Bruce Springsteen Tribute - Lebanese Tribute to Bruce Springsteen

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS)^©

Live In New York City version

(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
[spoken:] We need some quiet

41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross this bloody river to the other side
41 shots, cut through the night
You're kneeling over his body in the vestibule
Praying for his life

Well, is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it a wallet, this is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)

41 shots, Lena gets her son ready for school
She says "On these streets, Charles
You've got to understand the rules
If an officer stops you, promise me you'll always be polite
And that you'll never ever run away
Promise Mama you'll keep your hands in sight"

Well, is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it a wallet, this is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)

(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)
(41 shots)

Is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it in your heart, is it in your eyes
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)

41 shots, and we'll take that ride
'Cross this bloody river to the other side
41 shots, got my boots caked in this mud
We're baptized in these waters (baptized in these waters)
And in each other's blood (and in each other's blood)

Is it a gun, is it a knife
Is it a wallet, this is your life
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
It ain't no secret (it ain't no secret)
No secret my friend
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in
You can get killed just for living in your American skin

(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in
(41 shots)
You can get killed just for living in [fades out]

Written by Bruce Springsteen during the Reunion tour, as a scathing comment on the New York City police shooting (with 41 shots) of the unarmed Bronx resident Amadou Diallo. The story:

New York Post The four New York City police officers: Richard Murphy, Kenneth Boss, Sean Carroll, and Edward McMellon AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) was inspired from the incident that took place on 04 Feb 1999, when four white New York City plainclothes police officers, (Richard Murphy, Kenneth Boss, Sean Carroll, and Edward McMellon), shot dead Amadou Diallo, a 22 year old black West African immigrant. The four men suspected Diallo to match the profile of a rapist that had committed crimes in the area then (Bronx), and when he tried to pull out what they later found out was to be his wallet (which they presumed to be a gun), they opened fire, "41 shots", 19 of which hit the target. The officers were later tried for murder, but were found innocent by the jury. The verdict was not welcomed by many groups which created an atmosphere of tension in the city.

The song was unveiled on 04 Jun of the following year at Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA. Bruce wrote it during the Reunion tour and after thorough checking with the band, he premiered in Atlanta. It was promptly posted on file-sharing Internet sites, with the media picking up on it as well. The song pushed "a lot of buttons in America," as Bruce commented. It sparked a wave of controversy, and it was even accused by some of being written in support of Hillary Clinton's race for mayor against Giuliani.

Patrick Lynch's letter The first comeback against it was made by Patrick Lynch, the president of the 27,000-member Patrolmen's Benevolent Association (PBA) in New York City, who sarcastically hadn't even heard the song. He posted a letter on the PBA's website on 08 Jun accusing Springsteen of "trying to fatten his wallet by reopening the wounds of this tragic case". He also encouraged officers to neither attend nor work as moonlighting security guards at Springsteen's upcoming ten-show stand at Madison Square Garden. Howard Safir, New York City Police commissioner, told the New York Daily News that he personally didn't care for Bruce Springsteen's song or music, while Bob Lucente, president of the New York State Fraternal Order of Police, called Springsteen a "fucking dirtbag" and declared that he goes on the boycott list.

Not all police fractions were "out to kill"; some spoke in his defense. On on 10 Jun, the Rev. Al Sharpton praised The Boss and ripped into the PBA for urging a boycott of the concerts. "We were all born in the USA," "No one can tell us we can't stand for what is right," Sharpton said. He added that the Jersey rocker "can come up here anytime," and that he's invited "to march with us to Washington where we all will stand up against police brutality."

A group called 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement, whose spokesman Lt. Eric Adams told the Association Press, "We commend Bruce Springsteen, and we believe that he is courageous in the position that he is taking." Police lieutenant Michael J. Gorman wrote a letter to the New York Times noting, "trying to muzzle those who refer to this tragedy is wrong. Mr. Springsteen has generally been a supporter of police officers, giving generously to police charities. Attacks on him are not only unfair but also counterproductive." A notable incident was when a New York patrolman at one of Bruce's shows in the city show brought along a sign that said "Here sits a NYC policeman who still loves Bruce!!" Springsteen, spotting it from the stage, said "Now there's a sign I like!"

