Album: Hold Me (1985)

Charted: 40

License This Song 

• There was heat in the air and cops everywhere you looked
  There wasn't a lot, so the breaks that you got you know you took
  And I remember wonderin' where you'd been
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie fell from grace
  There was amazement on his face
  On the night that Eddie failed
  Sanity prevailed
  
  It was June or July when the heat from above beat down
  It was famine or drought when the brothers went out of style uptown
  And we was mixin' Vicks with lemon gin
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie made front page
  His revolution came of age
  He wrote, "Surrender" on the wall
  The night he took the fall
  
  I heard someone say, "He's trying to fly"
  Like Eddie used to say, "We'll do when we die"
  
  I know someone turned you for a fin
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  
  
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie fell from grace
  There was amazement on his face
  On the night that Eddie failed
  Sanity prevailed
  
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in (Spanish Eddie)
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in (Spanish Eddie)
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in (Spanish Eddie)
  They were playing, "Desolation Row" on the radio
  The night Spanish Eddie cashed it in Writer/s: Charles E. Cochran, David Palmer
  Publisher: JDM Songs Ltd., Wixen Music Publishing
  Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 2

• Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn this day in 1985 {July 13th} Laura Branigan performed "Spanish Eddie" on the Dick Clark ABC-TV Saturday-afternoon program, 'American Bandstand'...
  Two weeks later the song entered Billboard's Hot Top #100 chart at position #84, and on September 1st, 1985 it peaked at #40 {for 2 weeks}, it spent eleven weeks on the Top 100...
  It made the Top 10 in Austria were it reached #8 on the Austrian Top 40 Singles chart...
  And on the same 'Bandstand' show she also performed "Hold Me", it reached #82 {for 2 weeks} on October 20th, 1985 and stayed on the Top 100 for four weeks...
  Between 1982 and 1990 the Brewster, New York native had thirteen records on the Hot Top 100 chart, three made the Top 10, "Gloria" {#2* for 3 weeks in 1982}, "Solitaire" {#7 for 2 weeks in 1983}, and "Self Control" {#4 for 2 weeks in 1984}
  Sadly, Laura Ann Branigan passed away at the young age of 52 on August 26th, 2004 {brain aneurysm}...
  May she R.I.P.
  * "Gloria" peaked at #2 for three weeks, the first two weeks it was at #2, the #1 record for both those weeks was "Truly" by Lionel Richie, and for it's third week, Toni Basil's "Mickey" was in the top spot...
• Lisa from Nyc, CaThe Vicks & Lemon Gin line probably refers to a practice common the 1960s of soaking the cotton inserts from Benzedrine nasal inhalers in alcohol and then imbibing the godawful result in order to get buzzed and drunk at the same time. Vicks Inhalers are no longer made with Benzadrine but do contain a very mild stimulant in addition to the Camphor & Menthol scent. If you were to try that trick today, all you would get is minty breath and a bad hangover so don't waste your time!

More Songfacts:

Born on the BayouCreedence Clearwater Revival

John Fogerty was not born on the bayou - he's from Berkeley, California. He got the idea for the song when CCR was on tour in Louisiana.

ReasonsEarth, Wind & Fire

"Reasons" by Earth, Wind & Fire is a popular wedding song, but it's actually about a one-night stand.

Uptown GirlBilly Joel

Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl" is about Christie Brinkley, who he married, but it started as a song about Elle McPherson, who he also went out with.

My GenerationThe Who

Roger Daltrey stutters the vocal on "My Generation" by The Who. The idea was to sound like a British kid on speed.

Do You Want To DanceBobby Freeman

Bobby Freeman's '50s hit "Do You Want To Dance" was also a Hot 100 hit for Del Shannon, The Beach Boys, The Mamas & the Papas, Bette Midler and the Ramones.

Hound DogElvis Presley

The songwriting team Leiber and Stoller wrote "Hound Dog" for a blues singer named Big Mama Thronton, who first recorded the song in 1953. Elvis covered it in 1956, and it became his biggest hit.

Editor's Picks

Who Wrote That Song?Music Quiz

Do you know who wrote Patti Smith's biggest hit? How about the Grease theme song? See if you can match the song to the writer.

Amanda PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Call us crazy, but we like it when an artist comes around who doesn't mesh with the status quo.

Psychedelic LyricsMusic Quiz

Whoa man! Do you know which band came up with these cosmic lyrics?

Graham ParkerSongwriter Interviews

When Judd Apatow needed under-appreciated rockers for his Knocked Up sequel, he immediately thought of Parker, who just happened to be getting his band The Rumour back together.

John ParrSongwriter Interviews

John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.

Song CitiesMusic Quiz

Nirvana, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen are among those who wrote songs with cities that show up in this quiz.