Mr. Tambourine Man
Roger McGuinn Lyrics

Hey, Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me
Asking the tambourine man to perform for him

I'm not sleepy and there ain't no place I'm going to
He is not tired and has no particular destination to reach

In the jingle jangle morning I'll come following you
He will follow the tambourine man wherever he goes in the morning

Though I know that evenings empire has returned into sand
Evenings, which once held such promise, have crumbled away

Vanished from my hand
His past has disappeared

Left me blindly here to stand but still not sleeping
He is confused and lost but still cannot sleep

My weariness amazes me, I'm branded on my feet
He is exhausted and cannot believe how much it is affecting him

I have no one to meet
He is alone and has no one to talk to

And the ancient empty street's too dead for dreaming
The streets are empty and there is nothing to dream about

Take me on a trip upon your magic swirling ship
He wants to go on an adventure with the tambourine man

My senses have been stripped
His senses have been dulled

May hands can't feel to grip
His hands cannot feel anything to hold onto

My toes too numb to step
His toes are numb and he cannot move

Wait only for my boot heels to be wandering
He wants to explore and wander around

I'm ready to go anywhere, I'm ready for to fade
He is ready to go anywhere and disappear

Into my own parade
He wants to live life on his own terms

Cast your dancing spell my way, I promise to go under it
He wants the tambourine man to enchant him with his music

Though you might hear laughing, spinning, swinging madly across the sun
He acknowledges that his mind might be delusional

It's not aimed at anyone
His behavior is not directed at anyone in particular

It's just escaping on the run
His mind is escaping and running wild

And but for the sky there are no fences facing
There are no obstacles and his mind is free to roam

And if you hear vague traces of skipping reels of rhyme
He acknowledges that his thoughts might be scattered and unclear

To your tambourine in time
He wants the music to help him find a rhythm and structure

It's just a ragged clown behind
His mind is playing tricks on him

I wouldn't pay it any mind
He advises himself to ignore it

It's just a shadow you're seeing that he's chasing
He is chasing after an imaginary figure

Take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind
He wants to escape reality and the smoke represents the fog of his thoughts

Down the foggy ruins of time
He wants to go down a path that is obscured by time

Far past the frozen leaves
He wants to go beyond the boundaries of what is familiar

The haunted frightened trees
The trees are personified as being frightened and haunted

Out to the windy bench
He wants to go to an open and windy place

Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow
He wants to escape his pain and anguish

Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky
He wants to dance under a beautiful and bright sky

With one hand waving free
He will be unburdened and free

Silhouetted by the sea
He wants to be framed by the ocean

Circled by the circus sands
He is surrounded by a surreal environment

With all memory of fate
He wants to forget about destiny and fate

Driven deep beneath the waves
He wants to forget all of his troubles and worries

Let me forget about today until tomorrow
He wants to forget about his problems for a little while