Candy's Room

This is not a song about a prostitute, or a stripper. You have to look at where Springsteen was in his life when he was writing the Darkness album. The characters on this album are in their mid 20's. Bruce saw many of his characters still living at home, with their Dads. The girl in Racing in the Street sat on her daddys porch, The girl from Talk to Me sat with her daddy upstairs, the Preachers Daughter worked with her dad, and lived at home. Even the boys had an attachment to their parents, the singer in Promised Land worked at his Daddys garage, and of course Independence Day, written during Darkness is a goodbye to the singers dad. The album focuses on the point in your life where you are making that break to independence. The romantic days of being Born to Run, are giving way to manhood, responsibility, and a sense of settling down.

Bruce also saw himself as this guy that you wouldn't necessarily want to bring home to meet your folks. Long hair, playing rock and roll, and normally looking pretty scruffy probably didn't go over well with the folks in general. This isn't really related in this song, but look at the song with Bruces vision of himself in mind. Now Candy is probably young, good looking, and coming from a family with a bit of wealth. Much like the theme that was played out in the I'm on Fire video years later. Scruffy mechanic, pretty rich lady, and some cross class romance.

Candys Room has pictures of her heroes on it, because she is still living at home probably with movie posters or singers on her walls from her recent youth. Now the men calling her from the city are suitors, Candy is a pretty girl, and many men would like to be dating her. They will bring her things to try and convince her to go out with them, as men will do. There's a sadness in her pretty face, just like the girl from Racing in the Street, they are growing up, and the innocence, and freedom of youth is giving way to the realities of her life ahead.

They kiss, and go driving deep into the night, Candy likes riding with the bad boy, similar to the singer in Preachers daughter. The singer is a little more naive than Candy, and she is trying to show him that there is a better life waiting, and when he pulls her close he feels he has everything.

The final verse is just an affirmation of what we already knew, She has fancy clothes, and diamonds, because she comes from a more established family than the singer. She has men who would bring her anything to be in his position, but she wants the singer even though he can't give her those things. He affirms at the end that she knows while not much, he would give her all the things he has.