As a massive Bob Dylan fan, it's amazing listening to your reaction. You got my subscription, notifications are on 🤘 Listening to people cover his songs are fantastic. His 30th anniversary concert was epic as, all the major players in the 90s doing his songs, then he does this last. Must be special to him.
There are so many lines in this song that seem to be appropriate to modern society. One verse virtually describing a race to the bottom. I bought this album when it was released and I've grappled with Dylan's lyrics all this time and decided that he is just painting pictures with words and it's up to the listener/ viewer to decide what it means to them. Sometimes, like a picture you just like it but you not sure why. "Chimes of Freedom", "Hard Rain" are just a couple more examples. No wonder that he got the Nobel prize. I don't know a single thing about Rap but a great video all the same. Thanks.
Remember what else was happening at the time. Kennedy eliminated, Johnson escalating the war in Vietnam, all according to the plan of the military-industrial complex; GI Joe being marketed to kids (the propaganda). This is biting political commentary wrapped in enigmatic language. Nostradamus in his day had to hide his message inside of opaque verse because speaking truth to power would have meant torturous death. Dylan's last verse touches on the theme of censure by evoking the medieval imagery in a sarcastic one-liner, then finishes with the defiant ' it's life and life only' as a middle finger to those who would cancel him.
It's called poetry and there was a shit load of good artists back then, so I'm not really sure what you're getting at? Dylan has also came out in interviews and said he doesn't know how he managed to write most of his music back then. He's lost the ability years ago, probably in the mid eighties to create lyrics like that.
@@watkinssixtyfive7788 To be fair, let's take a look at the other side, also. Just for the sake of it. Let's make it shocking and poetic and snappy, as I'm sure you'll enjoy that: Think back to 1964, Germany in ruins, worse than poor, Korea aided by Russia even more than before, the Cold War's warhead threats higher than ever. Feeling nothing safe at all as you look upon the horizon at dawn or the hippie feminist revolution breaking down family ties just as planned, and the Chinese Communist Party filling student magazines by the rack without familiar speech; all the silver-tongued hidden words thrown upon the door, right at the feet of every university baby and fresh-faced street whore, teaching them how to parent themselves right down to the new factories where the future is built all alone in small containers. Some slightly less obvious Huxley, Hegel, and Orwell references for you in there, just for the sake of it.
Absolute masterpiece .. first time I heard this song as a teenager, it stayed w/ me .. still hasn't left. ps: one of the very few early Dylan tunes that Bob still plays in concert.
I agree with you most hardly. The song has stuck with me for 50 plus years. The only way he can understand the meaning to the lyrics is to listen to it about 10 times while he is driving down the road and find the thought and meaning in his own light. he wants to seek his meaning when Dylan wanted you to think about it in your own life.
He's like an Impressionist painter; things are more suggested than said flat out. As you said, "trying to describe an emotion". Maybe even moreso, he's EVOKING an emotions in us by his images: we may not know exactly what he's saying, but we feel...We get the message, each in our own way. So much more artful than telling us what to feel. It doesn't really even matter what it 'means'. Genius.
He is talking about the situation in the USA leading to the full-blown Vietnam War...he knew how ugly it is getting and how the people are being sold on the goodness of the upcoming war
Right, these young kids have a hard time just being still and receptive, like they don't get any joy from a world class performance because they think the point is to understand the lyrics.
Now you know why he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. You have to let great poetry wash over you. Then you get the overall meaning. The Subterranean Homesick Blues video he created in ‘65 is the first rap video ever. The video visuals are a must!
Not normally a fan of this sort of reaction style videos but being obsessed with Dylan and seeing your hip hop background, I couldn’t help but watch and I’m so glad I did! Your critical analysis is astounding; very interesting to see how everybody interprets songs as complex as this differently. Would love to see you tackle Just Like A Woman, Sad-Eyed Lady or Stuck Inside of Mobile!
This song is the single greatest lyrical achievement in the history of folk-pop rock, rivaled only by Dylan's other great works and the best of Leonard Cohen. It cannot be fully grasped (some parts are obvious others are not) at first listen.
you cannot pigeonhole bob's "it's alright ma" it is groundbreaking timeless art and it is not of this world we now live in. The best way to appreciate this song is to sit alone in a room just you and the song. It will make you weep because of it's absolute perfection. Bob Dylan is a living legend.
Reminds me of my own Dylan story. The morning of September 11, 2001, I had barely started my sophomore year of college. We had skipped anthropology class to watch the twin towers fall live on TV in the common room of a nearby ladies' dormitory. Later, dazed and in shock, I walked the five minutes back to my dorm room, put my CD of "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" into my old 3-CD changer stereo, and listened to "A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall" I don't even know how many times, contemplating with horror what lay before us all. 22 years later, it hasn't gotten any better.
The "hundred dollar plates" reference may be to that sort of political/charity fundraiser where people pay to attend some sort of dinner with speakers and the like and network with other attendees. He was often invited to be a part of these kind of things, sometimes for pretty worthwhile causes, and he probably attended some.
As a massive Bob Dylan fan, it's amazing listening to your reaction. You got my subscription, notifications are on 🤘 Listening to people cover his songs are fantastic. His 30th anniversary concert was epic as, all the major players in the 90s doing his songs, then he does this last. Must be special to him.