The song was described as "astonishing" by the New York Post's Jack Newfield. Jon Pareles of New York Times praised the song as "a resonant elegy and a reflection on how fear can become deadly." Elysa Gardner of USA Today pointed out in her review of Springsteen's performance, "Those who would cast 'Skin' as an anti-police diatribe were off the mark. The song is more elegiac than angry in tone, expressing sorrow for all parties involved in the incident and, on a larger scale, asking what we can do to overcome the lack of communication that leads to such tragedies."

"Because a lot had been written about the case in magazines and newspapers," Springsteen explained later, "I was just setting out to basically continue writing about things that I'd written about for a long period of time, which is, who we are? What's it mean to be an American? What's going on in this country we live in? It was asking some questions that were hanging very heavy in the air... And it was an extension of just a lot of my other work." He added, however, "I think it dealt very directly with race, and that's a subject that pushes a lot of buttons in America." For his part, Springsteen said he was "surprised... there were so many people willing to comment so quickly about something they've never heard. That was just somewhat puzzling to me, because we'd only played the song once, in Atlanta, and there was no recorded version of it... There was a lot of misinterpretation and comment about something that I don't thing a lot of people had heard, and the song wound up being misrepresented by quite a few people."

Springsteen writes about AMERICAN SKIN in the new edition of his book Songs, "Though the song was critical, it was not 'anti-police' as some thought." As he also points out, the first verse is from the point of view of a police officer, "kneeling over his body in the vestibule, praying for his life." Rather than being an indictment of police, if the song points a finger at anyone, Springsteen suggests that it points at all US citizens, the singer included. "The idea was here," he writes: "Here is what systemic racial injustice, fear, and paranoia do to our children, our loved ones, ourselves. Here is the price in blood."

Bruce played the haunting song, without comment, at each of the ten Madison Square Garden shows in New York, and he even included it on his Live In New York City album and DVD in 2001. After the first night's show, on June 12, he met with Diallo's parents, who expressed their appreciation for the song. It seems that the boycott on Bruce Springsteen's New York shows went unnoticed; each of the ten Madison Square Garden shows was a sold-out, and scalpers were able to sell tickets at multiples of the face value.

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) was reported to be sound-checked a couple of times during the Reunion tour before it debuted:

22 Apr 2000 at the Entertainment And Sports Arena, Raleigh, NC
29 May 2000 at Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT
04 Jun 2000 at Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA

The song debuted on 04 Jun 2000 at Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA, and then played during each show till the end of the tour (the 10 nights stand in New York):

04 Jun 2000 at Philips Arena, Atlanta, GA
12 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
15 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
17 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
20 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
22 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
23 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
26 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
27 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
29 Jun 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
01 Jul 2000 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY

Footage from the last 2 shows of the tour (29 Jun and 01 Jul 2000) was used in 2001 for HBO's Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band TV special. HBO received six Emmy nominations for their acclaimed film which featured 14 songs, AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) being the closer. The full HBO broadcast was released on the Live In New York City, both the album and the DVD. Note that the album also included 6 bonus tracks from the same two Reunion tour shows (20 in all), and the DVD included 11 (25 in all).

The DVD included a bonus 15-minute documentary titled New York City Serenade that includes footage of some other songs not included on the DVD, in addition to interviews by HBO's Bob Costas with Springsteen and the members of the E Street Band. Costas asks, "American Skin, the story of Amadou Diallo, the West-African immigrant who was slain by police fire. What is about you do you think that makes you go in that direction?" Bruce replies, "Sort of writing about what's in the air. I didn't think that song's particularly different from things I'd written in the past. It was just a part of the continuing work that I've done. It's sort of trying to figure out who am I, and who are we as Americans, what is Americaness. I think that my point of view with the song is that the Diallo's case ended of being a metaphor for a lot of people about feeling they don't have full citizenship..." He adds, "That was the essence of the title."

Bruce Springsteen - Live In New York City (audio CD)

Bruce Springsteen - Live In New York City (DVD)

[Click on the below thumbnails to enlarge]

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) from the
Live In New York City DVD (click to enlarge)

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (live 01 Jul 2000) was included on The Essential Bruce Springsteen in 2003.

