Murder Most Foul

That’s a pure masterpiece from our Nobel laureate... would fit his live set well. 

Twas a dark day in Dallas, November '63
A day that will live on in infamy
President Kennedy was a-ridin' high
Good day to be livin’ and a good day to die
Being led to the slaughter like a sacrificial lamb
He say, ‘wait a minute, boys, you know who I am?’
‘Of course we do, we know who you are’
Then they blew off his head while he was still in the car
Shot down like a dog in broad daylight
Was a matter of timin’ and the timin’ was right
You’ve got unpaid debts we've come to collect
We gonna kill you with hatred, without any respect
We’ll mock you and shock you and we'll grin in your face
We’ve already got someone here to take your place

The day they blew out the brains of the king
Thousands were watching, no one saw a thing
It happened so quickly, so quick by surprise
Right there in front of everyone's eyes
Greatest magic trick ever under the sun
Perfectly executed, skilfully done
Wolf man oh wolf man oh wolf man howl
Rub-a-dub-dub, it's a murder most foul

Hush little children, you’re gonna stand
The Beatles are comin’, they're gonna hold your hand
Slide down the bannister, go get your coat
Ferry ‘cross the Mersey and go for the throat
There’s three bums comin all dressed in rags
Pick up the pieces and lower the flags
I’m goin’ to Woodstock, it's the Aquarian age
Then I’ll go to Altamont and sit near the stage
Put your head out the window, let the good times roll
There’s a party goin’ on behind the grassy knoll

Stack up the bricks, pour the cement
Don’t say Dallas don't love you, Mr. President
Put your foot in the tank and step on the gas
Try to make it to the triple underpass
Blackface singer white face clown
Better not show your faces after the sun goes down
Up in the red light district like a cop on the beat
Livin' in a nightmare on Elm Street

When you're down on Deep Ellum put your money in your shoe
Don’t ask what your country can do for you
Cash on the barrelhead, money to burn
Dealey Plaza, make a left-hand turn
I’m goin’ down to the crossroads, gonna flag a ride
The place where faith, hope and charity died
Shoot him while he runs, boy, shoot him while you can
See if you can shoot the Invisible Man
Goodbye Charlie, goodbye Uncle Sam
Frankly, Miss Scarlet, I don't give a damn
What is the truth? Where did it go?
Ask Oswald and Ruby, they oughta know
‘Shut your mouth,’ said the wise old owl,
‘Business is business, and it's murder most foul’

Tommy, can you hear me? I’m the acid queen.
I’m riding in a long black Lincoln limousine
Ridin’ in the backseat next to my wife
Headin’ straight on in to the afterlife
I’m leanin’ to the left, got my head in her lap
Oh Lord, I’ve been led into some kind of a trap
Well, we ask no quarter and no quarter do we give
We’re right down the street from the street where you live
They mutilated his body and they took out his brain
What more could they do? They piled on the pain
But his soul was not there, where it's supposed to be at
For the last 50 years, they've been searching for that

Freedom, oh freedom, freedom over need
I hate to tell ya, mister, but only dead men are free
Send me some lovin’, tell me no lie
Throw the gun in the gutter and walk on by
Wake up little Suzie, let's go for a drive
Cross the Trinity River, let's keep open eyed
Turn the radio on, don't touch the dials
Parkland hospital only six more miles
You got me dizzy, Ms Lizzy, ya fill me with lead
That magic bullet of yours has gone to my head
I’m just a patsy like Patsy Cline
Never shot anyone from in front or behind
Got blood in my eye, got blood in my ear
I’m never gonna make it to the new frontier

Zapruder’s film I’ve seen right before
Seen it 33 times, maybe more
It’s vile and deceitful, it's cruel and it's mean
Ugliest thing that you ever have seen
They killed him once and they killed him twice
Killed him like a human sacrifice
The day that they killed him someone said to me, ‘Son,
The Age of the Antichrist has just only begun’
Air Force One comin’ in through the gate
Johnson sworn in at 2:38
Lemme know when you decide to throw in the towel
It is what it is, and it’s murder most foul

What’s new pussycat, what’d I say?
I said the soul of a nation been torn away
And it's beginning to go into a slow decay
And that it's 36 hours past judgement day

Wolfman Jack he's speaking in tongues
He’s going on and on at the top of his lungs
Play me a song, Mr Wolfman Jack
Play it for me in my long Cadillac
Play me that only the good die young
Take me to the place Tom Dooley was hung
The Saint James infirmary in the court of King James
If you want to remember you’d better write down the names
Play Etta James too, play ‘I’d Rather Go Blind’
Play it for the man with a telepathic mind
Play John Lee Hooker, play ‘Scratch My Back’
Play it for that strip club owner named Jack
Guitar Slim goin’ down slow
Play it for me and for Marilyn Monroe

Play ‘Please, Don't Let Me be Misunderstood’
Play it for the First Lady, she ain’t feeling any good
Play Don Henley, play Glenn Frey
Take it to the limit and let it go by
Play it for Carl Wilson, too
Looking far, far away down Galloway Avenue
Play tragedy, play twilight time
Take me back to Tulsa to the scene of the crime
Play another one, and another one bites the dust
Play the old rugged cross and in God we trust
Ride the pink horse down that long lonesome road
Stand there and wait for his head to explode

Play Mystery Train for Mr. Mystery
The man who fell down dead like a rootless tree
Play it for the reverend, play it for the pastor
Play it for the dog that got no master
Play Oscar Peterson, play Stan Getz
Play Blue sky, play Dicky Betts
Play Art Pepper, Thelonious Monk
Charlie Parker and all of that junk
All that junk and all of that jazz
Play something for the Birdman of Alcatraz

