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18. Blood On The Tracks
1. Tangled Up In Blue
By Bob Dylan
Other versions of Tangled Up In Blue
Early one morning the sun was shinin'
I was layin' in bed.
Wondering if she'd changed at all
If her hair was still red.
Her folks they said that our lives together,
Sure was gonna be rough.
They never did like Mama's home-made dress,
Papa's bank book wasn't big enough.
And I was standing on the side of the road,
Rain falling on my shoes.
Heading out for the old east coast,
Lord knows I've paid some dues,
Getting through,
Tangled up in blue.
She was married when we first met
Soon to be divorced
I helped her out of a jam I guess
But I used a little too much force
We drove that car as far as we could
Abandoned it out west
Split up on a sad dark night
Both agreeing it was best
She turned around to look at me
As I was walking away
I heard her say over her shoulder
We'll meet again some day
On the avenue
Tangled up in Blue
I had a job in the great north woods
Working as a cook for a spell
But I never did like it all that much
And one day the axe just fell
So I drifted down to New Orleans
Where I was lucky to be employed
Workin' for a while on a fishing boat
Right outside of Delacroix
But all the while I was alone
The past was close behind
I seen alot of women
But she never escaped my mind
And I just grew
Tangled up in blue
She was working in topless place
And I stopped in for a beer
I just kept looking at the side of her face
In the spotlight so clear
And later on when the crowd thinned out
I was just about to do the same
She was standing there in back of my chair
Said to me Don't I know your name
I muttered something undernaeth my breath
She studdied the lines on my face
I must admit I felt a little uneasy
When she bent down to tie the laces
Of my shoe
Tangled up in blue
She lit a burner on the stove
And offered me a pipe
"I thought you'd never say hello," she said
"You look like the silent type."
She opened up a book of poems
And handed it to me
Written by an Italian poet
From the thirteenth century
And every one of them words rang true
And glowed like burning coal
Pourin' off of every page
Like it was written in my soul
From me to you
Tangled up in blue
I lived with them on Montague Street
In a basement down the stairs
There was music in the cafes at night
And revolution in the air
Then he started dealing in slaves
And something inside of him died
She had to sell everything she owned
And froze up inside.
And when finally the bottom finally fell out
I became withdrawn
The only thing I knew how to do
Was to keep on keeping on
Like a bird that flew
Tangled up in blue."
So now I'm going back again
I got to get to her somehow
All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenters wives
Don't know how it all got started
I don't know what they do with their lives
But me, I'm still on the road
Headin' for another joint
We always did feel the same
We just saw it from a different point
Of view
Tangled up in blue.
2. Simple Twist of Fate
By Bob Dylan
They sat together in the park.
As the evening sky grew dark.
She look at him and he felt a spark,
Tingle to his bones.
'Twas then he felt alone,
And wished that he'd gone straight.
And watched out for a simple twist of fate.
They walked along by the old canal.
A little confused I remember well.
Stopped into a strange hotel,
With the neon burning bright.
He felt the heat of the night,
Hit him like a frieght,
Train moving with a simple twist of fate.
A saxaphone someplace far off played.
As she was walking down by the arcade.
As the light burst through a beat up shade,
Were he was waking up.
She dropped a coin into the cup,
Of a blind man at the gate.
And forgot about a simple twist of fate.
He woke up the room was bare.
He didn't see her anywhere.
He told himself he did not care,
Threw the window open wide.
He felt an emptyness inside,
To which he just could not relate.
Bought on by a simple twist of fate.
He hears the ticking of the clocks.
And walks along with a parrot that talks.
Hunts her down by the waterfront docks,
Were the saliors all come in.
Maybe she'll pick him out again.
How long must he wait?
Once again for a simple twist of fate.
People tell you its a sin.
To know and feel too much within.
I still believe she was my twin,
But I lost the ring.
She was born in spring,
But I was born to late.
Blame it on a simple twist of fate.
