Desolation Row
Desolation Row

Desolation Row chords by Bob Dylan

1965Pop
Guitar
Tuning

E A D G B E

Capo

Fret 2

Capo

Transpose

0

Capo
  • D

  • G

  • A

  • D

  • G

  • A

  • Intro 1

    Verse 1
    They're 
    selling 
    postcards 
    of 
    the 
    hanging, 

    they're 
    painting 
    the 
    passports 
    brown 

    The 
    beauty 
    parlor 
    is 
    filled 
    with 
    sailors, 

    the 
    circus 
    is 
    in 
    town 

    Here 
    comes 
    the 
    blind 
    commissioner, 

    they've 
    got 
    him 
    in 
    trance 

    One 
    hand 
    is 
    tied 
    to 
    the 
    tight-rope 
    walker, 

    the 
    other 
    is 
    in 
    his 
    pants 

    And 
    the 
    riot 
    squad 
    they're 
    restless, 

    they 
    need 
    somewhere 
    to 
    go 

    As 
    Lady 
    and 
    look 
    out 
    tonight, 
    from 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 2
    Cinde
    rella, 
    she 
    seems 
    so 
    easy, 

    "It 
    takes 
    one 
    to 
    know 
    one," 
    she 
    smiles 

    And 
    puts 
    her 
    hands 
    in 
    her 
    back 
    pockets 

    Bette 
    Davis 
    style 

    And 
    in 
    comes 
    Romeo, 
    he's 
    moaning. 

    "You 
    be
    long 
    to 
    Me 
    be
    lieve" 

    And 
    someone 
    says, 

    "You're 
    in 
    the 
    wrong 
    place, 
    my 
    friend, 

    you'd 
    better 
    leave" 

    And 
    the 
    only 
    sound 
    that's 
    left 

    after 
    the 
    ambulances 
    go 

    Is 
    Cinderella 
    sweeping 
    up 
    on 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 3
    Now 
    the 
    moon 
    is 
    almost 
    hidden, 

    the 
    stars 
    are 
    beginning 
    to 
    hide 

    The 
    fortune 
    telling 
    lady 

    has 
    e
    ven 
    taken 
    all 
    her 
    things 
    in
    side 

    All 
    ex
    cept 
    for 
    Cain 
    and 
    Abel 

    and 
    the 
    hunchback 
    of 
    Notre 
    Dame 

    Everybody 
    is 
    making 
    love 

    or 
    else 
    expecting 
    rain 

    And 
    the 
    Good 
    Samaritan, 
    he's 
    dressing, 

    he's 
    getting 
    ready 
    for 
    the 
    show 

    He's 
    going 
    to 
    the 
    car
    nival 
    tonight 
    on 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 4
    O
    phelia, 
    she's 
    'neath 
    the 
    window 

    for 
    her 
    feel 
    so 
    a
    fraid 

    On 
    her 
    twenty-second 
    birthday 

    she 
    al
    ready 
    is 
    an 
    old 
    maid 

    To 
    her, 
    death 
    is 
    quite 
    romantic 

    she 
    wears 
    an 
    iron 
    vest 

    Her 
    pro
    fession's 
    her 
    religion, 

    her 
    sin 
    is 
    her 
    lifeless
    ness 

    And 
    though 
    her 
    eyes 
    are 
    fixed 

    upon 
    Noah's 
    great 
    rain
    bow 

    She 
    spends 
    her 
    time 
    peeking 
    into 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 5
    Ein
    stein, 
    disguised 
    as 
    Robin 
    Hood 

    with 
    his 
    memories 
    in 
    trunk 

    Passed 
    this 
    way 
    an 
    hour 
    ago 

    with 
    his 
    friend, 
    jealous 
    monk 

    Now 
    he 
    looked 
    so 
    immaculately 
    frightful 

    as 
    he 
    bummed 
    ciga
    rette 

    And 
    he 
    went 
    off 
    sniffing 
    drainpipes 

    and 
    re
    citing 
    the 
    alpha
    bet 

    You 
    would 
    not 
    think 
    to 
    look 
    at 
    him, 

    but 
    he 
    was 
    famous 
    long 
    a
    go 

    For 
    playing 
    the 
    electric 
    violin 
    on 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 6
    Dr. 
    Filth, 
    he 
    keeps 
    his 
    world 

