Bob Dylan - It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) (Official Audio)

“It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" by Bob Dylan
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Lyrics:
Darkness at the break of noon
Shadows even the silver spoon
The handmade blade, the child's balloon
Eclipses both the sun and moon
To understand you know too soon
There is no sense in trying
Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn
Suicide remarks are torn
From the fool's gold mouthpiece
The hollow horn plays wasted words
Proves to warn that he not busy being born
Is busy dying
Temptation's page flies out the door
You follow, find yourself at war
Watch waterfalls of pity roar
You feel to moan but unlike before
You discover that you'd just be
One more person crying
So don't fear if you hear
A foreign sound to your ear
It's alright, Ma, I'm only sighing
As some warn victory, some downfall
Private reasons great or small
Can be seen in the eyes of those that call
To make all that should be killed to crawl
While others say don't hate nothing at all
Except hatred
Disillusioned words like bullets bark
As human gods aim for their mark
Made everything from toy guns that spark
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark
It's easy to see without looking too far
That not much is really sacred
While preachers preach of evil fates
Teachers teach that knowledge waits
Can lead to hundred-dollar plates
Goodness hides behind its gates
But even the president of the United States
Sometimes must have to stand naked
An' though the rules of the road have been lodged
It's only people's games that you got to dodge
And it's alright, Ma, I can make it
Advertising signs that con you
Into thinking you're the one
That can do what's never been done
That can win what's never been won
Meantime life outside goes on
All around you
...
#BobDylan #Folk #SingerSongwriter

[@ag9652]

Going through a tough time right now and I don't know how much worse it would be without Dylan's music

[@bendrescher7185]

I hope you get through whatever is happening

[@thejudderman8265]

You can get through it, don’t be afraid to ask for help.

[@bmxseeker6780]

Amen to that brother

[@yamapenny5960]

@@bendrescher7185 Its just the Demokratie allover is running out.... "corona helps"

[@yamapenny5960]

👍👍👍

[@Funktaro5]

"Money doesn't talk, it swears." What a fucking line.

[@Wingone18]

Ain't that the truth! And all these years later it seems those kinda times, still ain't changin much! Some haven't figured out yet that it's children that pay the price of parents and other adults choices! Ya know what a good many adults are in other words? A- Dolts. Your so very important post reminds us to think from motivation and intent. To Always remember to see through the heart and minds eyes of a child and to be kind. And for that, I Thank- You and of course, Mr.D too!

[@ajaypalsinghbhatti8901]

Ask a man who is dying he just want a day more to live not money or women.

[@dixonpinfold2582]

I loved it when I heard it at 16, not so much now. The ones I like are the last ones. I don't think he just concludes with them, I think they're the conclusions he comes to: "And if my thought-dreams/ Could be seen They'd probably put my head/ In a guillotine. But it's alright ma It's life and life only." It's hard to do better than that.

[@midnightok3er]

100

[@thegreenbird795]

fucking a!

[@raymondcampanini6847]

It’s all right Ma I’m only crying here in 2022! Sometimes have to stand naked

[@ervadaninhalastrar]

lol I had a lit teacher who got really mad when Dylan won the Nobel Prize and said he was a "pop singer"... Some people's arrogance really blinds them

[@floweromber]

Have turned to this one many many times in my life...thankyou Bob..❤

[@keithphilo6255]

To me this song has always been MONUMENTAL, such lyrics such satire. I am so pleased I got to listen the Bard of Minnesota, life would be so empty with out him., its alright ma, its life and life only ............

[@paulobrien7557]

Whey good on ya

[@flyhigh2808]

Best form of rap

[@charlieboardman2005]

How the fuck do you write a song this good lmao

[@monkeyspeaker686]

Dang this is the first Bob Dylan song I have listened to the entire thing, it’s pretty great

[@peterbetts858]

NEXT LISTEN TO MASTERS OF WAR . forever young , maggies farm ,all along the watchtower . etc , etc .

[@TrishBell1]

Late night music listening on KZAP. it's all good.

[@CRIMSONKINGRAGE]

First ever RAP-HIP/HOP music This is who they learned it from.

[@shanecoyle8499]

Not only one of dylans best songs but that album kicks the shite outta me in a good way of course !!

[@myyoutube887]

live and live moore

[@aiiiia9971]

Literally found this song from a quote on a "GOOD EARTH CO." teabag. Did not regret.

[@camshaft42]

I'm going to force everyone I know to listen to this at my funeral

[@rehamnasser6049]

good

[@stanleydavis7904]

Hendrix dug him right out the gate Hendrix also said Terry Kath is better than him.take a boss to even think like that.

[@SiD14KiLLs]

Only Dylan could have released such a sharp, biting song that is still relevant to this day.

[@markwall9282]

Try Steppenwolf,s Monster.

[@paulhynes170]

Something about the song it’s deep you get dragged in by the lyrics and the guitar at the same time - it’s kind of hypnotic beyond its time

[@collinadams2906]

And I think it shall always be relevant.

