New York City Serenade

New York City Serenade is the seventh and last song off The Wild, the Innocent and the E-Street Shuffle, the second album from Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band. It makes less coherent sense than the earlier songs. The first verse concerns "Billy" and "Diamond Jackie," who are "gonna boogaloo down Broadway and come back home with the loot." The second verse is about a "fish lady" who "baits them tenement[?] walls" and "won't take corner boys" because they "ain't got no money." The singer invites her come with him "down Broadway" and "shake away your street life/shake away your city life," and "hook up to the train;" she, however, "won't take the train" because "she's afraid them tracks are gonna slow her down/and when she turns, this boy'll be gone." The third verse is a plea directed towards the "jazz man" who is asked to "play me your serenade" and advised to "save your notes, don't spend 'em on the blues boy/Save your notes, don't spend 'em on the darlin' yearlin' sharp boy."

First Line

"Billy he's down by the railroad tracks"

lyrics (http://www.xs4all.nl/~maroen/engels/lyrics/nycseren.htm)