No, not that “Protection.” We’ll discuss the song Bruce donated to Donna Summer at a later date and dice roll.
Today’s “Protection” is a much earlier song by the same name that Bruce recorded at home in early 1979. This song has never seen the light of day in any finished form, although some of its DNA did surface in an official release years later. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
In early 1979, fresh off the Darkness Tour, Bruce started tinkering with some new songs on his acoustic guitar from his home in Holmdel, New Jersey, recording them on cassette as he worked on them. Some of these songs would make it on his next album, like “You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)“; others, like “Dollhouse,” would have to wait until Tracks or even later; and some were simply abandoned when Bruce lost interest or pursued a different musical direction.
“Protection” is an interesting case, though: we know that Bruce was clearly committed to it for a while, because there are no less than six work-in-progress home demos of the song that have escaped into the wild.
The earlier leaked outtakes feature Bruce’s typical pseudolyrical bluffing that readers of this blog are by now familiar with. Trying to make sense of them can be an unrewarding experience, as these outtakes are essentially working sessions as Bruce starts, stops, and tries out different phrasing, throwing in nonsense syllables for parts he hasn’t quite worked out yet.
But as the recordings progress, the song takes shape, and by take #5 below (I know the video says #4, but it’s not), we have a complete song that holds together very nicely.
“Protection” wouldn’t have been the deepest song in Bruce’s catalog had he chosen to release it on The River, but it certainly would have been one of the sweeter and poppier ones. It would have fit nicely with songs like “Two Hearts” and “I Wanna Marry You.”
In fact, it may be the lyrical similarity to “Two Hearts” that doomed “Protection”–it doesn’t require a stretch of the imagination to wonder whether the narrators of both songs are addressing the same girl.
Oh, you say you’ll never love again
Not after the last time
Oh no, you’ll never live again
No one will ever leave you sad and crying
But all I want is one sweet kiss, girl
I’m not praying for your devotion
It’s a shame to waste a night like this on inspection, inspection
That first verse sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Bruce didn’t record his first take of “Two Hearts” until almost a year later, so it’s quite possible that it was at least inspired by “Protection.”
Here comes our first chorus, immediately establishing a gimmick that Bruce will carry throughout the songs.
You want protection for a broken heart
Protection won’t let a good thing start
Protection, you say that’s what you need
Protection, but baby can’t you see
Protection give you a hurting heart
Protection is tearing us apart
Protection thinking ’bout my broken heart
Bruce’s descriptions of protection are ever-flowing (especially at the end of the song), a clever trick that would have made it a fun singalong if it had made it to the album. The message is clear, though: the narrator’s love interest got her heart broken by somebody else. She’s not over it yet, and it’s seriously cramping her new suitor’s style.
As the verses progress, it’s clear that the narrator of “Protection” isn’t nearly as platonic as the one in “Two Hearts.” In fact, he’s a little bit creepy in his single-mindedness, and his self-interest seems to outweigh genuine concern for the object of his affection. (Perhaps she does need protection?)
Well, it won’t happen to you anymore
You learned your lesson so hard and well
So tonight you’re gonna close the door
Your mind don’t know but your heart can tell
You’re soft and warm but you just need taking
Oh, little girl, you play your part so well
You’ll try anything to stop us from making connection, connection
Oh, protection from a broken heart
Protection won’t let a good thing start
Protection, that’s what you need
Protection, but baby, can’t you see
Protection can’t heal a hurting heart
Protection is tearing us apart
Protection, you get protection for a broken heart
In the final verse, her suitor calls it a night but vows to wait for her. Someday, he promises, he’ll be the one to protect her and keep her safe from the big, bad world.
Well little girl, you’re the one who chooses
A heart of stone just it ain’t your style
I guess tonight I’m the one who loses
And so I walk that lonely mile
Some day soon your broken heart will mend, girl
Some day soon and I’ll wait till then
When your pretty eyes look again in my direction, direction
I’ll get protection sent from above
Protection and everlasting love
Protection, relief in my arms
Protection, no one will do you harm
Protection when you’re warm at night
Protection, I’m gonna hold you tight
Protection, everyday and every night
Protection, what you need
Protection, baby it’s just your speed
Protection, you’ll be safe in my arms
Protection, I’ll give you all my charms
Protection, I’ll keep you warm at night
Protection, I want to hold you tight
Protection every day and every night
Every day and every night
Baby, every day and every night
Yes, “Protection” has a rather unenlightened romantic protagonist, so perhaps it’s for the best that Bruce never released it–it probably wouldn’t have aged well. But it’s still a fun, catchy song that’s finished enough for us to enjoy on its own merits.
Oh, and remember how I mentioned earlier that part of “Protection” would someday surface in a different song? Perhaps you’ve figured it out by now. You might have at least felt a tug of recognition in the melody, even if you couldn’t quite place it.
If not, listen to this earlier outtake with its melody transposed at around the 0:20 mark, and I bet you’ll recognize it in an instant.
Yep, that’s the melody of “Restless Nights,” which Bruce would start working on in early 1980, around the same time as “Two Hearts.”
So even if “Protection” is destined to remain locked away in the vaults, its DNA lives on in at least one (if not two) River-era classics.
Protection
Recorded: January-May 1979 (demo only)
Never released
Never performed
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