Street Hassle by Lou Reed (Ft. Bruce Springsteen)
Street Hassle by Lou Reed (Ft. Bruce Springsteen)

Street Hassle

Lou Reed & Bruce Springsteen * Track #3 On Street Hassle

Download "Street Hassle"

Street Hassle by Lou Reed (Ft. Bruce Springsteen)

Release Date
Wed Feb 01 1978
Performed by
Lou ReedBruce Springsteen
Produced by
Richard Robinson (Producer) & Lou Reed
Writed by
Lou Reed
About

The title song from 1978’s Street Hassle is a three-part description of the nuanced lifestyles found in the backstreets of New York.

The song is included in the soundtrack of the 2005 coming-of-age comedy, The Squid and The Whale.

Street Hassle Lyrics

Part A: Waltzing Matilda

[Verse 1: Lou Reed]
Waltzing Matilda whipped out her wallet
Sexy boys smiled in dismay
She took out four twenties 'cause she liked round figures
Everybody's queen for a day

[Verse 2: Lou Reed]
Oh babe, I'm on fire and you know I admire your body
Why don't we slip away?
Although I'm sure you're certain, it's a rarity me flirtin'
Sha la la la this way
Oh sha la la la la - sha la la la la
Hey baby
Come on, let's slip away

[Verse 3: Lou Reed]
Luscious and gorgeous, oh what a humping muscle
Call out the National Guard
She creamed in her jeans as he picked up her knees
From off of the Formica topped bar

[Verse 4: Lou Reed]
And cascading slowly, he lifted her wholly and boldly
Out of this world
And despite people's derision proved to be more than diversion
And sha la la la la later on

[Verse 5: Lou Reed]
And then sha la la la la la
He entered her slowly and showed her where he was coming from
And then sha la la la la, he made love to her gently
It was like she'd never ever come
And then sha la la la la, sha la la la la
When the sun rose and he made to leave
You know sha la la la la, sha la la la la
Neither one regretted a thing

Part B: Street Hassle

[Intro]
Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm Mmmm
Slip away
Oooh Oooh Oooh Oooh

[Verse 6: Lou Reed]
Hey, that cunt's not breathing
I think she's had too much of something or other
Hey, man, you know what I mean?
I don't mean to scare you
But you're the one who came here
And you're the one who's gotta take her when you leave

[Verse 7: Lou Reed]
I'm not being smart or trying to be cold on my part
And I'm not gonna wear my heart on my sleeve
But you know people get all emotional
And sometimes man they just don't act rationally
Oh, they think they're just on TV

Sha la la la la, man

Why don't you just slip her away

[Verse 8: Lou Reed]
You know, I'm glad that we met man
It was really nice talking
And I really wish that there was a little more time to speak
But you know it could be a hassle
Trying to explain myself to a police officer
About how it was your old lady got herself stiffed

[Verse 9: Lou Reed]
And it's not like we could help
But there was nothing no one could do
And if there was, man, you know I would have been the first
Oh when someone turns that blue
Well, it's a universal truth
Then you just know that bitch will never fuck again

[Verse 10: Lou Reed]
By the way, that's really some bad shit
That you came to our place with
But you ought to be more careful around the little girls
It's either the best or it's the worst
And since I don't have to choose, I guess I won't
And I know this ain't no way to treat a guest
But why don't you grab your old lady by the feet
And just lay her out in the darkest street
And by morning, she's just another hit and run

[Verse 11: Lou Reed]
You know, some people got no choice
And they can never find a voice
To talk with that they can even call their own
So the first thing that they see
That allows them the right to be
Why they follow it
You know, it's called bad luck

Part C: Slipaway

[Verse 12: Bruce Springsteen]
Well hey man, that's just a lie
It's the lie she tells her friends
'Cause a real song
The real song she won't even admit to herself
The beating in her heart
It's a song lots of people know
It's a painful song
With a load of sad truth
But life's full of sad songs
Penny for a wish
But wishin' won't make you so, Joe
But a pretty kiss or a pretty face can't have its way
Joe, tramps like us, we were born to pay

[Verse 13: Lou Reed]
Love has gone away
And there's no one here now
And there's nothing left to say
But oh how I miss him, baby
Oh baby, come on and slip away
Come on baby, why don't you slip away?

[Verse 14: Lou Reed]
Love has gone away
Took the rings off my fingers
And there's nothing left to say
But oh how, oh how I need it, baby
Come on baby, I need you, baby
Oh, please don't slip away
I need your loving so bad, babe
Please don't slip away

Street Hassle Q&A

Who wrote Street Hassle's ?

Street Hassle was written by Lou Reed.

Who produced Street Hassle's ?

Street Hassle was produced by Richard Robinson (Producer) & Lou Reed.

When did Lou Reed release Street Hassle?

Lou Reed released Street Hassle on Wed Feb 01 1978.

What did Lou Reed say about "Street Hassle"?

I wanted to write a song that had a great monologue set to rock. Something that could have been written by William Burroughs, Hubert Selby, John Rechy, Tennessee Williams, Nelson Algren, maybe a little Raymond Chandler. You mix it all up and you have “Street Hassle”

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