Search by Title

A	B	C	D	E	F	G
H	I	J	K	L	M	N
O	P	Q	R	S	T	U
V	W	X	Y	Z	#

Browse Categories Random Songfact Random Category Add to Songfacts Take the Quiz SongFAQ Get the Newsletter E-Mail Us Message Boards Full Interviews Lyrical Pursuit Song Fallacies

Songfacts:  You can leave comments about the song at the bottom of the page.

This is one of Springsteen's favorites. He almost always plays it at the impromptu bar gigs he is famous for on the Jersey Shore.

Springsteen: "The first verse actually happened, the second verse mostly happened, the third verse, of course, is happening now."

Originally, this contained a 4th verse which mentioned Springsteen's father working on the Ford assembly line.

In concert, Springsteen often extends this to over 10 minutes. Perhaps the most compact version he ever played was at halftime of the 2009 Super Bowl, when he squeezed 4 songs into a 12 minute set.

This was one of 7 US top 10 hits on Born In The U.S.A. The band first recorded it in 1982, but it was not released until the album came out.

Springsteen performed this June 25, 1993 on the last David Letterman Show on NBC. Letterman is a huge fan but had never had Springsteen on. Bruce did go on the show a few more times after it moved to CBS.

On the day Springsteen released his album The Rising, he played a concert on The Today Show. This was the only song he played that was not on the new album.

Comments:

My favorite memory of this involves an alleged "Lite Rock" station I used to listen to. 6:30, 7:30 in the morning I would turn it on and more often than not old Bruce would be shouting at the top of his lungs.
- Ekristheh, Halath, United States

Bruce Springsteen & Robert Palmer sound almost identical in their tenor voices. Compare, for instnace, this one w/ "Addicted to Love". Don't they sound like the same voice to y'all? I think that Palmer & Springsteen ought to buddy up w/ Bob Seger. That would rock!
- Andy, B'ham, AL

Right Steve from Fenton. It's fastball, nobody calls it a speedball plus no offense Bruce but in the video you throw like a girl. Though,still I love Bruce and this song.
- Mike, Long Island, NY

The last verse tells the story. He's warning people against being stuck in the past obsessing over their better, younger days. It could be compared positively with Randy Newman's "I'm Dead."
- Jason, Tampa, FL

Loved the video! "Who did you pitch against?" "At San Diego today" "Did you win?" "Nettles got me, bottom of the 9th!"
- Michael, San Diego, CA

The book of the same name, Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s was published in 1987. 5 Versions of this book were published! The TRUE First Edition, published by Pantheon Books of New York is available at Allagash Books! A true collectors item for fans of the Boss! Allagash Books: http://ebay.stores.com/Allagash-Books Item number: 160168543191
- walt, Hartford, CT

Bruce actually is a HUGE ball fan. He played an elite level of ball in his youth, during his 1984 shows on the Born In the Usa tour, Bruce would often tell a story about playing ball during this song. The speed ball is just another way of saying fast ball.
- Kyle, Belleville, Canada

I like a lot of Bruce's songs, but I can tell he doesn't know much about baseball. It's a fastball, Bruce, not a speedball.
- Steve, Fenton, MO

Ever notice that every time Bruce Springsteen talks to someone they "have a few drinks?" Even if they're just LEAVING the bar, he'll push them back in for a few more.
- Rob, Evergreen Park, IL

This song rocks. Todd, I have yet to go through High School, but I believe this isn't about losers. Just people thinking about better times, their glory days. They aren't necissarily losers, in the music video Springsteen is with a kid.
- Johnny, Los Angeles, CA

Love this song because like so many of Springsteen's tunes, he so eloquently writes about things you can identify with. Maybe you weren't "it" in high school, but everybody had their "glory days." And nobody thinks those days are nearly as interesting or cool as you remember them being. My dad had this album on cassette tape when I was growing up & we all listened to it so much we wore it out. We went to his concert in 1999 & in 2002--hands down the best live act I've ever seen.
- Ann, Fairway, KS

The baseball scenes from the video were shot at Miller Stadium in West New York, NJ. (I grew up about a block and a half away). It is as run down as it looks in the video.
- Joey, New York

First of all, I love this song. However, I think Bruce is such a lyrical genius that people get lost in his rhetoric by his music. I have concluded that this song is about losers in life. I mean, think about it. The first person he meets up with is a washed-up high school pitcher that obviously hangs out in bars. I have been in bars MANY times (lol) and I have heard losers talking about how they got burned by their varsity coach and if they didn't, they would be in the majors. Pathetic. Then he goes on to talk about a women that turned all the heads in high school. To me, that means that her best days are past her. She is divorced with kids and "Bobby" is no where in the picture. I'm not saying that being divorced makes you a loser, but obviously high school were the "glory days" for this road-weary woman. Finally, he goes on to talk about how is going to the local bar to get blasted, just so he can recapture a little of the glory. These people are losers. I guess if you actually just examine the title "Glory Days", you can get the idea that this period of the best times of someone's life was high school. For some, it was high school, but the only ones that I have seen that loved high school so much have ended up as losers. I hated high school and life was much better after it. I hope I haven't offended anyone.
- Todd, Sacramento, CA

Spent three weeks of the summer of '85 at the Jersey Shore. Dad took me up to see the Yankees play one night. Just me and my friends running around, having fun, being goofy before we all grew up and grew apart. You couldn't walk to the ice cream shop without hearing this song blaring off someone's radio or tape deck. The man, the place, and the song seemed perfect for each other. After that lovely vacation, Dad lost his job, Mom went to work, I hit puberty, and nothing's ever been the same.
- Michael, Cincinnati, OH

The video of the Today show is good, if you can find it download it.
- Kyle, Belleville, Canada

Featured in the series finale of the Michael J. Fox sit-com " Spin City". Fox is a huge Springsteen fan and jammed with him at a benefit for Parkinson's disease.
- Tyler, Hamilton, Canada

Glory Days video was shot at a bar known as Maxwell's on Washington Street in Hoboken, New Jersey.
- Will, chicago, IL