Prompted by the fact that Bruce Springsteen is having perhaps the roughest week of his public life. First he filmed a commercial for the first time — for Jeep, of all corporation-people — that was panned by people across the political spectrum. That dust hadn’t settled when news of a DUI arrest last November hit the news, making the Boss look more like Boss Hogg than the champion of the downtrodden he spent 35 years portraying.
It turns out the arrest might be nothing but — pardon the expression — trumped-up bullshit. Word reached the press (with the help of Springsteen’s management, undoubtedly) that Springsteen was nailed for taking a shot of tequila from a fan who spotted him in a park parking lot. Unfortunately, they were also spotted by a cop, who understandably arrested a driver he just saw downing a shot. Apparently that was the only alcohol in his system — the source says Bruce blew a 0.02 on the booze-o-meter.
The official release of “I’m Goin’ Down” came with “Born in the USA” in 1984. But an earlier version, with a few different lyrics, was recorded in May 1983 at the Record Plant in New York for an album tentatively titled “Murder Incorporated.” It’s never been officially released, but Springsteen is among the most bootlegged musicians in history. The raw mix makes the backing instruments more prominent, and the spirited coda more than makes up for the lack of studio gloss.
The finished version, from “BitUSA.” As a single, it reached No. 9 in 1985.
