Because the Night

[scooter]

A quick couple of things on this song: I do like Natalie Merchant and 10,000 Maniacs, and they did do an okay version of this song. However, it is not really meant to be the way they did it. You really shouldn't be hearing violins at any point.

And let's also be clear that The Boss may have written it first, and he is a hell of a songwriter, but it was Patti Smith that made this a great song. And it was her version that turned this song into something very powerful: a whole anthem of pure hormones. It's got to be serious screaming rock guitars and big melodrama and sweaty, uncontrolled, steamy-backseat-windows sex.

There are a lot of versions out there. Bono does one with both Patti and The Boss live and that's kind of cool. The Midnight do one that...again, they are good, but it suffers from the Natalie Merchant thing.

And then there's Garbage, with some amazing help from Marissa P of Screaming Females. This is intense, and this is exactly how you need to perform this song. Marissa and Shirley both sing it, and then Marissa shreds for the final long solo. You need to have a cigarette after this is over even if you don't smoke.