It's great to hear the studio first, but the live performance from 1965 really shows the prototype rap nature of it. Subterranean Homesick Blues and Desolation Row are very similar in this style of vocal delivery.
As an old Dylan devotee I will only add that honesty and brilliant poetry are then seated in a musical form that is nearly perfect and hits me right in my brain and heart.
I know i've said this before, but this may be one of his best songs..(as long as i don't think of all the others). Thanks for bringing us the music with the lyrics and analysis, really makes you think about it on a deeper level. I think the line-"can lead to 100 dollar plates" refers to classy dinners with the bigwigs. This was the mid to late 60's, probably $5000 dollar plates these days...
It's interesting to see a younger person reacting to this song that is so iconic but it's really interesting hearing your take on the origins of rap. Subterranean Homesick Blues (from the same Dylan album) is often cited as an 'origin of rap' and that seems influenced by Chuck Berry (Nadine, Too Much Monkey Business) but It's Alright Ma seems to have come out of nowhere. Dylan's own talking blues (via Woody Guthrie) are a sort of model but the song is so uniquely centred on poetry that it's a very long way from anything else.
Well done, Syed. As you implied, it’s somewhat of a fool’s errand to try to get one of Dylan’s lengthy wandering songs in one take, but Ithought your discussion was mostly right on. The thing about Dylan’s most masterful pieces is we tend to like them more as we hear them more. He was and remains brilliant. There are others who compare well, but he is the gold standard over the last 60 years (!). Thank you and Happy Holidays to you.
One of Dylan's absolute best songs. So happy you got around to it. You picked up on some basic stuff, but you need to hear this many, many times to get anywhere near it, IMHO. -- As for the internal rhyming, did you pick up on the other rhymes between the last lines of each block? For instance V. 7, 8, 9, 10 last lines also rhyme ( you, you, to, to).
Great reaction, as always. I enjoy seeing you appreciation Dylan's writing style as well as listening to your superb comments. I've been a huge Dylan fan since the late 60s and particularly find his early works (up into the 80s) most fascinating. This song has always been a favorite in the way it is structured. Not only does each line in the verses rhyme, but so does the final line of each verse rhyme with the chorus that follows it. Ofc, the last line is the kicker that makes me laugh everytime (they'd probably put my head in a guillotine). An excellent example of his humor. One tune I'm confident you would appreciate is Chimes of Freedom. Practically every line in that song creates its own story. It's one of his best, imo. Listening to it will be time well spent. Cheers and happy holidays to you and yours!
Love to see you cover some late-period Dylan too! Things Have Changed is a great inverse of The Times They Are A-Changin’, Not Dark Yet is a masterpiece of impending mortality, Cold Irons Bound is one of his grooviest songs musically, etc. Also I&I is superb with Bob and Mark Knopfler of the Dire Straits working together.
Well said my friend. Dylan was truly one of a kind. First time I've seen your video, so I don't know what you covered. I am a Dylan fanatic, and there are so many lines that are unforgettable. Imho, lyrically speaking, on that very album is Mr. Tambourine Man, which has to be the greatest lyrics he has ever written. But, not really a hip-hop structure, but so much meaning in a stoned way. Great try to figure out the lyrics, on It's Alright Ma, a daunting task! Rolling Stone put out what would be a fairly accurate list of the top 70 Dylan songs in order. ( I believe everyone agreed with #1-Like a Rolling Stone), but this song was placed at # 7. Great job!
"Subterranean Homesick Blues" is another great one in this style, or perhaps "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues". If your want to get some of Dylan's absolute spite at it's most scathing, "Positively 4th Street" is brutal.
Great Dylan song. I know you like to listen to the studio session first but there’s a black and white video on UA-cam of Dylan’s live performance of this, it’s great, he completely commands the room.
Dylan changed music because he was the first one to speak your mind. Positively 4th Street is a very scathing Dylan song with a pop music organ sound, The Ballad Of A Thin Man is another scathing Dylan song with an church organ sound. Dylan is really the ultimate musical chameleon, you'll realize this as you listen to his catalog. Just Like A Women, I Want You are also Dylan must listens.
Yeah. Tambourine Man is a song that has always just been there in the background for most people. You think it's just a nice folk song about a man with a tambourine. But then you look at the lyrics and realise it's actually on another level.
This was the first Dylan album I bought. As a sixteen year old Oasis fan I knew it was a rite of passage. Tried to learn this one. I just ended up kind ripping off the chorus hook for my own song! Song helped get me a distinction diploma so worth it in the end.
It is so satisfy to see someone from a different generation, who comes from a different cultural background and who has different musical tastes, discover this wonderful music and amazing song writing and poetry by Bob Dylan and make the connection between the music and culture of 1964 and the music and culture of today. THAT is magic of music and song writing, and it is a joy to behold.
Love this song. There is a folk tradition called the talking blues. This song kind of falls in that vicinity. And I agree - what an awesome song name! What does this song mean? I have no clue and yet I love it. He's acid and salt. Thanks for the mention of Kendrick Lamar. I'm going to check him out and start with Count Me Out.
@@marcoevans2155 the lyrics, though broad and abstract, are far from nonsense. They are clearly critiquing the ever changing social structure and societal norms that were being flipped on its head around this time in 1964/1965. Now Dylan does have numerous songs with nonsensical lyrics that are intended to paint an abstract picture of emotions rather then convey a “message”. But this one is definitely not just poetic nonsense.
