Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. DXXI--Bruce Springsteen: Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Good thing my New Year's Resolution wasn't to get my music posts done on time, lest I'd have already blown it for the year....

This will mark only the fourth time (Vol. LXXV, Vol. LXXIX, and Vol. CDLXXII--which doesn't include the six other times I wrote about a song he penned performed by another artist, a member of his band, or a collaboration) I've written a Friday Night Jukebox post about Bruce Springsteen, and as I noted in my last one, fate willing there will be plenty more.  I've never written a synopsis about Springsteen, and I won't here--too long and varied of a career.  I will note that he did release his last album (Only the Strong Survive) in 2022, and that he is currently on a tour that has ran since 2023.  No rest for The Boss.

"Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)" was the second song on the second side of Springsteen's 1973 album, the Oxford Comma missing The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle.  The song was not released as a single, and the album would eventually peak at #59 on the Billboard 200. {Blogger's Aside:  This week's album has received excellent reviews, including one which called it an "overlooked masterpiece," but it's my least favorite Springsteen album of the eighteen (of twenty-one) I've heard.  With the exception of "Rosalita," the rest of the songs were too close to jazz for me.]

Fun Fact:  Though it wasn't released as a single, "Rosalita" has been certified as gold (500,000 sales) thanks to streaming services, which if memory serves, is a first for FNJ.

If ever there was a song that showcased what Springsteen's music would become, it's "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)."  Rather than the character studies/life in the city tales he'd told before, "Rosalita" has an electric vibrance and introduces us to the working-class heroes whose tales would go on to make Springsteen a superstar.  With bouncing guitars, a whirling saxophone, a soaring organ, playful backing vocals, and Springsteen's most desirous vocals this one captures all of the glory of young love and playing in a band.  And the lyrics?  Stellar throughout, with a surprise ending that's perfect.  "Rosalita" is American rock and roll at its absolute finest, and one hell of an introduction for Friday Night Jukebox in the year 2025.

Lyric Sheet:  "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..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump

Peace,

emaycee