Major view
C major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = B (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = F (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Bob Dylan - Hurricane - Chord
Key C major – A minor Chords F, Am, C, Dm, Em, G Easy key G (capo 5)
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Key: C | Am
Capo: 0
Am F Am F Am F Pistol shots ring out in the bar room night Am F Enter Patty Valentine from the upper hall Am F She sees the bartender in a pool of blood Am F Cries out "My God they killed them all!" C F Here comes the story of the Hurricane, C F The man the authorities came to blame Dm C For something that he never done Dm C Put in a prison cell but one time Em Am F C G Am F Am F He could have been the champion of the world Am F Three bodies lying there does Patty see Am F And another man named Bello moving around mysteriously Am F "I didn't do it" he says, and he throws up his hands Am F "I was only robbin' the register, I hope you understand C F I saw them leavin'," he says and he stops C F One of us had better call the cops Dm C And so Patty calls the cops Dm C And they arrive on the scene Em Am with their red lights flashin' F C G Am F Am F In the hot New Jersey night Am F Meanwhile somewhere in another part of town Am F Rubin Carter and a couple of friends are driving around Am F Number one contender for the middleweight crown Am F Had no idea what kind of shit was about to go down C F When a cop pulled him over to the side of the road C F Just like the time before and the time before that Dm C In Patterson that just the ways things go Dm C If you black you might as well not show up on the streets Em Am F C G Am F Am F Less you wanna draw the heat Am F Alfred Bello had a partner and he had a rap for the cops Am F Him and Arthur Dexter Bradley were just out prowlin' around Am F He said "I saw two men runnin out, they looked like middle weights Am F They jumped into a white car with out of state plates" C F And Miss Patty Valentine just nodded her head C F Cop said "Wait a minute boys, this one's not dead" Dm C So they took him to the infirmary Dm C And although this man could hardly see Em Am F C G Am F Am F They told him that he could identify the guilty men Am F Four in the morning and they haul Rubin in Am F Take him to the hospital and bring him upstairs Am F The wounded man looks up though his one dying eye Am F Says "why'd you bring him here for? He ain't the guy!" C F Yes, here the story of the Hurricane C F The man the authorities came to blame Dm C For something that he never done Dm C Put in a prison cell but one time he could've been Em Am F C G Am F Am F The champion of the world Am F Four months later the ghetto's on flame Am F Rubin's in South America fightin' for his name Am F While Arthur Dexter Bradley's still in the robbery game Am F And the cops are puttin' the screw to him looking for somebody to blame C F "Remember that murder that happened in a bar?" C F "Remember you said you saw the getaway car?" Dm C "You think you'd like to play ball with the law?" Dm C "Think it might have been that fighter that you saw running that night?" Em Am F C G Am F Am F "Don't forget that you are white" Am F Arthur Dexter Bradley said "I'm really not sure" Am F Cops said "A poor boy like you could really use a break Am F We got you for the motel job and were talking to your friend Bello Am F Now you don't want to have to go back to jail, be a nice fellow C F You'll be doin' society a favor C F That son of a bitch is brave and getting braver Dm C We want to put his ass in the stir Dm C We want to pin this trip murder on him Em Am F C G Am F Am F He ain't no Gentleman Jim" Am F Rubin could take a man out with just one punch Am F He never did like to talk about it all that much Am F It's my work he'd say, I do it for pay Am F And when it's over I'd just as soon go on my way C F Up to some paradise C F Where the trout streams flow and the air is nice Dm C And ride a horse along a trail Dm C But then they took him to the jail house Em Am F C G Am F Am F Where they try to make a man into a mouse Am F All of Rubin's card were marked in advance Am F The trial was a pig circus, he never had a chance Am F The judge made Rubin's witnesses drunkards from the slums Am F To the white folks who watched he was a revolutionary bum C F but to the black folks he was a crazy nigger C F No one doubted that he pulled the trigger Dm C And though they could not produce the gun Dm C The D.A. said he was the one who did the deed Em Am F C G Am F Am F And the all white jury agreed Am F Rubin Carter was falsely tried Am F The crime was murder "one", guess who testified Am F Bello and Bradley and the both badly lied Am F And the newspapers all went along for the ride C F How can the life of such a man C F Be in the palm of some fool's hand Dm C To see him obviously framed Dm C Couldn't help make him feel ashamed to live in a land Em Am F C G Am F Am F Where justice is a game Am F Now all the criminal in their coats and their ties Am F Are free to drink martinis and watch the sun rise Am F While Rubin sits like Buddha in a ten foot cell Am F And innocent man in a living hell C F That's the story of the Hurricane C F But it won't be over till they clear his name Dm C And give him back the time he's done Dm C Put in a prison cell but one time he could've been Em Am F C G Am F Am F The champion of the world
End of song Play again?
