Bruce Springsteen - Frankie (V4) - Studio Take, Power Station, New York (May 14, 1982)

“Frankie” was composed by Springsteen in early 1976, just after the 1975 Born To Run Tour. According to Christopher Sandford’s Point Blank, a demo of “Frankie” was recorded in January 1976, along with a completed recording of “Darkness On The Edge Of Town”. However the accuracy of this information is doubted, as early recordings of “Darkness On The Edge Of Town” from June 1977 indicate most of the words were still unwritten. Possible sessions have also been linked to April 1976; these potential early takes are listed here as V1. At any rate, “Frankie” was near completion when it was debuted live on the Chicken Scratch Tour in late March 1976. When Springsteen returned to the studio after the litigation with Mike Appel was resolved, “Frankie” was recorded on June 3, 1977, and again on July 12, both at Atlantic Studios. Apparently, “Frankie” did not fit Bruce’s concept for the album, and it was set aside, not to be recorded again during the Darkness sessions. When writing “Candy’s Room” a few months later, Bruce lifted some lyrics from “Frankie”, specifically, “In the darkness, there’ll be hidden worlds that shine.” However, a take of “Frankie” was dubbed to a reel dated February 1, 1978 alongside “Rendezvous”, indicating that the song hadn’t entirely slipped Bruce’s mind. Just over four years later, “Frankie” was recorded again on May 14, 1982 at the Power Station, New York, on the last day of three weeks of sessions for the Born In The U.S.A. album. Take 10 was chosen, and completed with several overdubs. Though it was not included on Born In The U.S.A., it was considered for Greatest Hits, again missing the cut, before being selected for the Tracks compilation in 1998. This is an alternative mix without sax. It is not known if the takes from 1977 were ever considered for Tracks.