Jack+R

= = =__**B****OB DYLAN- HURRICANE**__=

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 * //HURRICANE- BOB DYLAN_WATCH LIVE PERFORMANCE//**
 * //LYRICS//**

//Songwriters:;Dylan, Bob//

// Pistols shots ring out in the barroom night // // Enter Patty Valentine from the upper hall // // She sees the bartender in a pool of blood // // Cries out "My God they killed them all" // // Here comes the story of the Hurricane // // The man the authorities came to blame // // For something that he never done // // Put him in a prison cell but one time he could-a been // // The champion of the world. //

// Three bodies lying there does Patty see // // And another man named Bello moving around mysteriously  // // "I didn't do it" he says and he throws up his hands // // "I was only robbing the register I hope you understand // // I saw them leaving" he says and he stops // // "One of us had better call up the cops" // // And so Patty calls the cops // // And they arrive on the scene with their red lights flashing // // In the hot New Jersey night. //

// Meanwhile far away in another part of town // // Rubin Carter and a couple of friends are driving around // // Number one contender for the middleweight crown // // Had no idea what kinda shit was about to go down // // When a cop pulled him over to the side of the road // // Just like the time before and the time before that // // In Patterson that's just the way things go // // If you're black you might as well not shown up on the street // // 'Less you wanna draw the heat. //

// Alfred Bello had a partner and he had a rap for the corps // // Him and Arthur Dexter Bradley were just out prowling around // // He said "I saw two men running out they looked like middleweights // // They jumped into a white car with out-of-state plates" // // And Miss Patty Valentine just nodded her head // // Cop said "Wait a minute boys this one's not dead" // // So they took him to the infirmary // // And though this man could hardly see // // They told him that he could identify the guilty men. //

// Four in the morning and they haul Rubin in // // Take him to the hospital and they bring him upstairs // // The wounded man looks up through his one dying eye // // Says "Wha'd you bring him in here for ? He ain't the guy !" // // Yes here comes the story of the Hurricane // // The man the authorities came to blame // // For something that he never done // // Put in a prison cell but one time he could-a been // // The champion of the world. //

// Four months later the ghettos are in flame // // Rubin's in South America fighting for his name // // While Arthur Dexter Bradley's still in the robbery game // // And the cops are putting the screws to him looking for somebody to blame // // "Remember that murder that happened in a bar ?" // // "Remember you said you saw the getaway car?" // // "You think you'd like to play ball with the law ?" // // "Think it might-a been that fighter you saw running that night ?" // // "Don't forget that you are white". //

// Arthur Dexter Bradley said "I'm really not sure" // // Cops said "A boy like you could use a break // // We got you for the motel job and we're talking to your friend Bello // // Now you don't wanta have to go back to jail be a nice fellow // // You'll be doing society a favor // // That sonofabitch is brave and getting braver // // We want to put his ass in stir // // We want to pin this triple murder on him // // He ain’t no Gentlemen Jim “. // // Rubin could take a man out with just one punch // // But he never did like to talk about it all that much // // It's my work he'd say and I do it for pay // // And when it's over I'd just as soon go on my way // // Up to some paradise // // Where the trout streams flow and the air is nice // // And ride a horse along a trail // // But then they took him to the jailhouse // // Where they try to turn a man into a mouse. //

// All of Rubin's cards were marked in advance // // The trial was a pig-circus he never had a chance // // The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums // // To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum // // And to the black folks he was just a crazy nigger // // No one doubted that he pulled the trigger // // And though they could not produce the gun // // The DA said he was the one who did the deed // // And the all-white jury agreed. //

// Rubin Carter was falsely tried // // The crime was murder 'one' guess who testified // // Bello and Bradley and they both baldly lied // // And the newspapers they all went along for the ride // // How can the life of such a man // // Be in the palm of some fool's hand ? // // To see him obviously framed // // Couldn't help but make me feel ashamed to live in a land // // Where justice is a game. // // Now all the criminals in their coats and their ties (police) // // Are free to drink martinis and watch the sun rise // // While Rubin sits like Buddha in a ten-foot cell // // An innocent man in a living hell // // That's the story of the Hurricane // // But it won't be over till they clear his name // // And give him back the time he's done // // Put him in a prison cell but one time he could-a been // // The champion of the world. //

