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1. Far between sundown's finish an'midnight's brokentoll
      G                 C       D       G
   We ducked inside the doorway,thunder crashing
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   As majestic bells of bolts struckshadows in the sounds
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   Seeming to be the chimes of freedom flashing
   D                               G           C      G
   Flashing for the warriors whose strength is not to fight
   C                                Am              D
   Flashing for the refugees on the unarmed road of flight
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   An' for each an' ev'ry underdog soldier in the night
          G              C         D       G
   An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.
   
2. In the city's melted furnace, unexpectedly we watched
   With faces hidden as 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.
   
3. 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 poet an the painter far behind his rightful time
   An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.
   
4. In 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
   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.
   
5. Even though a clouds's white curtain in a far-off corner flashed
   An' the hypnotic splattered mist was slowly lifting
   Electric light still struck like arrows, fired but for the ones
   Condemned to drift or else be kept from drifting
   Tolling for the searching ones, on their speechless, seeking trail
   For the lonesome-hearted lovers with too personal a tale
   An' for each unharmfull, gentle soul misplaced inside a jail
   An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.
   
6. Starry-eyed an' laughing as I recall when we were caught
   Trapped by no track of hours for they hanged suspended
   As we listened one last time an' we watched with one last look
   Spellbound an' swallowed 'til the tolling ended
   Tolling for the aching whose wounds cannot be nursed
   For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones an' worse
   An' for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe
   An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing.