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{{Short description|1973 song by Bruce Springsteen}}
{{Infobox song
| name = 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
| cover = 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) cover.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = [[Bruce Springsteen]]
| album = [[The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle]]
| B-side = The E Street Shuffle
| released = 1974 (Germany only)
| recorded = 1973
| studio = [[914 Sound Studios]] in [[Blauvelt, New York]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Brucebase, On the Tracks: The Wild the Innocent &the E Street Shuffle|url=http://brucebase.wikispaces.com/The+Wild%2C+The+Innocent+%26+The+E+Street+Shuffle+-+Studio+Sessions|access-date=2007-07-27|archive-date=2012-01-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120122165233/http://brucebase.wikispaces.com/The+Wild%2C+The+Innocent+%26+The+E+Street+Shuffle+-+Studio+Sessions|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| genre = *[[Folk music|Folk]]<ref name="Molanphy 2021">{{Cite podcast|url=https://slate.com/podcasts/hit-parade/2021/07/bruce-springsteen-billboard-chart-records-slate-music-podcast|title= Tramps Like Us Edition|website=Hit Parade {{!}} Music History and Music Trivia|publisher=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|last=Molanphy|first=Chris|date= July 16, 2021|access-date= February 17, 2024}}</ref>
*[[rock music|rock]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wordsandmusic.it/review-4th-of-july-asbury-park-sandy-bruce-springsteen/|title=Review 4th Of July, Asbury Park (Sandy), Bruce Springsteen|first=Dario|last=Migliorini|date=September 5, 2023}}</ref>
| length = 5:36
| label = [[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
| writer = Bruce Springsteen
| producer =
*[[Mike Appel]]
*Jim Cretecos
| prev_title = [[Spirit in the Night]]
| prev_year = 1973
| next_title = [[Born to Run (song)|Born to Run]]
| next_year = 1975
}}
{{Infobox song
| name = Sandy (4th of July, Asbury Park)
| cover =
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = [[The Hollies]]
| album = [[Another Night (The Hollies album)|Another Night]]
| B-side = Second Hand Hang-Ups
| released = May 1975
| recorded =
| studio =
| genre = [[Easy listening]]<ref name="Molanphy 2021"/>
| length =
| label = [[Polydor]]
| writer = Bruce Springsteen
| producer = [[Ron Richards (producer)|Ron Richards]]
| prev_title = I'm Down
| prev_year = 1974
| next_title = [[Boulder to Birmingham]]
| next_year = 1976
}}
"'''4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)'''", often known just as "'''Sandy'''", is a 1973 song by [[Bruce Springsteen]], originally appearing as the second song on his album ''[[The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle]]''. It was released as a single from the album in Germany.<ref>{{cite web|title=4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)|url=http://germancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Bruce+Springsteen&titel=4th+Of+July%2C+Asbury+Park+%28Sandy%29&cat=s|publisher=Hung Medien|access-date=2012-07-18|archive-date=2014-03-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327105049/http://germancharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Bruce+Springsteen&titel=4th+Of+July%2C+Asbury+Park+%28Sandy%29&cat=s|url-status=dead}}</ref>
One of the best-known and most praised of his early efforts,<ref name="hilburn">{{cite book | last=Hilburn | first=Robert | author-link=Robert Hilburn | title=Springsteen | publisher=[[Rolling Stone Press]] | year=1985 | isbn=0-684-18456-7}} p. 58.</ref> the song remains one of his most popular ballads,<ref name="santelli">{{cite book | last=Santelli | first=Robert | title=Greetings From E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band | publisher=[[Chronicle Books]] | year=2006 | ___location=San Francisco | isbn=0-8118-5348-9}} p. 25.</ref> and has been described as "the perfect musical study of the [[Jersey Shore]] boardwalk culture".<ref name="santelli" />
== Themes and recording ==
Set on, as the title suggests, [[Independence Day (United States)|the Fourth of July]] in [[Asbury Park, New Jersey]], the song is a powerful love ballad, dedicated to one Sandy and describing the depressing atmosphere that threatens to smother the love between the singer and Sandy. Locals include the "stoned-out faces", "[[switchblade]] lovers" and "the [[Greaser (subculture)|greasers]]" who "tramp the streets or get busted for sleeping on the beach all night". The singer is tired of "hangin' in them dusty [[Video arcade|arcades]]" and "chasin' the factory girls".
