Jerry Garcia Band
Tangled Up In Blue (Live at Poplar Creek Music Theatre, Hoffman Estates, IL, September 16, 1989)
[Verse 1]
Early one morning the sun was shinin'
I was layin' in bed
I wondered if she'd changed at much
If her hair was still red
Her parents said that our lives together
Sure was gonna be rough
They never did like Mama's homemade dress
Papa's bank book wasn't big enough
And I was standing on the side of the road
Rain falling on my shoes
Heading out for the old East Coast
God knows I've paid some dues getting through
Tangled up in blue

[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tanglеd up in blue

[Verse 2]
She was married whеn we first met
Soon to be divorced
I helped her out of a jam, I guess
And I used a little too much force
Drove that car as far as we could
Abandoned it out west
Separated on a dark sad night
Both agreeing it was best
She turned around and called to me
As I was walking away
Heard her say over her shoulder
"We'll meet again someday on the avenue"
Tangled up in blue
[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Verse 3]
I went out to the great north woods
Working as a cook for a spell
I never did like it all that much
And one day the axe just fell
Headed down to New Orleans
Well, I was lucky to be employed
Workin' for a while on a fishing boat
Right outside of Delacroix
All the while I was alone
The past was close behind
Known a lot of women
But she never escaped my mind and I just grew
Tangled up in blue

[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Instrumental Break]

[Verse 4]
She was working in topless place
I stopped in for a beer
Just kept looking at the side of her face
In the spotlight so clear
Later on when the crowd thinned out
And I was just about to do the same
She was standing there in back of my chair
Said, "Tell me, don't I know your name?"
I muttered something underneath my breath
She studied the lines on my face
I must admit I felt a little uneasy
When she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe
Tangled up in blue
[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Verse 5]
She lit the burner on the stove
And offered me a pipe
"I thought you'd never say 'hello'," she said
"You look like the silent type"
She opened up a book of poems
Handed it to me
Written by an Italian poet
From the thirteenth century
Every one of them words rang true
Glowed like burning coal
Pouring off of every page
Like it was written in my soul from me to you
Tangled up in blue

[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Instrumental Break]

[Verse 6]
I lived with them on Montague Street
In a basement down the stairs
Was music in the cafes at night
And revolution in the air
He started into messing with slaves
And something inside of him died
She had to sell everything she owned
And froze up inside
Later on when the bottom fell out
I became withdrawn
The only thing I know how to do
Is to keep on keeping on like a bird that flew
Tangled up in blue
[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Verse 7]
Now I'm going on back again
I gotta get to her somehow
All the people that we used to know
They're an illusion to me now
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenters' wives
Don't know how it all got started
I don't know what they're doing with their lives
Me, I'm still on the road
Headin' for another joint
We always did feel the same
We just saw it from a different point of view
Tangled up in blue

[Refrain]
Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Instrumental Break]

[Refrain]
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue
(Tangled up in blue) Tangled up in blue, tangled up in blue

[Outro]
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)
Tangled up in blue (Blue)

Thanks a lot. See y'all later on. Bye-bye