    in
    side 
    of 
    leather 
    cup 

    But 
    all 
    his 
    sexless 
    patients, 

    they're 
    trying 
    to 
    blow 
    it 
    up 

    Now 
    his 
    nurse, 
    some 
    local 
    loser, 

    she's 
    in 
    charge 
    of 
    the 
    cyanide 
    hole 

    And 
    she 
    also 
    keeps 
    the 
    cards 
    that 
    read, 

    "Have 
    Mercy 
    on 
    His 
    Soul" 

    They 
    all 
    play 
    on 
    the 
    penny 
    whistles, 

    you 
    can 
    hear 
    them 
    blow 

    If 
    you 
    lean 
    your 
    head 
    out 
    far 
    enough 
    from 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 7
    Across 
    the 
    street 
    they've 
    nailed 
    the 
    curtains, 

    they're 
    get
    ting 
    ready 
    for 
    the 
    feast 

    The 
    Phantom 
    of 
    the 
    Opera 

    in 
    per
    fect 
    image 
    of 
    priest 

    They 
    are 
    spoon 
    feeding 
    Casanova 

    to 
    get 
    him 
    to 
    feel 
    more 
    as
    sured 

    Then 
    they'll 
    kill 
    him 
    with 
    self-confidence 

    after 
    poisoning 
    him 
    with 
    words 

    And 
    the 
    Phantom's 
    shouting 
    to 
    skinny 
    girls, 

    "Get 
    outta 
    here 
    if 
    you 
    don't 
    know" 

    Casa
    nova 
    is 
    just 
    being 
    pun
    ished 
    for 
    going 
    to 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Verse 8
    At 
    mid
    night 
    all 
    the 
    agents 

    and 
    the 
    superhuman 
    crew 

    Come 
    out 
    and 
    round 
    up 
    everyone 

    that 
    knows 
    more 
    than 
    they 
    do 

    Then 
    they 
    bring 
    them 
    to 
    the 
    factory 

    where 
    the 
    heart-attack 
    ma
    chine 

    Is 
    strapped 
    across 
    their 
    shoulders 

    and 
    then 
    the 
    kero
    sene 

    Is 
    brought 
    down 
    from 
    the 
    castles 

    by 
    in
    surance 
    men 
    who 
    go 

    Check 
    to 
    see 
    that 
    nobody 
    is 
    escaping 
    to 

    Des
    olation 
    Row 

    Verse 9
    Praise 
    be 
    to 
    Nero's 
    Neptune, 

    the 
    Ti
    tanic 
    sails 
    at 
    dawn 

    Everybody's 
    shouting, 

    "Which 
    side 
    are 
    you 
    on?!" 

    And 
    Ez
    ra 
    Pound 
    and 
    T.S. 
    Eliot 

    fighting 
    in 
    the 
    captain's 
    tow
    er 

    While 
    calypso 
    singers 
    laugh 
    at 
    them 

    and 
    fishermen 
    hold 
    flow
    ers 

    Be
    tween 
    the 
    windows 
    of 
    the 
    sea 

    where 
    lovely 
    mermaids 
    flow 

    And 
    nobody 
    has 
    to 
    think 
    too 
    much 
    about 

    Desolation 
    Row 

    Solo 1






    Verse 10
    Yes, 
    received 
    your 
    letter 
    yesterday, 

    about 
    the 
    time 
    the 
    doorknob 
    broke 

    When 
    you 
    asked 
    me 
    how 
    was 
    doing, 

    was 
    that 
    some 
    kind 
    of 
    joke 

    All 
    these 
    people 
    that 
    you 
    mention, 

    yes, 
    know 
    them, 
    they're 
    quite 
    lame 

    had 
    to 
    rearrange 
    their 
    faces 

    and 
    give 
    them 
    all 
    another 
    name 

    Right 
    now, 
    can't 
    read 
    too 
    good, 

    don't 
    send 
    me 
    no 
    more 
    letters 
    no 

    Not 
    unless 
    you 
    mail 
    them 
    from 

    Des
    olation 
    Row 

    Solo 2





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