Thunder Road: Eric Shelman (Bruce Springsteen Cover)

Music and lyrics by Bruce Springsteen, opener of his 1975 album Born To Run. This fans favourite is a classic rock staple, and is consistently ranked as one of Springsteen's greatest songs, and one of the top rock songs of all time. In 2004, it was ranked #1 in WXPN's list of "The 885 All-Time Greatest Songs". Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time placed it at #86. The song came in at #226 in Q's list of the "1001 Greatest Songs Ever" in 2003, in which they described the song as "best for pleading on the porch." It was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1998. Live, it has been performed many different ways: full-band, stripped down, guitar solo, piano solo, slowed down, etc...

From the Born To Run album.

Lyrics:

The screen door slams, Mary's dress waves
Like a vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays
Roy Orbison singing for the lonely
Hey that's me and I want you only
Don't turn me home again
I just can't face myself alone again
Don't run back inside, darling you know just what I'm here for
So you're scared and you're thinking that maybe we ain't that young anymore
Show a little faith, there's magic in the night
You ain't a beauty, but hey you're alright
Oh and that's alright with me

You can hide 'neath your covers and study your pain
Make crosses from your lovers, throw roses in the rain
Waste your summer praying in vain for a saviour to rise from these streets
Well now I'm no hero, that's understood
All the redemption I can offer, girl, is beneath this dirty hood
With a chance to make it good somehow
Hey what else can we do now
Except roll down the window and let the wind blow back your hair
Well the night's bustin' open, these two lanes will take us anywhere
We got one last chance to make it real
To trade in these wings on some wheels
Climb in back, heaven's waiting down on the tracks

Oh oh come take my hand
Riding out tonight to case the promised land
Oh oh oh oh Thunder Road, oh Thunder Road, oh Thunder Road
Lying out there like a killer in the sun
Hey I know it's late, we can make it if we run
Oh oh oh oh Thunder Road, sit tight, take hold, Thunder Road

Well I got this guitar and I learned how to make it talk
And my car's out back if you're ready to take that long walk
From your front porch to my front seat
The door's open but the ride it ain't free
And I know you're lonely for words that I ain't spoken
Tonight we'll be free, all the promises will be broken
There were ghosts in the eyes of all the boys you sent away
They haunt this dusty beach road in the skeleton frames of burned-out Chevrolets
They scream your name at night in the street
Your graduation gown lies in rags at their feet
And in the lonely cool before dawn
You hear their engines roaring on
But when you get to the porch they're gone on the wind, so Mary climb in
It's a town full of losers, I'm pulling out of here to win

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Springsteen
• Thunder Road
• Born To Run
• Eric Shelman
• Shelman

[vaneewilliam]

Sing it Eric !!!!!!

[ericandlindashelman]

@vaneewilliam Thanks, Bill!  I think I will!

[bookmaster89]

wow. i love the stripped down versions like crazy but i love this one too. you've perfectly captured that awesome build up in the first two and a half minutes or so of the song. vocals are excellent as well. is that an arrangement you did in the background? like a karaoke version

[nikkimo15]

wow, your really good :)

[lkwhynot]

Is there a CD of all these covers???

[goldennugget01]

great job!

Keep it up, man!

[dxb1986]

Nice version