GLORY DAYS^©

Album's version

(Oh yeah)
(Come on)
Whoa!
(Hey)

I had a friend was a big baseball player back in high school (yeah)
He could throw that speedball by you, make you look like a fool boy
Saw him the other night at this roadside bar, I was walking in, he was walking out
We went back inside, sat down, had a few drinks, but all he kept talking about was

Glory days
Well they'll pass you by, glory days
In the wink of a young girl's eye, glory days
Glory days

(Alright)

Well there's a girl that lives up the block, back in school she could turn all the boys' heads
Sometimes on a Friday I'll stop by and have a few drinks after she put her kids to bed
Her and her husband Bobby, well, they split up, I guess it's two years gone by now
We just sit around talking about the old times, she says when she feels like crying, she starts laughing thinking about

Glory days
Yeah they'll pass you by, glory days
In the wink of a young girl's eye, glory days
Glory days

(Alright boys, watch ???)
Rockin' now!
Whoa!

Think I'm going down to the well tonight and I'm gonna drink till I get my fill
And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it, but I probably will
Yeah just sitting back trying to recapture a little of the glory of
Well but time slips away and leaves you with nothing mister but boring stories of

Glory days
Yeah they'll pass you by, glory days
In the wink of a young girl's eye, glory days
Glory days
Yeah they'll pass you by, glory days
In the wink of a young girl's eye, glory days
Glory days

(Long time)
Yeah!
Alright!
Ooh yeah!
Alright! (Alright)
Come on now! (Oh yeah)
Alright! (It's alright)
Ooh Yeah! (Oh yeah)
Alright! (Come on now)
Come on now! (Oh yeah)
Woohoo! (Alright)
Woohoo! (Oh yeah)
Woohoo! (Oh yeah)
Woohoo! (Alright)
Alright boys! Keep on rockin' now!
Keep on going!
We're gonna go home now!
Bring it home!
Yeah hey!
Bring it home! (Oh oh-oh)
Oh oh!*
Alright!
Alright! (Yeah)
Alright! (Whoa!)
Alright!
Alright!
Alright!
Alright!
Alright!
Let's go!
Hahahaha
Whoa!

Originally recorded acoustically for Nebraska, but then left out to be included later in the full band version on Born In The USA in 1982. It was also included on Greatest Hits in 1995 and The Essential Bruce Springsteen in 2003, and the video can be found on The Complete Video Anthology / 1978-2000 DVD, directed by John Sayles (read below). The video of the 22 Sep 1992 performance at Warner Hollywood Studios, Los Angeles, CA, can be found on the MTV UnPlugged DVD.

* On Greatest Hits, this line onwards are edited out, shortening the track duration from 4:18 to 3:49. They are intact on The Essential Bruce Springsteen.

Included on singles all over the world in 1985 with STAND ON IT, BORN IN THE USA, SHERRY DARLING, RACING IN THE STREET, and THE RIVER. It became the fifth single from the Born In The USA album on 22 May 1985. It enters the Top 40 on 08 Jun 1985 and peaks at number 5.

The live debut of the song was during a warm up gig for the Born In The USA tour on 08 Jun 1984 at the Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ. Also played during another warm up gig for the tour on 21 Jun 1984 at The Village, Lancaster, PA. Performed during each single show of the Born In The USA tour.

Later performed off-tour at least 7 times in 1986 and 1987. Also performed during each single show of the Tunnel Of Love and Human Rights Now! tours. Between 1989 and 1991, the song was performed at least 10 times.

Performed during each single show of the Human Touch tour in 1992 and 1993, in addition to some other off-tour performances during that time. Only one known performance in 1994, on 20 Aug at Marz American Style, Long Branch, NJ, and only one know performance in 1995, on 09 Jul at Cafe Eckstein, Berlin, Germany, with Wolfgang Niedecken And His Leopardefellband.

The song have been rehearsed for the Reunion tour, but never performed on-tour. The next performance of the song was on 01 Sep 2001 at The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ, when Bruce turns up at the Clarence Clemons bash and plays a short set.

Performed during 45 of The Rising tour shows in 2002 and 2003, in addition to some other off-tour performances during that time. The last known performance was on 25 Apr 2004 at the Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ, during a benefit show for the Rumson Country Day School.

These lyrics refer to the Born In The USA album's version. Extra verse outtake and original demo also exist. Check also these live versions form the Born In The USA tour: 12 Jul 1984, 19 Aug 1984, 20 Aug 1984, 14 Sep 1984, 18 Nov 1984, 19 Nov 1984, 07 Dec 1984, 07 Jan 1985, and 04 Jul 1985. They are pretty similar, but the spoken introductions differ sometimes. Check also these live versions form the Tunnel Of Love Express tour, 10 May 1988, Human Rights Now! tour, 15 Oct 1988, Human Touch tour, 10 Jul 1992 and 24 Jun 1993, and The Rising tour, 16 Nov 2002, 07 Mar 2003, 26 Jul 2003, and 06 Aug 2003. All those live versions are very similar.

Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake from BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help.

Liner notes by Bruce Springsteen in the Greatest Hits booklet:

The 1st verse actually happened, the 2nd verse mostly happened, the 3rd verse, of course, is happening now.

From Backstreets Magazine # 62, page 16:

With only a week before the band's European tour is to begin [their European Born In The USA tour leg], they make a third video [video for GLORY DAYS] with John Sayles. The shoot takes place at a construction site and baseball field in West New York on May 24 [1985]; at a house in Secaucus on Memorial Day, May 27; and at Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ on May 28 for flip-synch performance footage. Little Steven joins in on the last day, and Bruce's wife of less than two weeks also makes a cameo.

From Backstreets Magazine # 62, page 17:

The GLORY DAYS finale [on 02 Oct 1985 at the Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA] includes Jon Landau on guitar. Weinberg tells Rolling Stone, "On the last night I cried. There's a video clip that I saw on Entertainment Tonight. We were all lined up, and I can see tears in my eyes. When Bruce was singing GLORY DAYS, and he turned around and said, 'Boys, we're going home now,' it really struck home."