One week after the album release, the track “Jersey Girl” has had the most streams so I thought I'd talk a little about this song.

I first heard “Jersey Girl” sung by Bruce Springsteen when I bought the “LIVE 1975-1985” box set which was the very last song on the set. Bruce never released this on an album nor did he ever record a studio version of this song (he only sang it at live shows in New Jersey and occasionally in Philadelphia in the 80's and early 90's). This live recording was also the B-side of the single “Cover Me”.

Funny thing is that Springsteen DID NOT write this song. It was actually written by Tom Waits for his 1980 album “Heartattack and Vine”. Bruce took this and changed a few words around and also added a verse to it. My recording on “Non Noto” mirrors more of Springsteen's version than Tom Waits.

I always wanted to sing this song live, however living in Texas and in Minnesota this song was not widely known and wouldn't exactly be a fit for any cover band outside of the New Jersey area. So it seemed to fit the theme of this album as most people in the country are not familiar with it.

The instrumentation for my version was completely done with a midi-keyboard (including percussion, bass and guitar parts) along with Roland Digital Saxophone. There is also 3-part backing harmony vocals to help give that “sea shore” feel as the song builds.  Clocking in at over 6 minutes long, it is also the longest track on the album.

https://joevitullo.com/track/3588315/jersey-girl

(click on any of the social media links on this page to listen to the full song)