The song begins with the line: "Sandy, the fireworks are hailin' over Little Eden tonight." Writer Ariel Swartley views the song's verses as depicting the narrator as something of an "adolescent loser ... [who's] ruining his chances with the girl: he can't stop telling her about the humiliations, about the girls who led him on, about the waitress that got tired of him."<ref name="swartley">{{cite book | author=Ariel Swartley | chapter=The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle | editor=Greil Marcus | editor-link=Greil Marcus | title=Stranded: Rock and Roll for a Desert Island | publisher=[[Alfred A. Knopf|Knopf]] | year=1979|page=52}}</ref> Nevertheless, Swartley observes the choruses to be warm, immediate, and portray an irresistibly romantic atmosphere.<ref name="swartley" />
{{Blockquote|You travel around [to] Nashville, Atlanta, Tennessee and [people say] 'Hey! What's Asbury Park like?' and I play them this number. This is a song based in [[New Jersey]] or actually anywhere along the coast.|Bruce Springsteen|''Concert, 3rd March 1974''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://fneep.fiffa.net/?page_id=146|title=Transcribed Bruce Springsteen Quotes|access-date=2009-11-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100609093407/http://fneep.fiffa.net/?page_id=146|archive-date=2010-06-09|url-status=dead}}</ref>}}
[[Van Morrison]]'s influence can be heard in this song, as "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" closely parallels his romanticization of [[Belfast]] in such songs as "[[Cyprus Avenue]]" and "[[Madame George]]" from the 1968 album, ''[[Astral Weeks]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.superseventies.com/spspringsteen1.html|publisher=superseventies|title=The Wild, the innocent and the E Street shuffle|access-date=2009-06-15}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ragogna/huffpost-reviews-van-morr_b_161308.html|title=HuffPost Reviews: Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl|publisher=huffingtonpost.com|access-date=2009-06-14|first=Mike|last=Ragogna|date=2009-01-27}}</ref>
"Sandy" showcases the wistful side of Springsteen; ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' writer [[Robert Hilburn]] later wrote that "the verses [were] whispered as if he was singing into his girlfriend's ear."<ref name="hilburn" /> During recording of the song for the album, Springsteen wanted a children's choir to sing on it, but they did not show up for the session.<ref name="suki">{{cite news|author1=Horovitz, David|author-link1=David Horovitz|title=Bruce Springsteen's Kibbutz Violinist|url=https://www.jpost.com/Arts-and-Culture/Music/Bruce-Springsteens-kibbutz-violinist|work=[[The Jerusalem Post]]|date=October 22, 2007}}</ref> Instead, he recorded the high, clear voice of [[Suki Lahav]], overdubbing it repeatedly, to give a choir-like effect.<ref name="suki" /> Lahav, the wife of Springsteen's sound engineer at the time, would not be credited for her role,<ref name="suki" /> but would later join the [[E Street Band]] for six months as a violinist and singer.
No singles were released from ''[[The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle]]''. "Sandy" would, however, along with "[[Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)]]", become fan favorites from the album,<ref name="hilburn" /><ref name="santelli" /> and would garner [[progressive rock (radio format)|progressive rock]] radio airplay during the ramp-up of Springsteen's visibility preceding the 1975 release of ''[[Born to Run]]''. The song would be released as a single in Germany in mid-1975, with the title reversed into "Sandy (4th July, Asbury Park)".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.brucespringsteen.it/DB/detrec.aspx?code=CBS3512 | title=SANDY (4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK) / THE E STREET | publisher=The Killing Floor | access-date=2008-07-26}}</ref> "Sandy" also attracted the attention of other musicians; it was one of the two Springsteen songs that drummer [[Max Weinberg]] knew when he auditioned for Springsteen's [[E Street Band]] in late 1974.<ref name="appel">{{cite book | last=Appel | first=Mike | author-link=Mike Appel | author2=Marc Eliot | title=Down Thunder Road | publisher=[[Fireside Books]] | year=1992 | isbn=0-671-86898-5}} p. 117.</ref> Once ''Born to Run'' made Springsteen a major rock figure, "Sandy" received additional airplay on progressive and [[album oriented rock]] formats.
