"Tell Tale Signs" lyrics thread

EDIT: all of these lyrics (including the wrong ones!) can now be found at: [dylanchords.info]

The songs:

Disc 1:
1. [dylanchords.info]
2. Most Of The Time - #1
3. [dylanchords.info]
4. Someday Baby
5. Red River Shore - #1
6. [dylanchords.info]
7. Born In Time - #1
8. Can't Wait - #1
9. [dylanchords.info]
10. Dreamin' Of You
11. Huck's Tune
12. Marchin' To The City - #1
13. [dylanchords.info]

Disc 2:
1. [dylanchords.info]
2. 32-20 Blues
3. [dylanchords.info]
4. God Knows
5. Can't Escape From You
6. Dignity - #2
7. [dylanchords.info]
8. [dylanchords.info]
9. Ain't Talkin'
10. [dylanchords.info]
11. [dylanchords.info]
12. [dylanchords.info]
13. [dylanchords.info]
14. [dylanchords.info]

Disc 3:
1. Duncan And Brady
2. [dylanchords.info]
3. Mississippi - #3
4. Most Of The Time - #2
5. [dylanchords.info]
6. [dylanchords.info]
7. [dylanchords.info]
8. Born In Time - #2
9. [dylanchords.info]
10. Marchin' To The City - #2
11. Can't Wait - #2
12. Mary And The Soldier

Thanks to blue-eyed, jackobob, JasonL, Gilp, ProletariatBuyingPower, markrobi77, and thecloudpassedby for corrections and new doubts.

And to blue-eyed and ProletariatBuying Power for the lyrics of "Huck's Tune", and Mike M the lyrics of "Mary And The Soldier".


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Red square brackets indicate my uncertainty; ellipsis my complete ignorance.


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MOST OF THE TIME - #1

(The same as it is on Oh Mercy, except for a couple of new lines in verses 2 and 3.)

Verse 2:

Most of the time
I'm cool underneath
Most of the time
I can keep it right between my teeth
I can solve any riddle, I can hold my own

Verse 3:

I got enough faith and I got enough strength
I keep it all away, way beyond arm's length


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SOMEDAY BABY

Verse 1:

I don't care what you do, don't care what you say
Don't care where you go, or how long you stay
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 2:

You take my money and you turn me out
You fill me up with self-doubt
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 3:

You made me eat a ton of dust
You're potentially dangerous, and not worthy of trust
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 4:

Little by little, bit by bit
Every day I'm becoming more of a hypocrite
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 5:

You've got my mind tied up in knots
I just keep recycling the same old thoughts
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 6:

When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 7:

Gonna blow out your mind, and make you pure
I've taken about as much of this as I can endure
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 8:

You put me down [...] creek
That's all right, to you I turn the other cheek
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 9:

You say you need me, how would I know?
You say you love me, but it can't be so
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 10:

I don't want to brag, but I'll wring your neck
When all else fails, I'll make it a matter of self-respect
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

Verse 11:

Living this way ain't a natural thing to do
Why was I born to love you?
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more


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RED RIVER SHORE - #1

Verse 1:

Some of us turn off the lights and we live
In the moonlight shooting by
Some of us scare ourselves to death in the dark
To be where the angels fly

Pretty maids all in a row lined up
Outside my cabin door
I've never wanted any of 'em wanting me
Except the girl from the red river shore

Verse 2:

Well I sat by her side and for a while I tried
To make that girl my wife
She gave me her best advice and she said
Go home and lead a quiet life

Well I been to the east and I been to the west
And I been out where the black winds roar
Somehow though I never did get that far
With the girl from the red river shore

Verse 3:

Well I knew when I first laid eyes on her
I could never be free
One look at her and I knew right away
She should always be with me

Well the dream dried up a long time ago
Don't know where it is anymore
True to life, true to me
Was the girl from the red river shore

Verse 4:

Well I'm wearing the cloak of misery
And I've tasted jilted love
And the frozen smile upon my face
Fits me like a glove

Well I can't escape from the memory
Of the one I'll always adore
All those nights when I lay in the arms
Of the girl from the red river shore

Verse 5:

Well we're living in the shadows of a fading past
Trapped in the fires of time
I've tried not to ever hurt anybody
And to stay out of the life of crime

And when it's all been said and done
I never did know the score
One more day is another day away
From the girl from the red river shore

Verse 6:

Well I'm a stranger here in a strange land
But I know this is where I belong
I'll ramble and gamble for the one I love
And the hills will give me a song

Though nothing looks familiar to me
I know I've stayed here before
Once a thousand nights ago
With the girl from the red river shore

Verse 7:

Well I went back to see about her once
Went back to straighten it out
Everybody that I talked to had seen us there
Said they didn't know who I was talking about

Well the sun went down on me a long time ago
I've had to pull back from the door
I wish I could have spent every hour of my life
With the girl from the red river shore

Verse 8:

Now I heard of a guy who lived a long time ago
A man full of sorrow and strife
That if someone around him died and was dead
He knew how to bring 'em on back to life

Well I don't know what kind of language he used
Or if they do that kind of thing anymore
Sometimes I think nobody ever saw me here at all
Except the girl from the red river shore


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BORN IN TIME - #1

Verse 1:

In the lonely night
In the stardust of a pale blue light
I think of you in black and white
When we were made of dreams

Verse 2:

I walk alone through the shaking street
Listening to my heart beat
In the record-breaking heat
When we were born in time

. . . Bridge 1:

. . . Just when I thought
. . . You were gone, you came back
. . . Just when I was ready
. . . To receive you

. . . You were smooth, you were rough
. . . You were more than enough
. . . Oh babe, why did I ever leave you?
. . . Or grieve you?

