Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen reflects his attempts to break free from the constraints of his hometown in New Jersey. Its also celebrated as an energetic burst, with lyrics about freedom and the search for lifes meaning through the ambition to escape a small town. The song was a turning point in Springsteens career, solidifying his reputation as a musician who could encapsulate the American experience.
Key: E
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B
In the day we sweat it out on the streets of a runaway American dream
E
A
B
At night we ride through mansions of glory in suicide machines
A
E/G#
F#m
Sprung from cages on highway 9, chrome-wheeled, fuel-injected
E/G#
E
D/E
and steppin' out over the line, whoah!
A
E/G#
Baby this town rips the bones from your back
F#m
E/G#
E
C#m
It's a death trap, it's a suicide rap, we gotta get out while we're young
A
B
E
'Cause tramps like us, baby we were born to run
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B
Wendy let me in, I wanna be your friend, I want to guard your dreams and visions
E
A
B
Just wrap your legs 'round these velvet rims, and strap your hands across my engines
A
E/G#
F#m
E/G#
E
D/E
Together we could break this trap, we'll run till we drop, baby we'll never go back, whoah!
A
E/G#
F#m
E/G#
Will you walk with me out on the wire? 'Cause baby I'm just a scared and lonely rider
E
C#m
But I gotta find out how it feels
A
B
E
I want to know if love is wild, babe, I want to know if love is real
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B7(4)
B
E
A
B
E
A
B
C#m
B
E
Bm7
D4
D
D4
D
G4
G
G4
G
Beyond the Palace hemi-powered drones scream down the boulevard
A4
A
A4
A
C4
C
C4
C
Girls comb their hair in rearview mirrors, and the boys try to look so hard
D4
D
D4
D
G4
G
G4
G
The amusement park rises bold and stark, kids are huddled on the beach in a mist
A4
A
A4
A
C4
C
C4
C
I wanna die with you Wendy on the streets tonight in an ever - lasting kiss
F4
F
F4
F
C
F4
F
F#4
F#
(B) *walk down from B on 4th string to B on 5th* e ----------------------------------
B
one two three four
E
A
B7(4)
B
The highway's jammed with broken heroes on a last chance power drive
E
A
B7(4)
B
Everybody's out on the run tonight but there's no place left to hide
A
E/G#
Together Wendy we can live with the sadness
F#m
E/G#
E
D/E
I'll love you with all the madness in my soul, whoah!
A
E/G#
F#m
Someday girl, I don't know when, we're gonna get to that place
E/G#
E
C#m
Where we really want to go and we'll walk in the sun
A
B
E
C#m
But till then, tramps like us, baby we were born to run
A
B
E
C#m
Ah honey, tramps like us, baby we were born to run
A
B
E
Come on Wendy, tramps like us, baby we were born to run