- Home
-
Lyrics
-
- Collection
-
Bootlegs
-
Intro / Wanted list
-
- Links
- Forum
-
-
-
Live 07 Aug 1976 version
Professor, please!
Shoo!
Well I stood stone-like at midnight suspended in my masquerade
And I combed my hair till it looked just right and commanded the night brigade, whoa!
I was open to pain and crossed by the rain and I walked on a crooked crutch
I strode all alone into a fallout zone and came out with my soul untouched
Hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd, when they said "sit down" I stood up
Ooh, ooh, growin' up
The flag of piracy flew from my mast, my sails were set wing to wing
Jukebox graduate for first mate, she couldn't sail but she sure could sing
I pushed B-52, bombed 'em with the blues, my gear set stubborn on standing
I broke all the rules, strafed my old high school, never once gave thought to landing
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd, when they said "sit down" I stood up
Ooh, ooh, growin' up, whoa
Shh!
[Spoken:] Now what's gonna happen here...
[Spoken:] Alright, um, we're gonna play it back! You have your instant-method replay paper!
I took month-long vacations in the stratosphere, you know it's really hard to hold your breath
I swear I lost everything I ever loved or feared, I was the cosmic kid
My feet they finally took root in the earth, I got me a nice little place in the stars
I swear I found the key to the universe in the engine of an old parked car
I hid in the clouded breast of the crowd, when they said "pull down" I pulled up
Ooh, ooh, growin' up
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Growin' up
The above lyrics are for the live 07 Aug 1976 performance of GROWIN' UP at Monmouth Arts Center in Red Bank, NJ, during what is known as The Lawsuit Tour. The song was played in a full-band, album-style arrangement. Performances like this one early in the tour did not feature a story in the break, although the instrumental was heavily extended and this particular version included some banter.
This was the last of a six-night stand at Monmouth Arts Center.
Despite the marvelous reception received by both Born To Run and the tour which followed, the relationship between Bruce Springsteen and his now former manager and producer Mike Appel was deteriorating. In July 1976 the storm broke; Mike Appel wrote to Springsteen saying that he would not allow Jon Landau (Springsteen's friend and co-producer of Born To Run) to produce the next album, citing a particular paragraph from their original agreement. Springsteen replied on 27 Jul 1976 by firing manager Mike Appel and suing him and his management company Laurel Canyon Ltd. in Federal Court in Manhattan, claiming fraud, breach of trust, and undue influence. Appel counter-sued on 29 Jul 1976 in New York State Supreme Court, asking the court to prohibit Springsteen and Jon Landau from working together in studio. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band were slated to enter the studio that year for the recording of a new album, except that on 15 Sep 1976 the judge in the lawsuits case ruled that Springsteen was enjoined from any further recording with Columbia Records until Appel's suit was resolved. This would drag for about a year. Meanwhile, Springsteen continued gigging, and in the process broke his self-imposed rule of not playing the larger arenas. This was basically because he was not able to put a record out, and it was the only way his fans would be able to hear him at all. The tour became known as "The Lawsuit Tour" (62 know dates, August 1976 to March 1977).
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.
List of available versions of GROWIN' UP on this website:
GROWIN' UP [Album version]