This version of Desolation Row was released by Bob Dylan in 1965.
Our About Bob Dylan page at Decade Lyrics includes the
Here's more interesting things in songs and lyrics tied to Bob Dylan or about the 1960s in general.
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 a 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 I look out tonight
From Desolation Row.
Cinderella, 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 belong to Me I Believe”
And someone says, “You’re in the wrong place, my friend
You better leave”
And the only sound that’s left
After the ambulances go
Is Cinderella sweeping up
On Desolation Row.
Now the moon is almost hidden
The stars are beginning to hide
The fortunetelling lady
Has even taken all her things inside
All except 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 carnival tonight
On Desolation Row.
Now Ophelia, she’s ‘neath the window
For her I feel so afraid
On her twenty-second birthday
She already is an old maid
To her, death is quite romantic
She wears an iron vest
Her profession’s her religion
Her sin is her lifelessness
And though her eyes are fixed upon
Noah’s great rainbow
She spends her time peeking
Into Desolation Row.
Einstein, disguised as Robin Hood
With his memories in a trunk
Passed this way an hour ago
With his friend, a jealous monk
He looked so immaculately frightful
As he bummed a cigarette
Then he went off sniffing drainpipes
And reciting the alphabet
You would not think to look at him
But he was famous long ago
For playing the electric violin
On Desolation Row.
Dr. Filth, he keeps his world
Inside of a 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 penny whistles
You can hear them blow
If you lean your head out far enough
From Desolation Row.
Across the street they’ve nailed the curtains
They’re getting ready for the feast
The Phantom of the Opera
In a perfect image of a priest
They’re spoonfeeding Casanova
To get him to feel more assured
Then they’ll kill him with self-confidence
After poisoning him with words
And the Phantom’s shouting to skinny girls
“Get outa here if you don’t know”
Casanova is just being punished for going
To Desolation Row.
At midnight 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 machine
Is strapped across their shoulders
And then the kerosene
Is brought down from the castles
By insurance men who go
Check to see that nobody is escaping
To Desolation Row.
They be to Nero’s Neptune
The Titanic sails at dawn
Everybody’s shouting
“Which side are you on ?”
And Ezra Pound and T. S. Eliot
Fighting in the captain’s tower
While calypso singers laugh at them
And fishermen hold flowers
Between the windows of the sea
Where lovely mermaids flow
And nobody has to think too much
About Desolation Row.
Yes, I received your letter yesterday
About the time the door knob broke
When you asked me how I was doing
Was that some kind of joke ?
All these people that you mention
Yes, I know them, they’re quite lame
I had to rearrange their faces
And give them all another name
Right now I can’t read too good
Dont send me no more letters no
Not unless you mail them
From Desolation Row.
Want more lyrics and songs by Bob Dylan?
Bob Dylan has released many songs over the years besides
If you're a fan of lyrics from 1960s songs looking for more songs from 1965 or the 1960s overall, you've come to the right place!
More Songs & Lyrics by Bob Dylan
- Baby, Let Me Follow You Down (1962)
- Fixin’ To Die Blues (1962)
- Freight Train Blues (1962)
- Gospel Plow (1962)
- Highway 51 Blues (1962)
- House Of The Risin’ Sun (1962)
- In My Time Of Dyin’ (1962)
- Man Of Constant Sorrow (1962)
- Pretty Peggy-O (1962)
Show More Lyrics
- See That My Grave Kept Clean (1962)
- She’s No Good (1962)
- Song To Woody (1962)
- Talkin’ New York (1962)
- A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall (1963)
- Blowin’ In The Wind (1963)
- Bob Dylan’s Blues (1963)
- Bob Dylan’s Dream (1963)
- Corrina, Corrina (1963)
- Don’t Think Twice It’s All Right (1963)
- Down The Highway (1963)
- Girl Of The North Country (1963)
- Honey Just Allow Me One More Chance (1963)
- I Shall Be Free (1963)
- Masters Of War (1963)
- Oxford Town (1963)
- Talkin’ World War lll Blues (1963)
- All I Really Want To Do (1964)
- Ballad In Plain D (1964)
- Ballad Of Hollis Brown (1964)
- Black Crow Blues (1964)
- Boots Of Spanish Leather (1964)
- Chimes Of Freedom (1964)
- I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met) (1964)
- I Shall Be Free No. 10 (1964)
- It Ain’t Me Babe (1964)
- Motorpsycho Nightmare (1964)
- My Back Pages (1964)
- North Country Blues (1964)
- One Too Many Mornings (1964)
- Only A Pawn In Their Game (1964)
- Restless Farewell (1964)
- Spanish Harlem Incident (1964)
- The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll (1964)
- The Times They Are A-Changin’ (1964)
- To Ramona (1964)
- When The Ship Comes In (1964)
- With God On Our Side (1964)
- Ballad Of A Thin Man (1965)
- Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream (1965)
- From A Buick 6 (1965)
Visit our Bob Dylan profile for more Bob Dylan songs, lyrics & info!