Verse 3:

On the rising curve
Where the ways of nature will test every nerve
I took you close and got what I deserved
When we were born in time

. . . Bridge 2:

. . . Just when I knew
. . . Who to thank, you went blank
. . . Just when the firelight
. . . Was gleaming

. . . You were snow, you were rain
. . . You were striped, you were plain
. . . Oh babe, could it be that you were scheming?
. . . Or was I dreaming?

Verse 4:

In the hills of mystery
In the foggy web of destiny
You're still so deep inside of me
When we were born in time


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CAN'T WAIT - #1

If we do it in, uh - how 'bout B-flat?

Verse 1:

I can't wait
Wait for you to change your mind
I can't wait
Waiting just making me go blind
. . . Do you ever lay awake at night
. . . Your face turned to the wall
. . . Drowning in your thoughtlessness
. . . And cut off from it all
I don't know
Maybe for you it's not that late
But as for me
Don't know how much longer I can wait

Verse 2:

It's got to end
Everything about it just feels wrong
I pretend
Being close to her is where I don't belong
. . . Well my back is to the sun
. . . Because the light is too intense
. . . I can see what everybody
. . . In the world is up against
I'll stay here
Where I can feel the hand of fate
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait

Verse 3:

Skies are grey
Life is short and I think of her a lot
I can't say
If I want the pain to end or not
. . . Well the blindness overtaking me
. . . Is beating like a drum
. . . I don't know where it starts
. . . Or where it's coming from
That's how it is
Well try to concentrate
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait

Bridge:

I been drinking
Drinking forbidden juices
I been living
Living on lame excuses

Verse 4:

My hands are cold
The end of time has just begun
I'm getting old
Anything can happen now to anyone
. . . I walk across the floor
. . . 'Til I wear out my shoes
. . . You think you've lost it all
. . . There's always more to lose
[...] clear
She can keep my head on straight
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait


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DREAMIN' OF YOU

Verse 1:

The light in this place is really bad
Like being at the bottom of a stream
Any minute now
I'm expecting to wake up from a dream
. . . Means so much
. . . The softest touch
Like the grave of some child, who neither wept or smiled
[I pondered my fate] in the rain

I've been dreaming of you
That's all I do
And it's driving me insane

Verse 2:

Somewhere dawn is breaking
Light is streaking across the floor
Church-bells are ringing
I wonder who they're ringing for
. . . Travel under any star
. . . You'll see me wherever you are
The shadowy past is so vague and so vast
I'm sleeping in [the palace] of pain

I've been dreaming of you
That's all I do
But it's driving me insane

Verse 3:

Maybe they'll get me, maybe they won't
But whatever it won't be tonight
I wish your hand was in mine right now
We could go where the moon is white
. . . For years they had me locked in a cage
. . . Then they threw me onto the stage
Some things just last longer than you thought they would
And they never ever explain

I've been dreaming of you
That's all I do
And it's driving me insane

Verse 4:

Well I eat when I'm hungry, drink when I'm dry
Live my life on the square
Even if the flesh falls off my face
It won't matter, long as you're there
. . . Feel like a ghost in love
. . . Underneath the heavens above
Feel further away than I ever did before
Feel further I can take

Dreaming of you
Is all I do
But it's driving me insane

Verse 5:

Everything in the way is so shiny today
In queer and unusual form
Spirals of golden haze here and there in a blaze
Like beams of light in a storm
. . . Maybe you were here and maybe you weren't
. . . Maybe you touched somebody and got burnt
The silent sun has got me on the run
Burning a hole in my brain

I'm dreaming of you
That's all I do
But it's driving me insane


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HUCK'S TUNE

Verse 1:

Well I wandered alone through a desert of stone
And I dreamt of my future wife
My sword's in my hand and I'm next in command
In this version of death called life
My plate and my cup are right straight up
I took a rose from the hand of a child
When I kiss your lips, the honey drips
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Verse 2:

Every day we meet on any old street
And you're in your girlish prime
The short and the tall are coming to the ball
I go there all the time
Behind every tree, there's something to see
The river is wider than a mile
I tried you twice, you can't be nice
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Verse 3:

Here come the nurse with money in her purse
Here come the ladies and men
You push it all in and you've no chance to win
You play 'em on down to the end
I'm laying in the sand, getting a sunshine tan
Moving along, riding in style
From my toes to my head, you knock me dead
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Verse 4:

I count the years and I shed no tears
I'm blinded to what might have been
Nature's voice makes my heart rejoice
Play me the wild song of the wind
I found hopeless love in the room above
When the sun and the weather were mild
You're as fine as wine, I ain't handing you no line
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Verse 5:

All the merry little elves can go hang themselves
My faith is as cold as can be
I'm stacked high to the roof and I'm not without proof
If you don't believe me, come see
You think I'm blue, I think so too
In my words, you'll find no guile
The game's gotten old, the deck's gone cold
And I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

The game's gotten old, the deck's gone cold
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while


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MARCHIN' TO THE CITY - #1

Verse 1:

Well I'm sitting in church
In an old wooden chair
I knew nobody
Would look for me there
. . . Sorrow and pity
. . . Rule the earth and the skies
Looking for nothing
Anyone's eyes

Once I had a pretty girl, she
Did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 2:

Snowflakes are falling
Around my head
Lord have mercy
It feel heavy like lead
. . . I been hit too hard
. . . Seen too much
Nothing can heal me now
But your touch

Once I had a pretty girl
She done me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 3:

Loneliness
Got a mind of its own
The more people around
The more you feel alone
. . . I'm chained to the earth
. . . Like a silent slave
Trying to break free
Out of death's dark cave

Once I had a pretty girl
Done me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 4:

Boys in the street
Beginning to play
Girls like birds
Flying away
. . . I'm carrying the roses
. . . That were given to me
And I'm thinking about paradise
Wondering what it might be

