Thu Apr 26, 2012, 10:21 PM
cbdo2007 (9,213 posts)
Bob Dylan - Chimes of Freedom
Far between sundown’s finish an’ midnight’s broken toll
We ducked inside the doorway, thunder crashing As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight An’ for each an’ ev’ry underdog soldier in the night An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing In the city’s melted furnace, unexpectedly we watched With faces hidden while the walls were tightening As the echo of the wedding bells before the blowin’ rain Dissolved into the bells of the lightning Tolling for the rebel, tolling for the rake Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned an’ forsaked Tolling for the outcast, burnin’ constantly at stake An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing Through the mad mystic hammering of the wild ripping hail The sky cracked its poems in naked wonder That the clinging of the church bells blew far into the breeze Leaving only bells of lightning and its thunder Striking for the gentle, striking for the kind Striking for the guardians and protectors of the mind An’ the unpawned painter behind beyond his rightful time An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing Through the wild cathedral evening the rain unraveled tales For the disrobed faceless forms of no position Tolling for the tongues with no place to bring their thoughts All down in taken-for-granted situations Tolling for the deaf an’ blind, tolling for the mute Tolling for the mistreated, mateless mother, the mistitled prostitute For the misdemeanor outlaw, chased an’ cheated by pursuit An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing Even though a cloud’s white curtain in a far-off corner flashed An’ the hypnotic splattered mist was slowly lifting Electric light still struck like arrows, fired but for the ones Condemned to drift or else be kept from drifting Tolling for the searching ones, on their speechless, seeking trail For the lonesome-hearted lovers with too personal a tale An’ for each unharmful, gentle soul misplaced inside a jail An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing Starry-eyed an’ laughing as I recall when we were caught Trapped by no track of hours for they hanged suspended As we listened one last time an’ we watched with one last look Spellbound an’ swallowed ’til the tolling ended Tolling for the aching ones whose wounds cannot be nursed For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones an’ worse An’ for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing http://www.bobdylan.com/us/songs/chimes-freedom ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I literally can't comprehend how someone can write this. It's utterly amazing and I read it every day with awe and wonderment. Congrats Bob!
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4 replies, 1062 views
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Author | Time | Post |
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cbdo2007 | Apr 2012 | OP |
Mendocino | Apr 2012 | #1 | |
cbdo2007 | Apr 2012 | #2 | |
DutchLiberal | Apr 2012 | #3 | |
PunkinPi | Apr 2012 | #4 |
Response to cbdo2007 (Original post)
Thu Apr 26, 2012, 10:59 PM
Mendocino (6,902 posts)
1. In the next 10 or 20 years or so,
whenever he passes, we will look back and say there went the greatest songwriter... EVER! But let us rejoice now.
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Response to Mendocino (Reply #1)
Fri Apr 27, 2012, 09:15 AM
cbdo2007 (9,213 posts)
2. Awwww....
I got a tear in my eye just reading that.
![]() I'm hoping to see him on tour again this year. I never know when I may have seen him for the last time. |
Response to cbdo2007 (Original post)
Fri Apr 27, 2012, 05:59 PM
DutchLiberal (5,744 posts)
3. I get the same feeling reading lyrics of 'Gates of Eden', 'Changing of the Guards' and many others..
Even a deceptively simple (at first sight) song like 'Spirit on the Water' is so well-crafted it blows my mind.
'Chimes of Freedom' to me, feels like a comfort song for every wronged person. I always get goosebumps listenting to it, especially during the last two verses. I wish it was more well-known. |
Response to cbdo2007 (Original post)
Sat Apr 28, 2012, 09:48 AM
PunkinPi (4,837 posts)
4. One of my all time favorite Dylan songs...always gives me chills.
Thanks for posting!
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