Early one morning
the sun was shining
I was laying in bed
Wondering if she'd
ever change at all
and if her hair
was still red
Her folks they said our
lives together
sure were gonna
be rough
They never did
like Mama's homemade dress
Papa's bankbook
wasn't big enough
And I was standing
on the side of the road
rain falling on my shoes
Heading out for
the East Coast
Lord knows I've paid
some dues
getting through
Tangled up in blue
She was married
when we first met
soon to be divorced
I helped her out
of the jam I guess
but I used a little
too much force
We drove that car
as far as we could
abandoned it out west
Split up on a
dark sad night
both agreeing
it was best
She turned around
to look at me
as I was walking away
I heard her say
over my shoulder
we'll meet again
someday on the
Avenue yeah
Tangled up in blue
I had a job in the
great north woods
working as a
cook for a spell
But I never did
like it all that much
and one day
the axe just fell
So I drifted down
to New Orleans
where I was lucky
for to be employed
Working for a while on
a fishing boat
right outside
of Delacroix
But all the while I
was alone
the past was
close behind
I seen 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
I stopped in for a beer
I just kept looking
for the sight of her face
in the spotlight so clear
Later on when
the crowd thinned out
just about to
do the same
She was standing
there in the back of my chair
said tell me
I know your name
I muttered 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 laces of
my shoe
Tangled up in blue
She lit a burner on
the stove and
offered me a pipe
I thought you'd never
say hello she said
you look like
the silent type
And then she opened up
a book of poems and
handed it to me
written by an Italian poet
from the 13th century
And every one of
them words rang true
and glowed
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
in a basement
down the stairs
There was music
in the caf廥 at night
and revolution
in the air
And then he started
into dealing with slaves
and something
inside of him died
She had to sell
everything she owned
and froze up all inside
And when finally
the bottom fell out
you know I
became withdrawn
The only thing
I knew how to do
was to keep on keeping
on like
a bird that flew
I was tangled up in blue
So now I'm
going back again
I got to get to
her somehow
All the people
we used to know
they're an illusion
to me now
Some are
mathematicians
Some are
carpenter's wives
Don't know how
it all got started
I don't what they
do with their lives
But me I'm
still on the road
heading for another joint
We always did
feel the same
we just saw it from
a different point
of view yeah
Tangled up in blue