Once I had a pretty girl
She done me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 5:

Go over to London
Maybe gay Paree
Follow the river
You get to the sea
. . . I was hoping we could drink from
. . . Life's clear streams
I was hoping we could dream
Life's pleasant dreams

Once I had a pretty girl
But she done me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 6:

Well the weak get weaker
And the strong stay strong
The train keeps rolling
All night long
. . . She looked at me
. . . With an irresistable glance
With a smile
That could make all the planets dance

Once I had a pretty girl
She did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

Verse 7:

My house is on fire
Burning to the skies
I thought the rain clouds
But the clouds passed by
. . . When I'm gone
. . . You'll remember my name
I'm gonna win my way
To wealth and fame

Once I had a pretty girl
But she did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city
And the road ain't long

I don't know


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32-20 BLUES

Verse 1:

When I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
Send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in Hot Springs sure ain't gonna help her none

Verse 2:

If she gets unruly, thinks she don't want you
If she gets unruly and thinks she don't want you
Take my 32-20 now and break her half in two

Verse 3:

She got a .38 special, but I believe it's much too light
She got a .38 special, but I believe it's much too light
I got a 32-30, makes the camp all right

Verse 4:

If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
Send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in Hot Springs sure ain't gonna help her none

Verse 5:

Gonna shoot my pistol, shoot my Gatling gun
Gonna shoot my pistol, got to shoot my Gatling gun
You made me love you, now your man has come

Verse 6:

Aw baby, where'd you stay last night?
Aw baby, where'd you stay last night?
You got your hair all tangled and you ain't talking right

Verse 7:

Her .38 special, boys, it do very well
Her .38 special, boys, it do very well
I got a 32-20 now it's a burning hell

Verse 8:

If I send for my baby, man, and she don't come
Send for my baby, man, and she don't come
All the doctors in [...] sure ain't gonna help her none

Verse 9:

Hey hey baby, where'd you stay last night?
Hey hey baby, where'd you stay last night?
Didn't come home till the sun was shining bright

Verse 10:

Oh boys, I just can't take my rest
Oh boys, I just can't take my rest
With this 32-20 laying up and down my breast


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GOD KNOWS

(The lyrics can be found at Daniel Martin's site, but with gaps in verses 3 and 4, which I think we've filled correctly.)

Verse 3:

God knows there's an answer
God knows it's all in place
God knows it might be working right now
Looking at us right straight in the face

Verse 4:

God knows I'm ready
God knows you're hard to find
God knows you're standing right there before my very eyes
Messing up my mind


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CAN'T ESCAPE FROM YOU

Verse 1:

Oh the evening train is rolling
All along the [homeward] way
All my hopes are over the horizon
All my dreams have gone [astray/away/in vain]
. . . The hillside darkly [shaded/shading]
. . . Stars fall from above
. . . All the joys of earth [are/have] [faded/fading]
. . . The night's untouched [by/my] love
I'll be here 'til tomorrow
Beneath a shroud of grey
I pretend I'm free of sorrow
My heart is miles away
. . . The dead bells are ringing
. . . My train is overdue
. . . To your memory I'm clinging
. . . I can't escape from you

Verse 2:

Well I hear the sound of thunder
Roaring loud and long
Sometimes you've got to wonder
God knows I've done no wrong
. . . You've wasted all your power
. . . You threw out the Christmas pie
. . . Now you're withering like a flower
. . . You'll play the fool and die
I'm neither sad nor sorry
I'm all dressed up in black
I fought for fame and glory
You tried to break my back
. . . In the far off sweet forever
. . . The sunshine peeking through
. . . We should have walked together
. . . I can't escape from you

Verse 3:

I cannot grasp the shadows
That gather near the door
Rain falls round my window
I wish I'd seen you more
. . . The path is ever-winding
. . . The stars they never age
. . . The morning light is blinding
. . . All the world's a stage
Should be the time of gladness
Happy faces everywhere
The mystery of madness
Is propagating in the air
. . . I don't like the city
. . . Not like some folks do
. . . Isn't it a pity
. . . I can't escape from you

Verse 4:

We ploughed the fields of heaven
Right down to the end
I hope I can be forgiven
If any words of mine offend
. . . All our days were splendid
. . . They were simple, they were plain
. . . It never should have ended
. . . I should have kissed you in the rain
I've been thinking things all over
All the moments full of grace
The primrose and the clover
Your ever-changing face
. . . Can't help looking at you
. . . You made love with god-knows-who
. . . Never found a girl to match you
. . . I can't escape from you


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DIGNITY - #2

Verse 1:

Fat man looking in a [fast/ferris] wheel
Yellow man looking in his last meal
Hollow man looking in a cottonfield
For dignity

Verse 2:

Wise man looking in a blade of grass
Young man looking in the days that pass
Poor man looking through painted glass
For dignity

. . . Bridge 1:

. . . Dignity is a woman that knows
. . . Dignity moves like a tropical wind that blows
. . . Into the cities, into the towns
. . . Into the land of the midnight sun

Verse 3:

I'm searching high, I'm searching low
Searching everywhere I know
Asking the cops wherever I go
Have you seen dignity?

Verse 4:

Drunk man listens to a voice he hears
In a crowded room full of covered-up mirrors
Looking into the lost, forgotten years
For dignity

Verse 5:

Don Juan was talking to Don Miguel
Standing outside of the gates of hell
There ain't nothing to say, it ain't nothing to tell
About dignity

. . . Bridge 2:

. . . Dignity is a woman unspoiled
. . . By fame and greed and snakes that are coiled
. . . In the damp woods, on the river's edge
. . . Near the green, green grass of home

Verse 6:

Pull into the platform, step off the train
Walk thirty steps, it begins to rain
I'm asking somebody with water on his brain
Have you seen dignity?

