Live 20 Aug 1981 version
[Spoken intro (Bruce Springsteen):] Hello. Listen, listen for a second. Tonight we're here for the men and the women that fought the Vietnam war. And, yesterday, yesterday I was lucky enough to have met some of these guys and it was funny because I'm used to coming out in front of a lot of people and I realized that, that I was, I was nervous and I was a little embarrassed about not knowing what to say to 'em. And, it's like when you feel like you're walking down a dark street at night and out of the corner of your eye you see somebody, you see somebody getting hurt or somebody getting hit in the dark alley but you keep walking on because you think it don't have nothing to do with you and you just wanna get home. Well Vietnam turned, turned this whole country into that dark street and unless we, unless we're able to walk down those dark alleys and look into the eyes of the men and the women that are down there and the things that happened, we're never gonna be able to get home and then it's only a chance. You guys, you guys out there that are eighteen and nineteen years old, it happened once and it can happen again. So, I guess all I'm saying is you gotta go down there and you gotta look and we got the easy part, because there's a lot of guys here tonight that had to live it, and live it every day and there's a lot of guys here that made it home to America but died and didn't make it down here tonight. So what I wanna ask you to do, is I wanna ask you to give a few minutes of your attention and listen to a friend of mine, a Vietnam veteran named Bob Muller.
[Spoken intro (Bob Muller):] Thank you. Very exciting to be here tonight. It's a great night for Vietnam veterans. You may have been hearing about Vietnam veterans and not really understand what it's all about. Very simply, there was a lot of controversy and there's a lot of pain surrounding the tragedy of Vietnam, and because of that, a lot of people are trying to forget it and pretend that it never happened. That doesn't do much for the families of the 55,000 Americans that were killed in Vietnam, it doesn't do much for the 300,000 that were wounded fighting that war. But tonight is the first step in ending the silence that has surrounded Vietnam. It is the beginning of thanking all the people that have worked so hard for these years all over the country, people like in LA, the Shad Meshads, the team leaders from the Vet centers, the Center for Veterans Rights, all the Vietnam veterans, and it's bringing us together and by that it'll make sure that the programs are enacted, it'll make sure that the lessons are learned and that the Vietnams aren't allowed to happen again. Last thing I gotta say, it's a little bit ironic after the years that we've been trying, when the businesses haven't come behind us and the political leaders have failed to rally behind us, that when you remember the divisions within our own generation about the war, that it ultimately turns out to be the very symbol of our generation, Rock 'N' Roll, that brings us together... and it is Rock 'N' Roll that is going to provide the healing process that everybody needs. So let's not talk about it, let's get down to it, let's Rock 'N' Roll!
One, two, three!
Well long as I remember, the rain's been falling down
Clouds of mystery pouring, confusion on the ground
Well good men through the ages, they try to find some sun
But still I wonder, yeah I wonder, who'll stop the rain
Well I went down Virginia, seeking shelter from the storm
But I caught up in the fable, we watched the tower grow
Well five year plans and new deals, wrapped in golden chains
But still I wonder, yeah I wonder, who'll stop the rain
Heard the singers singing, and how we cheered for more
The crowd had rushed together, just trying to keep warm
But still the rain keeps falling, falling through the years
And I wonder, yeah I wonder, who'll stop the rain
Well I wanna know
Well I wanna know
Well I wanna know
Baby I wanna know
Well I wanna know
Girl I wanna know
Well I wanna know
The above lyrics are for the live 20 Aug 1981 performance of WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, CA, during The River Tour. The song was the show opener and was played in a full-band arrangement.
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band performed a series of six concerts in August 1981 at Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. At first four concerts were announced (20, 21, 23, and 24 Aug 1981) and two more were later added (27 and 28 Aug 1981). The first of the six shows was a benefit concert in support of the Vietnam Veterans Of America, an organization founded by former U.S. Marine lieutenant and disabled Vietnam veteran Bobby Muller.
List of available versions of WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN on this website:
WHO'LL STOP THE RAIN [Live 18 Dec 1980 version]
