Hurricane (8:33)

Cover of Desire

From Desire and 61 other releases

Hurricane is a protest song by Bob Dylan co-written with Jacques Levy, about the imprisonment of Rubin “Hurricane” Carter. It compiles alleged acts of racism and profiling against Carter, which Dylan describes as leading to a false trial and conviction.

Dylan’s Desire opens with “Hurricane”, arguably the most popular song on the 1976 release. Named after former middleweight contender Rubin Carter, Dylan had been inspired to write it after reading Carter’s autobiography, The Sixteenth Round, which Carter had sent him “because of his prior commitment to the civil rights struggle.”

Carter and a man named John Artis had been charged with a triple murder which occurred in the Lafayette Grill, Paterson, New Jersey in 1966. Widely reported as a racially motivated crime, Carter and Artis were found guilty of committing the murders, and both were sentenced to four consecutive life sentences. In the years that followed, a substantial amount of controversy emerged over the case, ranging from allegations of faulty evidence and questionable eyewitness testimony to an unfair trial. In his autobiography, Carter maintained his innocence, and his story eventually led Dylan to visit him in Rahway State Prison in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey.

Dylan had written topical ballads before, including, “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” and “The Death of Emmett Till”, but according to Jacques Levy, he wasn’t sure that he could write a song… “He was just filled with all these feelings about Hurricane. He couldn’t make the first step.

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Send ‘Hurricane’ Ringtone to Cell

Pistol shots ring out in the bar-room night
Enter Patty Valentine from the upper hall
She sees a bartender in a pool of blood
Cries out, "My God, they killed them all"

MetroLyrics Full lyrics at MetroLyrics

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  • yxnarbo

    So unfair. Makes me angry.

    21 Apr 11:27am Reply
  • RollingStonesDK

    One of the best songs ever written...

    27 Mar 3:20am Reply
  • ralfsu

    How can the life of such a man be in the palm of some fool's hand?

    26 Mar 11:08am Reply
  • nomoresongs

    I get what DarkSide and Stanley are saying, but this is more about the general experience of black people with the police at that specific time, it just uses a specific case to make a general point.

    20 Mar 9:52am Reply
  • harvey1963july3

    NICE ONE BOB?

    14 Mar 3:19pm Reply
  • TheDarkSide73

    It's sad that Bob Dylan had to write a song about a guy who is abusive towards women..Even though it is a great song..

    11 Mar 11:52pm Reply
  • Jeroentje_NL

    'How can the life of such a man, be in the palm of some fool's hand'

    4 Mar 6:00pm Reply
  • fudgelick

    could be in any dramatic ,intese moment,in any film. ever

    26 Feb 6:56pm Reply
  • Moxxxu

    amazing..

    21 Feb 7:28am Reply
  • jamiefargo

    One of my favorite songs of all time, for sure!

    8 Feb 10:11am Reply
  • vspeedoflight

    挤*.* 挤*.* 水*.*水*.* ഴ*.* ഴ*.* 水*.*水*.* や*.*や*.* મ*.*મ 亦 *.* 亦

    30 Jan 12:36am Reply
  • ViniciusStilt

    One of the best songs I've listen all my life.

    6 Jan 9:03pm Reply
  • fank19

    His singing in this.

    24 Dec 2012 Reply
  • TheDarkSide73

    VV Yeah just about everybody knows that but because he's black and a celebrity everyone dismisses it..Same thing when Michael Vick was convicted for dog fighting..If he was white then he would be locked up for life and nobody would care..

    16 Dec 2012 Reply
  • vspeedoflight

    长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长*.*长

    2 Dec 2012 Reply
  • stanleybenedict

    I've enjoyed Dylan's music for years, but artists tend to confuse fantasy with reality, especially with liberal causes. Rubin "Hurricane" Carter is a lying, psychotic murderer who, with the help of Dylan and his ilk, is now a free man lying his way through life, beating up women and sending them to hospitals. http://www.martinlutherking.org/hurricane1.html For the rest of the facts about this narcissistic sociopath: http://graphicwitness.com/carter/

    28 Nov 2012 Reply
  • lobothrashes

    Love Bob Dylan, love this song. SINCE WHEN IS HE PLAYING IN DC? IM GONNA MISS HIM. GUHHH

    20 Nov 2012 Reply
  • bertrand-escaff

    :)

    29 Sep 2012 Reply
  • Bonii_Gans

    try to sing this song, you'll be cry, especially you are from the country with sucks law enforcement.

    8 Sep 2012 Reply
  • CidaDuarteF

    So good song

    28 Aug 2012 Reply
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