"Beautiful laid flat." Brilliant comment. I've always loved Dylan on this basis alone. But I enjoy you taking the next step and moving up to try to interpret the lyrics, as you say, crazy to do on the first listening. thanks.
Born as this released, never heard til this year. Wow. Incredible stream of scathing assembly of words and sounds. Waiting for a cover of this - it surely wouldn't match but wortha go.
Dylan took music to incredible new heights. Sophisticated more in depth serious written lyrics. Rap (a fake coin, used to get away wish theft, followed by a quick dialogue to distract a store keeper.
"Dylan was a big hip-hop fan-ever since rapper Kurtis Blow turned him on to artists like N.W.A and Public Enemy. 'These guys were definitely not bullshitting, Dylan wrote in "Chronicles." 'They were beating drums, tearing it up, hurling horses over cliffs.' "It's All Good" is his most gangsta moment: He adopts a Howlin' Wolf growl to flip the hip-hop catchphrase, kissing off a collapsing world where it isn't all good at all" (Rolling Stone "Bob Dylan: The Complete Album Guide" p. 67).
The rhyme scheme for this song is fabulous. Structured in three stanzas each with their own rhymes but with final lines of all three that rhyme with each other and the refrain. Mastery!
It's a topical song straight out of the headlines which we 60 years later can't draw meaning from in the way listeners of 1965 could. This song was recorded the day that I was born. He was literally singing about me busy being born while everyone around me was busy dying.
What an incredible lyric on top of a somewhat unorthodox rythym structure. My probably over-simplified impression of the lyric is that he is just describing what he has observed in life and although troubled by it he's pretty sure that he can carry on without getting sucked into the madness and hypocrisy. I feel blessed to have lived through this period in popular music.
He' s nobel laureate, probably one of the best writers of all time in regards to his reach in and influence. It's good to know a new generation is discovering and appreciating his work.
Is that a "vision" you have just seen? For me the words are the "bleeding" - coming out from inside - an allegorical blood transfusion Or I could be completely wrong - it does not matter - its only a thought dream Cheers Kevin
It is certainly interesting to hear the take of a Hip-Hop guy on this “proto-rap” song, as you call it , and I agree that many of the lyrics reach us on an emotional level. I also get the comparison to Kendrick Lamar-another artist always worth listening to. But the thing that sets Dylan apart is the sheer power and efficiency of his lyrics. They meet us head on when needed (see comments below for examples from this song) AND work on a metaphorical level, all in the least amount of words needed. The carefully selected notes he plays further underline the text, until many of the notions he “sings” about land like the bombs thousands of other rappers talked about and whose destructive power few have ever approached. This is why he won the Nobel Prize. In closing-I still get chills listening to this because of the guitar, because of the lyrics-dropping bombs on your moms, and most of all because no one hits as hard as Dylan does. It’s not even close. Wonderful video and thanks for doing this.
This is one of my two favorite BD songs (the other is "Visions of Johanna"). Remember this was recorded in the studio live without overdubs, and he was accompanying himself on acoustic guitar and harmonica as he was rapping/singing.
This song to me has always felt like a very young man's journal where he addresses every entry to his Ma. Each entry seems to express some level of dismay, but ends with the young man telling himself he'll be fine. It's just life. Pretty simple really. Figuring out what he's talking about from one verse or even one line to the next is almost futile. He probably forgot most of it himself within a short time.
The thing that a hip-hop artist should notice about Dylan immediately is his timing. Epecially with his early stuff, which is basically just human voice and guitar, sometimes with a very simple bass/drum rhythm section but often with none at all, it is the cadence of the voice, the pattern of the consanants and the way that he bounces off each syllable ... that creates ALL of the rhythm. And yet you cant help but to tap your fingers to the beat, because it is so catchy. It's alright ma is a decent enough example. A question in your nerves is lit Yet you know there is no answer fit To satisfy, insure you not to quit To keep it in your mind and not forget That it is not he or she or them or it That you belong to Put ANY beat track behind that and it will sound phenomenal. The words bounce off your mind in the way that any truly insightful rap lyric does. I could definitely see Bob putting out a successful Hip-Hop album, simply because the musical gift that he has can grow into a perfect song no matter what genre you choose. Go listen to Bob's stuff with the Staple Singers if you want to hear some good old gospel. And of course in the country category he did Nashville Skyline among others. Rock, pop, americana, blues, folk, and yeah, he could surely do hip-hop too.
One time I saw Jim in concert and he did this song. The crowd went crazy when he sang the line about the President standing naked. The President at the time was Richard Nixon. Can you imagine the audience reaction?
Dylan is a masterpiece. Takes people with an intelligent deep thinking within oneself to appreciate. Thankfully, there are millions. Dylan will live with us forever.
2 things. about Dylan, from a 77 year old scientific psychologist. One, he brought "the talking blues" into rap or hip-hop, and 2 if you paid attention to what he said about his music he says what any greatest of all time talents says, "I don't know where it came from or what it means."