Bruce Springsteen - The Essential Bruce Springsteen

It also appeared on three promotional singles in 2001:

"AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (live 01 Jul 2000) (edit)"
Canadian 1-track promotional CDR with a 5:09 edited version of the song with the introduction shortened and features a premature fade-out during Clarence's sax solo. No catalogue number.
"AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (live 01 Jul 2000) (edit) / AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (live 01 Jul 2000)"
US-only promotional CDR that includes the same edit as on the Canadian issue. No catalogue number.
"Live In New York City Album Sampler -- AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (live 01 Jul 2000) (edit) / LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS (live 01 Jul 2000) / BORN TO RUN (live 01 Jul 2000) / THE RIVER (live 01 Jul 2000)"
Austrian promotion-only EP; catalogue # COL SAMPCM 9988.

Bruce Springsteen - AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) Canadian 1-track promotional CDR Bruce Springsteen - Live In New York City Album Sampler

The song was recorded at The Hit Factory, New York City, NY, on 02 Mar 2001. The 5:14 studio recording of the song that was never available commercially, and only appeared on an extremely rare US-only 1-track radio promotional CDR single in 2001. This take is only slightly different to the released live version, lacking the "41 shots" intros sung by various band members, and fading out during Clarence's sax solo. Check out the studio version.

Bruce Springsteen - AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS) (studio version) promotioanl CDR

Played during three rehearsal shows for The Rising tour:

26 Jul 2002 at the Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
30 Jul 2002 at the Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ
05 Aug 2002 at the Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ

Played 12 times during The Rising tour, including the first 6 consecutive shows of the tour:

07 Aug 2002 at the Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ
10 Aug 2002 at MCI Center, Washington, DC
12 Aug 2002 at Madison Square Gardens, New York City, NY
14 Aug 2002 at Gund Arena, Cleveland, OH
15 Aug 2002 at The Palace, Auburn Hills, MI
18 Aug 2002 at Thomas And Mack Center, Las Vegas, NV
24 Aug 2002 at The Forum, Los Angeles, CA
27 Aug 2002 at Compaq Center, San Jose, CA
12 Nov 2002 at the U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, OH
14 Sep 2003 at Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill, NC
16 Sep 2003 at Rentschler Field, Hartford, CT
01 Oct 2003 at Shea Stadium, New York City, NY

Read the below short speech Bruce made on the 12 Nov 2002 show at the U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, OH, addressing racial tensions in the city before opening the show with AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS).

Reported to be rehearsed for the Devils & Dust tour, on 11 Apr 2005 at the Paramount Theatre, Asbury Park, NJ, and that was the last known appearance of the song.

The above lyrics refer to the live 01 Jul 2000 performance at Madison Square Garden, New York City, NY, that was officially released on Live In New York City, both the album and the DVD.

Check also the studio version, the live 17 Jun 2000 version (minor lyrical differences), and the live 30 Jul 2002 version.

Spoken intro on 12 Nov 2002 at U.S. Bank Arena, Cincinnati, OH:

Thanks. Before we uh, before we start the show tonight, I'd just like to say, you know, I don't know if you've read about it in the newspapers at all out here but we've uh, been contacted by several organizations here in the city who are trying to combat... They're trying to combat the segregation and the economic apartheid and the racism that exists not just here in Cincinnati but everywhere in our country. As a young man, as a young man, I saw it up close in my own hometown, and while there've been many improvements since then, the core fact of racism continues to this day at all levels of our society. Well, I wrote a song a couple years ago about what happens when we stop communicating with one another, and how that non-communication becomes systematic, when injustice becomes ingrained in institution... The consequences, the violence, the human cost, and life cut short, that comes with it. So I wanna open our show here tonight with a song uh, not just for Cincinnati but for the country we'd like to see our children brought up in... And we're gonna send it out tonight to the people, and the organizations here in the city that are working for a just Cincinnati and a just America. Thank you.

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS)©

Live In New York City version

AMERICAN SKIN (41 SHOTS)^©