[@paulhynes170]

Collin Adams - it’s timeless you would not think it was written 55 years ago probably the most profound song I have listen to I have always wondered how he played this on the guitar tried it myself but can not find a version with the chords or notes he is using whilst he recorded this

[@SiD14KiLLs]

@@paulhynes170 try the version on dylanchords.info

[@Wuei108]

[Verse 1] Darkness at the break of noon Shadows even the silver spoon The handmade blade, the child's balloon Eclipses both the sun and moon To understand you know too soon There is no sense in trying [Verse 2] Pointed threats they bluff with scorn Suicide remarks are torn From the fools gold mouthpiece the hollow horn Plays wasted words, proves to warn That he not busy being born Is busy dying [Verse 3] Temptation's page flies out the door You follow, find yourself at war Watch waterfalls of pity roar You feel to moan, but unlike before You discover that you'd just be one more Person crying [Chorus] So don't fear if you hear A foreign sound to your ear It's alright, Ma, I'm only sighing [Verse 4] As some warn victory, some downfall Private reasons, great or small Can be seen in the eyes of those that call To make all that should be killed to crawl While others say don't hate nothing at all Except hatred [Verse 5] Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Make everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It's easy to see without lookin' too far That not much is really sacred [Verse 6] While preachers preach of evil fates Teachers teach that knowledge waits Can lead to hundred-dollar plates Goodness hides behind its gates But even the President of the United States Sometimes must have to stand naked [Chorus] And though the rules of the road have been lodged It's only people's games that you got to dodge And it's alright, Ma, I can make it [Verse 7] Advertising signs that con You into thinking you're the one That can do what's never been done That can win what's never been won Meantime, life outside goes on All around you [Verse 8] You lose yourself, you reappear You suddenly find you got nothing to fear Alone you stand with nobody near When a trembling distant voice, unclear Startles your sleeping ears to hear That somebody thinks they really found you [Verse 9] A question in your nerves is lit Yet you know there is no answer fit To satisfy, ensure you not to quit To keep it in your mind and not forget That it is not he, or she, or them, or it That you belong to [Chorus] But though the masters make the rules For the wise men and the fools I got nothing, Ma, to live up to [Verse 10] For them that must obey authority That they do not respect in any degree Who despise their jobs, their destiny Speak jealously of them that are free Do what they do just to be Nothing more than something they invest in [Verse 11] While some on principles baptized To strict party platform ties Social clubs in drag disguise Outsiders they can freely criticize Tell nothing except who to idolize And say "God bless him" [Verse 12] While one who sings with his tongue on fire Gargles in the rat race choir Bent out of shape from society's pliers Cares not to come up any higher But rather get you down in the hole That he's in [Chorus] But I mean no harm, nor put fault On anyone that lives in a vault But it's alright, Ma, if I can't please him [Verse 13] Old lady judges watch people in pairs Limited in sex, they dare To push fake morals, insult and stare While money doesn't talk, it swears Obscenity, who really cares Propaganda, all is phony [Verse 14] While them that defend what they cannot see With a killer's pride, security It blows the minds most bitterly For them that think death's honesty Won't fall upon 'em naturally Life sometimes must get lonely [Verse 15] My eyes collide head-on with stuffed Graveyards, false goals, I scuff At pettiness which plays so rough Walk upside down inside handcuffs Kick my legs to crash it off Say, okay, I've had enough What else can you show me? [Chorus] And if my thought-dreams could be seen They'd probably put my head in a guillotine But it's alright, Ma, it's life, and life only

[@walkingmanhisdogtakingvide3901]

Thank you for posting the lyrics

[@Wuei108]

@@walkingmanhisdogtakingvide3901 You are welcome.

[@coffeehugger]

That was helpful, obviously a die hard fan. :)

[@keitheddie5]

@@coffeehugger there are many here among us who think that life is but a joke

[@patrickgirard7645]

Verset 6 mauvaise traduction... C'est plutôt.. Même le président des États-Unis doit un moment se tenir nu !

[@christophert.5954]

When you listen to this song in your car, your car explodes after a while.

[@sametharmanc3816]

Mine exploded while ago :)

[@secko1983]

Only if you have a catalytic converter

[@davidwood9966]

Only if you park on leaves

[@elstonngunn4193]

@@davidwood9966 hahahaha sopranos

[@damienvantassel7686]

I played this song in my car, and the song exploded.

[@1DaTJo]

Even Bob himself says he's in awe of this song. And to think he wrote it when he was just 23. I love Bob Dylan so much and I totally love this song.

[@danielcropp8553]

"He not busy being born is busy dying." Happy Birthday, Bob Dylan! 80 years old today. :)

[@SallyGeewiz57]

And STILL doing his NET Never Ending Tour.

[@joemarshall4226]

That line has two meanings....one, the obvious...we all get closer to death every day, but the second means that you have to be learning and growing in order to avoid spiritually dying.

[@rmiddlehouse]

“The masters make the rules, for the wise men and the fools” is a line that reoriented my thinking for the rest of my life

[@shinyguy3766]

The old Republic will rise in the ashes of this new world like a phoenix.

[@tysonrinker5958]

No kidding

[@waynejohanson1083]

The Song goes deep

[@jm-tl6od]

MASONS

[@Elrond_Hubbard_1]

@@jm-tl6od The globe-Earth is a Masonic lie.

[@mator2339]

One of the best songs ever written in the history of mankind.

[@paulobrien7557]

That's a big like from me

[@pavlovsunhappydog]

And me..

[@hippiecheezburger5457]

It’s life and life only

[@SuperToombs]

you took the comment right out of my brain

[@rogertopp3551]

Second that

[@brianripley3924]

Easy to see why Bob Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize, his verses are so meaningful and enduring.

[@vincenzoverse-anon6230]

His Words are so deep indeed so many depths

[@DeniseLaFranceCDNpainter-z9g]

True

[@theholyearthgod1363]

Nobel equals shit now that the mindboggling Bob Dylan has departed the deep state

[@shiitakestick]

The Holy Earth God - when then enjoy your prize..

[@shiitakestick]

Brian Ripley - jeez , took long enough ..

[@innesmackintosh214]

Blows my mind every time that a person actually wrote those lyrics

[@nikkifisher1998]

I thought this was a pretty good track all in all

[@LosHuxleys]

The rhyme scheme is so complex it is almost ridiculous

[@blank9354]

More like the devil..

[@chrismendoza4355]

He admitted there was a magic(devils) that came over him and that he couldn't do it again of he tried. In an interview speaking about his bargain with the devil.

