Am F Pistol shots ring out in the barroom 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 G 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 Am F C G He could have been the champion of the world [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 2] Am F Three bodies lyin’ there does Patty see Am F And another man named Bello, movin’ 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 N.C. F N.C. G I saw them leavin’,” he says, and he stops C N.C. F N.C. “One of us had better call up the cops” Dm C And so Patty calls the cops Dm C Em Am And they arrive on the scene with their red lights flashin’ F C G In the hot New Jersey night [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 3] Am F Meanwhile, far away in another part of town Am F Rubin Carter and a couple of friends are drivin’ around Am F Number one contender for the middleweight crown Am F Had no idea what kinda shit was about to go down C N.C. F N.C. G When a cop pulled him over to the side of the road C N.C. F N.C. Just like the time before and the time before that Dm C In Paterson that’s just the way things go Dm C Em Am If you’re black you might as well not show up on the street F C G ’Less you wanna draw the heat [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 4] 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 middleweights Am F Jumped into a white car with out-of-state plates” C N.C. F N.C. G And Miss Patty Valentine just nodded her head C N.C. F N.C. Cop said, “Wait a minute, boys, this one’s not dead” Dm C So they took him to the infirmary Dm C And though this man could hardly see Em Am F C G They told him he could identify the guilty men [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 5] Am F Four in the mornin’ and they haul Rubin in Am F They took him to the hospital and they brought him upstairs Am F The wounded man looks up through his one dyin’ eye Am F "Say, why’d you bring him in here for? He ain’t the guy!” C N.C. F N.C. G Yes, here’s the story of the Hurricane C N.C. F N.C. The man the authorities came to blame Dm C For somethin’ that he never done Dm C Em Am Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been F C G The champion of the world [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 6] Am F Four months later, the ghettos are in 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 screws to him lookin’ for somebody to blame C N.C. F N.C. G “Remember that murder that happened in a bar? C N.C. F N.C. Remember you said you saw the getaway car? Dm C You think you’d like to play ball with the law? Dm C Em Am Think it might-a been that fighter that you saw runnin’ that night? F C G Don’t forget that you are white.” [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 7] Am F Arthur Dexter Bradley said, “I’m really not sure” Am F The cop said, “A poor boy like you could use a break Am F We got you for the motel job and we’re talkin’ to your friend Bello Am F You don’t wanta have to go back to jail, be a nice fellow C N.C. F N.C. G You’ll be doin’ society a favor C N.C. F N.C. That sonofabitch is brave and gettin’ braver Dm C We want to put his ass in stir Dm C Em Am We want to pin this triple murder on him F C G He ain’t no Gentleman Jim” [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 8] Am F Rubin could take a man out with just one punch Am F But 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 N.C. F N.C. G Up to some paradise C N.C. F N.C. Where the trout streams flow and the air is nice Dm C And ride a horse along a trail Dm C Em But then they took him to the jailhouse Am F C G Where they try to turn a man into a mouse [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 9] Am F All of Rubin’s cards 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 N.C. F N.C. G And to the black folks he was just a crazy nigger C N.C. F N.C. No one doubted that he pulled the trigger Dm C And though they could not produce the gun Dm C Em Am The D.A. said he was the one who did the deed F C G And the all-white jury agreed [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 10] Am F Rubin Carter was falsely tried Am F The crime was murder “one.” Guess who testified? Am F Bello and Bradley and they both baldly lied Am F And the papers, they all went along for the ride C N.C. F N.C. G How can the life of such a man C N.C. F N.C. Be in the palm of some fool’s hand? Dm C To see him obviously framed Dm C Em Am Couldn’t help but make me feel ashamed to live in a land F C G Where justice is a game [Instrumental] | Am | F | Am | F | [Verse 11] Am F Now all the criminals 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 An innocent man in a living hell C N.C. F N.C. G Yes, that’s the story of the Hurricane C N.C. F N.C. But it won’t be over till they clear his name Dm C And give him back the time he’s done Dm C Em Am Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been F C G The champion of the world [Outro] | Am | F | Am | F | | Am | F | Am | F | | C | F | C | F | | Dm | C | Dm | C Em | Am F | C | G | | Am | F | Am | F | | Am | F | Am | F | C (fade)