Two COVID summers ago, Joe Grushecky and I had a long, detailed conversation about his milestone American Babylon album, which celebrated its 25th anniversary last year. And in the middle of our conversation, he dropped a bombshell on me.
I’d asked him how Patti Scialfa’s vocal contributions to “Comin’ Down Maria,” one of the album’s lovelier tracks, had come about. Obviously I knew she’d been in close proximity, since her husband was producing the album, but Bruce himself wasn’t involved with that particular track.
Or so I thought. And so I’d read.
“I just had that song,” Joe shrugged. “It was just Bruce and I recording it. And one of us (probably me) said, ‘Hey Patti, want to sit in on this?’ So she came over.”
Mildly surprised by the “Bruce and I,” I sought to clarify that Bruce was overseeing the recording not participating in it, but Joe disabused me.
“[It’s] just me and Bruce. We’re the only guys playing instruments… If there’s drum sets, it’s probably electronic drums somehow that we did, plus Patti singing.”
“Wait,” I said. “I did not know that. I’m not sure anybody knows that, actually.”
“Well… ” Joe laughed sheepishly, “we didn’t actually want to say how much he had done on the record, because he’s pretty much all over it. He’s on every track except ‘No Strings Attached’ and ‘American Babylon.’ On every other song he is playing or singing or something.”
So there you go: after a quarter-century of hiding in plain sight, a secret Springsteen studio performance was revealed.
It’s only a little bit surprising that Bruce’s participation could remain secret for so long. A gentle love song, “Comin’ Down Maria” lilts more than rocks, and whichever instrumental contributions are Bruce’s (my guess is the mandolin is among them) they betray no signature flourishes.
Patti’s vocals, however, are unmistakable. Even if she’d gone uncredited, we’d instantly recognize her, and her contributions polish what was already a terrific track to a beautiful shine.
Sadly, Bruce and Joe have never performed “Comin’ Down Maria” together, either with or without Patti. As lovely as the song is, it’s probably too gentle for Joe’s rocking full-band sets where Bruce is known to make surprise appearances.
But as a studio track, it’s an underappreciated jewel.
Bloggers' Note
American Babylon returns to print this fall as a deluxe two-disc anniversary re-issue, complete with bonus demos and vintage live performances with Bruce from their famous October Assault 1995 mini-tour. The original has long been out of print, so whether you own it or not, don’t miss your chance to order this special anniversary edition.
Comin’ Down Maria
Recorded: July 1994
Released: American Babylon (1995)
Never performed live