Verse 7:

Cities in a mess of jackhammer beats
Buses roll by with burned-out seats
A child's eyes look through the creeping streets
For dignity

Verse 8:

Prince Phillip was talking to Miss Mary Lou
She said don't let nobody see me talking to you
She's afraid to tell him what she knew
About dignity

. . . Bridge 3:

. . . Dignity is a woman that's light
. . . She don't tease, she don't travel at night
. . . Dignity is a woman that bleeds
. . . Like the hot Egyptian sun

Verse 9:

I'm looking east, looking west
See people cursed, see people blessed
Asking everybody like a man possessed
Have you seen dignity?

Verse 10:

Blind man breaking out of a trance
Puts both of his hands in the pockets of chance
Hoping to find one circumstance
Of dignity

Verse 11:

Englishman stranded in the blackheart wind
Combing his hair back, his future looks thin
Bites the bullet and he looks within
For dignity

. . . Bridge 4:

. . . Somebody showed me a picture and I just laughed
. . . Dignity never been photographed
. . . Dignity got no starting-point
. . . No beginning, no middle, no end

Verse 12:

Looking at a glass that's half-filled
Looking at a dream that's just been killed
Asking everybody that's strong-willed
Have you seen dignity?


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AIN'T TALKIN'

(The Modern Times version has 9 verses; this one just 7. The first 3 verses are the same as on Modern Times.)

Verse 4:

The whole world is filled with speculation,
The whole world which people say is round.
I've got no time for idle conversation
I need to find a doctor in this town

Ain't talking, just walking
All rails leading to the west
Heart burning, still yearning
I'm gonna throw myself upon your loving breast

Verse 5:

It's the first new day of a grand and a glorious Autumn
The queen of love is coming across the grass
None dare call her anything but madam
No one flirts with her or even makes a pass

Ain't talking, just walking
Standing outside the gates of wrath
Heart burning, still yearning
Take a little trip down the primrose path

Verse 6:

I got the worst old feeling and it's getting stronger
I'm worn out with public service, I'm beginning to crack
I won't stay on any longer
I'll avenge my father's death then I'll step back

Ain't talking, just walking
Hand me down my walking cane
Heart burning, still yearning
Trying to get you out of my miserable brain

Verse 7:

As I walked out tonight in the mystic garden
The wounded flowers were dangling from the vine
I was passing by yon cool crystal fountain
Someone hit me from behind

Ain't talking, just walking
You ride 'em high and down you go
Heart burning, still yearning
No one on earth will ever know


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DUNCAN AND BRADY

(Except for one muddled verse, the lyrics are much the same as the live version - see dylanchords.)

Verse 5:

Well them [rubber-tired carriage], standing around
Taking Brady to the burying-ground
[High-tired carriages], rubber-tired hack
Well they took him to the graveyard but they didn't bring him back
Well he been on the job too long


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MISSISSIPPI - #3

Verse 1:

I'm standing in the shadows with an aching heart
I'm looking at the world tear itself apart
Minutes turn to hours, hours turn to days
I'm still loving you in a million ways

Well the devil's in the alley, there's a mule kicking in my stall
Say anything you want to, I have heard it all
I was raised in the country, I been working in town
I been in trouble ever since I set my suitcase down

. . . Well I ain't got nothing for you, I had nothing before
. . . Don't even have anything for myself anymore
. . . The sky's full of fire, pain is pouring down
. . . There's nothing you can sell me, I'll see you around

Well, I got here following the southern star
I crossed that river just to be where you are
There's only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

Verse 2:

Well I been loving you too long, I know you ain't no good
It don't make a bit of difference to me, don't see why it should
I was thinking about the things that Rosie said
I was dreaming I was sleeping in Rosie's bed

Well I'm walking through the leaves falling from the trees
I feel like a stranger nobody sees
So many things we never will undo
I know you're sorry, I'm sorry too

. . . Some people will offer you their hand and some won't
. . . Last night I knew you, tonight I don't
. . . I need something strong to distract my mind
. . . I'm gonna look at you 'til my eyes go blind

Well everybody's moving god-knows-where
But I'm still here and you're still there
Only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

Verse 3:

Well my ship's been split to splinters and it's sinking fast
I'm drowning in the poison, got no future, got no past
But my heart is not weary, it's light and it's free
I got nothing but affection for those who have sailed with me

Winter goes into summer, summer goes into fall
I look into the mirror, don't see anything at all
Stick with me baby, stick with me anyhow
Things should start to get interesting right about now

. . . My clothes are wet, tight on my skin
. . . Not as tight as the corner that I painted myself in
. . . I know that fortune is waiting to be kind
. . . So give me your hand and say you'll be mine

The emptiness is endless, cold as the clay
You can always come back, but you can't come back all the way
Only one thing that I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long


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MOST OF THE TIME

(As on Oh Mercy, except for half a new line in verses 3 and 4.)