//**HURRICANE: BACKGROUND**//

// This song was written in 1975 and was included in Bob Dylan’s album Desire. I have chosen this song as it is a moving and powerful song which recounts the miscarriage of justice which enraged and annoyed Dylan and inspired him to write this protest song. // // First of all I would like to talk about Bob Dylan’s background. Bob Dylan was born by the name of Robert Allan Zimmerman in Minnesota, United States on May 24th in 1941. He is an inspirational singer-songwriter who has been in the music business for five decades. The decade which most stands out is the 60’s. This is because he was a figurehead, albeit slightly reluctantly, of social unrest in USA as he chronicled, through his songs, the problems of civil rights and racism in America. Dylan has always been a politicised person, although he does so in a quiet almost secretive manner. // // So the song Hurricane fits into this politicised version of Bob Dylan in the 60’s as it recounts an extraordinary and clearly corrupt miscarriage of justice, which occurred in New Jersey. The song talks about the false conviction of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter a world-renowned boxer who was about to contest the world middleweight title. However, that all changed when he was imprisoned and falsely convicted of a triple homicide. When imprisoned Dylan heard of his plight and visited him on many occasions in prison and that was when he became inspired to tell the story of the “hurricane” to all USA. Another fact about this song is that he played it for the first time on national prime time television in front of a massive audience. This shows me how courageous Bob Dylan was and how strongly he believed that justice hadn’t been achieved. //

//**ANALYSIS OF SONG**//

// Firstly, I would like to say that it is a powerful and emotive song and that the delivery of the lyrics with such heartfelt and raw anger, accompanied by his raspy but melodic voice, really brings the song to life. Above all what really impresses me is that he doesn’t hold back and he says what needs to be said in a highly critical manner. // // Most importantly, the lyrics are sublime and poetic and are extremely inspirational as you are whipped up into a rage due to his fantastic lyricism. Although very long, you will be hard pressed to find any repetition and everything he says is packed full of anger and criticism of American society. Moreover, you can listen to the song over an over and always interpret it in a different way as he is so clever with his words and his lyrics have so many meanings // // To aid the understanding of the song I have selected the most emotive and interesting lines from the song as the song is very long and the lyrics don’t repeat themselves. To start of with, “Put him in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been. The champion of the world. ” Is near the start of the song and it is stating that they have not only taken away his freedom but they have also destroyed an innocent mans chance to reach stardom and become the champion boxer of the world. He repeats these lines for effect as it is a powerful image that this conjures up as you see a young man in the prime of his life and about to become a star being unjustly and unfairly impeded by corrupt and racist police and judges. // // Another part I would like to highlight is, “If you're black you might as well not shown up on the street. 'Less you wanna draw the heat.” Here you can really sense his anger at the racist attitudes displayed by the police as he insinuates that if you are black then you aren’t even allowed to walk around the streets of your country without being harassed and racially discriminated against. Ultimately all Carter was doing was be on the street and that was enough for corrupt policemen to falsely imprison him for a triple homicide he did not commit. // // Moving on, the next quote shows how not even the victims thought he had committed the murders. “The wounded man looks up through his one dying eye. Says "Wha'd you bring him in here for ? He ain't the guy !"” // // I think that these lines really sum up the injustice of the conviction and also the audaciousness of the police to carry on and convict Carter even though the victim, who is about to die, states that Carter has nothing to do with it. // // In these next lines you get a real sense of how corrupt and immoral the police are. “"Think it might-a been that fighter you saw running that night ?""Don't forget that you are white".” You can clearly see how the police are trying to persuade someone to testify in court even though they aren’t sure and don’t really know who it was. They are trying to force the idea that it was Carter and then, to my astonishment, they go on to try and reason with them by saying they are white and that they should willingly testify against a black man regardless of what the truth might be. // // In these next few verses Bob Dylan really goes for it and he starts really pushing home his message. He says powerful and provocative statements like, “You'll be doing society a favor” and “We want to pin this triple murder on him. He ain’t no Gentlemen Jim.” These lines are blunt and direct as he blatantly accuses the police of pinning the murder on Carter. The interesting part is that the police think that locking a black man up is doing society a favour and it shows the profound and deeply entrenched racism in America. Another point is that Gentlemen Jim was a white boxer and they suggest he isn’t like him as he is black and therefore inferior and different. The irony is that Carter was renowned for being a good, honest, gentle man who boxed as a profession but never took his work home in a manner of speaking. To sum up Carter was the perfect Gentlemen. // // Then Dylan goes on to talk about the case in the court and how the verdict was never in doubt. “And though they could not produce the gun. The DA said he was the one who did the deed. And the all-white jury agreed.” Here you see the state of the justice system in America and how unfair and profoundly racially discriminative it is. This is shown in this case as, even though, the DA haven’t got enough evidence the jury, which isn’t in the slightest bit racially diverse as they are all white, goes along with the charade of a case and convicts him for the murders. // // Then at this point Dylan makes his most controversial statement as he says that, “Couldn't help but make me feel ashamed to live in a land. Where justice is a game.” He goes as far as sayng that he is ashamed of his country and due to the fact that justice isn’t just in the slightest and that the game is severely rigged in the white mens favour. // // Finally it concludes with him saying that this story won’t be over till Carter is released. “That's the story of the Hurricane. But it won't be over till they clear his name”. Here you can sense how angry Dylan is with the fact that an innocent man is languishing and wasting away in prison due to racist and corrupt police and judges. //

