Bob Dylan: Tangled Up In Blue Meaning

Song Released: 1975

Tangled Up In Blue Lyrics

Early one mornin' the sun was shinin',
I was layin' in bed
Wond'rin' if she'd changed at all
If her hair was still red.
Her folks they said our lives together
Sure was gonna be rough
They never did like Mama's homemade dress
Papa's...

1. anonymous

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   Nov 13th 2014 !⃝

   I always thought "tangled up in blue" meant to be in trouble with the law. Because they sometimes call the cops "the boys in blue".
2. anonymous

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   Mar 14th 2013 !⃝

   Some are carpenters' wives = Jesus was a carpenter=a nun is theoretically married to Jesus, hence C'carpenter's wives= a nun or a reformed or spiritually changed individual
3. anonymous

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   Jul 1st 2012 !⃝

   I've always considered this song an allegory about dylan's relationship with music, and his view of his place in the history of music, personal and professional.
   "she" is not a woman. "she" is music.Changing at the beginning, when his career started. Prostituted in the middle.
   Idealized at the end.
4. m320753

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   Jun 14th 2012 !⃝

   it' definititly about losing sara. she was working in a topless place!, sara was a Playboy bunny what amazes is that dylan describes about 6 jobs he has when he met sara and 6 destinations he headed to before meeting her and he decribes how he went on the road again secretly wishing he run into someplace
5. JulesNBinoculars

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   Jun 7th 2012 !⃝

   Dylan has actually gone on record as saying that the 'Blue' refers to Joni Mitchell's record of the same name, which Bob said influenced him heavily.
6. anonymous

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   May 21st 2012 !⃝

   He refers to her red hair. Blue is a nickname given to redheads ?!
7. anonymous

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   Apr 11th 2012 !⃝

   I thought it might have a connection with 'Its all over now.. Baby Blue. Wasn't there a David Blue in Dylan's entourage?
8. anonymous

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   Aug 24th 2011 !⃝

   During the period that he wrote this song, Dylan was interested in painting. His art teacher explained that beginner painters get "tangled up in blue" meaning that they use too much of the blue palette in their early works and then grow to use other colors. When they move on to skillfully use a broader range of color they grow as an artist.
9. anonymous

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   Aug 14th 2011 !⃝

   I think "tangled up in blue" means "tangled in sadness".
10. anonymous

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    May 23rd 2011 !⃝

    The song is about the famous incident where dylan became tangled up in the blues.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
11. anonymous

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    Feb 28th 2011 !⃝

    He is Blue from the break up of a relationship, hooks up with another woman in the same boat, they cry and console each other, and eventually go their own way,only eventually meet again. Both are thankful for the understanding and compassion of a friend during a very difficult time, picking up each other when they were down and out.
12. Piman

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    Oct 24th 2010 !⃝

    Tangled up in blue, simplest explanation for 'blue' is the common use of blue for feeling hurt and/or depressed. It is about Sara, but more than only about her, he is singing for every breakup and so all of the details don't have to match Sara. The bootleg earlier version is even more personal than the one that made the official album, well worth hearing.
    
    I had a 'mondegreen' in this song; Dylan sings "split up on that dark sad night"; for years I thought he sang "split up on the docks that night". My mis-hearing made sense with a nice double play on 'docks' normally a place of joining becomes that place of separation for Dylan.
13. leemicd

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    May 5th 2010 !⃝

    Tangled up in Blue = Feeling blue. My interpretation. What do you think?
14. anonymous

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    Jan 15th 2010 !⃝

    No the phrase "tangle up in blue" is referring to the album "blue" by Joni Michell.
15. anonymous

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    Jul 17th 2009 !⃝

    Initially hearing the song, not taking into consideration the details of Dylan's own history, I interpreted it to be a collective love towards the many women in his life. "Feel[ing] the same" with differing "points of view" really convinced me. Dylan is not so much a conventional kind of guy and these lyrics seem to be his own struggle with love versus relationship. Again, I am not considering Sara, or anyone in Dylan's life. This may be more of a personal interpretation for my own life circumstances. Particularly after a recent breakup. Tangled up in blue, to me, signifies his tangled web he weaved for love...which tends to cause someone to be blue.

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