A song for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe

“Chimes of Freedom” is an amazing song, I think we can all agree. It is just Bob Dylan singing out his brilliant poetry into the void of the messed up earth, hoping that even one person hears it and spreads the word of equality, justice and goodness. The song goes over every single type of person that would possibly be impacted by their basic rights being taken away. This is Bob Dylan’s explanation letter and gives us a story underneath about human rights and how we should never have to be afraid of war because it should not be in the hands of people who cannot control themselves. I think Bob Dylan always wanted President Kennedy to do more about these people in his office and yet, President Kennedy was stuck in the same situation until his upsetting and untimely death by assassination.

The song starts at nighttime, a while after sunset but not quite midnight and shows us that there is something happening, possibly an inevitable war undertaken by the rich leaders of the free world and forced upon the young who are hiding and trying to mostly just survive. He states that these may be the chimes of freedom because in fact, this war stuff has to end some day. Doesn’t it?

“Far between sundown’s finish an’ midnight’s broken toll

We ducked inside the doorway, thunder crashing

As majestic bells of bolts struck shadows in the sounds

Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing

Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight

Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight

An’ for each an’ every underdog soldier in the night

An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing…”

He goes through all the people who would have to participate in order to get these ‘chimes of freedom flashing…’ and those who have to run away from it in order to protect their families and friends.

He then goes through the other people have to ‘toil’ for the less able. There are people who work for the freedom from this war and the outspoken are part of these that are ‘burning constantly at stake…’ which, in my opinion, is one of the greatest images in the entire song.

“In the city’s melted furnace, unexpectedly we watched

With faces hidden while the walls were tightening

As the echo of the wedding bells before the blowin’ rain

Dissolved into the bells of the lightning

Tolling for the rebel, tolling for the rake

Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned an’ forsaked

Tolling for the outcast, burnin’ constantly at stake

An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing…”

In the next verse, we get another group of people who are trying to help others and the ‘chimes of freedom’ are apparently playing for them too. These people are protectors, these people are possibly the ones who look after others and have no hate in their hearts.

“Through the mad mystic hammering of the wild ripping hail

The sky cracked its poems in naked wonder

That the clinging of the church bells blew far into the breeze

Leaving only bells of lightning and its thunder

Striking for the gentle, striking for the kind

Striking for the guardians and protectors of the mind

An’ the unpawned painter behind beyond his rightful time

An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing…”

During the next verse, it gets even heavier because we get people who are mistreated by society. The people who are pushed aside or made fun of, people who are told there is something wrong with them when in fact, there is nothing wrong with them at all.

Through the wild cathedral evening the rain unraveled tales

For the disrobed faceless forms of no position

Tolling for the tongues with no place to bring their thoughts

All down in taken-for-granted situations

Tolling for the deaf an’ blind, tolling for the mute

Tolling for the mistreated, mateless mother, the mistitled prostitute

For the misdemeanor outlaw, chased an’ cheated by pursuit

An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing…”

I’m not going to lie, this song is one of those songs that when you list to it, you cannot ignore the way in which Bob Dylan discusses and sings about the way in which people have been treated so badly by these ‘masters of war’ who put them into random situations just because they can. These ‘chimes of freedom’ are coming along in order to free these people not only of the bonds of war but also of oppression, of ostracisation and everything that is wrong with the world. The advocacy of equality is so strong in this song that I just wanted to tell you about it.

It is a beautiful, beautiful song.