Bette Midler

Released: November 7, 1980

Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen Bobby Goldsboro Ellie Greenwich George “Shadow” Morton Jeff Barry

Producer: Dennis Kirk

It's ninety-three degrees
And the radio says a storm front's movin' in
Sure is hot
There's a double feature down at the Fox
But everybody's seen it twice
And, besides, the air conditioner's broke

The old lady who runs the ice cream store
Got robbed last week
She put a lock on the door
And a bell on the lock
Now she don't answer the door
'cause she takes that good long look at you
And you look too tough

The air is hot and heavy and wet
And you just can't get high
That's when sparks fly on E Street
And the little girls walking lookin' so hot
And the little boys' souls grow weak
When the girls give them a double shot

School boy pops pull out the stops on a Friday night
And those teenage tramps in skin-tight pants
Do the E Street dance
But in their heart and soul they know it's all right

Just like those kids down there
Ooh, hooked up in a scuffle
Dressed in snake skin suits;
Packed with Detroit muscle;
Doin' the E Street shuffle
Ooh, the shuffle
Doin' the E Street shuffle
Ooh, the shuffle

It was a hot afternoon
The last day of June
And the sun was a demon
The clouds were afraid
One ten in the shade
And the pavement was steamin'

I told Billy Ray
In his red chevrolet
I needed time for some thinkin'
He was just passing by
When I caught that boy's eye
And I swore it was winkin'

I was thirty-one
He was seventeen
He knew nothing about love
I knew everything
But he sat right down
On the front porch swing
And I wondered what the
Coming night would bring

Sun closed my eyes
Climbed to the skies
It was starting to swelter
The sweat trickled down
The front of my gown
I thought it would melt me

I threw back my hair
Like he wasn't there
And I sipped, oooh, something coolin'
My shoulders bare
He tried not to stare
Whoa, but I knew I wasn't foolin'

I looked deep into those eyes of blue
I said, "Boy, I know you're young
Don't know what to say or do
But stay with me 'til the sun goes away
And I will chase the boy in you away!"

Guess you know why
That kid caught my eyes
Oooh, and why the memory still lingers
Go back in my mind to the very first time
Ooh-ooh-ooh, I felt the touch of somebody's fingers
I go back in my mind to the very first time
Oh, I felt the touch of somebody's fingers
And go, I go back in my mind
To the very first time I felt...

I go back in my mind to the very first time
I felt the touch of somebody's fingers
The first time
The first time

Bette Midler is a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, comedienne and actress. Named in honor of Bette Davis, Midler’s career began performing off-broadway until she developed the stage persona The Divine Miss M while singing at the world-famous Continental Baths gay bathhouse. A pre-fame Barry Manilow, the venue’s in-house piano player, produced her Grammy-nominated debut album which scored three US top 40 singles including the Grammy-nominated “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”. Midler took home the Best New Artist Grammy that year, her first of three career wins.

Throughout the 1970s, Midler found further success with music, Broadway, television and film. The Rose, Midler’s 1979 acting debut, earned her both Oscar and Academy Award nominations, and its namesake song won her a Golden Globe and another Grammy – also giving Midler her first success overseas.

The early 1980s proved less successful for Midler with four under-performing singles and a box office flop with the film Jinxed. However, the second half of the decade would prove far more fruitful with a handful of very successful films including Down and Out in Beverly Hills, Ruthless People, Outrageous Fortune and Beaches, the latter featuring a chart-topping cover of “Wind Beneath My Wings” that won Midler her third Grammy and is considered one of the greatest songs in American film history.

more tracks from the album

Divine Madness

From the album

Divine Madness (1980)

Bette Midler popular songs

E Street Shuffle/Summer (the First Time)/Leader of the PackBette Midler

Bette Midler

Divine Madness