NO STRINGS ATTACHED

Album version

So good to see you again
Do you like how much I missed you?
Don't sit so far away, my friend
Don't worry; I won't try to kiss you
Here's to our bizarre relationship
Another drink, I might start to slip

If you come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
You won't owe my anything
There will be no questions asked
I just want to be near you
I just want to hear you laugh
If you come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
No strings attached

I know I treated you badly
I realize that was my disgrace
Perhaps I loved you too madly
Now I know that you need some space
I won't try to smother you
Well, that's one thing that I would never do

So you can come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
You won't owe me anything
There will be no questions asked
I just want to be near you
I just want to hear you laugh
If you come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
No strings attached

I know you're a big girl now and you've got responsibilities
But the real truth of it is, I know you can't forget about me

I won't try to smother you
Well, that's one thing that I would never do

So if you come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
You won't owe me anything
There will be no questions asked
I just want to be near you
I just want to hear you laugh
If you come around here tonight,
There'll be no strings attached
No strings attached
No strings attached
No strings attached
Yeah, you don't owe me anything
You don't owe me anything
Yeah, you don't owe me, you don't owe me anything
You don't owe me anything
You don't owe me anything
There'll be no strings attached
There won't be no
There won't be no strings attached

Page last updated: 18 Oct 2011

Intro

NO STRINGS ATTACHED is a song written by Joe Grushecky and released on Joe Grushecky and The Houserockers' 1995 album American Babylon. Bruce Springsteen produced all the album except the title track, and he participated in the recording of most of the songs but not this one.

The above lyrics are transcribed from Joe Grushecky and The Houserockers studio version of NO STRINGS ATTACHED, as released on American Babylon.

Recording Sessions

In late October and early November 1993, Bruce Springsteen (with Toby Scott recording and Bob Clearmountain mixing) produced a recording session for Joe Grushecky at Thrill Hill Recording (Springsteen's home studio) in Beverly Hills, CA. Off the session, two tracks would be released on Grushecky's next album, American Babylon: CHAIN SMOKIN' and NEVER BE ENOUGH TIME. Springsteen played guitars, keyboard, and percussion on the first track, and guitar on the second. In addition to Springsteen, Grushecky's backing band for this session consisted of musicians organized by Springsteen that he is believed to have utilized for some of his own scattered studio sessions during the period: Zack Alford on drums, Jerome Smith on bass, and Leon Pendarvis on keyboards. Although originally planned as a "one-off", this session with Grushecky turned out to be the start of a major side project undertaking for Springsteen.

Around February 1994, Springsteen (with Toby Scott recording and Bob Clearmountain mixing) produced a further recording session for Joe Grushecky at Thrill Hill Recording. Off the session, one track would be released on American Babylon: HOMESTEAD, a song Springsteen and Grushecky had co-written together during the previous few months. Springsteen played guitar, harmonica, and mandolin on the track. In addition to Springsteen, Grushecky's backing band for this session consisted of musicians organized by Springsteen that he was utilizing for his own scattered studio sessions of the period: Shayne Fontaine on guitar, Zack Alford on drums, TM Stevens on bass, and Leon Pendarvis on keyboards.

Around August 1994, Springsteen (with Toby Scott recording and mixing) produced a further recording session for Joe Grushecky at Thrill Hill Recording (Springsteen's home studio) in Rumson, NJ. Off the session, five tracks would be released on American Babylon: DARK AND BLOODY GROUND (with Bruce playing guitars and sharing harmony vocals), LABOR OF LOVE (with Bruce playing guitars and mandolin), WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE WAR (with Bruce playing guitar), BILLY'S WALTZ (with Bruce playing mandolin), and ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE (with Bruce playing guitar). The first was co-written by Springsteen and Grushecky. In addition to Springsteen, unlike the previous two sessions held on the west coast, the backing musicians for the east coast sessions consisted of The Houserockers, Grushecky's own Pittsburgh-based band.

Around October 1994, Springsteen (with Toby Scott recording and mixing) produced a further recording session for Joe Grushecky at Thrill Hill Recording. Off the session, three tracks would be released on American Babylon: COMIN' DOWN MARIA, TALK SHOW, and NO STRINGS ATTACHED. The Houserockers were again the session's backing band. But contrary to previous sessions, Springsteen did not play on any of these three recordings, although his wife Patti Scialfa provided backing vocals on the first track.

Although the album was essentially completed at this stage, and filed with the US Copyright Office on 13 Dec 1994, Grushecky had trouble finding an interested record company. "We got turned down by everybody, I mean everybody. That's another reason why it took so long [for release]; I didn't have any funding," Grushecky commented in an interview. "Right around the turn of the year [Dec 1994 - Jan 1995] Pinnacle UK became involved and we knew we had a home for the project".

The final overdubbing/mixing sessions for American Babylon took place around April 1995 at Thrill Hill Recording, and the album was released in October 1995 on Pinnacle Records, and reissued in 2004. The album's title track, AMERICAN BABYLON, is the only one not produced by Bruce Springsteen.

Album track listing:

1. DARK AND BLOODY GROUND
2. CHAIN SMOKIN'
3. NEVER BE ENOUGH TIME
4. AMERICAN BABYLON
5. LABOR OF LOVE
6. WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE WAR
7. HOMESTEAD
8. COMIN' DOWN MARIA
9. TALK SHOW
10. NO STRINGS ATTACHED
11. BILLY'S WALTZ
12. ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE

Excerpts from all American Babylon tracks (except TALK SHOW and BILLY'S WALTZ) appear on American Babylon In Conversation, a UK-only promotional CD featuring interviews with both Grushecky and Springsteen recorded on 29 Aug 1995 at Cheers in Long Branch, NJ.

Live History

As far as it's known, Bruce Springsteen has never performed NO STRINGS ATTACHED live.

Credits / References

Thanks Jake (ol'catfishinthelake at BTX and Greasy Lake) for the lyrics help and Steen Andersson (rosalita101 at Greasy Lake) for the American Babylon album scan.

Most info on the recording sessions is taken from Brucebase.

Request

If you have any corrections or additional info about this song or the American Babylon recording sessions, please contact me via the below form or by email: . You will be credited. Thanks in advance.

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