//**HANDOUT**//

// * Hurricane by Bob Dylan is a protest song against the false conviction of a famous black boxer in New Jersey. Dylan read about the case in the newspapers and then visited Carter in jail on many occasions and that is what inspired him to write this song along with Jaques Levy. //

// *Carter was imprisoned for a triple homicide even though the victim denied he was involved and the police never found the gun or even had any solid evidence to accuse him. //

// *Dylan also uncovers the corrupt nature of the investigation as the police bribe people to testify in court. Also, you really see how racially discriminating America was in the 60’s and how easily someone could be falsely and unfairly convicted and imprisoned by a white, corrupt and racist judicial system. //

// *The songs objective is to raise awareness of Carter’s plight and uncover some of the social problems that were causing unrest in America at that time. And most importantly to make sure he gets let out of jail and that his name is cleared of all the blame for the murders. //

// *What really outraged Dylan was that Carter was the main contender for the middleweight crown and that he was stolen of his chance to achieve something incredible purely because he was black. //

// *Carter was released in 1985 at the age of 50 he was imprisoned in 1966. Carter now lives in Toronto, Ontario and was the executive director of the Association in defence of the Wrongly Convicted from 1993 until 2005. //

// TASK //
 * CHOOSE THE RIGHT WORD**

// Pistols shots ring out in the barroom NIGHT / FIGHT // // Enter Patty Valentine from the LOWER / UPPER hall // // She sees the BARTENDER / WAITER in a pool of blood // // CRIES / SHOUTS out "My God they killed them all" // // Here comes the story of the Hurricane // // The BOXER / MAN the authorities came to blame // // For something that he HADN'T / NEVER done // // Put him in a prison cell but one time he WOULD / COULD-a been // // The champion of the world. //

// Three bodies lying there does Patty see // // And another man named Bello moving around MYSTERIOUSLY / GUILTILY  // // "I didn't do it" he says and he PUTS / THROWS up his hands // // "I was only robbing the register I hope you understand // // I saw them ESCAPING / LEAVING" he says and he stops // // "One of us had better call up the COPS / POLICE" // // And so Patty calls the cops // // And they arrive on the scene with their red SIRENS / LIGHTS flashing // // In the COLD / HOT New Jersey night. //