It means whatever it means to you. That's the beauty of Dylan. Am loving you starting to love Bob. He's very much a "Marmite" artist. People either love or loathe him. I highly, HIGHLY recommend his best live album "Live at The Budokan" which is Dylan perfection. His live gigs are famously "difficult" but Budokan is superb. Also the 15 minutes of "Desolation Row" is completely worth every second. There is a reason he was awarded a Nobel Prize in Literature. If I don't hear a notification from you before, I wish you a Happy Christmas 🎄
Not with this song. Along with "Masters of War" it is one of the most direct, didactic and pointed assaults on the madness and dysfunction of modern America life of the times. No surrealism like Tombstone Blues, Highway 61 and Desolation Row, Pick any verse,. It's obvious what he is doing. what he is assaulting "Disillusioned words like bullets bark As human gods aim for their mark Make everything from toy guns that spark To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark It’s easy to see without looking too far 'That not much is really sacred" "Advertising signs they con You into thinking you’re the one That can do what’s never been done That can win what’s never been won Meantime life outside goes on All around you" For them that must obey authority That they do not respect in any degree Who despise their jobs, their destinies Speak jealously of them that are free Cultivate their flowers to be Nothing more than something they invest in" "Old lady judges watch people in pairs Limited in sex, they dare To push fake morals, insult and stare While money doesn’t talk, it swears Obscenity, who really cares Propaganda, all is phony."
Dylan is unique, a one off, irreplaceable, the likes of whom we will never see again. So much amazing output, like no other. Listen to "Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie" more of less my "yard stick" on Bob Dylan, who else has written anything like this ? He's just amazing ...
In your reference to Eminem, it’s ironic that I just read an article where Eminem said Dylan was one his most important influences. I love Dylan and if you haven’t heard, Subterranean Homesick Blues. That song seems so connected to rap and the story and stories are awesome. Love your channel.
Dylan is the greatest living songwriter but this style (in this song) is derived from Chuck Berry and before that "The Dozens" “The dozens” is a tradition of African American street rhyming and verbal combat that ruled urban neighborhoods long before rap. At its simplest, it is a comic concatenation of “yo' mama” jokes. At its most complex, it is a form of social interaction that reaches back to African ceremonial rituals. Whether considered as vernacular poetry, verbal dueling, a test of street cool, or just a mess of dirty insults, the dozens has been a basic building block of African-American culture". Most Western popular culture comes from the Black community from the turn of the 20th Century and Rap/Hip-Hop is just it modern day equivalent. From Blind Lemon, Armstrong, Berry etc. Interesting video. Nice one.
Bob won a NOBEL for Literature, The Presidential Medal of Honor, bestowed by President Obama and..... Isn't he amazing? DIG, BLOOD ON THE TRACKS.. FEELS LIKE... NO MORE WORDS. GENIUS.
The "simple musical approach"...that is, just the acoustic guitar and voice...was very much the standard way of recording a great many folk albums at that time. That is what's being done on Dylan's first 4 albums (with the frequent addition of his harmonica, of course), and on half the songs on his 5th album, which is where this song comes from. The singer just walked up to the microphone, played his instrument(s) and sang. No sidemen needed. There was nothing unusual about that at the time. That's the way most folksingers who did a solo act were recorded in the late 50's through the early 60's. Dylan's playing with a Dropped D tuning here, and he did that frequently. It provides a deep base and permits the notable riffs he uses in the song. I think this song is the single greatest piece of lyrical work Dylan has done in his entire career....(although that can certainly be debated). He later "electrified" the song and used a very powerful backup group to do it, which can be heard in some live recordings such as the one at Budokan (1978) or in the concert video "Hard To Handle" (1986), among others. It's very interesting to hear how that changes the effect of the song, taking it from an "intimate" performance on the original recording to an apocalyptic avalanche of sound in the late 70's and after, but the incredible words remain the same. "He not busy being born is busy dying" is probably the most stiking line in the whole song, but there are many others of similar power.
Thanks for covering Dylan. I wish I understood more of the meaning behind the words, maybe being an artist, it only matters what meaning we perceive. It’s most likely timeless and fluid.
Bob Dylan’s the man I remember the first time I heard him back in 1993 when everybody was listening to dance music hip hop etc it was a cassette tape one side had another side of bob dylan and the other side was blood on the tracks blew my young mind at the time I’ve never looked back since
Dylan started off as just a folksinger, then he started doing social commentary and suddenly found many people agreed with what he was saying in his songs. At first, he reveled in the role of spokesperson, but eventually came to see that role as a kind of trap they'd never let him get out of. They tried to make him "the voice of his generation" and he rebelled against that. Then he started to explore the abstract, daring to go where very few had ever gone. I'll admit, sometimes I don't get him at all. He's still doing something no one quite can explain, but that's what's so cool about him. But this particular song isn't really as deep as it seems. He's just talking about the many reasons he feels alienated, while at the same time trying to assure his mom that he'll be all right. I think this song is from 1964 or 1965, when most people were still trying to deal with The Beatles.
Don't try to figure out Dylan's lyrics . He himself said they mean nothing they are just words . But that is what you would expect Dylan to say . But you know that's not true they meant something to him when he wrote it . He was and is an Enigma
Desolation Row. DESOLATION ROW!! You gotta listen to that one. Mick Jagger said it was one of his favorites....the way he could just put stuff together and keep you fascinated for 11 minutes. Jagger said it was quite inspirational for him--and probably opened up the possibility of him doing stuff like Sympathy For The Devil and more compkex themed things. They all said that about Dylan--that he opened doors and creative channels for them.
