A couple days ago John did a short piece here on Bruce Springsteen and a song he wrote called "Living in the Future." If you missed it, it's worth going back and checking out. Springsteen's written a lot of great songs. The first time I heard him do "Jersey Girl" I assumed he had written that too. After all, he's a Jersey boy. I liked the song well enough but the version that I absolutely love wasn't written by Springsteen or by the other Jersey boy (Bon Jovi) who covers it.
No, the version I listen to all the time is the original version by a California boy, who wrote it for his Jersey born wife, Tom Waits. And what a version it is: