Released: October 9, 1987
Songwriter: Bruce Springsteen
Producer: Chuck Plotkin Bruce Springsteen Jon Landau
[Verse]
Bill Horton was a cautious man of the road
He walked lookin' over his shoulder and remained faithful to its code
When something caught his eye, he'd measure his need
And then very carefully he'd proceed
Billy met a young girl in the early days of May
It was there in her arms, he let his cautiousness slip away
In their lovers' twilight as the evening sky grew dim
He'd lay back in her arms and laugh at what had happened to him
On his right hand, Billy'd tattooed the word "love" and on his left hand was the word "fear"
And in which hand he held his fate was never clear
Come Indian summer, he took his young lover for his bride
And with his own hands built her a great house down by the riverside
Now Billy was an honest man, he wanted to do what was right
He worked hard to fill their lives with happy days and loving night
Alone on his knees in the darkness for steadiness he'd pray
For he knew in a restless heart the seed of betrayal lay
One night Billy awoke from a terrible dream callin' his wife's name
She lay breathing beside him in a peaceful sleep a thousand miles away
He got dressed in the moonlight and down to the highway he strode
When he got there, he didn't find nothing but road
Billy felt a coldness rise up inside him that he couldn't name
Just as the words tattooed 'cross his knuckles he knew would always remain
At their bedside, he brushed the hair from his wife's face as the moon shone on her skin so white
Filling their room in the beauty of God's fallen light
Bill Horton was a cautious man of the road
He walked lookin' over his shoulder and remained faithful to its code
When something caught his eye, he'd measure his need
And then very carefully he'd proceed
Billy met a young girl in the early days of May
It was there in her arms, he let his cautiousness slip away
In their lovers' twilight as the evening sky grew dim
He'd lay back in her arms and laugh at what had happened to him
On his right hand, Billy'd tattooed the word "love" and on his left hand was the word "fear"
And in which hand he held his fate was never clear
Come Indian summer, he took his young lover for his bride
And with his own hands built her a great house down by the riverside
Now Billy was an honest man, he wanted to do what was right
He worked hard to fill their lives with happy days and loving night
Alone on his knees in the darkness for steadiness he'd pray
For he knew in a restless heart the seed of betrayal lay
One night Billy awoke from a terrible dream callin' his wife's name
She lay breathing beside him in a peaceful sleep a thousand miles away
He got dressed in the moonlight and down to the highway he strode
When he got there, he didn't find nothing but road
Billy felt a coldness rise up inside him that he couldn't name
Just as the words tattooed 'cross his knuckles he knew would always remain
At their bedside, he brushed the hair from his wife's face as the moon shone on her skin so white
Filling their room in the beauty of God's fallen light
more tracks from the album
From the album
- Tunnel of Love (1987)
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