Bruce Springsteen

Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen

My name's Joe Roberts, I work for the state
I'm a sergeant out of Perrineville, barracks number eight
I always done an honest job, as honest as I could
Got a brother named Franky, Franky ain't no good

Ever since we was young kids, it's been the same come down
I get a call on the shortwave, Franky's in trouble downtown
If it was any other man, I'd put him straight away
But when it's your brother, sometimes you look the other way

Yeah, me and Franky laughin' and drinkin', nothin' feels better than blood on blood
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood"
I catch him when he's strayin' like any brother would
Man turns his back on his family, he just ain't no good

Well, Franky went in the army back in 1965
I got a farm deferment, settled down, took Maria for my bride
Them wheat prices kept on droppin' till it was like we were gettin' robbed
Franky came home in '68, me, I took this job

Yeah, me and Franky laughin' and drinkin', nothin' feels better than blood on blood
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood"
I catch him when he's strayin', like any brother would
Man turns his back on his family, he just ain't no good

Well, the night was like any other, I got a call about quarter to nine
There was trouble in a roadhouse out on the Michigan line
There was a kid lyin' on the floor lookin' bad, bleedin' hard from his head
Was a girl cryin' at a table; it was Frank, they said

Well, I went out, and I jumped in my car, and I hit the lights
I musta done a hundred and ten through Michigan county that night
It was out at the crossroads, yeah, down 'round Willow bank
I seen a Buick with Ohio plates, behind the wheel was Frank

Well, I chased him through those county roads
Till a sign said "Canadian border five miles from here"
I pulled over the side of the highway and watched his taillights disappear

Yeah, me and Franky laughin' and drinkin', nothin' feels better than blood on blood
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood"
I catch him when he's strayin', like any brother would
Man turns his back on his family, he just ain't no good

Help me!

Yeah, me and Franky laughin' and drinkin', nothin' feels better than blood on blood
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood," I
Catch him when he's strayin', like any brother would
Man turns his back on his family, he just ain't no good

Thank you!

Bruce Springsteen is a rock ‘n’ roll icon from the great state of New Jersey. Nicknamed “The Boss,” he’s known for spirited sax-powered anthems about working-class people making their way in the world. Backed by the trusty E Street Band, he’s sold more than 120 million records, won numerous awards (including 20 Grammys and an Oscar), sold out stadiums around the globe, and earned a place alongside his teenage heroes in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Although he’s a living legend who ranks among the most important artists in rock history, Springsteen wasn’t an overnight success. Around the time of his first album, 1973’s Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., he was dismissed as just another “new Dylan"—some scruffy folk singer with a decent vocabulary looking to follow in Bob’s footsteps. In the decade that followed, Springsteen proved himself to be much more.

His breakthrough came with his third album, 1975’s Born to Run. The record hit No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and landed the singer-songwriter on the cover of both Time and Newsweek. Bruce nabbed his first chart-topping album five years later with The River, and in 1984, he went global with Born in the U.S.A., a critical and commercial smash that produced seven Top 10 singles.

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