[@guillermosantolaria9932]

@@chrismendoza4355 lol

[@claudettepreisinger]

Best lyrics he ever wrote. I was a teenager when I first heard this, and it gave me chills....Still does...To say the least, he speaks the truth, the raw truth....

[@meyou-dv8ns]

What does it mean? At least Frank Zappa got to the point when he wrote Trouble coming every day on his 1966 freak out album

[@claudettepreisinger]

@@meyou-dv8ns If you really don't understand these lyrics, then you must live in a fairy land bubble....

[@SpTh2]

@@meyou-dv8ns Some lyrics are somewhat up to interpretation but some have solid meanings that really put things into perspective, I encourage you to find and read the lyrics instead of looking for other people's explanations online, as some of those explanations are plagued by the same things the lyrics try to warn you about, really does say a lot. If you're into Frank Zappa then you probably shouldn't have to go far to find the meaning. Zappa shared a large part of his ideology with Dylan, but unfortunately, unlike Dylan, his lyrics mostly fell on deaf ears.

[@jackzaffos9347]

I was a teenager as well when I first heard this. I got the chills then and now at 73!

[@claudettepreisinger]

@@jackzaffos9347 Agreed...

[@jamesdalessandro1120]

A flat out masterpiece, among a library of masterpieces. I danced around the room when Dylan won the Nobel Prize in Literature - as deserving as anyone. How many times have I said "He not busy being born is busy dying." In the history of contemporary music, Dylan stands alone.

[@midnightok3er]

Also give kendrick Lamar credit. It was an unconventional but well deserved tip of the cap.

[@layicorn]

Kendrick Lamar is the Bob Dylan of modern music

[@ajaypalsinghbhatti8901]

Master of words. A magician of words. Cheers mr. Bob Zimmerman Dylan. Live long.

[@p51abc]

I'm a Dylan fan and I didn't dance with the prize. He ignored it for months, he didn't even initially want it. I understand its just a popularity contest, often going to those who are the most politically aligned with the times, proven by the long list of deserved authors who were ignored by it for the contemporary Pied Piper of that moment.... I love Dylan but prizes are nothing, nor are criticisms.

[@latitudeselongitudes1932]

Artistically,culturally,to me,the 20th century is Dylan,The Beatles and Picasso. Iconic,gigantic forces of art,creativity

[@jerryhoward8133]

I am blown away every time I listen to this masterpiece. A cutting edge look at how really fucked up humanity is. The man transcends the word iconic.

[@LosHuxleys]

A masterpiece of poetry.

[@davecespedes5674]

Imagine being able to write this song. Bob's a fucking master, there's no other song like this one, fucking great.

[@Max_j9578]

There are other songs, they're also Bob Dylan songs.

[@markmcgrath8051]

You know Kidda😉

[@edwardcoe7293]

Hey man, don't sit on the fence - say what you really think! 😉

[@ajaypalsinghbhatti8901]

He is the best boss in the poetry. Pure bliss like gold.

[@midnightok3er]

Like, what was going on in his head? This is theology via guitar n song.

[@iamd.j.7590]

Easily some of the most haunting lyrics ever and presented in a haunting way

[@not2tees]

True - not only the words but the voice are full of the shock of the whatever it is that makes things true.

[@wighto73]

he was... connected!

[@dwalden74]

He was 23 yrs old when he wrote this. 🤯

[@roquetinsixtysix]

Effing amazing, isn't it? It's like there had to be an older soul residing in that body for such a young person to create something like this!

[@Blackbird58]

I was thinking that very same thing!

[@MrBigShotFancyPants]

​@@roquetinsixtysixI was thinking something more spiritual. 🤔

[@Garo-cx8pf]

@@roquetinsixtysix The Jewish Tavistock Institute made him do it, devil in disguise and all that.

[@joemarshall4226]

@@roquetinsixtysix And so MANY songs equally as profound, written in the three years before this one.....Mr Tambourine Man, Masters of War, God on their Side, Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, Ballad of Hollis Brown, Ramblin' Gamblin' Willie, The Times They are A Changin', Don't Think Twice, Walls of Red wing, North Country Blues, Lay Down Your Weary Tune, Who Killed Davey Moore?, Only A Pawn in Their Game, Blowin In The Wind., Ballad in Plain D, Chimes of Freedom........etc etc etc...some of them never made it to an album! Too many other good ones blocking their way!

[@phriedokra6158]

Sadly, NOTHINGS CHANGED since he wrote this...

[@Freespeech141]

Judy Corso Oh Yes! Still the song for a young person questioning!!

[@redskindan78]

Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Made everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It's easy to see without looking too far That not much is really sacred While preachers preach of evil fates Teachers teach that knowledge waits Can lead to hundred-dollar plates Goodness hides behind its gates But even the president of the United States Sometimes must have to stand naked An' though the rules of the road have been lodged It's only people's games that you got to dodge And it's alright, Ma, I can make it

[@robertwhitby5192]

Desire to change, is the enemy of love.

[@rogertopp3551]

That part is like a broken record, same crap different day, decade, century

[@thesongtowoody]

Theres nothing sad. Theres good news, Christ died for sinners and all who believe in him and his work will PHYSICALLY rise just as Jesus rose. If you dont believe that. Why are you sad? just blow your head off what difference does it make from an atheistic worldview? Why are you boo hoo ing if your just a grow up germ of evolution and randomn processes? be consistent, either the universe is cold and indifferent and you should stop crying if not, get yourself into a healthy church, pray, and read the bible. Great song, but this song wont lead you to the ultimate truth. its brilliant but leaves you stuck in a dead end vicious cycle. in one sense, the song means nothing and tells you nothing. you think there is some brilliant truth in there? the delivery is brilliant but the answer not there, thats why dylan knew he eventually had to write precious angel and when he returns.