Great choice of a song for you to react to, Syed! If you like Bob Dylan now, just wait because within a couple of years from now he'll be essential listening to you. I know you're focused on Dylan's early works now, but when you reach the 80s, you'll have to hear "Infidels", an album produced by Dylan and Marc Knopfler. Dylan chose Knopfler and former Rolling Stones member Mick Taylor as the guitarists he plays with on the album. There's a song from the 90s that stands with Dylan's best work called "Not Dark Yet" that's stunning. I've a friend who's a huge Dylan fan and seen him a hundred and fourteen times, last I heard. He knows a guy who had the chorus of this song tattooed on his arms. On one arm he has "it's not dark yet", and on his other arm he has "but it's getting there". I've seen Dylan a few times and it's amazing how he's like a chameleon from one song to the next, almost like he's actually become a different character. He would've been a great actor if he'd wanted to; thank God he chose to be a songwriter.
"Temptation's page flies out the door..." means when you go out into the adult world tempted by things that they say you can achieve but you crash against the reality of life harshnesss and when you are about to scream you realize everyone else is also having a hard time
I really like your analysis of Bob Dylan. You always try to go deeper and pay attention to what he's saying, rather than stopping superficially at the sound of the words, like most people do. What you have to say, even if it's just guesses, is always interesting.
Born from Catholic and Jewish Holocaust survivor folks, ethical but not religious, I took Dylan's first 7 albums as my gospel. If you're willing to listen and think and apply it to your life, he will keep you up at night and inspire you. I became a public school teacher and my brother a public defender cuz my parents and Dylan (and Belafonte, etc) demanded a lot from us. He's the Dean of American Folk Music; not just his groundbreaking writing but his commitment to keeping great American music alive and informing us of the history we're in... He recorded 18 songs in one day... production? whatever. one take. Content matters.
"Money doesn't talk, it swears" - still one of my favorite lines from Mr. Dylan.
Obscenities who really cares
As a massive Bob Dylan fan, it's amazing listening to your reaction.
You got my subscription,
notifications are on 🤘
Listening to people cover his songs are fantastic.
His 30th anniversary concert was epic as, all the major players in the 90s doing his songs, then he does this last. Must be special to him.
"He not busy being born is busy dying.” - Bob Dylan
Always loved “bent out of shape by society’s pliers”
There are so many lines in this song that seem to be appropriate to modern society. One verse virtually describing a race to the bottom. I bought this album when it was released and I've grappled with Dylan's lyrics all this time and decided that he is just painting pictures with words and it's up to the listener/ viewer to decide what it means to them. Sometimes, like a picture you just like it but you not sure why. "Chimes of Freedom", "Hard Rain" are just a couple more examples. No wonder that he got the Nobel prize. I don't know a single thing about Rap but a great video all the same. Thanks.
Remember, Dylan wrote this in 1964 and released it in 1965. Take a look at what else was popular music in 1965. Dylan was decades ahead of the curve.
Remember what else was happening at the time. Kennedy eliminated, Johnson escalating the war in Vietnam, all according to the plan of the military-industrial complex; GI Joe being marketed to kids (the propaganda). This is biting political commentary wrapped in enigmatic language. Nostradamus in his day had to hide his message inside of opaque verse because speaking truth to power would have meant torturous death. Dylan's last verse touches on the theme of censure by evoking the medieval imagery in a sarcastic one-liner, then finishes with the defiant ' it's life and life only' as a middle finger to those who would cancel him.
It's called poetry and there was a shit load of good artists back then, so I'm not really sure what you're getting at?
Dylan has also came out in interviews and said he doesn't know how he managed to write most of his music back then. He's lost the ability years ago, probably in the mid eighties to create lyrics like that.
@@watkinssixtyfive7788 To be fair, let's take a look at the other side, also. Just for the sake of it. Let's make it shocking and poetic and snappy, as I'm sure you'll enjoy that:
Think back to 1964, Germany in ruins, worse than poor, Korea aided by Russia even more than before, the Cold War's warhead threats higher than ever. Feeling nothing safe at all as you look upon the horizon at dawn or the hippie feminist revolution breaking down family ties just as planned, and the Chinese Communist Party filling student magazines by the rack without familiar speech; all the silver-tongued hidden words thrown upon the door, right at the feet of every university baby and fresh-faced street whore, teaching them how to parent themselves right down to the new factories where the future is built all alone in small containers.
Some slightly less obvious Huxley, Hegel, and Orwell references for you in there, just for the sake of it.
@@Robot256k Yeah but then he dropped Time Out of Mind in '97, which, IMO, disproves that completely.
Absolute masterpiece .. first time I heard this song as a teenager, it stayed w/ me .. still hasn't left.
ps: one of the very few early Dylan tunes that Bob still plays in concert.
I agree with you most hardly. The song has stuck with me for 50 plus years. The only way he can understand the meaning to the lyrics is to listen to it about 10 times while he is driving down the road and find the thought and meaning in his own light. he wants to seek his meaning when Dylan wanted you to think about it in your own life.
Same situation here!
He's like an Impressionist painter; things are more suggested than said flat out. As you said, "trying to describe an emotion". Maybe even moreso, he's EVOKING an emotions in us by his images: we may not know exactly what he's saying, but we feel...We get the message, each in our own way. So much more artful than telling us what to feel. It doesn't really even matter what it 'means'. Genius.
You know, he paints as well as a hobby, it's worth a look.
