On a wet summer night at Red Rocks in 1981, Bruce playfully covered the Frankie Ford novelty song “Sea Cruise,” complete with bell and horn sound effects.
This was close to a one-off cover–the only other times Bruce performed “Sea Cruise” were at the Naval Academy in Annapolis and in a 1977 guest appearance at the Stone Pony.
Originally written and recorded by Huey Smith, it became a hit when Frankie Ford lifted the instrumental track, recorded his own vocals, and released it in 1959. It went gold and became his biggest hit. Here he is lip-syncing to it on The Dick Clark show that year.
Sea Cruise
First performed: May 28, 1976 (Annapolis, MD)
Last performed: August 16, 1981 (Morrison, CO)
Quite awesome! Thanks!
I was there at Red Rocks for this song. It rained before the concert (despite a beautiful afternoon sound check) and he opened with “Who’ll Stop the Rain” and then came out for the second set with “Sea Cruise” – both were absolutely magical and spot on! Still one of my favorite Bruce and E Street Band moments.