# Why does "Jersey Girl" sound so depressing?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [November 25, 2006, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727 "2006-11-25T07:03:58Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\
**Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727/1 "2006-11-25T07:03:58Z")

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I haven’t heard Tom Waits do it, but boy Bruce Springsteen sure makes it seem like it’s raining shit on him. You’d think by listening to the lyrics that he’d sound at least a little bit happy.

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**Author:** ![mamboman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecb155/32.png) [@mamboman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mamboman)\
**Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727/2 "2006-11-25T10:21:36Z")

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Waits sounds like he’s _angry_ singing it.

I’ve never heard Springsteen’s version - does he mention “the whores on 8th Avenue” in it, or does he change the lyric?

mm

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**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\
**Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727/3 "2006-11-25T13:13:56Z")

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Pretty sure he changed “whores” to “girls.”

I understand his last record made reference to visiting a prostitute, but when he did Jersey Girl (wrecked the song for me but made Tom Waits some money I expect) he was still all clean cut.

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**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\
**Post date:** [November 25, 2006, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-jersey-girl-sound-so-depressing/381727/4 "2006-11-25T14:55:22Z")

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Holly Cole’s cover just sounds sexy 😃