Not Dark Yet
Bob Dylan/To Cry/ll Night) Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It's too hot to sleep and time is running away
Feel like my soul has turned into steel
I've still got the scars that the sun didn't let me heal
There's not even room enough to be anywhere
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Well my sense of humanity is going down the drain
She wrote me a letter and she wrote it so kind
She put down in writin' what was in her mind
I just don't see why I should even care
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Well I been to London and I been to gay Paree
I followed the river and I got to the sea
I've been down to the bottom of a whirlpool of lies
I ain't lookin' for nothin' in anyone's eyes
Sometimes my burden is more than I can bear
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
I was born here and I'll die here, against my will
I know it looks like I'm movin' but I'm standin' still
Every nerve in my body is so naked and numb
I can't even remember what it was I came here to get away from
Don't even hear the murmur of a prayer
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
In Bob Dylan's song Not Dark Yet, he paints a picture of a world that is slowly losing its light, both literally and figuratively. The singer talks about time running away and the feeling that his soul has turned into steel, indicating a sense of resignation and detachment. He also touches on the idea that there is no place to go, nowhere to escape the heat and the oppressive sense of time.
Dylan delves into the theme of pain and beauty that often go hand in hand. He mentions a letter he received that expressed the writer's thoughts and feelings, but he questions the point of caring about it. The sense of humanity is going down the drain, and there is a feeling of isolation and loneliness that pervades the lyrics.
The singer mentions traveling to different places, including London and Paris, but ultimately feeling lost and adrift. The whirlpool of lies that he has experienced has left him with a burden that is sometimes too heavy to bear. He ends with a sense of hopelessness, with every nerve in his body feeling naked and numb, and unable to remember what he was trying to escape from in the first place.
Overall, Not Dark Yet is a powerful meditation on the human experience and the darkness that can surround us. Dylan's lyrics touch on themes of pain, beauty, isolation, and ultimately, the search for meaning in a world that seems to be losing its light.
Line by Line Meaning
Shadows are falling and I been here all day
The day is coming to a close and I've been stuck in one place for too long.
It's too hot to sleep and time is running away
The heat prevents sleep and time seems to be slipping away too quickly.
Feel like my soul has turned into steel
I feel emotionless and unfeeling.
I've still got the scars that the sun didn't let me heal
I still carry wounds from the past that haven't fully healed.
There's not even room enough to be anywhere
I feel trapped and stuck in my current situation with no escape.
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Although the situation isn't at its darkest point yet, it's rapidly approaching it.
Well my sense of humanity is going down the drain
I'm losing faith in humanity and the goodness of people.
Behind every beautiful thing, there's been some kind of pain
All beautiful things come with a cost or have been shaped by painful experiences.
She wrote me a letter and she wrote it so kind
Someone was kind enough to reach out to me and left a positive message.
She put down in writin' what was in her mind
She deeply expressed her thoughts and feelings through the letter.
I just don't see why I should even care
I feel so numb and indifferent that I struggle to care about anything.
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Things are getting worse even though they're not at their darkest point yet.
Well I been to London and I been to gay Paree
I've traveled to different places and experienced different cultures.
I followed the river and I got to the sea
I've explored different paths and reached the end of some journeys.
I've been down to the bottom of a whirlpool of lies
I've experienced the depths of deceit and falsehood.
I ain't lookin' for nothin' in anyone's eyes
I'm not searching for validation or recognition from others.
Sometimes my burden is more than I can bear
The weight of my problems can be unbearable at times.
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Even though things aren't completely dark, they are heading in that direction.
I was born here and I'll die here, against my will
I didn't choose to be born here, and I'll die here without any control over it.
I know it looks like I'm movin' but I'm standin' still
Although it looks like I'm making progress, I'm actually stuck in the same place.
Every nerve in my body is so naked and numb
I feel exposed and vulnerable with no sense of feeling or emotion.
I can't even remember what it was I came here to get away from
I've forgotten why I wanted to escape from my problems in the first place.
Don't even hear the murmur of a prayer
I don't hear any words of hope or comfort in my darkest hour.
It's not dark yet, but it's getting there
Although things aren't completely hopeless, they are rapidly heading in that direction.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Bob Dylan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@rachelstowell2045
I just received a email msg that appears to be from our Beloved Bob Dylan, asking how long I've been a fan. If so, here is my reply.
Dear Bob,
I guess about 45 years or so. I've been to more of your shows than I can count.
Your songs have got me through so many of the hardest years of my life. I own a copy of every album you've done commercially.
I'm enjoying your work as if it were new with my 15 yr. old nephew these days, including your work with other artists.
While I was living in Las Vegas, I sneaked into your 50th birthday party at Bally's. I was standing in the backstage hall when you left after the last set and walked out and got into the limo.