Bob Dylan - Hurricane Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Bob Dylan – Hurricane: key and chord analysis
The song opens on Am and ends on F. Its chords belong to both C major and Am, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
A minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = F (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = G (natural-minor colour)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the A minor side because it opens on Am and Am is heard 79 times against 55 for C. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from C major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.
Chord degrees: major and relative minor
Show the degrees above the chords — relative to C or to Am; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.
Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | C | Tonic — home | C · E · G | 55× |
| ii | Dm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | D · F · A | 22× |
| iii | Em | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | E · G · B | 11× |
| V/vi | E | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant | E · G# · B | — |
| IV | F | Subdominant — moves away from home | F · A · C | 101× |
| V | G | Dominant — strongest pull home | G · B · D | 11× |
| vi | Am | Relative minor — the melancholy side | A · C · E | 79× |
| vii° | Bdim | Leading-tone chord — tension | B · D · F | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | Tonic — home | A · C · E | 79× |
| ii° | Bdim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F | — |
| III | C | Relative major — the bright side | C · E · G | 55× |
| iv | Dm | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F · A | 22× |
| v | Em | Minor dominant — soft pull | E · G · B | 11× |
| V | E | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | E · G# · B | — |
| VI | F | Submediant — warm colour | F · A · C | 101× |
| VII | G | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | G · B · D | 11× |
Analysis
The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 6 different chords appear 279 times in total; 6 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.
Chord movement
- F Am CIV → vi AmVI → iVI → i ×56
- F C CIV → Iplagal cadence AmVI → III ×33
- G Am CV → videceptive cadence AmVII → iAeolian arrival ×11
- Em Am Ciii → vi Amv → inatural-minor cadence ×11
The move to watch is F → Am, heard 56 times. From the Am side it is VI → i (VI → i: falls a half step into home); from the C side it reads IV → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Improvisation tips
- C major pentatonic and A minor pentatonic are the same five notes (C – D – E – G – A): start from C for a brighter phrase, from A for a bluesier one.
- Over F, land on F, A, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over Am, land on A, C, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over C, land on C, E, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
The song on the circle of fifths
- Played in the song — chord of the key
- Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
- Played — borrowed or outside chord
- Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii
Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.
Capo and easier keys
With C major shapes
- No capo — open C shapes
- Capo 3 + A shapes
- Capo 5 + G shapes
With A minor shapes
- No capo — open Am shapes
- Capo 5 + Em shapes
- Capo 7 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
- 5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch
The song's harmonic story
The opening Am lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The backbone is F, Am, C, Dm — IV–vi–I–ii from the C side, VI–i–III–iv from the Am side. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on F → Am (IV → vi in C, VI → i in Am): VI → i — falls a half step into home. The final chord is F; the ear comes to rest in C.
This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.
Bob Dylan - Hurricane Chords on Guitar, Ukulele and Piano
Hover over or tap a chord in the lyrics for its shapes, its degree in both keys and a listen button. Here you have every chord of the song side by side.
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