- WHAM!24 Songs & Lyrics
- TOADIES24 Songs & Lyrics
- DONNIE MCCLURKIN24 Songs & Lyrics
- MADELEINE PEYROUX24 Songs & Lyrics
- IMOGEN HEAP24 Songs & Lyrics
- UTADA24 Songs & Lyrics
- BLAQUE24 Songs & Lyrics
- CRAZY TOWN24 Songs & Lyrics
- EDGEWATER24 Songs & Lyrics
- FENIX TX24 Songs & Lyrics
- SISQO24 Songs & Lyrics
- APARTMENT 2624 Songs & Lyrics
Show More
- BARDOT24 Songs & Lyrics
- JAMIE O'NEAL24 Songs & Lyrics
- LIL' BOW WOW24 Songs & Lyrics
- PLUS ONE24 Songs & Lyrics
- SHYNE24 Songs & Lyrics
- BLU CANTRELL24 Songs & Lyrics
- ESKIMO JOE24 Songs & Lyrics
- JOJO24 Songs & Lyrics
- LOSTPROPHETS24 Songs & Lyrics
- OURS24 Songs & Lyrics
- TANTRIC24 Songs & Lyrics
- YEAH YEAH YEAHS24 Songs & Lyrics
- THE CALLING24 Songs & Lyrics
- EMMA BUNTON24 Songs & Lyrics
- TYLER HILTON24 Songs & Lyrics
- DEADSTAR ASSEMBLY24 Songs & Lyrics
- JUST JACK24 Songs & Lyrics
- LASGO24 Songs & Lyrics
- MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE24 Songs & Lyrics
- UNFINISHED THOUGHT24 Songs & Lyrics
- WILL YOUNG24 Songs & Lyrics
- ZOX24 Songs & Lyrics
- DANIEL BEDINGFIELD24 Songs & Lyrics
- VIENNA TENG24 Songs & Lyrics
- FRANKIE J24 Songs & Lyrics
- TRIVIUM24 Songs & Lyrics
- VANILLA NINJA24 Songs & Lyrics
- DIERKS BENTLEY24 Songs & Lyrics
- CLAY AIKEN24 Songs & Lyrics
- FRANZ FERDINAND24 Songs & Lyrics
- KATY ROSE24 Songs & Lyrics
- KIMBERLEY LOCKE24 Songs & Lyrics
- MCFLY24 Songs & Lyrics
- FOUR YEAR STRONG24 Songs & Lyrics
- HEDLEY24 Songs & Lyrics
- IDIOT PILOT24 Songs & Lyrics
- KALAN PORTER24 Songs & Lyrics
- NATALIE24 Songs & Lyrics
- RIHANNA24 Songs & Lyrics
- SAVING JANE24 Songs & Lyrics
- TEDDY PENDERGRASS24 Songs & Lyrics
- ARCANGEL24 Songs & Lyrics
- sheryl24 Songs & Lyrics
- FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD23 Songs & Lyrics
- JON BON JOVI23 Songs & Lyrics
- D'ANGELO23 Songs & Lyrics
- CRUCIAL CONFLICT23 Songs & Lyrics
- AQUA23 Songs & Lyrics
- POWERMAN 500023 Songs & Lyrics
- SAVAGE GARDEN23 Songs & Lyrics
- SAVE FERRIS23 Songs & Lyrics
- GARY JULES23 Songs & Lyrics
- MR. VEGAS23 Songs & Lyrics
- IMX23 Songs & Lyrics
- VITAMIN C23 Songs & Lyrics
- BBMAK23 Songs & Lyrics
- DEXTER FREEBISH23 Songs & Lyrics
- GRAVY TRAIN!!!!23 Songs & Lyrics
- METRIC23 Songs & Lyrics
- THE ISLEY BROTHERS23 Songs & Lyrics
- KELLY OSBOURNE23 Songs & Lyrics
- SENSES FAIL23 Songs & Lyrics
- THEORY OF A DEADMAN23 Songs & Lyrics
- TRUST COMPANY23 Songs & Lyrics
- THE VINES23 Songs & Lyrics
- DWELE23 Songs & Lyrics
- JOSH TURNER23 Songs & Lyrics
- JUSTIN GUARINI23 Songs & Lyrics
- PETE MURRAY23 Songs & Lyrics
- CANDICE ALLEY23 Songs & Lyrics
- BRING ME THE HORIZON23 Songs & Lyrics
- DELAYS23 Songs & Lyrics
- KT TUNSTALL23 Songs & Lyrics
- LOVEDRUG23 Songs & Lyrics
- MELEE23 Songs & Lyrics
- SUBMERSED23 Songs & Lyrics
- JAMES BLUNT23 Songs & Lyrics
- BLAINE LARSEN23 Songs & Lyrics
- HARD-FI23 Songs & Lyrics
- MGMT23 Songs & Lyrics
- ROGUE TRADERS23 Songs & Lyrics
- JASON ALDEAN23 Songs & Lyrics
- COBRA STARSHIP23 Songs & Lyrics
- LAUREN CHRISTY22 Songs & Lyrics
- PORTISHEAD22 Songs & Lyrics
- ADINA HOWARD22 Songs & Lyrics
- TRADEMARK22 Songs & Lyrics