3. You're A Big Girl Now
Bob Dylan
Our conversation was short and sweet
It nearly swept me off of my feet
nd I'm back in the rain, oooh and you are on dry land
You made it there somehow
You're a big girl now
Bird on the horizon sittin' on a fence
He's singing his song for me at his own expense
And I'm just like that bird, oooh singin' just for you
I hope that you can hear
Hear me singin' through these tears
Time is a jet plane, it moves too fast
Oh but what a shame that all we've shared can't last
I can change I swear, woooa see what you can do
I can make it through
You can make it too
Love is so simple to quote a phrase
You've known it all the time, I'm learnin' it these days
Oh, I know where I can find you, oooh in somebody's room
It's a price I have to pay
You're a big girl all the way
A change in the weather is known to be extreme
But what's the sense of changing horses in midstream
I'm going out of my mind, oooh with a pain that stops and starts
Like a corkscrew to my heart
Ever since we've been apart
4. Idiot Wind
Bob Dylan
Someone's got it in for me, they're planting stories in the press
Whoever it is I wish they'd cut it out but when they will I can only guess
They say I shot a man named Gray and took his wife to Italy
She inherited a million bucks and when she died it came to me
I can't help it if I'm lucky
People see me all the time and they just can't remember how to act
Their minds are filled with big ideas, images and distorted facts
Even you, yesterday you had to ask me where it was at
I couldn't believe after all these years
You didn't know me better than that, sweet lady
Chorus #1:
Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your mouth
Blowing down the backroads headin' south
Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot babe, it's a wonder that you still know how to breathe
I ran into the fortune teller, who said beware of lightning that might strike
I haven't known peace and quiet for so long I can't remember what it's
like There's a lone soldier on the cross, smoke pourin' out of a boxcar door
You didn't know it, you didn't think it could be done
In the final end he won the war after losin' every battle
I woke up on the roadside, daydreamin' 'bout the way things sometimes are
Visions of your chestnut mare shoot through my head and are makin' me see
stars You hurt the ones that I love best and cover up the truth with
lies
One day you'll be in the ditch, flies buzzin' around your eyes
Blood on your saddle
CHORUS #2:
Idiot wind, blowing through the flowers on your tomb
Blowing through the curtains in your room
Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe, it's a wonder that you still know how to breathe
It was gravity which pulled us down and destiny which broke us apart
You tamed the lion in my cage but it just wasn't enough to change my
heart
Now everything's a little upside down
As a matter of fact the wheels have stopped
What's good is bad, what's bad is good
You'll find out when you reach the top, you're on the bottom
I noticed at the ceremony, your corrupt ways had finally made you blind
I can't remember your face anymore, your mouth has changed
Your eyes don't look into mine
The priest wore black on the seventh day
And sat stone faced while the building burned
I waited for you on the running boards, near the cypress trees
While the springtime turned slowly into autumn
CHORUS #3:
Idiot wind, blowing like a circle around my skull
From the Grand Coulee Dam to the Capitol
Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth
You're an idiot, babe, it's a wonder that you still know how to breathe
I can't feel you anymore, I can't even touch the books you've read
Every time I crawl past your door, I been wishin' I was somebody else
instead Down the highway, down the tracks, down the road to ecstasy
I followed you beneath the stars, hounded by your memory
And all your ragin' glory
I been double crossed now for the very last time and now I'm finally free
I kissed goodbye the howling beast on the borderline
Which separated you from me
You'll never know the hurt I suffered nor the pain I rise above
And I'll never know the same about you, your holiness or your kind of love
And it makes me feel so sorry
CHORUS #4:
Idiot wind, blowing through the buttons of our coats
Blowing through the letters that we wrote
Idiot wind, blowing through the dust upon our shelves
We're idiots, babe, it's a wonder we can even feed ourselves
5. You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
(Bob Dylan)
I've seen love go by my door, it's never been this close before
Never been so easy or so slow
've been shooting in the dark too long, when something's not right, it's wrong
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go
Dragon clouds so high above, I've only known careless love
It always has hit me from below
But this time 'round it's more correct, right on target, so direct
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go
Purple clover, Queen Anne Lace, crimson hair across your face
You could make me cry if you don't know
Can't remember what I was thinking of, you might be spoiling me too much, love
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go
Flowers on the hillside blooming crazy
Crickets talking back and forth in rhyme
Blue river running slow and lazy
I could stay with you forever, and never realize the time
Situations have ended sad, relationships have all been bad
Mine have been like Verlaine and Rimbaud
But there's no way I can compare all those scenes to this affair
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go
You're gonna make me wonder what I'm doing
Staying far behind without you
You're gonna make me wonder what I'm saying
You're gonna make me give myself a good talking to
I look for you in old Honolulu, San Francisco, Ashtabula
You're gonna have to leave me now, I know
But I'll see you in the sky above, in the tall grass and the ones I love
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go
6. Meet Me In The Morning
Bob Dylan
Meet me in the morning, 56th and Wabashaw
Meet me in the morning, 56th and Wabashaw
Honey we could be in Kansas
By the time the snow begins to thaw
They say the darkest hour is right before the dawn
They say the darkest hour is right before the dawn
Honey you wouldn't know it by me
Every day's been darkness since you've been gone
Little rooster crowing, there must be something on his mind
Little rooster crowing, there must be something on his mind
Well I feel just like that rooster
Honey you treat me so unkind
Well I struggled through barbed wire, felt the hail fire from above
Well I struggled through barbed wire, felt the hail fire from above
Well you know I even outrun the hound dog
Honey you know I earned your love
Look at the sun sinkin' like a ship
Look at the sun sinkin' like a ship
Ain't that just like my heart babe
When you kiss my lips
7. Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts
(Words and Music by Bob Dylan)
The festival was over, the boys were all plannin' for a fall,
The cabaret was quiet except for the drillin' in the wall.