Sorry I just repeated what you said. Focus on how it makes you feel
He is talking about the situation in the USA leading to the full-blown Vietnam War...he knew how ugly it is getting and how the people are being sold on the goodness of the upcoming war
Right, these young kids have a hard time just being still and receptive, like they don't get any joy from a world class performance because they think the point is to understand the lyrics.
@@davisworth5114 - With Dylan that IS the point. (Nobel Prize!!)
Now you know why he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. You have to let great poetry wash over you. Then you get the overall meaning.
The Subterranean Homesick Blues video he created in ‘65 is the first rap video ever. The video visuals are a must!
I played Dylan's albums on repeat while I worked on cars and motorcycles. I recommend learning Dylan this way to anyone.
Not normally a fan of this sort of reaction style videos but being obsessed with Dylan and seeing your hip hop background, I couldn’t help but watch and I’m so glad I did! Your critical analysis is astounding; very interesting to see how everybody interprets songs as complex as this differently. Would love to see you tackle Just Like A Woman, Sad-Eyed Lady or Stuck Inside of Mobile!
i would love to watch him listen top Masters Of War or With God On Our Side they are both not as cryptic and easier to understand.
This type of content is mostly a pandering-fest
Or Gates of Eden.
This song is the single greatest lyrical achievement in the history of folk-pop rock, rivaled only by Dylan's other great works and the best of Leonard Cohen. It cannot be fully grasped (some parts are obvious others are not) at first listen.
you cannot pigeonhole bob's "it's alright ma" it is groundbreaking timeless art and it is not of this world we now live in. The best way to appreciate this song is to sit alone in a room just you and the song. It will make you weep because of it's absolute perfection. Bob Dylan is a living legend.
Its absolute truth. Dylan himself claims its an otherworldly channel.
Spot on mate. Oh, by the way - who killed you?
@@chrissmurray255 Dunno, Chriss. Don't know why or what the reason was for!
@@interrupt394986 Giggle, chuckle, chortle!
Reminds me of my own Dylan story. The morning of September 11, 2001, I had barely started my sophomore year of college. We had skipped anthropology class to watch the twin towers fall live on TV in the common room of a nearby ladies' dormitory. Later, dazed and in shock, I walked the five minutes back to my dorm room, put my CD of "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" into my old 3-CD changer stereo, and listened to "A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall" I don't even know how many times, contemplating with horror what lay before us all. 22 years later, it hasn't gotten any better.
"money doesn't talk, it swears" - one of my many favorite Dylan lines.
Obscenely who really cares
Propaganda
All is phony
Bob Dylan swears sometimes too
The "hundred dollar plates" reference may be to that sort of political/charity fundraiser where people pay to attend some sort of dinner with speakers and the like and network with other attendees. He was often invited to be a part of these kind of things, sometimes for pretty worthwhile causes, and he probably attended some.
Teachers teach...go to college and be someone.........
It’s about the era…
Vietnam. He was a stunning poet.. appreciate your efforts
"He not bust being born is busy dying" is one of the most profound and quotable lines of all time.
*busy being born
Quotes by Jimmy Carter I believe in his inaugural address
@@BasedNation except Dylan wrote this 13 years before Carter was President
@@kipkelly8559 yeah he quoted Dylan in his speech...
It speaks volumes about human emotions.
As a massive Bob Dylan fan, it's amazing listening to your reaction.
You got my subscription,
notifications are on 🤘
Listening to people cover his songs are fantastic.
His 30th anniversary concert was epic as, all the major players in the 90s doing his songs, then he does this last. Must be special to him.
It's great to hear the studio first, but the live performance from 1965 really shows the prototype rap nature of it. Subterranean Homesick Blues and Desolation Row are very similar in this style of vocal delivery.
Desolation Row is probably the most beautiful song ever written.
@@ArnoSchmidt22I once asked a busker to play it for me...I was shocked when he played the whole thing. Definitely paid him for that.
As an old Dylan devotee I will only add that honesty and brilliant poetry are then seated in a musical form that is nearly perfect and hits me right in my brain and heart.
An underated line in this song is "bent out of shape by society's pliers' . Feel that one ha
I know i've said this before, but this may be one of his best songs..(as long as i don't think of all the others). Thanks for bringing us the music with the lyrics and analysis, really makes you think about it on a deeper level. I think the line-"can lead to 100 dollar plates" refers to classy dinners with the bigwigs. This was the mid to late 60's, probably $5000 dollar plates these days...
Been watching your Dylan videos. So beautiful to watch new generations be moved by the power of this music and experience it for the first time.
I've always thought the earliest pop recordings that resembles modern Hip Hop came from Bob Dylan. Greatest lyricist of all time, imho.
And Dylan was influenced by "the talking blues."
Of the 1940s and 50s.
It's interesting to see a younger person reacting to this song that is so iconic but it's really interesting hearing your take on the origins of rap. Subterranean Homesick Blues (from the same Dylan album) is often cited as an 'origin of rap' and that seems influenced by Chuck Berry (Nadine, Too Much Monkey Business) but It's Alright Ma seems to have come out of nowhere. Dylan's own talking blues (via Woody Guthrie) are a sort of model but the song is so uniquely centred on poetry that it's a very long way from anything else.
Dylan, an amazing poet.
