Billy got married, 22 years old
Couldn’t bring home bread so now he’s out on the road
He’s the Outsider
Billy went crazy caught the rhythm’n’blues
Left his wife and his family to run after his muse
He’s the Outsider
Billy grew up on the fringes of school
Found out his own way what it means to be cool
He’s the Outsider
Socially speaking he was skewered and speared
By girls with snotty attitudes always saying You’re weeeird!
He’s the Outsider
The cowboy in Massachusetts plates
Like some Boss fan in from way out of state
He’s the Outsider
What’s he doing here in this hole in the ground
Wandering alone through all these dinky little towns
He’s the Outsider
What’s he writing songs about and taking pictures of
Alienating just about everyone he loves
He’s the Outsider
What’s he gonna do with this consuming obsession
He’s gonna turn it all into a big-time profession
He’s the Outsider
His wife couldn’t live his life
So she left and took their daughter
Now there’s nothing left for him to do
But to throw himself head first
Into the water
Head first in the ocean of making it all real
Immersed in the devotion my fate is finally sealed
Drive over the past crush it under my wheels
Dance all over my history I’m kicking up my heels
A power chord meshugena, a screaming banshee
A speedboat full throttle on the wide open sea
Unconfined by the limits I’m finally free
The electric eccentric, hey that’s me
I’m the Outsider
The drive-all-nighter
Well I’m the sky speeder
The Green Onions follow-me-leader
I’m the Outsider
The Guardian Angel of the Angel of Soul
She swore my good fortune ahead in rock’n’roll
She said, You ain’t from these parts but here you are now
You’re artistic, you like to travel, and that’ll all work for you somehow
You ain’t got no money and these times are a test
But I can see into the future and you’re up there with the best
It’s been a bit slow for you till now but I see success
So write your feelings down now, good luck and G-d bless
Well I’m the Outsider
The star cloud rider
I’m a believer
A super high freakquency receiver
I’m the Outsider
Well I’m the Outsider
Second generation survivor
A young punk upstart
But no stranger to these parts
I am the Outsider
Not a Billy or a Bobby
And definitely not a Benny
I am the Outsider.
I’m the Outsider
Making a living out of being myself
I’m the Outsider
Ain’t sellin’ myself out for no one else
I’m the Outsider
Just a raisin dryin’ out in the Shore summer sun
I’m the Outsider
Music madman and barfly beach bum
I’m the Outsider
Simple, sentimental, and sure to be a star
I’m the Outsider
Playing my emotional strings like some walking guitar
I’m the Outsider
I won’t believe what any damn fool will say
I fell for it once but no longer the sucker I’ll play
I’m the Outsider
I ain’t this way ‘cause I’m into this thing
I’m into this thing ‘cause I AM THIS WAY!
Hey hey hey hey!
© 2024 The Hesh Inc.
I first became familiar with the term "BENNY," meaning someone who was not from the Jersey Shore hanging out at the Jersey Shore during the summer, when reading an article about the Shore's bar scene in the summer of 1983. I was not yet old enough to hang out at the bars but I was dying to become part of the local scene, preferably as a musician playing the clubs. That didn't happen for another ~8 years; in the interim. I had gone back to Israel and fantasized about the day when I would finish my army service, go back to the Shore, and begin playing music there.
Unfortunately I had a lot of ideas and expectations that did not jibe with the reality of the place. The 'old guard' of the Asbury Park rock scene, those who were part of the Springsteen/Southside generation and peer group, did not take too kindly to some kid coming in from the outside and trying to join their circle, and various members of this circle (who will go unnamed here) made this attitude known to me in all sorts of ways, spoken and unspoken. Here I had been reading about this whole scene, described in the liner notes to Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes' first album, and I was being rejected by it when I encountered it in person. It was a huge dose of disillusion. Fortunately, I had misunderstood the term "BENNY." I may have been an outsider to the old-school music scene, but I was not one of the obnoxious visitors from out of town who trashed the Shore while acting as if they owned it every summer. [Whew!] In fairly short order, I did establish myself in the local music scene, attending open mics and jams, forming bands, and hustling for gigs. But to the next generation, which by and large did not want to be associated with the old guard, I was still an outsider, because I did like the music associated with the old guard and I was not afraid to wear its influence on my sleeve. (Damned if you do ... )
Musically, the song, with its epic length, combines influences absorbed from neither the old guard nor the new scene. The first nine stanzas follow a reggae groove similar to Bob Marley's "Is This Love"; the 10th, 11th, and 12th shift into a more pummeling r&b/rock rhythm recalling Roy Buchanan's version of "Green Onions"; the last two go back to Marley again, ending with a Buchanan-esque fadeout. It was supposed to be part of a subsequent album that is part of my Soul In Exile opus, and may yet be, albeit in somewhat edited form.