The Ghost of Tom Joad by Bruce Springsteen
The Ghost of Tom Joad by Bruce Springsteen

The Ghost of Tom Joad

Bruce Springsteen * Track #1 On The Ghost of Tom Joad

Download "The Ghost of Tom Joad"

The Ghost of Tom Joad by Bruce Springsteen

Release Date
Tue Nov 21 1995
Performed by
Bruce Springsteen
Produced by
Bruce Springsteen & Chuck Plotkin
About

Originally written as the title track of Springsteen’s 1995 solo album, this song deals with the complications of American capitalism. The song uses the character of Tom Joad from John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath to symbolize those who embody America’s idealized self-reliance, yet still fall p...

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The Ghost of Tom Joad Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Men walking along the railroad tracks
Going someplace and there's no going back
Highway patrol choppers coming up over the ridge
Hot soup on a campfire under the bridge

[Verse 2]
Shelter line stretching around the corner
Welcome to the new world order
Families sleeping in the cars in the southwest
No home, no job, no peace, no rest

[Chorus 1]
Well, the highway is alive tonight
But nobody's kidding nobody about where it goes
I'm sitting down here in the campfire light
Searching for the ghost of Tom Joad

[Verse 3]
He pulls a prayer book out of his sleeping bag
Preacher lights up a butt and he takes a drag
Waiting for when the last shall be first and the first shall be last
In a cardboard box 'neath the underpass

[Verse 4]
Got a one-way ticket to the promised land
You got a hole in your belly and a gun in your hand
Sleeping on a pillow of solid rock
Bathing in the city aqueduct

[Chorus 2]
The highway is alive tonight
Where it's headed, everybody knows
I'm sitting down here in the campfire light
Waiting on the ghost of Tom Joad

[Verse 5]
Now Tom said, "Mom, wherever there's a cop beating a guy
Wherever a hungry newborn baby cries
Where there's a fight against the blood and hatred in the air
Look for me, Mom, I'll be there

[Verse 6]
Wherever somebody's fighting for a place to stand
Or a decent job or a helping hand
Wherever somebody's struggling to be free
Look in their eyes, Ma, and you'll see me"

[Chorus 3]
Well, the highway is alive tonight
But nobody's kidding nobody about where it goes
I'm sitting down here in the campfire light
With the ghost of old Tom Joad

The Ghost of Tom Joad Q&A

Who wrote The Ghost of Tom Joad's ?

The Ghost of Tom Joad was written by Bruce Springsteen.

Who produced The Ghost of Tom Joad's ?

The Ghost of Tom Joad was produced by Bruce Springsteen & Chuck Plotkin.

When did Bruce Springsteen release The Ghost of Tom Joad?

Bruce Springsteen released The Ghost of Tom Joad on Tue Nov 21 1995.

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