1973 was a looong time ago.

Springsteen signed a solo record deal with Columbia Records in 1972 with the help of John Hammond, who had signed Bob Dylan to the same record label a decade earlier.

(and Leonard Cohen I might add).

Springsteen brought many of his New Jersey-based musician friends, including guitarist Steven Van Zandt, into the studio with him, many of them forming the E Street Band. His debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., from January 1973,

(January 5, 1973)

established him as a critical favorite, though sales were slow. Because of his lyrics-heavy, folk rock-rooted music on tracks such as "Blinded by the Light" and "For You" and the Columbia and Hammond connections, critics frequently compared Springsteen to Bob Dylan in the early days of his recording career. "He sings with a freshness and urgency I haven't heard since I was rocked by 'Like a Rolling Stone'," wrote Peter Knobler in Crawdaddy,

(I used to get Crawdaddy - I forgot it existed. Ha)

Here are two versions of Blinded by the Light.

Personally, I like Manfred Mann’s better (probably because it got more radio play when it was out). The lyrics seem like they were written by someone high in the 70's. I remember bits and pieces of the lyrics when I hear the song and have no clue what they mean. Ha. They follow the videos.

Blinded by the Light

[Chorus]: Blinded by the light
revved up like a deuce
Another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
revved up like a deuce
Another runner in the night
Blinded by the light
revved up like a deuce
Another runner in the night (fading)

Madman dummers bummers,
Indians in the summer,
With a teenager diplomat
And the dumps with the mumps
As the adolescent pumps his way into his hat

With a boulder my shoulder,
feeling kinda older,
I tripped the merry-go-round
With this very unpleasin', sneezin' and wheezin,
the calliope crashed to the ground
(pickup)
the calliope crashed to the ground

(chorus)

Some silicon sister with a manager mister
told me I go what it takes.
I'll run you on sonny to something strong
play the song with the funky break

And go-cart Mozart was checkin' out the
weather charts see if it was safe outside
And little Early Burly came by in his curly wurly
and asked me if i needed a ride
(pickup)
asked me if i needed a ride


(chorus)

Bridge: She got down but she never got tired
She's gonna make it to the night
She's gonna make it through the night


(break with soul-stirring solo)

Oh momma that's where the fun is
But momma that's where the fun is
Momma always told me not to look
in the eye's on the sun
But momma that's where the fun is

(chop sticks variation)

So brimstone-baritone, anti-cyclone Rolling Stone
Preacher from the East,
says dethrone the dictaphone, hit it in it's funny bone
thats what they expect at least

It's a new grown chaperon standing in the corner
watching the young girls dance
and some fresh sown moonstone messing with his frozen zone,
only reminding him of romance
(pickup)
and the calliope crashed to the ground

(Chorus)

(Chorus and First Verse)

Now Scott with the sling-shot finally found a tender spot
and throws his lover in the sand
and some blood-shot forget-me-not
said Daddy's within earshot, save the buck-shot, turn up the band

(repeat Verse 2 "Silicon sister with a manager....")
(bridge)