Gary U.S. Bonds in his new “Out of Work” video.
Gary U.S. Bonds has re-recorded his 1982 Bruce Springsteen-written hit, “Out of Work,” with new lyrics about the current pandemic, and made a video for it that he has posted on Facebook. You can watch it below.
The video shows Bonds alone at home, singing. “Essential employee” Mark Leimbach, filmed separately, adds acoustic guitar and backing vocals. The lyrics are almost all re-written with a topical twist. Bonds sings in the first verse, for instance:
Eight a.m., I can’t go out
I’ve got to stay inside
And I can’t touch my face
Until I’m sanitized
I’m home for two or three weeks
So I’ve become a slob
This is what happens when a man needs a job
I’m out of work.
Bonds posted the video to Facebook with the message: “In these difficult times, we’re thinking of all our family and friends and hope everyone is staying safe. Here’s a little something to make you smile. Love, GB.”
Bonds originally recorded “Out of Work” for his 1982 On the Line album, which was almost entirely written by Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt (who also co-produced it) and featured musical backing by those two and the rest of the E Street Band.
To support Bonds while he is temporarily out of work himself, visit garyusbonds.com.
NJArts.net’s Songs to See Us Through series is designed to spotlight songs relevant to the coronavirus crisis and encourage readers to support the artists who made them (and won’t be able to generate income via concerts at this time). Click here for links to all songs in the series.
We encourage artists to email us submissions (newly recorded, if possible) at njartsdaily@gmail.com. Please include links to sites such as Patreon and Venmo. Readers can also make suggestions via that email address.
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