Bruce Springsteen Name Game Part 4: S-Z

You have all been so patient as I take the time to go through all of these lyrics! Bruce has talked about a multitude of women, but there are many more to come! Just for a recap, after Part 3, here is where the name game stands:

1. Mary – 39. In Part 3, Mary added 33 tallies to her name!
2. Jane/Janie/Janey – 20. There were no mentions for these ladies in Part 3, but they still have enough for second place.
3. Candy – 17. Two early songs may just be enough to get on the medal stand for Candy.
4. Linda – 15. Linda looms large with only one song, but many mentions.
5. Rosalita/Rosie – 13. The R’s have it over the Maria/Mary Lou’s by a slim margin.
6. Maria, Mary Lou – 12
7. Cynthia – 11
8. Kitty – 10
9. Ricky – 9
10. Sandy – 8
11. Martha – 5
12. Dinah – 4
13. Juliet, Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Terry, Polly – 3
14. Wanda, Jackie, Leah, Catherine, Carol – 2
15. Eve, Kate, Cassiopeia, Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Shaniqua, Theresa, Sally – 1

Santa Ana (Tracks) – Sandy – 1 time. Sandy ties Ricky in 9th with 9 mentions.

Shenandoah (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Sally – 1 time. Sally breaks free from the bottom slot and moves up a spot! (Don’t tell her she’s only in 14th, this is a big deal to her).

Sherry Darling (The River) – Sherry – 6 times. Sherry takes the 10 spot previously vacated by Sandy (two seconds ago).

I think Bruce had a drinking problem, singing a song to a wine.

So Young and in Love (Tracks) – Missy – 1 time. This is the first showing for Miss Missy, the tenth name with one tally.

Spanish Eyes (The Promise) – Christine – 1 time. Christine is a first as well. It’s not a name I would picture on a woman with Spanish eyes, but that’s Bruce’s call.

Spare Parts (Tunnel of Love) – Jane/Janey – 6 times. Thanks to the girl who started out ditched by her baby daddy and ended up making some good money, the Jane/Janie/Janey squad has 26, 13 behind Mary.

Spirit in the Night (Greetings from Asbury Park) – Janey – 5 times. Well, whaddya know? Janey is storming the proverbial name game castle, now just 8 behind Mary!

There’s Janey, and Janie, and Jane..Janie’s on the right with Jane and Janey.

Stand on It (Tracks) – Mary Beth – 1 time, Isabella – 1 time. Both first time additions to the list! However, my mind is more preoccupied wondering what will happen with the Mary/Janey totals.

Straight Time (Ghost of Tom Joad) – Mary – 1 time. She’s the wife of a former convict and helps boost her name’s total to 40. Is Mary now over the hill?

Terry’s Song (Magic) – Mary – 1 time. Mary gets another notch thanks to the religious context, up to 41.

The E Street Shuffle (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – (Little) Angel – 5 times. Say hello to Angel who just loves showing all of the boys on the boardwalk how to do the E Street Shuffle.

I think we’d all pay to watch her do the E Street Shuffle.

The Line (Ghost of Tom Joad) – Louisa – 2 times. Louisa steps on the list as the subject of another story of love lost in the night.

The Rising (The Rising) – Mary – 1 time. Mary is not going away, getting her numbers up to 42.

The River (The River) – Mary – 3 times. In a song inspired by Springsteen’s sister and her husband, Mary now has 45 after another classic tale of blue-collar struggles.

Thunder Road (Born to Run) – Mary – 2 times. The song that (probably) made every woman who heard it want to be named Mary gives her 47 names overall. Mary is mentioned in 5 of the last 7 songs.

One of over 3 and a half billion Google Image results for ‘Mary.’ The name is not only popular in Bruce’s songs! (And her name isn’t even Mary, it’s Mary-Kate)

Wild Billy’s Circus Story (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Missy Bimbo – 2 times, Margarita – 1 time. Thanks to the circus environment, someone with a name like Missy Bimbo jumps ahead of Missy. This is Margarita’s debut.

Circuses would be a lot more fun if there were more of these there, am I right?

With Every Wish (Human Touch) – Doreen – 1 time. Her beauty was a gift and a curse for “Bobby,” so Doreen breaks onto the list.

You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch) (The River) – (Dirty) Annie – 1 time. Another first as the number of songs winds down.

Youngstown (The Ghost of Tom Joad) – Jenny – 4 times. Sweet Jenny hears about Bruce’s trials in Youngstown. My parents grew up in the suburbs of the city and my grandparents worked in those very steel mills Bruce talks about. I also lived near Youngstown for about 5 years. It’s sad to say that even though working in the steel mills sounds bad, since they shut down, the city is even worse.

Zero and Blind Terry (Tracks) – Terry – 12 times. I thought the high numbers were done for, but Terry had something to say about it. She adds 12 to her 3 for a grand total of 15.

Who’s ready for the final tally? I know I am!

1. Mary – 47
2. Jane/Janie/Janey – 31
3. Candy – 17
4. Linda, Terry – 15
5. Rosalita/Rosie – 13
6. Maria, Mary Lou – 12
7. Cynthia – 11
8. Kitty – 10
9. Ricky, Sandy – 9
10. Sherry – 6
11. Martha, Angel – 5
12. Dinah, Jenny – 4
13. Juliet, Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Polly – 3
14. Wanda, Jackie, Leah, Catherine, Carol, Sally, Louisa, Missy Bimbo – 2
15. Eve, Kate, Cassiopeia, Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Shaniqua, Theresa, Missy, Christine, Mary Beth, Isabella, Margarita, Doreen, Annie – 1

Those of you who believed you heard Mary’s name a lot in Bruce’s songs, you’re right! Mary is the number one name in his original lyrics. Of course, all of his fans know that no matter what these numbers say, the number one woman in his life is Patti. Like the typical songwriter (except Taylor Swift), he does not mention her name directly.

Thank you all so much for being patient while I slogged through every word. I like to think this process educated me a little more on Springsteen’s work and I hope this has done the same for you. Perhaps later I will go back and order the names based on the time the song was released or even do the men’s names. But, for now I need a break on reading through the words. I will continue to learn about Bruce as I listen to the 66 songs on the Tracks album I just bought.

Thanks again for reading!