Well done, Syed. As you implied, it’s somewhat of a fool’s errand to try to get one of Dylan’s lengthy wandering songs in one take, but Ithought your discussion was mostly right on. The thing about Dylan’s most masterful pieces is we tend to like them more as we hear them more. He was and remains brilliant. There are others who compare well, but he is the gold standard over the last 60 years (!).
Thank you and Happy Holidays to you.
One of Dylan's absolute best songs. So happy you got around to it. You picked up on some basic stuff, but you need to hear this many, many times to get anywhere near it, IMHO. -- As for the internal rhyming, did you pick up on the other rhymes between the last lines of each block? For instance V. 7, 8, 9, 10 last lines also rhyme ( you, you, to, to).
Great reaction, as always. I enjoy seeing you appreciation Dylan's writing style as well as listening to your superb comments. I've been a huge Dylan fan since the late 60s and particularly find his early works (up into the 80s) most fascinating. This song has always been a favorite in the way it is structured. Not only does each line in the verses rhyme, but so does the final line of each verse rhyme with the chorus that follows it. Ofc, the last line is the kicker that makes me laugh everytime (they'd probably put my head in a guillotine). An excellent example of his humor.
One tune I'm confident you would appreciate is Chimes of Freedom. Practically every line in that song creates its own story. It's one of his best, imo. Listening to it will be time well spent.
Cheers and happy holidays to you and yours!
Love to see you cover some late-period Dylan too! Things Have Changed is a great inverse of The Times They Are A-Changin’, Not Dark Yet is a masterpiece of impending mortality, Cold Irons Bound is one of his grooviest songs musically, etc. Also I&I is superb with Bob and Mark Knopfler of the Dire Straits working together.
Agreed, I'd add High Water and Tryin' To Get To Heaven also, both in the "mortality" realm with Not Dark Yet
Great songs. I pre-ordered the upcoming Time Out of Mind bootleg, can't wait to hear some other versions of those tracks!
Would love to see this
@@zenhaelcero8481 - I just got it.
"Cold Irons Bound" - Agree.
Well said my friend. Dylan was truly one of a kind. First time I've seen your video, so I don't know what you covered. I am a Dylan fanatic, and there are so many lines that are unforgettable. Imho, lyrically speaking, on that very album is Mr. Tambourine Man, which has to be the greatest lyrics he has ever written. But, not really a hip-hop structure, but so much meaning in a stoned way. Great try to figure out the lyrics, on It's Alright Ma, a daunting task! Rolling Stone put out what would be a fairly accurate list of the top 70 Dylan songs in order. ( I believe everyone agreed with #1-Like a Rolling Stone), but this song was placed at # 7. Great job!
"Subterranean Homesick Blues" is another great one in this style, or perhaps "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues". If your want to get some of Dylan's absolute spite at it's most scathing, "Positively 4th Street" is brutal.
Listen to the same song live at Budokan (It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) (Live at Nippon Budokan Hall, Tokyo, Japan - February/March 1978)
His genius won him a Nobel Prize in Literature. He's a wonder.
Great Dylan song. I know you like to listen to the studio session first but there’s a black and white video on UA-cam of Dylan’s live performance of this, it’s great, he completely commands the room.
I think there is a real beat poetry influence on this...
Bob appreciates hip hop and has mentioned artists he likes in various interviews over the years.
check out Hard rain's gonna fall and Masters of war
Dylan changed music because he was the first one to speak your mind. Positively 4th Street is a very scathing Dylan song with a pop music organ sound, The Ballad Of A Thin Man is another scathing Dylan song with an church organ sound. Dylan is really the ultimate musical chameleon, you'll realize this as you listen to his catalog. Just Like A Women, I Want You are also Dylan must listens.
The whole album is a masterpiece, first track subterranean homesick blues is more rap, but tambourine man is the strongest song on the album for me,
Yeah. Tambourine Man is a song that has always just been there in the background for most people. You think it's just a nice folk song about a man with a tambourine. But then you look at the lyrics and realise it's actually on another level.
Tambourine Man is the first song I ever learned on guitar. the Rolling Thunder ear version
This was the first Dylan album I bought. As a sixteen year old Oasis fan I knew it was a rite of passage. Tried to learn this one. I just ended up kind ripping off the chorus hook for my own song! Song helped get me a distinction diploma so worth it in the end.
It is so satisfy to see someone from a different generation, who comes from a different cultural background and who has different musical tastes, discover this wonderful music and amazing song writing and poetry by Bob Dylan and make the connection between the music and culture of 1964 and the music and culture of today. THAT is magic of music and song writing, and it is a joy to behold.
Love this song. There is a folk tradition called the talking blues. This song kind of falls in that vicinity. And I agree - what an awesome song name! What does this song mean? I have no clue and yet I love it. He's acid and salt. Thanks for the mention of Kendrick Lamar. I'm going to check him out and start with Count Me Out.
The greatest lyrical song ever. No contest.
Its catchy word salad babble. Many poets and artist of his day used this technique. Abstract nonsense.
@@marcoevans2155 the lyrics, though broad and abstract, are far from nonsense. They are clearly critiquing the ever changing social structure and societal norms that were being flipped on its head around this time in 1964/1965. Now Dylan does have numerous songs with nonsensical lyrics that are intended to paint an abstract picture of emotions rather then convey a “message”. But this one is definitely not just poetic nonsense.