Verse 3:

I ain't afraid of confusion, I don't fall for no trick

Verse 4:

It don't matter where it went


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BORN IN TIME - #2

Verse 1:

In the lonely night
In the smoking stardust of a pale blue light
You're standing there in black and white
Where we were made of dreams

Verse 2:

I walk alone through the shaky streets
Listening my heart beat
In the record-breaking heat
Where we were born in time

. . . Bridge 1:

. . . Just when I thought
. . . You were gone, you came back
. . . Just when I knew
. . . It was for certain

. . . You were high, you were low
. . . You were so easy to know
. . . Oh babe, now it's time to raise the curtain
. . . I'm hurting

Verse 3:

Up on the rising curve
Where the ways of nature will test every nerve
Took me in and got what I deserved
Where we were born in time

. . . Bridge 2:

. . . Just when I knew
. . . Who to thank, you went blank
. . . Just when the home-fires
. . . Start smoking

. . . You were snow, you were rain
. . . You were striped, you were plain
. . . Oh babe, truer words have not been spoken
. . . Or broken

Verse 4:

In the hills of mystery
In the foggy web of destiny
You're still so deep inside of me
Where we were born in time


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


MARCHIN' TO THE CITY - #2

Verse 1:

Loneliness
Got a mind of its own
More people around
More you feel alone
. . . I've been chained to the earth
. . . Like a silent slave
I'm trying to break free
Out of death's dark cave

Once I had a pretty girl
She did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city, boys
And the road ain't long

Verse 2:

I was hoping to my soul
That we'd never part
You took all the madness
Right out of my heart
. . . I was hoping we could drink form
. . . Life's clear streams
I was hoping we could dream from
Life's [...] dreams

Once I had a pretty girl
She did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city, boys
And the road ain't long

Verse 3:

My house is burning
Up to the sky
I thought it would rain
But the clouds passed by
. . . Sorrow and pity
. . . Rule the earth and the skies
I'm not looking for nothing
In anyone's eyes

Once I had a pretty girl
She did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city, boys
And the road ain't long

Verse 4:

Wind is blowing
All troubles and dirt
It's time to get away
Or someone gets hurt
. . . I just don't know
. . . What I'm a-gonna do
I was all right
'Til I fell in love with you

Once I had a pretty girl
She did me wrong
Now I'm marching to the city, boys
And the road ain't long


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


CAN'T WAIT - #2

Verse 1:

I can't wait
Wait for you to change your mind
I can't wait
For you to walk the line
. . . You ever feel just like your brain
. . . Been bolted to the wall
. . . That you're drowning in your thoughtlessness
. . . And cut off from it all
I don't know
Maybe for you it's not that late
But as for me
I don't know how much longer I can wait

Verse 2:

It's got to end
Everything about it just feels wrong
I'll pretend
Being close to her is where I don't belong
. . . Well my back is to the sun
. . . Because the light is too intense
. . . I can see what everybody
. . . In the world is up against
That's how it is
When things disintegrate
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait

Verse 3:

Skies are grey
Life is short and I think of her a lot
Every day
I can't say whether I want the pain to even end or not
. . . Well I'm trying my best
. . . To stand on my own two feet
. . . Not have to lean on
. . . Everybody that I meet
I'm breathing hard
I'm trying to concentrate
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait

Bridge:

I'm torn and I'm tattered
I been rolling through the stormy weather
My heart's been shattered
But I'm holding all the parts of it together

Verse 4:

My hands are cold
The end of time has just begun
I'm getting old
Anything can happen now to anyone
. . . Loneliness around me
. . . Digging in me like a rake
. . . What a piece of work she is
. . . To cause my heart to break
I thought somehow
That I'd be spared this fate
And I don't know
How much longer I can wait


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


MARY AND THE SOLDIER

Verse 1:

Come all you lads of high renown
That would hear of a fair young maiden
She roved out on a summer's day
For to view the soldiers parading
. . . They marched so bold and they looked so gay
. . . Their colours flying and the bands did play
It caused young Mary for to say
I'll wed you, my gallant soldier

Verse 2:

She viewed the soldiers on parade

And as they stood their leisure
Mary to herself did say
At last I've found my treasure
. . . But oh how cruel my parents must be
. . . Banishing my darling so far from me
Well I'll leave them all and I'll go with thee
My bold and undaunted soldier

Verse 3:

Oh Mary dear, your parents' love
I pray don't be unruly
When you're in a foreign land
Believe me you'll rue it surely
. . . Perhaps in battle I might fall
. . . From a shot from an angry cannonball
And you so far from your daddy's hall
Be advised by a gallant soldier

Verse 4:

And I have fifty guineas in [...] gold
Likewise a heart that's blinder
And I'd leave them all and I'll go with you
My bold and undaunted soldier
. . . So don't say no, but let me go
. . . And I will face the daring foe
We'll march together to and fro
I'll wed you, my gallant soldier

Verse 5:

And when he saw her loyalty
And Mary so true-hearted
He said: My darling, married we'll be
And nothing but death will part us
. . . And when we're in some foreign land
. . . I'll guard you, darling, with my right hand
Hopes that God might stand a friend
To Mary and her gallant soldier



Edited 29 time(s). Last edit at 04/15/2009 08:26PM by Craig_Thomas.

that's incredible, Craig.
thank you.

(some of us turn off the lights and we live
in the moonlight shootin' by)

Duly corrected. Thank you.

the missing line in verse 3 of someday baby is

you make me eat a ton of dust

the lyrics of can't wait are excellent in my opinion, the alternate version blows the toom version out of the water

Thanks, JasonL.

I've added "Ain't Talkin'" - are there any other songs that should be here?

Excellent work. Thanks a lot, Craig!

Thank you very much

(Someday Baby

gonna blow out your mind and make it pure..

? but the other one has me stumped.
you put me down with only half a creak can't be right-)

maybe it's you put me down for only half a creak..
but I'm unconvinced



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/01/2008 11:11AM by blue-eyed.

great work, I was stumped on a few of those.

CAN'T ESCAPE FROM YOU
All my dreams have [gone in vain]

I think it's "gone astray"

. . . The hillside darkly shading
. . . Stars fall from above
. . . All the joys of earth are fading

darkly shaded / are faded

. . . The night's untouched, my love

untouched by love?


. . . In the far off sweet forever

in the fallow of sweet forever?


. . . The path is ever widening

ever-winding



AIN'T TALKIN'
All roads leading to the west

all rails

(different tone. different world. different 'chune'-
but the lyrics of Can't Escape From You made me dream of Yeats..

