Home demo version
[Spoken intro:] Here we go, one two, alright.
You say you've found another man who does things to you that I can't
And that no matter what I do it's all over between me and you
Well, I don't believe what you say
But, love, can I change it one day
And, baby, I don't wanna fade away
No, I don't wanna fade away
I hear that people fade away
But, baby, I don't wanna fade away
Well, now you say that you've made up your mind, It's been such a long, long time since it's been good with us
And somewhere back along the line you lost your love and I lost your trust
Now, I don't want to ask
I don't believe what you're saying
'Cause, baby, I don't wanna fade away
Oh, I don't wanna fade away
Oh no, I don't wanna fade away
You say it's not easy for you and that you've been so lonely
While other — other girls go out doing what they wanna do
You say that you miss the nights when we'd go out dancing
You miss the days when you and I, we walked as two
You say that I never loved you
Well, girl, you know that's not true
Now, I don't wanna be just another useless memory holding you tight
Or just some other ghost out on the street to whom you stop and politely speak, that's right
Vanishing into the night
Left to vanish into the night
No, darling, I don't wanna fade away
Oh, I don't wanna fade away
If there is anything that I will pay
But, baby, I don't wanna fade away
The above lyrics are transcribed from a solo acoustic guitar demo of FADE AWAY recorded at Springsteen's home in Holmdel, NJ, sometime between September and December 1979. He recorded many demos at his home around the time The River was being cut in studio. These home demos were not professionally recorded; it seems that Springsteen used a regular cassette recorder. They were just song fragments, and there is much stopping and starting heard as Springsteen records bits and pieces, manually stops the recorder, and then returns sometime later to add more ideas.
This home demo recording of FADE AWAY can be found on The Lost Masters Essential Collection Vol. 1 (Labour Of Love) [disc 2, track 21] bootleg. The song is wrongly listed as "Slow Fade" on this bootleg, but it bears no resemblance to that song. See SLOW FADE.
List of available versions of FADE AWAY on this website:
FADE AWAY [Album version]