The curfew had been lifted and the gamblin' wheel shut down,
Anyone with any sense had already left town.
He was standin' in the doorway lookin' like the Jack of Hearts.
He moved across the mirrored room, "Set it up for everyone," he said,
Then everyone commenced to do what they were doin' before he turned their heads.
Then he walked up to a stranger and he asked him with a grin,
"Could you kindly tell me, friend, what time the show begins?"
Then he moved into the corner, face down like the Jack of Hearts.
Backstage the girls were playin' five-card stud by the stairs,
Lily had two queens, she was hopin' for a third to match her pair.
Outside the streets were fillin' up, the window was open wide,
A gentle breeze was blowin', you could feel it from inside.
Lily called another bet and drew up the Jack of Hearts.
Big Jim was no one's fool, he owned the town's only diamond mine,
He made his usual entrance lookin' so dandy and so fine.
With his bodyguards and silver cane and every hair in place,
He took whatever he wanted to and he laid it all to waste.
But his bodyguards and silver cane were no match for the Jack of Hearts.
Rosemary combed her hair and took a carriage into town,
She slipped in through the side door lookin' like a queen without a crown.
She fluttered her false eyelashes and whispered in his ear,
"Sorry, darlin', that I'm late," but he didn't seem to hear.
He was starin' into space over at the Jack of Hearts.
"I know I've seen that face before," Big Jim was thinkin' to himself,
"Maybe down in Mexico or a picture up on somebody's shelf."
But then the crowd began to stamp their feet and the house lights did dim
And in the darkness of the room there was only Jim and him,
Starin' at the butterfly who just drew the Jack of Hearts.
Lily was a princess, she was fair-skinned and precious as a child,
She did whatever she had to do, she had that certain flash every time she smiled.
She'd come away from a broken home, had lots of strange affairs
With men in every walk of life which took her everywhere.
But she'd never met anyone quite like the Jack of Hearts.
The hangin' judge came in unnoticed and was being wined and dined,
The drillin' in the wall kept up but no one seemed to pay it any mind.
It was known all around that Lily had Jim's ring
And nothing would ever come between Lily and the king.
No, nothin' ever would except maybe the Jack of Hearts.
Rosemary started drinkin' hard and seein' her reflection in the knife,
She was tired of the attention, tired of playin' the role of Big Jim's wife.
She had done a lot of bad things, even once tried suicide,
Was lookin' to do just one good deed before she died.
She was gazin' to the future, riding on the Jack of Hearts.
Lily washed her face, took her dress off and buried it away.
"Has your luck run out?" she laughed at him, "Well, I guess you must
have known it would someday.
Be careful not to touch the wall, there's a brand-new coat of paint,
I'm glad to see you're still alive, you're lookin' like a saint."
Down the hallway footsteps were comin' for the Jack of Hearts.
The backstage manager was pacing all around by his chair.
"There's something funny going on," he said, "I can just feel it in the air."
He went to get the hangin' judge, but the hangin' judge was drunk,
As the leading actor hurried by in the costume of a monk.
There was no actor anywhere better than the Jack of Hearts.
Lily's arms were locked around the man that she dearly loved to touch,
She forgot all about the man she couldn't stand who hounded her so much.
"I've missed you so," she said to him, and he felt she was sincere,
But just beyond the door he felt jealousy and fear.
Just another night in the life of the Jack of Hearts.
No one knew the circumstance but they say that it happened pretty quick,
The door to the dressing room burst open and a cold revolver clicked.
And Big Jim was standin' there, ya couldn't say surprised,
Rosemary right beside him, steady in her eyes.
She was with Big Jim but she was leanin' to the Jack of Hearts.
