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Song title: Glory days


Glory days

I had a friend was a big baseball player back in highschool
He could throw that speedball by ya, make you look like a fool
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 we kept talking about

Glory Days, yeah they’ll pass you by
Glory Days, in the wink of a young girl’s eye
Glory Days, glory days

There’s this girl that lives up the block, back in school she could turn all the boys heads
Sometimes on 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
We just sit around talking about the old times,
she says when she feels like crying she starts laughing thinking about

Glory Days...[1]

Think I’m going down to the well tonight and I’m gonna drink till I get my fill
I hope when I get older 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 the time slips away and leaves you with nothing, mister, but boring
stories of

Glory Days…

Glory days - "Extra verse" version

I had a friend was a big baseball player
Back in high school
He could throw that speedball by you
Make you look like a fool boy
Saw him the other night as 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 girls eye
Glory days, glory days

Well theres 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 its 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, well they'll pass you by
Glory days, in the wink of a young girls eye
Glory days, glory days

My old man worked 20 years on the line
And they let him go
Now everywhere he goes out looking for work
They just tell him that he's too old
I was 9 years old when he was working at the
Metuchen Ford plant assembly line
Now he just sits on a stool down at the Legion Hall
But I can tell whats on his mind

Glory days, yeah goin back
Glory days, oh he ain't never had
Glory days, glory days

Now I think I'm going down to the well tonight
And I'm going to 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 the time slips away
And leaves you with nothing mister but
Boring stories of glory days

Glory days, well they'll pass you by
Glory days, in the wink of a young girls eye
Glory days, glory days

Glory days, well they'll pass you by
Glory days, in the wink of a young girls eye
Glory days, glory days

Notes: This outtake version contain the famous 'extra verse'

Glory days - Early take

I knew a buddy in high school, good at playing baseball
He could throw that ball, speedball down the plate
Make you look just like a fool
I met him in a bar last night, in a bar with a raincoat on
He was just talking about them glory days
He said "now them glory days are gone"
Yeah you just don't count
When you're from Stockton ???

My dad worked ??? just turned 59
There in the cold.... there was a job down, they tell him he's too old
Back in '59 he worked production on the Ford plant assembly line
Pluggin in them... slappin' in them firewalls and windshields
Now they they dont give him piece of mind, Stockton
Yeah you just don't count
When you're from Stockton

Notes: This is a very early take of 'Glory days' recorded in 1982-83

Statistics from the KILLING FLOOR (www.brucespringsteen.it) database

Published on the following official releases:

First known live performance: 08/06/1984 Stone Pony, Asbury Park,NJ ,USA
Last known live performance: 25/02/2017 Mt. Smart Stadium, Auckland ,New Zealand

Song 'history':


Originally recorded acoustically for the NEBRASKA album, but then left out of the album ,to be inserted, two years later, in the well-known full band version, on BORN IN THE U.S.A.
During the Born in the U.S.A. tour, the song was regularly included in every show
Played at the Bridge Benefit show, 13-Oct-1986.
Played during the '1987 bar tour', which is the name under which I group the 1987 shows Bruce played with various small bands, or guesting, in small NJ clubs.
Performed every night of the Tunnel of Love tour
Performed 19 times during the 1988 Amnesty International tour
Played during the 'Summer '89 bar tour', which is the name under which I group the 1989 shows Bruce played with various small bands, or guesting, between March and September 1989
Performed every night of the Human Touch tour
The song was then included in the GREATEST HITS compilation, released in 1995.
A discrete number of performances (45) was given during the Rising tour
The song was then included in the ESSENTIAL compilation, released in 2003.
Bruce inserted it 15 times in the setlists of the Magic tour
A discrete number of performances (32) was given during the Working on a Dream tour
34 perfomances were given during the Wrecking Ball tour
Not much used during the High Hopes tour, deserving only less than a dozen renderings
Just less than a dozen shots during the 2016 The River tour
Performed 8 times during the 2017 Summer tour

The song was also played in informal happenings or off-tour appearances
Data from the www.brucespringsteen.it database