Live 24 Apr 1970 version
[Bruce Springsteen (spoken):] While we're on the subject, 60 Silverbrook, Shrewsbury. What's that mean?
[Vini Lopez (spoken):] There's a party here. Ok.
[Bruce Springsteen (spoken):] ??? you better watch out.
[Vini Lopez (spoken):] Who is this? This is, this is the police station?
Got a woman who lives across the track
Whoa lady won't you come rub my back
Yeah you know I love ya
I got a woman who lives across the town
Whoa pretty woman won't you show 'em how you put 'em down, know that I dig it now
Show 'em how you put 'em down, know that I dig it
She shows 'em how you put 'em back, you know that I dig it
[Instrumental]
Good morning
Vitamin B1, Niacin
Five percent iron, how can I help but when
My very best friend, when I get up in the morning
Whoa my Kellogg's Cornflakes are my very best friend
And I don't have to look very hard
'Cause right inside's your very special (yeah) 3D baseball card
Ah hey hey, whoa whoa whoa
When I get up in the morning and I say "Well goodbye hon,
Now you make sure the kids don't forget to take their lunch"
I clean myself up and I stumble out the door
Into my garage and I jump into my old Ford (my old Ford)
But the damn thing it don't wanna start
But I don't care, what do I care, it's really got a heart
Whoa-whoa whoa whoa whoa
Lalala lalala lalalala
Ah yeah yeah yeah
I got the Garden State Parkway Blues, I do
Early in the morning, gets you without warning
Going to the job, fighting off the road hogs
I punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
The boss he thinks I'm crazy
And says "Son, why are you so lazy?
And if you won't leave me alone, I'm gonna ??? you on home
Ain't no, yes, no, no son of a bitch"
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine, punch out at five
Punch in at nine
Yeah
Hmm hmm
Well I work all day, I make terrible pay
I get home, I just can't get to sleep
And my woman gives me something Lord that got a man humming
Oh but it don't work I'm just too weak
I got electric bills, doctor bills, baby bills, I don't know
Just about everything but a dollar bill
And I haven't even paid my rent yet
I got twelve more payments on my car
Six more on the guitar
Yeah now my mama wants a new dress
Ah what a damn mess
Don't know what I'm gonna do
But I'm sick and tired of hearing about all the damn bills
I'm tired of worrying about 'em
They're gone to hell baby
Yeah
Alright
Hey!
Woah
[Instrumental]
Whoa
Well I don't know where I'm going and I don't understand but that's alright
Because the only thing I feel is the touch of your hand in the night
Cars on the parkway they pull up and stare (yeah)
Ask where I'm going and I tell 'em where I'm heading
Yeah, and I just don't even care
The people I meet are all hip to the latest scene
They sit around reading Rolling Stone magazine
I ask how they can sit so sweetly serene
While there's thousands of places that they have never seen
Or they have never been
I'm going back, I'm going back, I'm going back
Whoa
[Instrumental]
(yeah yeah yeah)
(Yeah)
Signs on the highway don't mean nothing
Two-eyed monsters keep on coming
Don't know where I'm going but I just keep running
Away, away
[Instrumental]
You know life ain't so easy, life ain't always so sweet
When you got nowhere to go home, nothing to eat
You got holes in your shoes, clear on through to your feet
Sleeping on the damn cold cement floor, but no place else to sleep
Sure can be a drag sometimes, oh it just ain't no fun
You know I used to tell myself
Oh someday you're gonna be driving a, a big Cadillac
Oh so shiny and black
And you'll be attending all them special business office luncheons
And have a pretty secretary to sit on your lap
But as I got older I just didn't want that
Oh as how the years came on I felt old anyway babe
Yeah I always wanted to travel, oh, Europe and France
Watch the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace
Go on to Sweden, find out what their tanning secret is
You said you'll do all them things you wanna do sometime
Well there's a young cowboy — I always wanted to be a cowboy — who lives on the range
Hmmm ???