[@Snowdrift68]

His birthday is on Monday. Eighty years old. A miracle that him and I are still both alive. And I agree..some of his songs are true poetry set to music. It has been said, poetry is the only magic there is. They can teach you to do just about anything but not how to write a real poem. God bless

[@ajaypalsinghbhatti8901]

Bob is bob only one in millions. Live long bob Zimmerman. Pure poetry pure truth.truth hurts but truth is like the sun. Shining always.

[@dixonpinfold2582]

If they have their choice, most people will worship the human form, and language. It branches out from there, but those two things seem to be at the core.

[@gregmann8981]

It's amazing that he could write something like this and then do an about face and be totally calm and removed from all the bullshit and in a knowing and contemplative spirit write something like Watching The River Flow with Leon Russell. If you've never heard: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lam1naKgqamXe9U

[@joshuapriestley5307]

Simply genius at some point in every human beings life they should hear this

[@dougpeters1625]

With a song like this one could argue that Bob was the godfather of rap

[@RoseAbatematteo]

I totally agree🎉🎉🎉My sons a rapper and he totally agrees too!

[@fadethechannel]

You might actually be surprised to know that a lot of lyrically inclined gen x rappers count Dylan as an inspiration.

[@3xtan327]

Rappers still drop references to Bob Dylan quite often.

[@nameeman1562]

No because this song is intelligently written

[@Herzeleydt_Diesentrueb]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/g3jbm3x4er-prpI

[@JM-co6rf]

The greatest lyrics of ALL TIME. Sorry folks, the game is over.

[@bluegenes2273]

Oh, man. That's a tall order.

[@bluegenes2273]

Of course david bowie is in the running. I'd put cake on the list, too. I kinda want to say cab calloway and harry nilsson, but that's my own personal taste. I'm going to fall asleep listing bands for sure, haha

[@bojokeson9001]

Don't forget nirvana has this issue like most seem too in pop music. What's up with Danny's Song, that fraternity mentioned in the lyrics didn't exist I don't think until like 15 years later

[@tyrekecantrell5941]

@@bluegenes2273 Cake?! Is that some joke?

[@bluegenes2273]

@@tyrekecantrell5941 cake. not cakez.

[@warmwoolsoxgood4559]

This is the song I carried around verbatim in my head since I was a young girl. I’ve not heard it sung in years, and came back to it today, to check on it to see how much I've changed. I found not much at all, except for a certain knowledge that I’m witless and that we are all in this together. God bless the man whose soul found these words and shared them with this tired, desperate world. In their phrasing, they’re damning, and in their entirety, they are uplifting, in a sincerity of truths that stagger us individually, yet can be absorbed as one. May he live longer than I do.

[@eslovexc]

Truth

[@midnightok3er]

Well said.

[@tiddybagel]

Amazing articulation of the beauty of this masterpiece .

[@zoey9764]

Right On !!!

[@nonconformist9991]

Check out last thoughts on Woodie Guthrie one of the greatest poems ever written by Bob Dylan.

[@dwolf0823]

Keep it in your mind and don't forget that it is not he, she, them, or it that you belong to.

[@not2tees]

I used to sit and listen to this over and over when I was a teenager, and I'm still amazed by it about 60 years later.

[@Freespeech141]

not2tees Me too! What a gift

[@michaelcelani8325]

It has a biult in contradiction that adds to it's power. Each verse is sad. Things that are wrong and unfair and even terrifying about life, that are not understandable. And yet the over all effect is one of energy, and maybe even joy. (dare I say it ). He says don't worry Ma, I will make it. It is really a Mountain of emotions and reactions to this world we all live in. ( a Dylan quote I really like, " The world that is seen- and the world that is not seen" ). ..for me it can be overwhelming sometimes .

[@ala0284]

Wow. Just wow. Its like someone distilled all of the thoughts of millions of people about the problems of life into a seven minute song. Incredible

[@scottsaunders5087]

More meaning in one song than many artists can achieve in an entire career

[@_scabs6669]

Than any artist... Maybe the Smiths

[@mindsigh4]

or takes a lifetime to get nuance after nuance & still not uncover them all like doin a jigsaw puzzle without the picture on the box

[@denniscannon7834]

Written by the best song writer ever

[@flutterby1210]

@@denniscannon7834 Got that right!

[@lenacohen8913]

​@@denniscannon7834nope. The best song writer ever was Leonard Cohen.

[@AB-mf8le]

If any other artist released 'Bringing it all back home' it would be their magnum opus and they would dine out on it for decades afterwards. For Dylan it was just another album. Amongst his back catalogue it doesn't even really stand out. A freakish talent

[@elstonngunn4193]

It does come on it’s an amazing album it is definitely one of his best definitely top 5 anyway, it stands out massively w sum of his best songs like it’s all over now baby blue mr tambourine man subterranean homesick blues and gates of Eden and love minus zeros

[@matthewbrown4737]

Truth

[@JM-co6rf]

'freakish talent', well put

[@padgemahaj3167]

And to think rolling stone put Kanye west on their list off albums ahead of this masterpiece of an album what drugs are they smoking this song alone is better anything Kanye west done and will ever do

[@AB-mf8le]

@@elstonngunn4193 Oh I'm right there with ya it's a stunning album. I just think in an amongst Freewheelin, BOTT, Highway 61, Blonde on Blonde, John Wesley Harding, Desire, Oh Mercy etc etc it really is just another album

[@2468pebble]

Masterclass. What must it have been like, being Bob Dylan and having these songs surging out of you?

[@jonathanb1406]

It always blows my mind that this was recorded in one take.

[@heynow2302]

Dylan is a true Music Artist that's my thoughts on it.🙂

[@jonathanb1406]

@@heynow2302 Well, that's not in question. But he still has multiple takes for many of his songs, yet he recorded one take and one take alone of this song and nailed it in one, even after moments earlier saying he really didn't want to do it because it's so long. The fact it's so long and lyrically dense and he still just knocked it out in one is wild to me.

