Tangled Up in Blue

Early one morning the sun was shining

I was laying in bed

Wondering if she'd changed at all

If her hair was still red

Her folks said our lives together

Sure was gonna be rough

Never did like Papa's homemade dress

Mama's bankbook wasn't big enough

I was standing on the side of the road

Rain falling on my shoes

Heading out for the east coast

Lord knows I paid some dues getting through

Tangled up in blue

She was married when we first met

Soon to be divorced

I helped her out of herself I guess

But I used a little too much force

We drove that car as far as we could

Abandoned it out West

Split up on a dark sad night

Both agreeing it was best

I turned around to look at her

She was a-walking away

I heard her say over my shoulder

"We'll meet again someday

On the Avenue

Tangled up in blue."

I was working in the great north woods

Working as a cook for a spell

But I never did like it all that much

And one day the axe just fell

So I drifted down to New Orleans

Looking for to be employed

Workin' for awhile on a fishing boat

Right outside of Delacroix

But all the while I was alone

The past was close behind

I saw a lot of women

But she never escaped my mind

And I just grew

Tangled up in blue

She was working in a topless place

And I stopped in for a top

I said I was missing half of my face

She said "You've come to the wrong shop."

Later on when the crowd thinned out

I was just about to do the same

She was standing there in the back of my chair

She said "Don't I know your name?"

I murmured something underneath my breath

She studied the lines on my face

I must admit I felt a little uneasy

When she bent down to tie the lace

Of my shoe

Tangled up in blue

She lit a burner on the stove

And offered me a pipe

I thought she'd never say hello

She said, "You look like the silent type."

Then she opened up a book of poems

And handed it to me

Written by an Italian poet from the thirteenth century

And every one of them words rang true

And flowed like burning coal

Pouring off of every page like it was written in my soul

From me to you

Tangled up in blue

I lived with them on Montague Street

A basement down the stairs

There was music in the cafes at night

Revolution in the air

Then he started into dealing with slaves

And something inside of him died

I had to sell him everything I owned

And froze up inside

Later on on the bottom fell out

I became withdrawn

The only thing I knew how to do

Was how to keep on keepin' on

Like a bird that flew

In blue

So now I'm goin' back again

I got to get to her somehow

All of these people I used to know

They're an illusion now

Some are mathematicians

Some are carpenters' wives

I don't know how they got started

I don't know what they're doing with their lives

But me, I'm still on the road

Headin' for another joint

We always did feel the same

We just saw it from a different point

Of view

Tangled up in blue

Go Bill, yeah!