Springsteen came up with this song in the studio during recording sessions in early 1982. He was playing around with a slow Johnny Cash rhythm which he put to some lyrics he had already written. The song was recorded in May 1982, and originally intended for the Nebraska album, but it was not released until Born In The U.S.A. was finished in 1984.
Springsteen, pianist Roy Bittan, and drummer Max Weinberg recorded the first version of this song themselves because the rest of the band was taking a break when inspiration struck.
The song is about a man who wakes up with night sweats lusting for a woman - he feels like he's on fire when he suddenly awakes. Springsteen writes using the voice of many different characters, and they often have some kind of unpleasant ordeal to endure. The stark lyrics went well with the Johnny Cash-inspired rhythm, and didn't hurt the song commercially, as it made the Top 10 in both the US and UK.
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