Bruce Springsteen

Released: November 11, 2003

Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen

I was out driving
Just a taking it slow
Looked at my tank
It was reading low
Pulled in a Exxon station
Out on Highway One
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun

Some damn fool with a guitar
Walkin' down the street
Ain't got nowhere to go
Ain't got nothing to eat
Man with a cigar says
"Sign here son";
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun

Now it's a sin
And it oughta be a crime
You know it happens buddy
All the time
Try to make a living
Try to have a little fun
Held up without a gun
Held up without a gun

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.

more tracks from the album

The Ties That Bind: The River Collection

From the albums

The Essential Bruce Springsteen (2003)
The Ties That Bind: The River Collection (2015)

Bruce Springsteen popular songs

Held Up Without a GunBruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen

The Ties That Bind: The River Collection