Album: American Babylon (1995)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This was one of two songs (the other is "Dark and Bloody Ground") Bruce Springsteen co-wrote for the American Babylon album, which he also produced. While working on the album, The Boss encouraged Grushecky to put more effort into his songwriting. "So I went home and I was on a mission to write some good songs," he explained in our interview. "I had this lyric for something about Homestead, which is like the quintessential steel mill town here in Pittsburgh. I knew a lot of guys that worked there personally, and our families worked there. So I had to come up with a really good lyric."
  • Springsteen and Grushecky first met in 1980 through Steven Van Zandt, Springsteen's E Street Band guitarist who also produced Have a Good Time but Get out Alive! for Grushecky's Iron City Houserockers band that same year. The two have been friends ever since.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Little Richard

Little RichardFact or Fiction

Was Long Tall Sally a cross-dresser? Did he really set his piano on fire? See if you know the real stories about one of rock's greatest innovators.

Peter Lord

Peter LordSongwriter Interviews

You may not recognize his name, but you will certainly recognize Peter Lord's songs. He wrote the bevy of hits from Paula Abdul's second album, Spellbound.

Linda Perry

Linda PerrySongwriter Interviews

Songwriting Hall of Famer Linda Perry talks about her songs "What's Up" and "Beautiful," her songwriting process, and her move into film music.

Did They Really Sing In That Movie?

Did They Really Sing In That Movie?Fact or Fiction

Bradley Cooper, Michael J. Fox, Rami Malek, Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow and George Clooney: Which actors really sang in their movies?

Don Brewer of Grand Funk

Don Brewer of Grand FunkSongwriter Interviews

The drummer and one of the primary songwriters in Grand Funk talks rock stardom and Todd Rundgren.

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.