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Live 14 Feb 1973 version
Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh
Spread out now, Rosie, doctor come cut loose her chiffon reins
You know playin' blind man's bluff is a little baby's game
You pick up Little Dynamite, I'm gonna pick up Little Gun
And together we're gonna go out tonight and make that highway run
You don't have to call me lieutenant and I don't want to be your son
The only lover I'm ever gonna need's your soft sweet samurai tongue
Rosie, you're the one!
Oh, Dynamite's in the belfry, baby, playin' with the bats
Little Gun's downtown in front of Woolworth's, tryin' out his attitude on all the cats
Papa's on the corner, waiting for the bus
Mama, she's home in the window, waitin' up for us
We'll be there in that chair when they wrestle her upstairs, 'cause you know we ain't gonna come
I'm not here on business, I'm only here for fun
Rosie, you're the one!
Rosalita, jump a little lighter
Senorita, come sit by my fire
I just want to be your lover, not no liar
Rosalita, you're my stone desire
Jack the Rabbit and Weak Knee Willie, don't you know they're gonna be there
Sloppy Sue and Big Bones Billy, they'll be comin' up for air
We're gonna play some pool, skip some school, act real cool
Stay out all night, it's gonna feel all right
So, Rosie, come out tonight, Rosie, come out tonight
Windows are for cheaters, chimneys for the poor
Closets are for hangers, winners use the doors
So use 'em!
Rosalita, jump a little lighter
Senorita, come sit by my fire
I just want to be your lover, not no liar
Rosalita, you're my stone desire
Oh, yeah
[Spoken:] There I was. I was eight years old. There, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. I'd been hitchhiking around the country for five years. Oh, yeah. I, I was something else. And just by coincidence, I got arrested for loitering, and they put me in the same cell, by sheer coincidence, as was James Brown. It was, uh, it was amazing, it was, here I was, eight years old, with James Brown coming to me and he looked me in the face, and he said, "Uh, ah, uh, ain't it fun?" And the next time he opened his mouth to say something, it was the funniest thing, the next time he opened his mouth, out came:
[band plays some James Brown-style music]
[Spoken:] Then he walked away. Just by sheer coincidence, in the very next cell, sitting there with his surfboard, was Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys. I said, "Dennis, what are you doing in, uh, that cell with a surfboard?" So, he said he was looking for the perfect wave. Right, right. All right. He came up to me, looked me in the face, and said:
Well, we got her daddy's car and we drove to the hamburger stand, now
We forgot all about the library like she told her old man, now
And with the radio blastin' we went cruisin' just as fast as she can, now
And we'll have fun, fun, fun 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away
(Fun, fun, fun, 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away)
Well, the girls don't like her 'cause she walks, looks, and drives like an ace, now (walk like an ace, now, you walk like an ace)
She makes the Indy 500 look like the Roman chariot race, now (chariot race, now, chariot race)
And when the guys try to catch her, she leads 'em on a wild goose chase, now (wild goose chase, now, wild goose chase)
And we'll have fun, fun, fun 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away
(Fun, fun, fun, 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away)
Well, you shouldn't have lied, because your daddy's getting wise to you, now (shouldn't have lied, now, shouldn't have lied)
And since he took your set of keys, you been thinkin' that your fun is all through now (shouldn't have lied, now, shouldn't have lied)
But you can come along with me, 'cause we got a lot of things to do now (you shouldn't have lied, now, you shouldn't have lied)
And we'll have fun, fun, fun 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away
(Fun, fun, fun, 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away)
We'll have fun, fun, fun 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away
(Fun, fun, fun, 'til her daddy takes the T-bird away)
Oh, oh, oh, oh, whoa, ooh
Whoa, whoa, oh, ooh
Whoa, whoa, ooh
Whoa, whoa, ooh
[Spoken:] Then he split. By sheer coincidence, with a cop — with a policeman on both sides, they, uh, they brought in Wilson Pickett, for being, uh, too funky or something, I forget, I forget the exact charge, but, uh, he came up to me, said, "Son?" I looked up, I said, "Yes, Mr. Pickett?" He said, "if you're ever in trouble, all you got to do is" — and then he showed me this.
[P]One, two, three, four!
The above lyrics are for the live 14 Feb 1973 performance of ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT) at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA, during what is considered the Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. Tour. The song was played in a full-band arrangement and featured early lyrics ("chiffon reins" and "samurai tongue") that can be found on Springsteen's 1972 handwritten lyrics for ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT). This version also featured a spoken midsection (including band introductions) and a full performance of The Beach Boys' FUN FUN FUN in the middle. This is the earliest known performance of ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT).
This was a double-bill show with Bruce Springsteen and the band opening and Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks headlining. The show was held at the university's new gymnasium. Springsteen was allowed to present a headliner-length performance of nearly 90 minutes. The show's complete setlist is known from a newspaper review in conjunction with a circulating (but very poor quality) 45-minute audience recording encompassing five of the show's nine songs.
Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake). Info about the 14 Feb 1973 show is taken from Brucebase.
List of available versions of ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT) on this website:
ROSALITA (COME OUT TONIGHT) [Album version]