When you are old and grey and full of sleep,
And nodding by the fire, take down this book,
And slowly read, and dream of the soft look
Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep;
How many loved your moments of glad grace,
And loved your beauty with love false or true,
But one man loved the pilgrim Soul in you,
And loved the sorrows of your changing face;
And bending down beside the glowing bars,
Murmur, a little sadly, how Love fled
And paced upon the mountains overhead
And hid his face amid a crowd of stars.)

That poem is partly based on my favourite Ronsard lyric:

Quand vous serez bien vieille, au soir, à la chandelle,
Assise auprès du feu, dévidant et filant,
Direz, chantant mes vers, en vous émerveillant :
Ronsard me célébrait du temps que j’étais belle.

Lors, vous n’aurez servante oyant telle nouvelle,
Déjà sous le labeur à demi sommeillant,
Qui au bruit de mon nom ne s’aille réveillant,
Bénissant votre nom de louange immortelle.

Je serai sous la terre et fantôme sans os :
Par les ombres myrteux je prendrai mon repos :
Vous serez au foyer une vieille accroupie,

Regrettant mon amour et votre fier dédain.
Vivez, si m’en croyez, n’attendez à demain :
Cueillez dès aujourd’hui les roses de la vie

(Ronsard, Sonnets pour Hélène, 1587)

[When you are very old, sitting by the fire/sewing and spinning by candlelight/You will say, singing my verses,filled with wonder:/"Ronsard celebrated in the days I was young."/Then you won't have a single maidservant hearing this news/Half-dozing amid her work/Who,at the sound of my name won't stir awake/Bleessing your name with immortal praise./I will be underneath the ground, a ghost without bones:/In myrtle shades I will take my rest;/You will be crouching by the fireside, an old woman/Regretting the loss of my love and your proud disdain./Live life to the full, if you believe me; don't wait for tomorrow/Pluck the flowers of life today."

A variant on the hackneyed renaissance "carpe diem" theme, by a lively and vivid one.

Dylan has his own "carpe diem" lyrics, of course; notably "He not busy being born is busy dying" and various lines in To Ramona.

Thanks again to blue-eyed, and to ProletariatBuyingPower.

I've added both versions of "Dignity".

I see that "Huck's Tune" and "Tell Ol' Bill" aren't at dylanchords. Does anyone have the lyrics of those?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/01/2008 08:47PM by Craig_Thomas.

Well I wandered alone through a desert of stone
And I dreamt of my future wife
My sword's in my hand and I'm next in command
In this version of death called life
My plate and my cup are right straight up
I took a rose from the hand of a child
When I kiss your lips, the honey drips
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Every day we meet on any old street
And you're in your girlish prime
The short and the tall are coming to the ball
I go there all the time
Behind every tree, there's something to see
The river is wider than a mile
I tried you twice, you can't be nice
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

Here come the nurse with money in her purse
Here come the ladies and men
You push it all in and you've no chance to win
You play 'em on down to the end
I'm layin' in the sand, gettin' a sunshine tan
Movin' 'long, ridin' in style
From my toes to my head, you knock me dead
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

I count the years and I shed no tears
I'm blinded to what might've been
Nature's voice makes my heart rejoice
Play me the wild song of the wind
I found hopeless love in the room above
When the sun and the weather were mild
You're as fine as wine, I ain't handin' you no line
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while

All the merry little elves can go hang themselves
My faith is as cold as can be
I'm stacked high to the roof and I'm not without proof
If you don't believe me, come see
You think I'm blue, I think so too
In my words, you'll find no guile
The game's gotten old, the deck's gone cold
And I'm gonna have to put you down for a while
The game's gotten old, the deck's gone cold
I'm gonna have to put you down for a while







The river whispers in my ear
I've hardly a penny to my name
The heavens never seemed to near
All of my body glows with flame
The tempest struggles in the air
And to myself alone I sing
It could sink me then and there
I can hear the echoes ring
I try to find one smiling face
To drive the shadows from my head
I'm stranded in this nameless place
Lying restless in a heavy bed

Tell me straight out if you will
Why must you torture me within
Why must you come down from your high hill
Throw my fate to the clouds and wind
Far away in a silent land
Secret thoughts are hard to bear
Remember me, you'll understand
Emotions we can never share
You trampled on me as you passed
Left the coldest kiss upon my brow
All of my doubts and fears have gone at last
I've nothing more to tell you now

I walk by tranquil lakes and streams
As each new season's dawn awaits
I lay awake at night with troubled dreams
The enemy is at the gate
Beneath the thunder-blasted trees
The words are ringing off your tongue
The ground is hard at times like these
Stars are cold, the night is young
The rocks are bleak, the trees are bare
Iron clouds go floatin' by
Snowflakes fallin' in my hair
Beneath the gray and stony sky

The evening sun is sinking low
The woods are dark, the town is too
They'll drag you down, they run this show
Ain't no tellin' what they'll do
Tell ol' Bill when he comes home
Anything is worth a try
Tell him that I'm not alone
That the hour has come to do or die
All the world I would defy
Let me make it plain as day
I look at you now and I sigh
How could it be any other way

It is definitely
DIGNITY

Verse 1:

Fat man looking at a Ferris Wheel
Fellow man looking at his last meal
Hollow man looking in a cottonfield
For dignity

I think the Ferris Wheel is important,because it is a wonderful image..and because at one time Bob came intro town ON a Ferris Wheel.....Basement Tapes.
Gotta say I am LOVING this stream (thanks Eyes).my neighbours weren't but some of them are beginning to ask for discs.......so less snipers off the roofs across the way.
Any one else 'hear' the New Morning voice on I can't wait..........this boy is Devillish to the extreme I say, Arthur Miller should write a play..about burning Bob.