== Live performance history ==
"Sandy" was included on Springsteen and the E Street Band's best-selling 1986 [[box set]] ''[[Live/1975–85]]'', in a 1980 [[Nassau Coliseum]] performance that nevertheless had a "club feel" to it.<ref name="marsh-gd">{{cite book | last=Marsh | first=Dave | author-link=Dave Marsh | title=Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s | url=https://archive.org/details/glorydaysbrucesp00mars | url-access=registration | publisher=[[Pantheon Books]] | year=1987 | isbn=0-394-54668-7}} p. 419, 429–430.</ref> Its sequencing in the box set represented the opening stages of the journey that the core characters in Springsteen's work take;<ref name="marsh-gd" /> Springsteen said, "Then you get 'Sandy'. That's the guy and he's on the boardwalk, and I guess that was me then, when I was still around Asbury. And there's the girl.... Here it is. This is the beginning of the whole trip that's about to take place."<ref name="marsh-gd" /> It is also included on the 2003 compilation ''[[The Essential Bruce Springsteen]]''
The song was a mainstay of Springsteen and the E Street Band's concert [[set list]]s during the early part of his career, and a 1975 performance is included on the 2006 ''[[Hammersmith Odeon London '75]]'' audio and video release. It became much rarer to hear after the 1980–1981 [[The River Tour|River Tour]], appearing only very sporadically, and then usually in New Jersey.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.brucespringsteen.it/DB/Databasex.htm | title=The Killing Floor DB Page (search for song) | publisher=The Killing Floor | access-date=2008-07-26| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080809094739/http://www.brucespringsteen.it/DB/Databasex.htm| archive-date= 9 August 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref>
Within the [[E Street Band]], the song was heavily identified with [[Danny Federici]]'s [[accordion]] part, which is the main musical element. "Sandy" was played several times late on the first leg of the 2007–2008 [[Magic Tour (Bruce Springsteen)|Magic Tour]], including Federici's final regular appearance in November 2007 before taking a leave of absence for [[melanoma]] treatment. When Federici made his only return to the stage after that, on March 20, 2008, appearing for portions of a Springsteen and E Street Band performance at [[Bankers Life Fieldhouse|Conseco Fieldhouse]] in [[Indianapolis]], "Sandy" was the one song that he requested be performed.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bruce-springsteen-pens-touching-eulogy-to-danny-federici-81686/ | title=Bruce Springsteen Pens Touching Eulogy to Danny Federici | magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] | date=25 April 2008 }}</ref> Following Federici's April 17, 2008 death, "Sandy" was performed in tribute to him, with [[Roy Bittan]] taking over the accordion part. In July 2008, the live [[Extended play|EP]] ''[[Magic Tour Highlights]]'' was released, with the final Federici performance of "Sandy" the closing track. The song has been played live about 230 times.
== Covers ==
[[The Hollies]] recorded a single of "Sandy" (under that title) in 1975, and included it on their ''[[Another Night (The Hollies album)|Another Night]]'' album. Released on [[Epic Records]] in the U.S. in April 1975, it only achieved minor airplay, reaching number 85 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|U.S. pop singles chart]].<ref>{{cite web | url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p13209|pure_url=yes}} | title=The Hollies: Charts & Awards: Billboard Singles | website=[[AllMusic]] | access-date=2008-07-26}}</ref> Nonetheless, ''[[Record World]]'' called it a "winning ballad."<ref name=rw>{{cite magazine|magazine=Record World|date=March 22, 1975|accessdate=2023-03-10|title=Hits of the Week|page=1|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Record-World/70s/75/RW-1975-03-22.pdf}}</ref> It had better success in New Zealand, reaching number 12 on their singles chart. Though released as a single, it did not reach the chart in the UK, though in London it made no.15 on Capital Radio's 'Capital Countdown' Top 40. While not a big hit unto itself, The Hollies' use of "Sandy" presaged other artists mining the early Springsteen songbook for material, a notion that would soon be exploited to much greater commercial success by [[Manfred Mann's Earth Band]] and others.
[[Air Supply]] recorded "Sandy" for their 1985 album ''[[Air Supply (1985 album)|Air Supply]]''. Singer-songwriter [[Richard Shindell]] recorded what has been described as a "near-holy reading" of this song for his 2002 live album, ''[[Courier (album)|Courier]]''.<ref name="amg">Jeff Schwatcher, [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r571882|pure_url=yes}} Courier review] at [[AllMusic]] (4.5/5)</ref>
Jason Heath and the Greedy Souls recorded a version in Los Angeles, 2009 which is officially endorsed by Bruce Springsteen. The band line up features the original E Street Band keyboardist and accordion player Danny Federici's son, Jason Federici. The song was released through Springsteen's website<ref>{{cite web|url=http://backstreets.com|title=The Boss Website|publisher=Backstreets.com}}</ref> and a video can be seen on YouTube.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/profile?user=ApesAPopin4#p/u|title=Jeff Kussmann|via=YouTube}}</ref>
Swedish artist [[Ulf Lundell]] made a Swedish version of the song called "Sanna, (Nyårsafton Åre 1983) (Sandy)". The song was dedicated to his daughter [[Sanna Lundell|Sanna]], and instead of taking place on 4th of July, it takes place on New Year's Eve.
[[Ben E. King]] covered the song on the 1997 tribute album ''One Step Up/Two Steps Back: The Songs of Bruce Springsteen.''
