A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
Bob Dylan feat. Joan Baez Lyrics

Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son
Where have you been all this time, my son with blue eyes?

And where have you been, my darling young one
And where have you been, my dear young one?

I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains
I have been struggling and meandering near a dozen mountains that are surrounded by mist.

I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways
I have journeyed on six twisted roads on foot, and at times slowly due to hardships.

I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests
I have been standing amidst seven somber forests

I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans
I have been looking out towards the sight of a dozen lifeless oceans.

I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard
I have been in the area surrounding a graveyard that extends for miles.

And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard
And it is a difficult, an exceedingly difficult, an arduous, and an apparently insurmountable task.

It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall
A miserable downpour is imminent.

Oh, what did you see, my blue-eyed son
What did you witness, my son with blue eyes?

And what did you see, my darling young one
And what did you experience, my beloved young one?

I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it
I saw an infant child surrounded by wolves in the wilderness.

I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it
I observed a glittering road filled with diamonds that was completely empty of people.

I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin'
I saw a dark and bloody branch with drops falling down.

I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin'
I witnessed a chamber filled with men whose hammers were dripping with blood.

I saw a white ladder all covered with water
I beheld a white-colored ladder that was soon engulfed in water

I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken
I witnessed an enormous multitude of orators whose tongues were unable to speak.

I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children
I observed that young children were wielding firearms and sharp swords.

And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it is a difficult, an exceedingly difficult, an arduous, and an apparently insurmountable task.

It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall
A miserable downpour is imminent.

And what did you hear, my blue-eyed son?
What did you listen to, my son with blue eyes?

And what did you hear, my darling young one?
And what did you hear, my beloved young one?

I heard the sound of a thunder that roared out a warnin'
I heard a warning from a thunderous sound that was calling out.

Heard the roar of a wave that could drown the whole world
I heard a mighty wave that could submerge the whole planet.

Heard one hundred drummers whose hands were a-blazin'
I heard an intense rhythm from a hundred drummers whose hands were burning.

Heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin'
I heard a multitude of individuals whispering, but not one person gave them any attention.

Heard one person starve, I heard many people laughin'
I overheard someone die of hunger, while there were others laughing in delight.

Heard the song of a poet who died in the gutter
I listened to the work of a poet who perished on the side of a street.

Heard the sound of a clown who cried in the alley
I heard the cry of a clown who was upset in a narrow passageway.

And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it is a difficult, an exceedingly difficult, an arduous, and an apparently insurmountable task.

It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall
A miserable downpour is imminent.

Oh, what did you meet, my blue-eyed son?
Who did you encounter, my son with blue eyes?

Who did you meet, my darling young one?
Whom did you come across, my beloved young one?

I met a young child beside a dead pony
I came across a young child who was near a deceased pony.

I met a white man who walked a black dog
I encountered a pale-skinned man who was walking a black dog.

I met a young woman whose body was burning
I met a young girl whose body was on fire.

I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow
I came across a young girl who gave me a multicolored bow of light.

I met one man who was wounded in love
I came across a man who had been emotionally hurt.

I met another man who was wounded with hatred
I encountered another man who had been injured by feelings of hatred.

And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it is a difficult, an exceedingly difficult, an arduous, and an apparently insurmountable task.

It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall
A miserable downpour is imminent.

And what'll you do now, my blue-eyed son?
What will you do next, my son with blue eyes?

And what'll you do now, my darling young one?
What will you do henceforth, my beloved young one?

I'm a-goin' back out 'fore the rain starts a-fallin'
I'm about to move out before the deluge begins to occur.

I'll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest
I will traverse down into the depths of the darkest forest.

Where the people are many and their hands are all empty
Where there are numerous people with empty hands.

Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters
Where toxic pellets are polluting their waters.

Where the home in the valley meets the damp dirty prison
Where a home situated in the valley collides with a wet and filthy prison.

And the executioner's face is always well hidden
And the face of the executioner is always concealed.

Where hunger is ugly, where souls are forgotten
Where a despicable and abominable hunger reigns, and where souls are irrelevant.

Where black is the color, where none is the number
Where the color of darkness dominates everything, and no one counts for anything.

And I'll tell it and think it and speak it and breathe it
And I will narrate, ponder, articulate, and inhale this reality.

And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it
And I will cast this image from the mountaintop so that all of humanity can see it.

Then I'll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin'
Then I will be standing on the surface of the ocean until the point that I start drowning.

But I'll know my song well before I start singin'
But I will understand my tune quite well before I start singing it aloud.

And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard
And it is a difficult, an exceedingly difficult, an arduous, and an apparently insurmountable task.

It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall
A miserable downpour is imminent.