[@stephenham6512]

Because it had to be said and he knew he was the one who had to say it

[@Blandy0487]

I think everything was those days

[@jonathanb1406]

@@Blandy0487 It wasn't.

[@david-pb4bi]

Every line in this song would be a career defining for almost everybody else.

[@DrCreepen]

One of my biggest regrets during my 4+ decades on this planet is that I've never been able to appreciate Dylan as much as I feel I should.. Dare ı say it, I might finally be starting to see the light.

[@martincvitkovich724]

His concerts in the 70's & 80's were killers. Unfortunately his voice as of late is getting too rough. But I'd take a Dylan song anyday!

[@sethstine4698]

Once you get it; you get it. There is no turning back or shutting that door. Revelation of epic proportions. Same with an epiphany/ontological confrontation after taking LSD or psilocybin.

[@oobedoos]

better late than never

[@radcow]

Wow really spoke to me in my teens

[@kevanbrown7620]

@@sethstine4698You've hit the nail on the head there, once you get Dylan, that's it, you become aware, like acid, you see things in a different light, you realise you're here, breathing, being, that's what getting Dylan is like, he's a true legend, he is in the musical company of The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, such big influences. Some people never get Dylan, they say "I like that song he wrote that someone else done", aaahh. Anyway I love Dylan, to the extent I have almost all of his releases, apart from his 'Sinatra' trilogy, I have all of his studio releases, all of the bootleg series Vol 1-15, and over half of his live albums, which I will complete soon.

[@charlessullivan5370]

Every time I hear this song, and a litany of other Dylan songs, old and new, it blows my mind. Without blinking, Dylan explores the dystopic side of America, the side the masses lack the courage to face. A masterpiece in every way.

[@dgold2271]

This is the fabric of life in a song. No judgement no expectations...and most importantly no explanation. Thank you mrD. For all of it.

[@MerkinMuffly]

Has there ever been a greater, more prolific poet? I think not.

[@marianmisirgic4005]

Yes,it is.

[@abigailclarkwall1935]

@@nextideathink.it’s only people’s games you got to dodge!

[@andygrant9733]

Try Paul Simon

[@branthomas1621]

@@nextideathink Wash your mouth out boy, Kayne West and go West and stay. Hogwash

[@thebacons5943]

@@andygrant9733 Simon? lolololololololololololol stop

[@brittneybrisbin744]

This is probably the best song I've ever heard. Brilliant songwriting. So glad I found Bob Dylan.

[@CivilizedWarrior]

If you like Dylan you should check out John Prine. One of my favorite folk singers and lyricists. And he’s funny as shit to boot.

[@smithwilliam6837]

Did not know that you lost him

[@jaboi32]

Ameen/Amen to that

[@geneevans2600]

​@@CivilizedWarrior... and wasn't rapped up in himself

[@Internutt2023]

Back then, Bob was more of a poet who could put music to his work. He was the next in line after Paul Simon to make an impact in the 60's with very thoughtful lyrics.

[@nikunashi3494]

'Bent out of shape by society's pliers'. So much truth here if almost scary.

[@celtickshatriya4306]

Cares not to come up any higher,but rather drag u down in the hole that hes in.😊

[@maximumoccupancy]

This is the most perfect song ever. The lyrics cover literally every theme imaginable and you can always find new meaning in this after hearing it more than 1,000 times. I would know.

[@vincenzoverse-anon6230]

I know huh, lol

[@tomquazar3472]

That's why he is called the poet!

[@AJ-oc5eh]

totally agree.

[@rogertopp3551]

Allways fresh, even after a 1000 times

[@BeeHatGuy]

I agree. Can't wait to see your movie

[@jamesbueker11]

Memorized the lyrics and performed it as a spoken piece for a high school drama final. The room was just silent. I got an A. The song still has that shock value

[@CAPTMAHI]

Horse balls.

[@jillybe1873]

Wow!!!

[@hermione9445]

And some of your school mates stil remember l bet .👍

[@_scabs6669]

Yes, the devil is said to have written it

[@charliebrown3579]

Excellent feat dude

[@ConeFlower-gx2qk]

There’s something darkly magical about Bob Dylan idk how to explain it. It’s like someone seeing through a veil

[@jefffawcett]

My first time hearing this. Holy shit, amazing. Every word even more appropriate today 55 years later. And I never knew that Bob Dylan invented rap 😀

[@mattmoore377]

Listen to Subterranean Homesick Blues

[@tzcomp]

@@mattmoore377 Amen!

[@tubhair]

Dylan himself says he doesn’t know where this and other songs of this era came from. Touched by The Divine Hand.

[@patcurrie3313]

I wrote all of dylans songs ha ha ha

[@loganreece3263]

@Dangerz Own Psychedelics do NOT give one such depth of vocabulary and skill of language as is necessary to write songs like Dylan´s.

[@shiitakestick]

not touched by the Divine Hand , more like kicked in the ass by the Divine Foot !

[@jamiewebber8555]

Guy had a near-death experience as a teenager, then was at a Buddy Holly concert when he was 17, two days before Holly died - probably helps a bit to open a person's eyes

[@sherrih.2693]

All poets bring the essence of history of others coming into their realm like ghosts wishing to speak.

[@chuckwilliam4746]

There aren't words sufficient enough to describe this song's greatness

[@Xiaolongbaokid16]

The lyrics.... one or maybe the most profound and perhaps the deepest ever written.

[@robertJ14]

When the Beatles met Dylan the Universe should've ended from some like chemical reaction of musical and public expression genius

[@jeffthrow6892]

There are no words to accurately describe how brilliant this song is.......one of my top favorite Dylan songs, from one of his very best albums......