Play Buster Keaton, play Harold Lloyd
Play Bugsy Siegel, play Pretty Boy Floyd
Play the numbers, play the odds
Play ‘Cry Me a River’ for the lord of the gods
Play number nine play number six
Play it for Nancy and Stevie Nicks
Play Nat King Cole, play ‘Nature Boy’
Play ‘Down in the Boondocks’ for Terry Malloy
Play ‘It Happened One Night’ and ‘One Night of Sin’
There’s 12 million souls that are listenin’ in
Play ‘Merchant of Venice’, play ‘Merchants of Death’
Play ‘Stella by Starlight’ from Lady Macbeth

‘Don’t worry, Mr. President, help’s on the way
Your brothers are comin', there'll be hell to pay’
Brothers, what brothers?
What’s this about hell?
Tell ‘em we're waiting, keep coming, we'll get them as well

Love field is where his plane touched down
But it never did get back up off the ground
Was a hard act to follow, second to none
They killed him on the altar of the rising sun
Play misty for me and that old devil moon
Play anything goes and Memphis in June
Play lonely at the top and lonely are the brave
Play it for Houdini spinning around in his grave
Play Jelly Roll Morton, play Lucille
Play deep in a dream and play driving wheel
Play Moonlight Sonata in F#
And the key to the highway but the king of the heart
Play Marching through Georgia and Dumbarton’s drums
Play darkness and death will come when it comes
Play Love me or leave me by the great Bud Powell
Play the bloodstained banner, play murder most foul

It's a beautiful thing.

someone posted this is his longest song

Epic!

Thanks.

When do we get to hear the full version?lol

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4ckhBvOV848V2SiE3O8zJ0?si=zeAUVzrKRKaT...

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-52061447

"Greetings to my fans and followers with gratitude for all your support and loyalty over the years," said the Pulitzer and Nobel Prize winner in a statement. 

"This is an unreleased song we recorded a while back that you might find interesting. Stay safe, stay observant, and may God be with you."

He gave no further clues about its vintage, but the delicate, almost conversational vocals are reminiscent of his more recent live shows.

Musically, it's spacious and haunting, with a dusting of piano, a sorrowful violin, and slow, brushed percussion - and while interpreting the lyrics would require weeks of scholarship, two lines in particular suggest Dylan may have chosen to release the song now as a commentary on US politics.

"The day they killed him, someone said to me, 'Son, the age of the Antichrist has just only begun,'" he sings around the nine-minute mark.

"I said, 'The soul of a nation's been torn away, and it's beginning to go into a slow decay.' And that it's 36 hours past judgement day."

Pretty haunting tune. At almost 17 minutes long, I wasn't planning on listening to the whole thing, but couldn't stop listening.

Well done, Zimmy!

 Thank You 

Bob does it again.

That’s a pure masterpiece from our Nobel laureate... would fit his live set well. <<<<<<

Good luck with him remembering all the lyrics.

Love it though. TY 

Wow gut check

He was a friend of ours

Thanks Bob

Man I can see him pulling from source after source in those lyrics. Pretty incredible. Prolly make a good book. Not musical enough for me, but I get it.

Lovely Story Talk...

"Will he haunt your town next"?

You better hope so! Can't wait for "summer" tour, whenever it happens......Don't you dare miss it!

I like the lyrics, but IMO it works better as read poetry rather than as a song. Too slow, not very melodic

The lyrics of "Murder Most Foul" are an intertextual wonderland. There's a playlist of the songs referenced in it here:

https://www.npr.org/sections/allsongs/2020/03/27/822468820/a-list-of-the...

Great song. Instant classic.

Our Country's Dirge

Only 17 minutes long. Nice little ditty

Everyone should read this.  I'm not sure anyone needs to hear it.  Oof.

I look forward to the cover versions, tho'.

It's not quite with a bullet, but "Murder Most Foul" has become Dylan's first Billboard #1 song.

https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9354213/bob-dylan...

Don't think that will fit on a 7" single.

Most name drops in a song ever.

I'm feeling that this was recorded sometime in 2013. I'm not sure if it has been reported anywhere but that's what I hear. After Tempest with members of that band. It's really stunning in so many ways. There is one glaring line that reveals the hunch on a 2013 recording session. I've only listened to it one time.

Yes Jack, that has been reported, not as "fact" but whoever wrote the article seemed pretty sure.

(sorry, I probably read that on Expecting Rain but I can't remember).

The timing sounds about right to me.

Pretty amazing piece of work.

Kind of crazy that he's probably got a handful of these up his sleeve.

Local... it was reported by me the day it came out on many Bob Dylan fan pages on Facebook and of course was shot down in an instant by all the smartest guys in the room types. They are like crickets now. I knew the day it came out on one listen. It was right there in the song. 

What is the 2013 clue?

"But his soul was not there, where it's supposed to be at
For the last 50 years, they've been searching for that."

JFK killed in 1963.

I had at least a dozen people tell me it was recorded recently and that my guess was wrong. Even when it's right there in the lyrics. One listen and I pegged it at 2013. The musicians on it are also easily pulled from with a set of ears and are quite obviously members of his band at the time.

The song also fits the theme of Tempest and was likely a logical turn in his mind to record it but had to skip it on the release because there was already a 14 minute title track. He probably finished it in his head and recorded upon the completion of Tempest and sat on it like he does with many songs over the years and eventually feeling the need to release. Neil Young does the same thing but even more often. That's all just a guess of course. 

I tried to give it a listen and realized a hadn't the patience to sit through it all. Later driving backroads in the Catskills, Deep Tracks on satellite radio played it in its entirety. I was stuck behind the wheel looking at the beauty so I finally had the time. Funny I remember the drive and the emotions more than any lyrics

great song 

thanks