IV. FINALE: JERSEY SHORE
Well, we’re on the outside looking in
We wait on getting paid our wages of sin
We roll and we ramble, we lose when we gamble
But we weren’t born to lose, baby, we were born to win
We may be losers and gamblers but we’re tougher than the rest
We may be tramps and vamps but we’re up there with the best
We were born to rock, and we’re born to run
You were born to be my baby, so let’s ride into the sun
But there’s something in the night, a spirit in the night
There’s black magic in the night, that keeps us running from the light
The heat of the night, the heartbeat of the night
Will keep us in the night, and we’ll never see the light
Well, there’s a darkness deep inside tonight
There’s a hunger on the edge of town
We’re gonna take that long, long ride tonight
We’re gonna shake ‘em up and then shut ‘em down
We’ll walk these empty streets tonight
Drive down that lonesome highway all alone
We’ll rise above our defeat tonight
We’ll leave our transgressions unatoned
‘Cause there’s something in the night, a spirit in the night
Some kind of magic in the night, all through the night
And in the heat of the night, the heartbeat of the night
We’re gonna prove it all night, but we’ll never see the light
On the boulevard of shattered dreams and broken promises
The off-duty cops pull out all the stops and scatter the contacts being made
Faithless lovers light the spark, dance in the dark, and remain anonymous
Cut their ties that bind and put their commitments up for trade
Down by the river stands the old factory, long since shut down
31,000o ghosts haunt their abandoned posts, no work, no working, no more working life
A madman’s obsession with the death and depression brought to the old hometown
All sung by a wannabe gypsy troubadour without a day of work in his life
Well I’m on fire, my heart’s on fire, my soul’s on fire tonight
Well I set the fire, set my soul on fire, my heart breathes fire tonight
Well can you feel the fire, can you breathe the fire, can you carry the fire, into the night
Outside the street’s on fire, there’s machines and there’s fire, the angels’ hearts are on fire, through the night
 
CODA
Rock the drums, rock the vocals, rock the bass and guitars
Rock the three-part operas about pixies from Mars
Rock the sun, rock the planets, rock the moon and the stars
Rock the towns, rock the cities, rock the beaches and bars
Rock the counties and states, rock the countries and nations
Rock the schools and the colleges. Rock all education
Rock the temples and churches, rock all faiths and persuasions
Rock the sound of our youth, all over creation
Rock the records and tapes, rock the discs, files, and streamers
Rock the Lincolns and Cadillacs, rock the Benzes and Beamers
Rock the suits and the bigwigs, rock the shysters and schemers
Rock the poets and prophets, rock the seers and the dreamers
Rock the legacy artists, rock the latest sensations
Rock the TV channels, rock the radio stations
Rock the DJs and programmers, rock the heavy rotation
Rock the only sound that matters, all over creation
©2024 The Hesh Inc.
The whole rock'n'roll cliché suite reaches its climax here in the fourth movement and its coda. The first movement was a big bombastic rock anthem, the second slowed down to an equally bombastic power ballad, the third briefly veered into the blues, and now the fourth is the big finish. Picture a show-of-shows at one of the classic Asbury Park venues, featuring all the biggest names and backed by a 16-piece rock'n'roll/r&b big band, with this tune being the grand finale (before the obligatory half dozen encores, itself a cliché). The lyrics are a pastiche of tropes glommed from all over the Jersey Shore rock'n'roll subgenre—of which I have been both fan and proponent since I was 12 years old in the summer of 1978. Whether you're a genuine acolyte who's still hanging on to every word or note played in this vaunted style, or if you're among the former devotees who have just seen and heard it all—this is for you in equal measure ("always leave 'em wanting more!") ... and the coda brings it all back home, in the name of rock'n'roll.