Cities in a mess of jackhammer beats
Buses roll by with burned-out seats
A child's eyes look through the creeping streets
For dignity

although i had always thought

of dignity as a person,

it was never in the feminine.

i like Someday Baby,but do me a favour....................


When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that

Quote:

Billy
i like Someday Baby,but do me a favour....................


When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that

think of it as a long black coat (full length leather)

and a leopardskin pillbox hat, bill.

This version of Someday Baby is at least four minutes too long; if not six.

Quote:

Billy
i like Someday Baby,but do me a favour....................


When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that

You could live out in the rain and never rust....irony escapes you.

Quote:

Billy
i like Someday Baby,but do me a favour....................


When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that

I really like that couplet, I also like this one

Little by Little, bit by bit
I'm becoming more of a hypocrite

How fitting and prophetic those lines are when it comes the price of this thing

I also love his phrasing and nuance on those lines.

On the other hand I hate the lyrics of Tell 'Ol Bill with its over the top abundance of weather allusions



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2008 06:42PM by JasonL.

Stranger stares down into the light
From a [...] window in the Mexican night
Searching every blood-sucking thing in sight
For dignity

It sounds like it is "platinum window" but that doesn't make any sense so it is probably "wide open window"

Btw anyone else prefer the lyrics of the alternate Ain't Talkin to the album version?

Maybe it should have been "from a mexican window in the platinum night" LOL

You think he might be talking about chupacabras?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/03/2008 07:07PM by JasonL.

Quote:

JasonL
It sounds like it is "platinum window" but that doesn't make any sense so it is probably "wide open window"

I've found that the lyrics to this are at Daniel Martin's Bob Dylan lyrics site, and so have removed the lyrics from my post (it's long enough as it is). He suggests "platinum" too, and it sounds right to me, though it's a poor lyric.

Mary And The Soldier (traditional)

Come all you lads of high renown
That would hear of a fair young maiden
And she roved out on a summer's day
For to view the soldiers parading
They marched so bold and they looked so gay
Their colours flying and the bands did play
And it caused young Mary for to say
"I'll wed you me my gallant soldier"


She viewed the soldiers on parade
And as they stood at their leisure
And Mary to herself did say:
"At last I've found my treasure
But oh how cruel my parents must be
To banish my true love away from me
Well I'll leave them all and I'll go with thee
My bold undaunted soldier"


"Oh Mary dear, your parents' love
I pray don't be unruly
For when you're in a foreign land,
Believe me you'll rue it surely
Perhaps in battle I might fall
From a shot from an angry cannonball
And you so far from your daddy's hall
Be advised by a gallant soldier."


"Oh I have fifty guineas in bright gold,
Likewise a heart that's bolder
And I'd leave them all and I'll go with you
My bold undaunted soldier
So don't say no but let me go
And I will face the daring foe
And we'll march together to and fro
And I'll wed you, my gallant soldier"


And when he saw her loyalty
And Mary so true-hearted
He said: "My darling, married we'll be
And nothing but death will part us
And when we're in a foreign land
I'll guard you, darling, with my right hand
In hopes that God might stand a friend
To Mary and her gallant soldier"

On Disc one the second line of Dignity is 'Dead Man looking at his last meal'.

Disc three added.

thanks a lot.my discs are all instrumentals with no vocals so this is very useful.


When I heard you was cold, I bought you a coat and hat
I think you must have forgotten about that
Someday baby, you ain't gonna worry poor me any more

not sure if this has been posted before




Red River Shore
Jack Splittard / Randy Cierley

At the foot of yon mountain, where the big river flows,
there's a fond creation and a soft wind that blows.
There lives a fair maiden, she's the one I adore.
She's the one I will marry on the Red River shore.

She wrote me a letter. She wrote it so kind
and in that letter these words you will find.
"Come back to me, darling, you're the one I adore.
You're the one I will marry on the Red River shore.

I jumped on my bronco and away I did ride
to marry my true love on the Red River side.
But her pa knew the secret and with twenty and four
come to fight this young cowboy on the Red River shore.

I grabbed my six shooter, spun 'round and 'round
'til six men were wounded and seven were down.
I can't fight an army of twenty and four
when I'm bound for my true love on the Red River shore.

At the foot of yon mountain, where the big river flows,
there's a fond creation and a soft wind that blows.
And there lives a fair maiden, she's the one I adore,
but never will marry on the Red River shore

these are some of the lyrics the way i think they are. I could be wrong, but it's my guess. maybe it will help.


Can't Wait
line 9

" I SPOKE clear" ????

God Knows

"God knows there's a purpose
God knows its all in place
God knows it might be working right now
lookin' at us right straight in the face"



Marchin' to the City
verse 2
line 8,9

"I was hoping we could dream
life's PLEASANT dreams" ?????


dreamin of You
verse1
line 8
it sounds to me like he says "I'm out of my faith" in the rain...but i'm not sure about that or if that even makes sense but thats what it sounds like to me when i hear it.

Everything else looks about right to me, thanks for posting this. I'm looking for lyrics to "Tell ol' Bill" and "Everything is Broken", I'm hoping I can find them on here. In Someday Baby verse 8 line 1 , your guess is as good as mine, lol ....i have no idea what he says there. ...would be interesting to find out.....too bad Bob wouldn't provide these lyrics so we can be 100 percent sure about all of them.

I've been to several sites to read lyrics to Tell ol' Bill and most of them agree that in one part (i forgot the verse and lines), the lyrics say .....

"far away in a secret land
secret thoughts are hard to bear"

I hear it a different way in the second part to these lines, i hear it as......

