12 Dec 1975 version]
  8. ATLANTIC CITY
  9. DANCING IN THE DARK
  10. COVER ME
  11. BORN IN THE U.S.A.
  12. I'M ON FIRE
  13. GLORY DAYS
  14. I'M GOIN' DOWN
  15. MY HOMETOWN
  16. WAR [Live 30 Sep 1985 version]
  17. FIRE [Live 16 Dec 1978 version]

Disc 2: (audio CD)

  1. BRILLIANT DISGUISE
  2. TUNNEL OF LOVE
  3. ONE STEP UP
  4. TOUGHER THAN THE REST
  5. SPARE PARTS
  6. HUMAN TOUCH
  7. BETTER DAYS
  8. 57 CHANNELS (AND NOTHIN' ON)
  9. ROLL OF THE DICE
  10. STREETS OF PHILADELPHIA
  11. SECRET GARDEN
  12. THE GHOST OF TOM JOAD
  13. DEAD MAN WALKIN'
  14. BLOOD BROTHERS [Alternate studio version]
  15. I WANNA BE WITH YOU
  16. CHIMES OF FREEDOM [Live 03 Jul 1988 version]
  17. AMERICAN BEAUTY
  18. I'LL STAND BY YOU

Disc 3: (DVD)

  1. ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT) [Live 08 Jul 1978 version]
  2. BORN TO RUN [Live 19 Aug 1985 version]
  3. TENTH AVENUE FREEZE-OUT [Live 05 Nov 1980 version]
  4. THUNDER ROAD [Live 05 Nov 1980 version]
  5. PROVE IT ALL NIGHT [Live 08 Jul 1978 version]
  6. BADLANDS [Live 05 Nov 1980 version]
  7. HUNGRY HEART [Live 09 Jul 1995 version]
  8. I WANNY MARRY YOU [Live 05 Nov 1980 version]
  9. THE RIVER [Live 21 Sep 1979 version]
  10. ATLANTIC CITY
  11. HIGHWAY PATROLMAN
  12. DANCING IN THE DARK
  13. COVER ME [Live 30 Jun 2013 version]
  14. BORN IN THE U.S.A.
  15. I'M ON FIRE
  16. GLORY DAYS
  17. I'M GOIN' DOWN [Live 30 Jun 2013 version]
  18. MY HOMETOWN [Live 30 Sep 1985 version]
  19. WAR [Live 30 Sep 1985 version]
  20. FIRE [Live 13 Oct 1986 version]
  21. BRILLIANT DISGUISE
  22. TUNNEL OF LOVE
  23. ONE STEP UP
  24. TOUGHER THAN THE REST [Live 27 Apr 1988 version]
  25. SPARE PARTS [Live 10 Jul 1988 version]
  26. VIGILANTE MAN [Live Feb 1988 version]
  27. HUMAN TOUCH
  28. BETTER DAYS
  29. 57 CHANNELS (AND NOTHIN' ON)
  30. ROLL OF THE DICE [Live 22 Sep 1992 version]
  31. LEAP OF FAITH [Live 06 Aug 1992 version]
  32. IF I SHOULD FALL BEHIND [25 Sep 1999 sound-check version]

Disc 4: (DVD)

  1. STREETS OF PHILADELPHIA [1993 music video version]
  2. MURDER INCORPORATED
  3. SECRET GARDEN
  4. THE GHOST OF TOM JOAD [Live 27 Nov 1995 (NBC Studios) version]
  5. DEAD MAN WALKIN'
  6. LONESOME DAY
  7. WAITIN' ON A SUNNY DAY [Live 16 Oct 2002 version]
  8. DEVILS & DUST
  9. RADIO NOWHERE
  10. LONG WALK HOME
  11. WORKING ON A DREAM
  12. THE LAST CARNIVAL
  13. A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL
  14. SAVE MY LOVE
  15. WE TAKE CARE OF OUR OWN
  16. ROCKY GROUND
  17. HIGH HOPES
  18. JUST LIKE FIRE WOULD
  19. HELLO SUNSHINE
  20. TUCSON TRAIN
  21. WESTERN STARS
  22. I'LL STAND BY YOU
  23. LETTER TO YOU
  24. GHOSTS
  25. THE POWER OF PRAYER
  26. I'LL SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS
  27. DO I LOVE YOU (INDEED I DO)
  28. NIGHTSHIFT
  29. DON'T PLAY THAT SONG
  30. TURN BACK THE HANDS OF TIME

Other Official Releases

In addition to its release on the deluxe edition of the Working On A Dream album, A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL was also issued in April 2009 on a limited edition 7-inch single.

Bruce Springsteen -- "What Love Can Do / A Night With The Jersey Devil"
Bruce Springsteen -- "What Love Can Do / A Night With The Jersey Devil"

7" single - Columbia (38-749532) - USA, 2009

Limited edition single sold in the United States exclusively at independent stores that participated in the 2nd annual "Record Store Day" campaign (18 Apr 2009).

A1- WHAT LOVE CAN DO
B1- A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL

Covers

At least one artist has recorded and released Bruce Springsteen's A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL.

A Voice In The World -- We Sing For Our Blood
A Voice In The World -- We Sing For Our Blood

Digital album - no label (no catalog number) - Portugal, 2022

This is a free download-only digital Bruce Springsteen tribute album.

Credits

Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.

Request

The above lyrics might not be 100% correct. If you have any additions or corrections, please contact me via the below form or by email: .

Available Versions

List of available versions of A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL on this website:

A NIGHT WITH THE JERSEY DEVIL [Official studio version]

Page last updated: 05 Oct 2011