Bob Dylan is known for quite a lot of work. “Blowin’ In The Wind” is one. “Like A Rolling Stone” is another. And then, there’s Bob Dylan’s “Hurricane”. It’s a bona fide protest song among a sea of similar tunes, but there’s something different about this one. And it’s a bit of a controversial track from folk’s premier artist.
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“Hurricane” by Bob Dylan was released in 1975 as part of his album Desire. This song is actually a co-written effort between Dylan and Jacques Levy.
On the surface, the song is a simple storytelling-focused tune about a real-life boxer named Rubin “Hurricane” Carter. Carter was infamously imprisoned for decades due to a flawed trial and conviction that came about after Carter was racially profiled. The conviction was eventually overturned, and Carter was freed, but the legacy of the trial still lives on today as a stain on American history.
The Story Behind “Hurricane” by Bob Dylan
When Dylan wrote the song, Carter had not yet been freed from prison. Carter was found guilty in 1966, and Dylan released the song in 1975. Carter was later freed from prison, and the trial was overturned, labeled “unfair”, in 1985. He had served 20 years in prison before he was released.
Naturally, during Carter’s incarceration, plenty of protestors did their due diligence to see him freed. Dylan used music to protest Carter’s incarceration and penned “Hurricane” as a tribute to the boxer. He also visited Carter in prison in New Jersey after reading his autobiography.
Dylan was no stranger to topical callads. “The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll” is just one example. According to Dylan, he was apprehensive about writing a song about Carter, considering he was full of so much emotion over the blatant act of racism that put Carter in prison.
Yet, he did, and “Hurricane” became one of Dylan’s few protest songs to come out of his 1970s era. The song came with a bit of controversy, though. Dylan uses a racial slur in the song, which many considered to be tone-deaf and in poor taste. However, context seems important in this case, as the song is broadly about racial injustice in the United States.
Today, “Hurricane” is still considered one of Bob Dylan’s most powerful protest songs of his career. And it has been covered by everyone from The Milltown Brothers to Ani DiFranco in the years since it was released.
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