Released: November 10, 1998

Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen

Producer: Bruce Springsteen Jon Landau Little Steven

[Verse]
Last night, I dreamed we was running through the outlands
Tears streaming, your pretty face all a wreck
(I held your daddy's gun in my tremblin' hands)
And down the highway, another stranger comes
You gotta take 'em, baby, when they come

[Verse]
Little girl, put on your best dress
'Cause we're goin' out on the town tonight
(Better bring along a switchblade)
'Cause, for sure, some fool's gonna wanna fight
You gotta take 'em, baby, as they come

[Chorus]
You gotta take 'em
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em, baby, as they come

[Verse]
God save the rider in the black night
Save the man who taught that it was right
(To do what they have done, girl)
To become what we have become
You gotta take 'em, baby, when they come

[Verse]
Little girl, gone are the days
Faded away into a clear blue night
(And all the vows that we made)
Lie shattered and broken in the morning light
You gotta take 'em, baby, when they come

[Chorus]
You gotta take 'em
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em, baby, as they come

[Bridge]
I know your heart is breakin'
I can feel it too, girl
Though my finger on the trigger's shakin'
Here I swear to you, girl

[Verse]
If I could take all your sorrow
So that you'd never cry, girl, or be blue
(Come tomorrow)
That's what I'd do for you, little one
I swear I'll take 'em, baby, when they come

[Chorus]
Take 'em
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em, baby, as they come

[Outro]
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em as they come, girl
Take 'em, baby, as they come
Take 'em, baby, as they come
Take 'em, baby, as they come
Take 'em, baby, as they come

Bruce Springsteen

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.