Every Grain of Sand

Every Grain of Sand is a song written by Bob Dylan and originally released on his 1981 album Shot of Love. It was subsequently included on the compilations Biograph and The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961-1991, as well as appearing on the soundtrack for the 1997 film Another Day In Paradise. It was also performed at the funeral of Johnny Cash, in 2003, by Emmylou Harris and Sheryl Crow. The song was well received for its haunting imagery, which some have compared to that of William Blake. This was partly inspired by the following lines from William Blake's Auguries of Innocence: To see a world in a grain of sand And a heaven in a wild flower, Hold infinity in the palm of your hand And eternity in an hour. Dylan was in what has been called his "Christianity Phase" at the time of its recording and release, and the song does contain powerful allusions to Jesus, faith, and spirituality. But it also stands as a secular work, and Rolling Stone magazine described it as a "mature update" of Dylan's 1964 song Chimes of Freedom. Biblical references include: Cain's "chain of events" - Genesis 4: 1-16 Abraham's seed as sand on the seashore - Genesis 22: 15-18 God's thoughts "more in number than the sand" - Psalm 139: 17-18 The Parable of the Sower - (newborn seed, flowers of indulgence, weeds of yesterday, choked) Mark 4: 13-20 Be of Good Cheer - Mark 6: 47-51 Sparrows/hairs numbered - Matthew 10: 28-31; Luke 12: 6-7. Every Grain of Sand was cited by Elvis Costello on his list of "500 albums essential to a happy life" as possibly Dylan's finest track.[1]

[Verse 1] In the time of my confession, in the hour of my deepest need When the pool of tears beneath my feet flood every newborn seed There’s a dyin’ voice within me reaching out somewhere Toiling in the danger and in the morals of despair [Verse 2] Don’t have the inclination to look back on any mistake Like Cain, I now behold this chain of events that I must break In the fury of the moment I can see the Master’s hand In every leaf that trembles, in every grain of sand [Verse 3] Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear Like criminals, they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay [Verse 4] I gaze into the doorway of temptation’s angry flame And every time I pass that way I always hear my name Then onward in my journey I come to understand That every hair is numbered like every grain of sand [Verse 5] I have gone from rags to riches in the sorrow of the night In the violence of a summer’s dream, in the chill of a wintry light In the bitter dance of loneliness fading into space In the broken mirror of innocence on each forgotten face [Verse 6] I hear the ancient footsteps like the motion of the sea Sometimes I turn, there’s someone there, other times it’s only me I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand [Harmonica solo]