(Words and Music by Bob Dylan)
1989 Special Rider Music

Crickets are chirpin', the water is high,
There's a soft cotton dress on the line hangin' dry,
Window wide open, African trees Bent over backwards from a hurricane breeze.
Not a word of goodbye, not even a note,
She gone with the man In the long black coat.

Somebody seem him hanging around At the old dance hall on the outskirts of town.
He looked into her eyes when she stopped him to ask If he wanted to dance,
he had a face like a mask.
Somebody said from the Bible he'd quote
There was dust on the man In the long black coat.

Preacher was a talkin', there's a sermon he gave,
He said every man's conscience is vile and depraved,
You cannot depend on it to be your guide
When it's you who must keep it satisfied.
It ain't easy to swallow, it sticks in the throat,
She gave her heart to the man In the long black coat.

There are no mistakes in life some people say
It is true sometimes you can see it that way.
But people don't live or die, people just float.
She went with the man In the long black coat.

There's smoke on the water, it's been there since June,
Tree trunks uprooted, 'neath the high crescent moon
Feel the pulse and vibration and the rumbling force
Somebody is out there beating a dead horse.
She never said nothing, there was nothing she wrote,
She gone with the man In the long black coat.

Criptic and Mysterious, this song has a life of its own. Rumor has it that it was recorded on one take. Suprising enough it sounds fantastic. If a dark song can be described that way. It is a tune that gives chills from the erie harmonica solo to the ploding rythym of Dylan's voice.

Ah, but what does it mean...

There are legends of those who travel from town to town, wearing long black coats. Mysterous men who sometimes lure women from their homes. Tales circulated of these false prophets, or charleton preachers in the old west and found their way into Western novels.

Zane Greys "Riders of the Purple Sage" describes one such man in Black. In fact the story line in the Movie based on the novel closely paralells Dylan's lyrics. Lassiter, the gunfighter in the novel, is planning revenge upon one such "man in black" who lured his sister away from her home, husband, and faith. I even recommend the book. If you want to buy it follow this link. Amazon.com sells it for very cheap. It is the most enthralling western I have read. Besides it helped me figure out this song. If you don't like to read, the movie is pretty good although it does not hold a candle to the book.

Back to Main Page