Released: November 21, 1995
Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen
Producer: Chuck Plotkin Bruce Springsteen
[Verse 1]
Miguel came from a small town in northern Mexico
He came north with his brother Luis to California three years ago
They crossed at the river levee when Luis was just sixteen
And found work together in the fields of the San Joaquin
[Verse 2]
They left their homes and family, their father said, "My sons, one thing you will learn
For everything the north gives, it exacts a price in return"
They worked side by side in the orchards from morning until the day was through
Doing the work the gueros wouldn't do
[Verse 3]
Word was out some men in from Sinaloa were looking for some hands
Well, deep in Fresno county, there was a deserted chicken ranch
There in a small tin shack on the edge of a ravine
Miguel and Luis stood cooking methamphetamine
[Bridge]
You could spend a year in the orchards
Or make half as much in one ten-hour shift
Working for the men from Sinaloa
Ah, but if you slipped
The hydriodic acid
Could burn right through your skin
They'd leave you spitting up blood in the desert
If you breathed those fumes in
[Verse 4]
It was early one winter evening as Miguel stood watch outside
When the shack exploded, lighting up the valley night
Miguel carried Luis's body over his shoulder down a swale to the creek side
And there in the tall grass, Luis Rosales died
[Verse 5]
Miguel lifted Luis' body into his truck and then he drove
To where the morning sunlight fell on a eucalyptus grove
In the dirt, he dug up ten thousand dollars, all that they'd saved
Kissed his brother's lips and placed him in his grave
Miguel came from a small town in northern Mexico
He came north with his brother Luis to California three years ago
They crossed at the river levee when Luis was just sixteen
And found work together in the fields of the San Joaquin
[Verse 2]
They left their homes and family, their father said, "My sons, one thing you will learn
For everything the north gives, it exacts a price in return"
They worked side by side in the orchards from morning until the day was through
Doing the work the gueros wouldn't do
[Verse 3]
Word was out some men in from Sinaloa were looking for some hands
Well, deep in Fresno county, there was a deserted chicken ranch
There in a small tin shack on the edge of a ravine
Miguel and Luis stood cooking methamphetamine
[Bridge]
You could spend a year in the orchards
Or make half as much in one ten-hour shift
Working for the men from Sinaloa
Ah, but if you slipped
The hydriodic acid
Could burn right through your skin
They'd leave you spitting up blood in the desert
If you breathed those fumes in
[Verse 4]
It was early one winter evening as Miguel stood watch outside
When the shack exploded, lighting up the valley night
Miguel carried Luis's body over his shoulder down a swale to the creek side
And there in the tall grass, Luis Rosales died
[Verse 5]
Miguel lifted Luis' body into his truck and then he drove
To where the morning sunlight fell on a eucalyptus grove
In the dirt, he dug up ten thousand dollars, all that they'd saved
Kissed his brother's lips and placed him in his grave
more tracks from the album
From the album
- The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995)
Bruce Springsteen popular songs
- Born in the U.S.A.
- Born to Run
- Dancing in the Dark
- I’m On Fire
- Thunder Road
- Blinded by the Light
- The River
- Atlantic City
- Hungry Heart
- Jungleland
- Glory Days
- Badlands
- My Hometown
- Streets of Philadelphia
- Backstreets
- The Ghost of Tom Joad
- Tenth Avenue Freeze Out
- Secret Garden
- Racing in the Street
- Nebraska
- I’m Goin’ Down
- Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
- Growin’ Up
- The Rising