Today’s classic song of the day was never released as a single (at least in the U.S.) but every serious music lover of the ’70s knows it. The song is “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)” and it was a highlight of Bruce Springsteen’s 1973 album, The Wild, the Innocent & the E-Street Shuffle.
That album, Springsteen’s second, is my second favorite Springsteen album, after the immortal Born to Run. In addition to “Rosalita,” the album included such highlights as “4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy),” “Incident on 57th Street,” and one of my favorite tracks ever, the moving “New York City Serenade.” “Rosalita” was the second of three tracks on side two of the LP.
“Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)” tells the story of the protagonist, a singer in a rock and roll band, and Rosalita, whose parents disapprove of her choice in boyfriends. It’s right here in the lyrics:
Now, I know your mama, she don’t like me, ’cause I play in a rock and roll band
And I know your daddy, he don’t dig me, but he never did understand
Your papa lowered the boom, he locked you in your room, I’m comin’ to lend a hand
I’m comin’ to liberate you, confiscate you, I want to be your man
Someday we’ll look back on this and it will all seem funny
But now you’re sad, your mama’s mad
And your papa says he knows that I don’t have any money
Oh, your papa says he knows that I don’t have any money
Oh, so your daddy says he knows that I don’t have any money
Well, tell him this is his last chance to get his daughter in a fine romance
Because a record company, Rosie, just gave me a big advance
This is Springsteen in his late pseudo-Dylan period, with lots and lots of lyrics painting detailed pictures of various characters in various situations. Witness the third verse of the song:
Jack the Rabbit and Weak Knee Willie, don’t you know they’re gonna be there
Ah Sloppy Sue and Big Bone Billy, they’ll be coming up for air
We’re gonna play some pool, skip some school
Act real cool, stay out all night, it’s gonna feel alright
So Rosie, come out tonight, little baby, come out tonight
Windows are for cheaters, chimneys for the poor
Oh, closets are for hangers, winners use the door
So use it, Rosie, that’s what it’s there for
“Rosalita” was a sure-fire crowd pleaser in concert and a staple of his performances for decades. He told many an audience that he considered it the best love song he ever wrote. It’s also a fierce cry of independence—or, in his own words, the song is a “kiss-off to everybody who counted you out, put you down, or decided you weren’t good enough.”
That it is.
The E Street band on this album wasn’t quite the crew we all got to know and love throughout the years. Clarence Clemons was there on sax, of course, as were Danny Federici on organ and accordion, and Garry Tallent on bass. But the piano player was David Sancious, not Roy Bittan, and that was “Mad Dog” Vini Lopez on drums instead of the better-known Max Weinberg. Little Steven Van Zandt was nowhere to be found.
All that said, “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)” is a joyous, raucous celebration of rock and roll and young love. The track got renewed attention in 1984 when MTV put a concert performance video of the song into heavy rotation. The video was shot on July 8, 1978, at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona. The video does a good job of expressing the joy behind the song and behind Bruce’s performance. It’s today’s daily bonus video of the day, and it makes me smile.
