THUNDERCRACK

Live 29 Jan 1974 version

[Spoken intro:] Alright. Heh!.

Her brains they rattle and her bones they shake
Oh she's an angel from the Innerlake
Her brains they rattle and her bones they shake
Oh she's an angel from the Innerlake
Don't dance with her Henry, don't dance with her Jake (her brains they rattle and her bones they shake)
Oh she's an angel from the Innerlake
She gives me all the loving that a poor man can take (her brains they rattle and her bones they shake)
Oh she's an angel from the Innerlake

Sha-na, na-na, na na, oh oh
Sha-na, na-na, na na, oh oh
Sha-na, na-na, na na, oh oh
Sha-na, na-na, na na, oh oh
Thundercrack, go! Baby's back
This time she'll tell me how she really feels
Bring me down to her lightning shack
You can watch my partner reeling
She moves up, she moves back
Out on the floor there is no one cleaner
She does this thing she calls the "jump back jack"
She's got the heart of a ballerina

Straight from the Bronx, hung off the line
She slips, she slides, she slops, she bops, she bumps, she grinds
Even them dance hall hacks from the west side of the tracks move in close to catch her timing
She moves up, she moves back
Out on the floor there is no one cleaner
She does this thing she calls "get back jack"
She's got the heart of a ballerina

She ain't no little girl, she ain't got no curls
Her hair ain't brown and her eyes ain't either
Round and round and round
(Round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round)
Like a merry-go-round (Round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round)

My heart's wood, she's a carpenter
She's an angel in the night, what she does is alright
Dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner, 'til the dawn
Until the dawn, oh!

Ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah-ah ah-ah ah-ah
Ah-ah-ahhh ah-ah ah-ah
Ah-ah-ahhh ah-ah ah-ah
Oh-oh-oh-oh oh-oh it's alright
Oh-oh-oh-oh oh-oh it's alright
Oh-oh-oh-oh oh-oh it's alright
Ah-ah-ahhh ah-ah ah-ah
Ah-ah-ahhh ah-ah ah-ah

[long instrumental break]

Oh
Thundercrack, (baby's back)
This time she'll tell me how she really feels
Bring me down to her lightning shack
You can watch my partner reeling
She moves up, she moves back
Out on the floor there is no one cleaner
She does this thing she calls "get back jack"
She's got the heart of a ballerina

She has parents, she has religion, she has sisters
(Round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round)
Like a merry-go-round and round whoa whoa whoa
(Round and round and round and round and round and round and round and round)

My heart's wood, she's a partner
She's an angel in the night, what she does is alright
Dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner
Dance with me, partner
All night, (all night)
Alright let's ride all night, (all night)
Alright let's ride all night, (all night)
We will all night, (all night)
We will all night, (all night)
We will all night, (all night)

[Spoken:] Starting with the far right we've got little mister maestro himself, prince of Passaic County, New Jersey, when the man plays the keys, little teenyboppers fall right. They fall right! They fall left! They fall right! They fall down!... to their knees, on the organ Mr. Daniel Federici, Flemington, New Jersey. And to my left ??? member of the band, master of the low notes, man, his mother was a Tallent, his father was a Tallent, his sister was a Tallent, his brother was a Tallent, his great-grand-grandfather was a great, great Tallent. On the bass guitar, from Long Branch, New Jersey, Mr. Garry W. Tallent. To the far left, on the piano, we've got a man whose notes belong in quotes, whose groove has hung loose, 20 years old, fingers of solid gold, from Belmar, New Jersey, the master, Mr. Dave Sancious on the piano. And back behind me... wait, bring the music down. Back behind me, we've got somebody we can't talk too loud about. He's so sensitive individual and we gotta keep him, we gotta keep him way in the back, you see, we can't sit him up, we don't set him up where the piano is ??? the organs are out front. We gotta keep him back there for a reason, right? [Somebody in the band: what's the reason?] The reason is 'cause he's so vicious. He was diagnosed on the national syndicated daytime television show with Dr. Joyce Brothers as a homicidic schizophrenic paranoic Roman-Catholic, and the only man I know who snorts beer through his left ear. Weighing in a 165 pounds of stone ugliness from Asbury Park, New Jersey, the Mad Dog, the Madman — watch out girls, he hates to be alone — Vincent Lopez.

All night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night
All night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night
All night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night
All night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night, all night

[Spoken outro:] ???. Thank you.

Info

The above lyrics are for the live 29 Jan 1974 performance of THUNDERCRACK at Muther's Music Emporium in Nashville, TN, during what is considered The Wild, The Innocent, & The E Street Shuffle Tour.

Promotional ad for the 29 Jan to 03 Feb 1974 shows at Muther's Music Emporium, Nashville, TN
(Taken from Brucebase)

Bruce Springsteen performed on 29 and 30 Jan 1974 at Muther's Music Emporium, opening for headliner Freddie King. Springsteen played before King on both nights but was allowed to give a headliner-length performance. Freddie King was booked for a six-night residency, from 29 Jan 1974 to 03 Feb 1974. Bruce Springsteen was the opening act on the first two nights and Redd Snapper was the opening act on the remaining four nights. An excellent quality soundboard recording of Springsteen's performance from the first night circulates among collectors.

Springsteen's booking at this small, 300-seat club came about after Mike Appel became aware of a CBS sales convention taking place in Nashville and, additionally, that the entire CBS contingent would be staying in a hotel near this club. Appel conducted a handbill/leaflet drop to each room in the hotel, inviting nearly 200 CBS sales and marketing people to attend the shows. However, according to Appel, nobody from CBS turned up and the club was painfully empty. The audio evidence certainly backs up Appel's recollection. There doesn't sound like there are more than 100 people in the club for Springsteen's show. It is speculated this soundboard was recorded because Appel wanted to have material from the show to give to the CBS people that he anticipated would show up.

References

Most of the above information is taken from Brucebase.

Available Versions

List of available versions of THUNDERCRACK on this website:

Page last updated: 22 Oct 2013