Two doors down the boys finally made it through the wall
And cleaned out the bank safe, it's said that they got off with quite a haul.
In the darkness by the riverbed they waited on the ground
For one more member who had business back in town.
But they couldn't go no further without the Jack of Hearts.
The next day was hangin' day, the sky was overcast and black,
Big Jim lay covered up, killed by a penknife in the back.
And Rosemary on the gallows, she didn't even blink,
The hangin' judge was sober, he hadn't had a drink.
The only person on the scene missin' was the Jack of Hearts.
The cabaret was empty now, a sign said, "Closed for repair,"
Lily had already taken all of the dye out of her hair.
She was thinkin' 'bout her father, who she very rarely saw,
Thinkin' 'bout Rosemary and thinkin' about the law.
But, most of all she was thinkin' 'bout the Jack of Hearts.
8. If You See Her, Say Hello
Bob Dylan
If you see her say hello, she might be in Tangiers
She left here last early spring, is living there I hear
Say for me that I'm alright, though things get kind of slow
She might think that I've forgotten her
Don't tell her it isn't so
We had a falling out, like lovers often will
And to think of how she left that night, it still brings me a chill
And though our separation, it pierced me to the heart
She still lives inside of me, we've never been apart
If you get close to her, kiss her once for me
I always have respected her, for doin' what she did and gettin free
Whatever makes her happy, I won't stand in the way
Though the bitter taste still lingers on
>From the night I tried to make her stay
I see a lot of people, as I make the rounds
And I hear her name here and there as I go from town to town
And I've never gotten used to it, I've just learned to turn it off
Maybe I'm too sensitive, or else I'm gettin' soft
Sundown, yellow moon, I replay the past
I know every scene by heart, it all went by so fast
If she's goin' by this way, I'm not that hard to find
Tell her she can look me up if she's got the time
9. Shelter From the Storm
By Bob Dylan
'Twas in another life time,
One of toil and blood.
When blackness was a virtue
And the road was full of mud.
I came in from the wilderness,
A creature void of form.
"Come in" she said,
"I'll give you,
Shelter from the storm."
And if I pass this way again,
You can rest assured,
I'll always do my best for her
On that I give my word.
In a world of steel eyed death and men
Who are fighting to be warm,
Come in she said,
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm.
Not a word was spoke between us.
There was little risk involved.
everything up to that point,
Had been left unresolved.
Try imagining a place
Where it's always safe and warm
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm.
I was burned out from exhaustion
I was buried in the hail.
Poisoned in the bushes
An' blown out on the trail
Hunted like a crocodile,
Ravaged in the corn
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm
Suddenly I turned around
And she was standing there
With silver bracelets on her wrists
And flowers in her hair.
She walked up to me so gracefully
And took my crown of thorns
Come in she said
I'll give you,
Shelter from the storm.
Now there's a wall between us
Something has been lost.
I took too much for granted
I got my signals crossed
Just to think that all began
On an uneventfull morn
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm
Well the deputy walks on hard nails
And the preacher rides a mount
But nothing really matters
It's doom alone that counts
And the one-eyed undertaker
He blows a futile horn
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm
I've heard newborn babies wailin'
Like a mornin' dove
And old men with broken teeth
Stranded without love.
Do I understand your question, man
Is it hopeless and forlorn.
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm.
In a little hill top village
I gambled for my clothes
I bargained for salvation
And they gave me a leathal dose.
I offered up my innocence
And got repaid with scorn
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm
Well I'm livin' in a foreign country
But I'm bound to cross the line.
Beauty walk a razors edge,
Someday I'll make it mine.
If I could only turn the clock back
To when God and her were born
Come in she said
I'll give you
Shelter from the storm.
10. Buckets Of Rain
Bob Dylan
Buckets of rain, buckets of tears
Got all them buckets coming out of my ears
Buckets of moonbeams in my hand
You got all the love honey baby I can stand
I've been meek, and hard like an oak
I've seen pretty people disappear like smoke
Friends will arrive, friends will disappear
If you want me, honey baby I'll be here
I like the smile in your fingertips
I like the way that you move your hips
I like the cool way you look at me
Everything about you is bringing me misery
Little red wagon, little red bike
I ain't no monkey but I know what I like
I like the way you love me strong and slow
I'm taking you with me honey baby when I go
Life is sad, life is a bust
All you can do is do what you must
You do what you must do, and you do it well
I'll do it for you, honey baby can't you tell?
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