I think your work is as relevant as when it was new. I understand that it's not easy being a Willbury.
Please always stay forever young.
With more gratitude and admiration than I can say,
Rae Stowell
@lust4bass
VISIONS OF JOHANNA
Ain't it just like the night to play tricks
When you're tryin' to be so quiet?
We sit here stranded, though we're all doin' our best to deny it
And Louise holds a handful of rain, temptin' you to defy it
Lights flicker from the opposite loft
In this room the heat pipes just cough
The country music station plays soft
But there's nothing, really nothing to turn off
Just Louise and her lover so entwined
And these visions of Johanna that conquer my mind
In the empty lot where the ladies play blindman's bluff with the key chain
And the all-night girls they whisper of escapades out on the "D" train
We can hear the night watchman click his flashlight
Ask himself if it's him or them that's insane
Louise, she's all right, she's just near
She's delicate and seems like the mirror
But she just makes it all too concise and too clear
That Johanna's not here
The ghost of 'lectricity howls in the bones of her face
Where these visions of Johanna have now taken my place
(Now, little boy lost, he takes himself so seriously
He brags of his misery, he likes to live dangerously
And when bringing her name up
He speaks of a farewell kiss to me
He's sure got a lotta gall to be so useless and all
Muttering small talk at the wall while I'm in the hall
How can I explain?
It's so hard to get on
And these visions of Johanna, they kept me up past the dawn)
Inside the museums, infinity goes up on trial
Voices echo this is what salvation must be like after a while
But Mona Lisa musta had the highway blues
You can tell by the way she smiles
See the primitive wallflower freeze
When the jelly-faced women all sneeze
Hear the one with the mustache say, "Jeez, I can't find my knees"
Oh, jewels and binoculars hang from the head of the mule
But these visions of Johanna, they make it all seem so cruel
The peddler now speaks to the countess
Who's pretending to care for him
Sayin', "Name me someone that's not a parasite and I'll go out and say a prayer for him"
But like Louise always says
"Ya can't look at much, can ya man?"
As she, herself, prepares for him
And Madonna, she still has not showed
We see this empty cage now corrode
Where her cape of the stage once had flowed
The fiddler, he now steps to the road
He writes ev'rything's been returned which was owed
On the back of the fish truck that loads
While my conscience explodes
The harmonicas play the skeleton keys and the rain
And these visions of Johanna are now all that remain
@edgarpereira6863
@@bobdylan2200
Hi Bob Dylan
Thankyou very much,i real y appreciate yogur kindeness
I am Edgar Pereira,i,ve 62 years old,i am AfroPortuguese,so english is not my home leaguaje,But
I can understand practly all
I listen your songs since i have 6 of 7 years,all my life i could follow your work
I can’t say how important That become on my life
Very gladdy for the reconizement the world gave to you ,wish the nobel preze
I could stay here wrighting,all the moments your words and your music gave me happiness,direction and stragle to be the person i am.
Not saying much more,THANKYOU BOB DYLAN,the world is a better place with your contribution
May you keep make us a little bit better Humansbeing
Thankyou Bob
@bigmamou
How lucky am I at 78 years old to have grown up with Bob Dylan, Jimi, Chuck Berry and thousands of great musicians.......and it ain't over yet!!!!!!
@dbpuckett6919
77 in 3 months and you are so right. Sweetie and I walking in the park on Sunday afternoon, music drifts on the breeze, only 300 -400 people around as The Allman Brothers Band entertained us in Piedmont Park, 1970
@chille5613
Me too !
@kathleenmiller4587
70 here and just as lucky, I've seen Dylan many times. I love it when the music starts we can't always be sure of what the song is, so many renditions of one song, then when we, the audience recognise it we all cheer. Who else would we love in this way. Special, so special.
@tracylemme1375
As old as you and appreciate those very special times as much as anybody. Dylan was one of many of the very best.
@ollieallard808
Same here: 76 in october 2021...
@ems2741
LIke so many commenting here I've been listening to Dylan since the 60s, saw him several times in Colorado and yes, not fibbing here, I was at the Rolling Thunder Review concert in Fort Collins with Baez, McGuinn etc. I can't imagine my life, now up to age 72, without Bob. This is how imporant cultural figures are to our lives.
@benjaminmitchell5345
wow lucky you ! i saw him in 78 was pretty cool he was wearing a black top hat with tarot or maybe over sized playing cards adorning the inside edge of it. the music was incredible
@junwye2246
I couldnt understand a word but I trust in Dylan. Whatever it is he is mumbling, I know it's deeply poetic and meaningful. Heck, who cares...sounds heavenly.
@holifixiti
lol. I guess nobody named the song because you can hardly understand a single word he's mumbling. Finally I figured out that it's "Visions of Johanna."