"far away in a secret land
secret thoughts are harboured there"

"harboured" can mean "hidden" as well as "sheltered" and this would make more sense (at least to me) as a follow up line to the first line of "far away in a secret land" as the line "secret thoughts are hard to bear" would technically make sense by itself lyrically but in the context of the previous verse i think "harboured there" makes more sense

I'd be interested to hear what you think, because all the sites seem to have the same lyrics of "secret thoughts are hard to bear"

Thanks for those, markrobi77.

Can't Wait - there's a hard consonant before the "s", so it sounds like "atspo clear"; it's best to assume that Bob mucked this bit up.

God Knows - You're right. I've changed that now.

Marchin' To The City - I don't know what you're asking about with this one.

Dreamin' Of You - I'm not sure of the lyric there, but to "ponder your fate" is familiar and sensible English, whereas to be "out of your faith" is not.

Tell Ol' Bill - the other takes of this song (and I think we have more takes of this song than any other in Bob's catalogue) make the lyric clear - it's "hard to bear". So's the song, frankly.

The best sites for Bob's lyrics are the ones I linked to in my post above: [dylanchords.info] and (less so) [homepage.mac.com] and (for the copyrighted lyrics) [www.bobdylan.com]

I only put lyrics in this thread that weren't at any of those three sites (or at least not there last October): that's why Tell Ol' Bill and Everything Is Broken and others aren't here.

Eyolf (of [dylanchords.info]) has recently updated his site, which now includes everything in this thread (including my errors).



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/08/2009 09:01PM by Craig_Thomas.

i'm sorry, i was referring to the lines "i was hoping we could dream, lifes pleasant dreams" in Marchin to the city....i was looking at a gap in the lyrics you have posted for the version on disc 3...you do have them filled in that way on the disc 1 version of the song.....i only have the Tell Tale Signs 2 disc album and I've not heard the "Marchin to the City" version on the 3rd disc....my mistake.

also, I'll take your word for it on "Tell ol' Bill" lyrics....i guess i was wrong

thank you much for all of this, It's great

in "Tell ol bill"
i thought it was

I try to find one smilin' face
to drive the SHUDDER from my head

i may be wrong again, but that is what it sounds like to me

Shudder (definition) - trembling; vibration, frightening sound,,, that type of thing

if its Shadow then I'm not really sure what Bob means by "drive the shadow from my head" (darkness maybe? who knows)

although it does sound like Bob sings the end or last part of the word "shudder" more with an "UH" or even "OH" sound, but that can be common with a lot of people who say or sing words ending in ER like shudder and especially because the next word shudder would be "from" and its hard to go from an "er" ending into an "F" sound

I might be way wrong just like my last suggestion but I thought i'd offer my thoughts on it

also in the lyrics to "tell ol Bill' posted by proletariatsbuyingpower....they lyrics he wrote read
"beneath the gray and stony sky".......
i thought it might be "beneath the gray and stormy sky"

Its always tough when Bob sings, he definately doesnt accentuate his words alot of times

well, sorry for so many posts, feel free to delete any of them if you can-

Yes, Bob's not noted for his enunciation, to say the least!

Here's one of those other takes of Tell Ol' Bill, where he more clearly sings "hard to bear" and also stretches out the ultimate syllable of "shadoooow": [www.sendspace.com]

"Shadow" here would mean exactly what you suggest: darkness. He seeks a happy face to lighten his mood.

For your other suggestion: we might expect the correct lyric to be "gray and stormy" (and I've seen it transcribed that way elsewhere), because in descriptions of troubled skies the words "gray" and "stormy" are so often collocated as to be cliche. But I've just listened to a few of the Tell Ol' Bill takes and on all I heard "stony" and not "stormy". "Stony" of course means "having a quality like stone", and that quality can be colour, so it's a "gray and gray" sky (not the first time that Bob's been guilty of redundancy).

Quote:

Craig_Thomas

Quote:

JasonL
It sounds like it is "platinum window" but that doesn't make any sense so it is probably "wide open window"

I've found that the lyrics to this are at Daniel Martin's Bob Dylan lyrics site, and so have removed the lyrics from my post (it's long enough as it is). He suggests "platinum" too, and it sounds right to me, though it's a poor lyric.

I was thinking along the lines that the "platinum window" phrase : Stranger looking through a platinum window into the mexican night . The Platinum window could be a shimmering International Hotel the stranger is safe behind the window. You know how sometimes the atmosphere at night has that metallic quality combined with heat, and Neon Lights. Stranger in a Strange Land? The stranger looks out the window and sees only the things he's there to escape. He is after all searching for Dignity. I like the imagery it presents me, Bob The Alchemist turning Mercury into Platinum. Platinum is a very slow tough hard metal,it doesnt give.

Muddy Lagoon
Bird Fancier Acid Freak

Thanks for this thread, Craig; it's the best Tell Tale Signs lyrics compilation I could find.

Two little things: first of all, on Marchin' To The City #1, I'm fairly certain the first refrain is still "Once I had a pretty girl (sh) / Did me wrong". I think it's one of those instances where Dylan decided in mid-delivery that he didn't want the word "she" to be part of the first line of the refrain, but didn't repeat it to start the second line either. I think if you listen to it, it's pretty clear that there's an "a" between "had" and "pretty".

Secondly, you should add in some alternative lyrics for the myriad Mississippis on this album. I can't for the life of me find any of the alternates on the internet except for Daniel Martin's site (which I had trouble navigating for some reason), and that still doesn't include the alternate set of lyrics from disc three. This means some of my favorite lines in all of this song's iterations, "I'm lookin' at the world / Tearin' itself apart" and "Winter goes into summer, summer goes into fall / I look in the mirror, don't see anything at all", are unrecorded in any decent lyrical compilation. I think it's a travesty that the official Dylan site doesn't list any of the officially-released alternative lyric versions for any song, but especially this one.