[@juancamacho5746]

Darkness at the break of noon Shadows even the silver spoon The handmade blade, the child’s balloon Eclipses both the sun and moon To understand you know too soon There is no sense in trying Pointed threats they bluff with scorn Suicide remarks are torn From the fools gold mouthpiece the hollow horn Plays wasted words, proves to warn That he not busy being born Is busy dying Temptation's page flies out the door You follow, find yourself at war Watch waterfalls of pity roar You feel to moan, but unlike before You discover that you'd just be one more Person crying So don't fear if you hear A foreign sound to your ear It's alright, Ma, I'm only sighing As some warn victory, some downfall Private reasons, great or small Can be seen in the eyes of those that call To make all that should be killed to crawl While others say don't hate nothing at all Except hatred Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Make everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It's easy to see without lookin' too far That not much is really sacred While preachers preach of evil fates Teachers teach that knowledge waits Can lead to hundred-dollar plates Goodness hides behind its gates But even the President of the United States Sometimes must have to stand naked And though the rules of the road have been lodged It's only people's games that you got to dodge And it's alright, Ma, I can make it Advertising signs that con You into thinking you're the one That can do what's never been done That can win what's never been won Meantime, life outside goes on All around you You lose yourself, you reappear You suddenly find you got nothing to fear Alone you stand with nobody near When a trembling distant voice, unclear Startles your sleeping ears to hear That somebody thinks they really found you A question in your nerves is lit Yet you know there is no answer fit To satisfy, ensure you not to quit To keep it in your mind and not forget That it is not he, or she, or them, or it That you belong to But though the masters make the rules For the wise men and the fools I got nothing, Ma, to live up to For them that must obey authority That they do not respect in any degree Who despise their jobs, their destiny Speak jealously of them that are free Do what they do just to be Nothing more than something they invest in While some on principles baptized To strict party platform ties Social clubs in drag disguise Outsiders they can freely criticize Tell nothing except who to idolize And say "God bless him" While one who sings with his tongue on fire Gargles in the rat race choir Bent out of shape from society's pliers Cares not to come up any higher But rather get you down in the hole That he's in But I mean no harm, nor put fault On anyone that lives in a vault But it's alright, Ma, if I can't please him Old lady judges watch people in pairs Limited in sex, they dare To push fake morals, insult and stare While money doesn't talk, it swears Obscenity, who really cares Propaganda, all is phony While them that defend what they cannot see With a killer's pride, security It blows the minds most bitterly For them that think death's honesty Won't fall upon 'em naturally Life sometimes must get lonely My eyes collide head-on with stuffed Graveyards, false goals, I scuff At pettiness which plays so rough Walk upside down inside handcuffs Kick my legs to crash it off Say, okay, I've had enough What else can you show me? And if my thought-dreams could be seen They'd probably put my head in a guillotine But it's alright, Ma, it's life, and life only

[@PharaohDeathMask]

Thanks for the lyrics. You're a legend.

[@vickyscrivener5708]

This song opens all the windows: pure genius, it is as relevant now as it was in 1965.

[@catbreath8361]

DUde grow up.

[@Benjamin-hughgreen-Mcd]

Vicky You are Correct my dear 😊

[@Benjamin-hughgreen-Mcd]

It is relevant as it's not ever goin to change with the Master of War 😅

[@RebeccaJarisch]

Yep… the dogs of war. Pink Floyd

[@jeremyclevenger3972]

You grow up!​@@catbreath8361

[@ciaranosullivan9352]

"Bent out of shape from society's pliers". Ok, the Nobel prize is deserved for that line just by itself.

[@joemarshall4226]

Walk Upside Down Inside Handcuffs......that's a painting, right there....

[@roblifely9244]

"He not busy being born is busy dying" and "Money doesn't talk, it swears" Two of the greatest lines ever written, and they're both in the same song!! This guy should be nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature

[@billneary691]

Shakespearian words, he's a Bard.

[@Blackgeoff1]

That's very good ..

[@micheleulysse]

I agree! Always did! But he actually won it in 2016...

[@lynnkent2318]

Absolutely!!

[@ivanmclaren9509]

Yeah, seems he sold his soul to the devil... that's who would get the Nobel Prize.

[@Leon-zu1wp]

How someone can be upset Bob Dylan won a Nobel Prize for Literature I will never understand.

[@tuscanyiscol]

I think Bob was upset by it - he didn’t accept it. he doesn’t like awards

[@caseydinicola6193]

I cannot begin to explain how much this song has done for me. Thank you for being there always, Bob Dylan.

[@Bryanadamsmusicinc]

Hello dear, how’re you doing today? It’s nice meeting you on here.

[@2paraLLknight]

Has friend. In busnessof fish

[@2paraLLknight]

Is it?

[@2paraLLknight]

Thank you Patti Smith for being a true Dylan fan your purrformance purfect tell em z

[@mawtymawty9010]

I listened to this while laying in bed at the peak of an acid trip. While all the other songs happened around me, this one seemed to live directly inside my brain. I looked up at the shadows on the candlelit ceiling and saw Christ on the cross. Very strange.

[@angusmount3913]

I believe u

[@scottrhodes6923]

WOW!!!

[@matthewbowen3987]

Its on my shroom play list

[@richardyoung7415]

I SEE HIM THERE EVERY NIGHT, COOL SHIT YEAH. PEACE BE WITH YOU ALL MY FRIEND'S. 🙏✌️😎🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@chriswillock1062]

Good choice sir

[@Max_j9578]

I can't believe I've listened to this song almost 700,000 times.

[@whatisup4811]

I also can't believe that. 4.38(the length of the song in minutes)x700 000=3066000 seconds 3066000=851.6666667 hours.