New York hard rock band [[Kiss (band)|Kiss]] released a single titled "[[Shandi (song)|Shandi]]", from their 1980 album ''[[Unmasked (Kiss album)|Unmasked]]'', with the song title being inspired by Springsteen's Sandy according to [[Paul Stanley]], the only member of Kiss to work on the recording of the song in the studio, although all four members of the group appeared in the song's promotional video clip.
Dutch group Theu Boermans en de groep covered this song in a Dutch language as Venlo'67
== Legacy ==
This song was chosen by [[Tony Blair]] as one of his [[Desert Island Discs]], apparently because he listened to it many times when he was courting his future wife [[Cherie Booth]].
== Madam Marie ==
{{Main|Marie Castello}}
One of the song's most famous lines is:<ref>To some observers, this closely parallels a line in Van Morrison's ''[[Astral Weeks]]'' album, from the song "[[Madame George]]": "She jumps up and says Lord have mercy I think it's the cops".</ref>
:''Did you hear, the cops finally busted Madam Marie,''
:''for tellin' fortunes better than they do ...''
The "Madam Marie" mentioned in the song was a real-life fortune teller on the [[Asbury Park, New Jersey|Asbury Park]] [[boardwalk (entertainment district)|boardwalk]] named [[Marie Castello]], who died June 27, 2008, aged 93.<ref name="app">{{cite news | title=Boardwalk fortune teller Madam Marie dies | url=http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080701/NEWS/80701031 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20121206044133/http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080701/NEWS/80701031 | url-status=dead | archive-date=2012-12-06 | newspaper=[[Asbury-Park Press]] | date=2008-07-01 | access-date=2008-07-26}}</ref>
Springsteen offered memories and condolences of her on his website, saying:
{{blockquote|
"Back in the day when I was a fixture on the Asbury Park boardwalk, I'd often stop and talk to Madam Marie as she sat on her folding chair outside the Temple of Knowledge. I'd sit across from her on the metal guard rail bordering the beach, and watched as she led the day trippers into the small back room where she would unlock a few of the mysteries of their future. She always told me mine looked pretty good – she was right. The world has lost enough mystery as it is – we need our fortunetellers. We send our condolences out to her family who've carried on her tradition. Over here on E Street, we will miss her."<ref>{{cite news | url=http://blog.nj.com/springsteen/2008/07/bruce_springsteen_remembers_ma.html | title=Bruce Springsteen remembers Madam Marie | author=Stan Goldstein | newspaper=[[The Star-Ledger]] | date=2008-07-02 | access-date=2008-07-26| archive-url= https://archive.today/20080725005528/http://blog.nj.com/springsteen/2008/07/bruce_springsteen_remembers_ma.html| archive-date= 25 July 2008 | url-status= live}}</ref>
}}
Springsteen said some of the same remarks on stage during the next show on the [[Magic Tour (Bruce Springsteen)|Magic Tour]], dedicating a performance of "Sandy" in [[Gothenburg]], Sweden on July 4, 2008, to her. Similar dedication took place in [[Helsinki]], Finland a few days later.
The dedication, word-by-word, from Gothenburg{{Citation needed|date=July 2014}}:
:''We always send this one out to Danny,''
:''and just a few days ago, Madam Marie,''
:''who was the gypsy teller in the Asbury Park''
:''boardwalk passed away, she was 98,''
:''that's a lot of fortune-telling.''
:''There's enough mystery lost in the world,''
:''we need all the fortune-tellers we can get,''
:''so tonight we're gonna send this one out to''
:''Madam Marie...''
Springsteen incorrectly noted she died at 98; she was in fact 93. The song has always been dedicated to [[Danny Federici]] since his death on April 17, 2008, as this was "his" song, featuring a prominent accordion throughout the song.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://brucespringsteen.net/the-band/danny-federici|title=Danny Federici|first=The Official Bruce Springsteen|last=Website|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151229184843/http://brucespringsteen.net/the-band/danny-federici|archive-date=2015-12-29}}</ref>
== References ==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120207001717/http://www.brucespringsteen.net/songs/4thOfJulyAsburyPark.html Lyrics, at Bruce Springsteen official web site]
{{Bruce Springsteen songs}}
{{The Hollies}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1970s ballads]]
[[Category:1975 singles]]
[[Category:1973 songs]]
[[Category:American folk rock songs]]
[[Category:Asbury Park, New Jersey]]
[[Category:Bruce Springsteen songs]]
[[Category:Folk ballads]]
[[Category:Independence Day (United States) fiction]]
[[Category:Rock ballads]]
[[Category:Songs about New Jersey]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Mike Appel]]
[[Category:Songs written by Bruce Springsteen]]
[[Category:The Hollies songs]]
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