i’m on fire.
Monday, January 7th, 2008
bruce springsteen’s *i’m on fire* is a song that i remember hearing at such an early age. the still tone of his voice along with the vulnerability of an acoustic guitar easily brought me into my own dark place. many times, i imagined myself singing this as a woman conveying different emotions. visually inside a dimly lit bar, over glasses of shiraz and stale cigarettes, it reminded me of the intensity of being confident and rejected within loving someone who couldn’t love back. now at times, i see it as a childhood story of being sexually violated over and over again. however, no matter how the song related to any secret underlining representations, it meant something poignant and powerful when it was originally written and to me, always seemed to feel somewhat comforting.
did he go away and leave you all alone
i got a bad desire, i’m on fire
tell me now baby, is he good to you
can he do to you the things that i do
i can take you higher, i’m on fire
sometimes, it’s like someone took a knife baby
edgy and dull and cut a six-inch valley
through the middle of my soul
at night, i wake up with the sheets soaking wet
and a freight train running through the
middle of my head
only you can cool my desire
i’m on fire
original
bruce springsteen [born in the usa, 1985]
covers
chromatics [in the city, 2007]
bat for lashes [fur and gold, 2007]
johnny cash [badlands: a tribute to bruce springsteen, 2000]
electrelane [singles, b-sides and live, 2006]
tori amos [vh1 crossroads, 1996]
big country [eclectic, 1996]
artwork by
colette calascione, ken dougherty
sylvia ji and joshua petker