[@Max_j9578]

@@whatisup4811 I actually clicked on the song 7000 times at once, and did it once every day for the next ten days.

[@whatisup4811]

@@Max_j9578 Why? I get it, I like the song but that seems excessive

[@christinafidance340]

I’m listening to Bob and missing my ma SO MUCH right now! She passed away 6 years ago right before Christmas. She first got me into Bob when I was about 10. The very first song she ever played for me was Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 and she explained to me how it had 2 meanings, but to never ever tell my dad she let he hear it! Lol. God, I MISS HER SO MUCH!!! She was my biggest fan! Always there to tell me how proud she was of me and now I’m just a sobbing 49 year old baby crying my eyes out! I took her to see Bob 8 (EIGHT!) times and Tom Petty twice and Stevie Nicks once and I wouldn’t trade those memories for the world! I miss you, mom!

[@midnightok3er]

Great way to connect. I'm sorry for your loss.

[@marciahoaglen9971]

I totally fell your heartfelt words. Not many parents heard this poets words with so much passion. Your Mom a treasure.

[@donvirili1691]

Yea my mom died too April 31 2021 I miss her very much, the cops took my Mitsubishi lancer left me in the rain walking home .on shut down could not make car payment what a planed attack to break up family! The rules of the road have been logged only peoples gains you have to dodge. (I Have nothing to live up too!)

[@TheHopeyounginak]

Oh she must be a very proud and lucky mother!!

[@bainbasinger8548]

may peace wash all over your beutiful self

[@roseannamoran6545]

The 82 dislikes on this song are Insane.

[@DeniseLaFranceCDNpainter-z9g]

or pro war or stupid or both

[@davidwhitehouse7719]

True !

[@jameshadfield2658]

you can't have light without the dark. peace

[@josephvonbulow1164]

143 poor bastards 😋

[@mtd1089]

AJ Soprano was one of them 😂

[@joelcoote4525]

I don't say this lightly - This IS lyrically the BEST song EVER written and recorded.

[@anarchyeddy27]

I agree, but I think that about a lot of his songs.

[@Harmonicaman1000]

Joel Coote oh yes. He shares his heart and story✝️🕊🎶👍

[@mysticwine]

He was a master of 1 liners. "I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now"

[@sidDkid87]

*"money doesn't talk, it swears"*

[@Katarinatorn]

Humans are the only ones that has to PAY to live on their own planet. That is going to change soon though lol

[@sidDkid87]

@@Katarinatorn this planet has no need for us

[@Judahwidtfeldt]

Bob Dylan paints a picture in his songs because he is such a good story teller. This song is life squeezed into a seven minute song.

[@splotbang8296]

Today, Bob has no idea how he wrote songs like this. That magic is long gone. This from an interview he did on 60 minutes.

[@inoshikachokonoyarobakayar2493]

The clip of him saying that brought me here. 😆 He iight'

[@joejones9520]

he stopped taking speed

[@Henry-Paget]

One of the most accurate and scathing attacks on the sacred cow of American values ever written. The man is a prophet.

[@theiceman6941]

Brilliant song and songwriter. Not a prophet

[@blairpico3195]

Dylan free-styling like a MACK DADDY a decade before Eminem was even born

[@roquetinsixtysix]

This might be the most amazing song Dylan ever wrote!

[@TeddyRidal]

Sounds like folk rap 😁

[@Blackbird58]

I think you might be right with that, nobody ever had as much scope in their songwriting, nobody ever made me think so much about what I was listening to-he has enriched my life no end..

[@joemarshall4226]

@@Blackbird58 Agreed. When I hear people say that Townes Van zandt, Joni Mitchell, Paul SImon, John Prine, Robert Hunter, or Conor Oberst are Bob's equalls, or even better, I use this same argument. Their best songs are right up there with some of his best......Both Sides Now, Tecumseh Valley, Sounds of Silence, Paradise, etc....but the variety and scope, and depth in Dylan is rivalled by no one. So many different subjects, so much analysis, so many different rhyme schemes, so many styles.....lyrically, he's in a class by himself.

[@michaelhoage6704]

it mAkES me wonder how he can remember all his versus wow

[@randomletters8486]

Imagine hearing this on the radio today...

[@MrPiccolop]

no chance. there would be uproar from the powers that be.

[@randomletters8486]

@@MrPiccolop it would be nipped in the bud by the censors that be, im so glad to hear it live.

[@vinterkatt1959]

The public today are so impressed by image,fireworks and totally meaningless lyrics😢

[@hatsuseno]

This was brilliantly used in The Sopranos final episode.

[@blueschewy2558]

Too bad the CD went up in flames with the Xterra.

[@avlacier]

And Billions

[@landerperez]

That's where i discovered it

[@cravinbob]

and in "Easy Rider"

[@brianjayne140]

Stems on blondie

[@jonwright6628]

The track to play your friend who doesn't get what all the fuss is about.

[@beverlyfielder9425]

I'm still Spellbound after all of these years I can't get enough of this guy he's infectious

[@Bryanadamsmusicinc]

Hello dear, how’re you doing today? It’s nice meeting you on here.

[@deborahlauterbach6156]

Nobody can top this one. Greatest ever written.

[@AngusWare-mi3zp]

“I kept telling you this guy was good” The Sopranos

[@JeanetteFaith]

I had this album and listened to this over and over. I can't even imagine how long it took to write it. Genius!!!!!!!

[@Tuning_Spork]

I'll bet he spent less than an hour writing it. That's how he rolled.

[@JeanetteFaith]

@@Tuning_Spork Maybe! Or maybe he dreamed about it over 10 years.................

[@Kelvinack]

It was probably more stream of consciousness poetry, he puffed it out in half an hour maximum

[@DeniseLaFranceCDNpainter-z9g]

@@Tuning_Spork Agreed. Free-verse off top of his head; wildly-scrawling at midnight.