Maybe I'll take a trip on down to Spain
Always wanted to be like Douglas Fairbanks Junior
Fighting all them pirates on the Spanish Main
Put that fancy shirt, vest, my own clipper shirt
Whoa whoa yeah yeah yeah whoa
Or maybe I'll get myself a black leather jacket
And a big Harley Davidson motorcycle yeah
Hmmm, just like Sonny Berger
Think I'll have to get myself a sawn-off pool cue too, to meet the occasions
And when I've done all the things that I would like to do
Maybe I'll take one last trip
Go off, up to Never- Neverland
Have tea with the lost boys, Tinkerbelle, Peter Pan
You know I always wanted to learn how to fly
You know I always thought I, I could do it if, if I try, I maybe thought about it
Oh but travelling ain't no fun if you gotta travel alone
Sure do feel good to get there, whoa I miss it so
(Yeah yeah yeah)
Well I'm gonna dream, oh yeah
I don't wanna hear about my bills
How many men killed in Vietnam
Whoa
Hey
Oh yeah
Gonna take it one more time around
Hey! (Hey)
[Instrumental]
Well he gets up in the morning as the sun's about to rise
playing with his guitar singing he goes down upon the green hill side
He sings about a land he says he seen where there's never any night
And sunlight soldiers dance and sing before your very eyes
Sing it to me
(Well his father is the sun and his mother is the sky, yeah)
(And today he's to be wed to the wind, he knows not to reason why)
(Hey hey-hey-hey)
For he is the mountain child (whoa)
For he is the mountain child
(Yeah, yeah hey hey, hey hey yeah yeah yeah yeah)
In his cloudy chariot he takes his brand new bride
On into the house of stone down upon the green hill side
There they stay for a year and a day, hands held side by side (yeah)
They'll conceive of a daughter who'll be the rain to clean your dusty mind, yeah
And when the dew has fallen down upon the earth at home
He'll set the sail on a clipper ship, never to return
On into the blood red horizon where the fire of love still burns
And the beauty of the perfect lover will turn and turn and turn
And the beauty of the perfect lover will turn and turn and turn
You know the beauty of the perfect lover turn and turn and turn
He gets up in the morning as the sun's about to rise
And with his guitar singing he go down upon the green hill side
Sings about a land he said he seen where there's never any night
And sunlight soldiers dance and sing before your very eyes
And sunlight soldiers dance and sing before your very eyes
And sunlight soldiers dance and sing before your very eyes
Na na na na na na na na na na na, oh can't you hear him singing
Na na na na na na na na na na na, can't you hear him singing
Na na na na na na na na na na na, can't you hear him singing
Na na na na na na na na na na na, oh can't hear him singing
Na na na na na na na na na na na, oh yeah (yeah yeah yeah)
(Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na)
I'm a happy man, yes I am
(Yeah yeah, yeah yeah)
I wanna thank ya, you make us feel so good (yeah yeah yeah)
Oh whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa
Oh bring it down now, bring it down
(Yeah yeah)
Listen to rhythm of the band, bring the rhythm from your head to your toes on down to your hands
Listen to rhythm of the band, bring the rhythm from your head to your toes on down to your hands
Listen to rhythm of the band, bring the rhythm from your head to your toes to your hands, to your hands
Listen to rhythm of the band, yeah whoa
Ok ready, oh stop!
Na na na na na na na na
See if you can do it by yourself now
[Crowd clapping to the rhythm]
(You're speeding up)
Listen to rhythm of the band, bring the rhythm from your head to your toes on down to your hands
Listen to rhythm of the band, bring the rhythm on down
We're gonna come and take you for one more ride now
So get ready now
We're gonna take you for one more ride
So fasten your seatbelts, 'cause we're gonna fly, hey!
[Instrumental]
(Oh yeah hey)
Whoa whoa la da la da da
GARDEN STATE PARKWAY BLUES is a song written by Bruce Springsteen. He performed it live with Steel Mill in 1969 and 1970. According to Brucebase, the song was written in 1969 or early 1970.
On bootleg releases, the song is sometimes edited into separate segments and assigned fictitious titles such as "I Got A Woman", "Mountain Child", "Rhythm", and "Sunlight Soldiers". Springsteen sometimes referred to the song by the title "The Alarm Clock Song".
The above lyrics are for the live 24 Apr 1970 performance of GARDEN STATE PARKWAY BLUES at Monmouth College in West Long Branch, NJ, with Steel Mill. The song was the show closer. It's 30-minute long, making it possibly the longest song ever performed by Bruce Springsteen. In this version, Springsteen used the opening line from James Taylor's SWEET BABY JAMES.
This was a single show, with Steel Mill the sole act on the bill. According to Brucebase, that was a replacement concert for a cancellation of the musical "Hair".
A soundboard recording of very good to excellent quality is in circulation. The tape is very deceptive in that drummer Vini Lopez's voice microphone is abnormally dominant in the mix, so much so that it sounds like a co-lead singer (i.e., Robbin Thompson) is interacting with Springsteen throughout the show. However under an extremely close comparison it can be determined that the "co-lead" vocalist is actually drummer and background vocalist Lopez, with his microphone turned way up in the audio mix. Robbin Thompson's voice is definitely not present.
GARDEN STATE PARKWAY BLUES is known to have been performed at least 6 times in Bruce Springsteen's early years (pre-October 1972). Very little is known about shows from this early period, and therefore, the song must have been played on some more dates.
Thanks Audio2575 (from Rare Springsteen) for the lyrics corrections. Some of the above info about the live performances is taken from Brucebase.
If you have any additional info, corrections, or comments, please contact me via the below form or by email: .
List of available versions of GARDEN STATE PARKWAY BLUES on this website:
GARDEN STATE PARKWAY BLUES [Live 24 Apr 1970 version]