[@Max_j9578]

true poets can just think, and put it on a page. this could have taken half an hour or 2 hours. Poetry is natural, it is truly nature.

[@Hopeless_and_Forlorn]

Now I remember Frances, the girl downstairs and Joan Baez clone, who played the guitar and tried to make me see the evil being done in Vietnam. But I was too dumb, too naive, too fresh from military service to listen. Regrets? Hell, yes.

[@jameshadfield2658]

you seem to have it now and that's a good thing. peace

[@dlees5895]

Thanks for your service and welcome home.

[@lovinlifejosh3888]

But it's 'ok' because it's not just a regret. It's living sign that something else was in the way. That is why there is no reason to get stuck on the regret. If none of us are ever innocent again in the long run, then we shall not feel guilt either.

[@midnightok3er]

Hindsight right? Hey you made it back though.

[@dennisg.582]

While them that defend what they cannot see With a killer's pride, security It blows the minds most bitterly For them that think death's honesty Won't fall upon 'em naturally Life sometimes must get lonely

[@leonmeizlik9211]

Yes. One of the best lyrics in this masterpiece. I cannot believe Dylan wrote this without heavenly intervention.

[@mitch2620]

I know it’s a difficult choice, but his greatest? He was on fire writing this masterpiece.

[@nonamo]

I'm thinking, maybe his greatest.

[@LosHuxleys]

Lirically? Yeah maybe… perhaps the most complicated rhyme scheme he created. But some other works like Desolation Row are equally creative in the imagery they paint…

[@StatistikinDD]

@@LosHuxleys Good choice. Yet so much to choose from ... Jokerman. Or the obvious Like A Rolling Stone. Personally, I think Changing of the Guard is brilliant.

[@bluegregory6239]

@@nonamo His 'best' is subjective, but this is certainly my favorite Dylan song.

[@antonettakutschera5077]

I can't believe that he is so gifted to remember every and I mean every word every time he performs this song, this man is very prophetic. Never will there another Bob Dylan, seems to me that God is rather fond of him, I know I am!!!!

[@Katarinatorn]

God is fond of him yes

[@TheMidnightModder]

God is fond of every human because He created every one of us. But unless we accept the Father and the Son then we're denying the creator and He will not force His will onto us. It wouldn't surprise me if Dylan has ditched the gospel. But it also wouldn't surprise me if he's accepted Christ.

[@oliverfan9816]

@@TheMidnightModder When your mind dives into these deep dark places you find that you're forced to fall in to some religion, simply to stay sane.

[@TheMidnightModder]

@@oliverfan9816 For the most part, yes. Because God heals.

[@annahelms4701]

Those who wax on about popularity and acceptance don't seem to understand that those issues were not a priority for Bob especially as he matured....he followed his inspiration and let the chips fall where they may

[@Bryanadamsmusicinc]

Hello dear, how’re you doing today? It’s nice meeting you on here.

[@maximumoccupancy]

Most of the best songs of all time are easy to call "beautiful," but not this one. It has so much bite and depth to it that to call it beautiful would be to miss the point of it entirely.

[@abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz4676]

You would know, you've heard it over a thousand times

[@jameshadfield2658]

so what shall we call it then? I like hopefully tragic.

[@petershort1932]

Good point....BUT if you consider beauty as homesty, well, then...

[@maximumoccupancy]

@@petershort1932 Honesty isn't beauty. Honesty is honesty. That's why there are two different words.

[@wilhelmbeermann2424]

Truth is Beauty. Schönheit liegt in der Wahrheit.......

[@georgerakis1795]

Written over 60 yrs ago, the relevance of this song with the state of our society as it is today is mind blowing. Dylan nails it again.

[@PatrickPierceBateman]

Bob Dylan, he's more creative than Spielberg and predicts thing just like Quasimodo.

[@MrDaoJones]

I think it just kind of goes to show that while many things have appeared to change since then, nothing really has

[@80sRadDad]

Amen to that

[@_scabs6669]

Did he see or cause the future

[@joejones9520]

it's ambiguous so can be applied to anything from any time period...

[@kennethlewis8686]

AJ shouldn’t have parked in those leaves.

[@pete3883]

2023 - great lyrist in the 60's, better than Beatles, Stones

[@woolhall]

never get tired of this masterpiece

[@ajaypalsinghbhatti8901]

Class class bless u mr. Dylan

[@abigailclarkwall1935]

His tongue’s on fire. Nothing’s really sacred, it’s not he/ she/ or it we have to look up to. God bless him. He’s a poet laureate

[@oliveeisner8964]

Still to this day after all these years. This song fills my mind and blows it wide open. Thank you Bobby Z.

[@DjembeSauce]

Robert Zimmerman died in a motorcycle crash. This was laid out in Chronicles Vol 1. What you heard here is the real Bob Dylan in all his glory, no one else could come close.

[@miketakahashi5550]

One of the best songs ever written

[@helenbostock2350]

I heard these words then I was sixteen and I forgot over time how important these words are. They still ring richer today.

[@bparks1952]

One example of his "titanic" songs, i.e. songs far beyond what anyone else has done, before or since

[@bparks1952]

@Esther Ruby Ha. Very good. Titanic in the sense of his songs sheer magnitude

[@paulobrien7557]

Titanic ? Hear Desolation Row

[@bparks1952]

Yes Paul. Desolation Row is also one of his "titanic" songs and one I first heard on FM radio 50+ years ago which blew my mind then and still does. For the record, by "titanic" I mean enormous.

[@0live0wire0]

@@paulobrien7557 Also Mr tambourine man, Like a rolling stone, Sad eyed lady, Stuck inside of mobile, Idiot wind, Tangled up in blue, Hurricane, etc.

[@mattwkendall]

Here, here. Well put