"Beautiful laid flat." Brilliant comment. I've always loved Dylan on this basis alone. But I enjoy you taking the next step and moving up to try to interpret the lyrics, as you say, crazy to do on the first listening. thanks.
There is a live solo performance of this song from sixty five which is incredible. Thanks for doing this song.
When my aunt was a freshman at the University of Minnesota Bob Zimmerman was in one of her classes.
Born as this released, never heard til this year. Wow. Incredible stream of scathing assembly of words and sounds. Waiting for a cover of this - it surely wouldn't match but wortha go.
Been so waiting for you to respond to this
Dylan took music to incredible new heights. Sophisticated more in depth serious written lyrics. Rap (a fake coin, used to get away wish theft, followed by a quick dialogue to distract a store keeper.
Dylan is a poet. He was influenced by the beats like Kerouac and Ginsberg, and also Dylan Thomas. His rhyme schemes have been used for centuries.
His rhymes schemes also lean heavey on ts elliot and hank Williams
His biggest influences was Little Richard and Woody Guthrie. In that order, Facts.
Dylan illustrates a feeling and brings home the point in the last line of each verse.
"Dylan was a big hip-hop fan-ever since rapper Kurtis Blow turned him on to artists like N.W.A and Public Enemy. 'These guys were definitely not bullshitting, Dylan wrote in "Chronicles." 'They were beating drums, tearing it up, hurling horses over cliffs.' "It's All Good" is his most gangsta moment: He adopts a Howlin' Wolf growl to flip the hip-hop catchphrase, kissing off a collapsing world where it isn't all good at all" (Rolling Stone "Bob Dylan: The Complete Album Guide" p. 67).
Hundred dollar plates is paying a hundred dollars to have a dinner at a political event in a fundraiser
DAMN. As a huge Bob Dylan fan, I'd never made the connection to Kendrick's cadence being similar but you are 100% spot on
Bro, FINALLY! I’ve been requesting this one in the comments for a while. Hope it was worth the wait.
The rhyme scheme for this song is fabulous. Structured in three stanzas each with their own rhymes but with final lines of all three that rhyme with each other and the refrain. Mastery!
It's a topical song straight out of the headlines which we 60 years later can't draw meaning from in the way listeners of 1965 could. This song was recorded the day that I was born. He was literally singing about me busy being born while everyone around me was busy dying.
What an incredible lyric on top of a somewhat unorthodox rythym structure. My probably over-simplified impression of the lyric is that he is just describing what he has observed in life and although troubled by it he's pretty sure that he can carry on without getting sucked into the madness and hypocrisy. I feel blessed to have lived through this period in popular music.
He' s nobel laureate, probably one of the best writers of all time in regards to his reach in and influence. It's good to know a new generation is discovering and appreciating his work.
I like how he never says “I’m only bleeding” in the song itself. What do you make of that?
Is that a "vision" you have just seen?
For me the words are the "bleeding" - coming out from inside - an allegorical blood transfusion
Or I could be completely wrong - it does not matter - its only a thought dream
Cheers Kevin
Wow, this was very informative! Thank you!!
It is certainly interesting to hear the take of a Hip-Hop guy on this “proto-rap” song, as you call it , and I agree that many of the lyrics reach us on an emotional level. I also get the comparison to Kendrick Lamar-another artist always worth listening to. But the thing that sets Dylan apart is the sheer power and efficiency of his lyrics. They meet us head on when needed (see comments below for examples from this song) AND work on a metaphorical level, all in the least amount of words needed. The carefully selected notes he plays further underline the text, until many of the notions he “sings” about land like the bombs thousands of other rappers talked about and whose destructive power few have ever approached. This is why he won the Nobel Prize.
In closing-I still get chills listening to this because of the guitar, because of the lyrics-dropping bombs on your moms, and most of all because no one hits as hard as Dylan does. It’s not even close.
Wonderful video and thanks for doing this.
nice video. I very much look forward to the next
The man basically invented rap. Forget the electronics and button pushers, it's the words and vocals.
This is one of my two favorite BD songs (the other is "Visions of Johanna"). Remember this was recorded in the studio live without overdubs, and he was accompanying himself on acoustic guitar and harmonica as he was rapping/singing.
Visions of Johanna could my favourite Dylan lyrics
you do know that Dylan won a noble prize for his writing!!!
I love your analytical reactions👍
This song to me has always felt like a very young man's journal where he addresses every entry to his Ma. Each entry seems to express some level of dismay, but ends with the young man telling himself he'll be fine. It's just life. Pretty simple really.
Figuring out what he's talking about from one verse or even one line to the next is almost futile. He probably forgot most of it himself within a short time.
Oh my this is the song ive been hoping youd get to
Bent out of shape by societys pliars
The thing that a hip-hop artist should notice about Dylan immediately is his timing. Epecially with his early stuff, which is basically just human voice and guitar, sometimes with a very simple bass/drum rhythm section but often with none at all, it is the cadence of the voice, the pattern of the consanants and the way that he bounces off each syllable ... that creates ALL of the rhythm. And yet you cant help but to tap your fingers to the beat, because it is so catchy. It's alright ma is a decent enough example.
A question in your nerves is lit
Yet you know there is no answer fit
To satisfy, insure you not to quit
To keep it in your mind and not forget
That it is not he or she or them or it
That you belong to
Put ANY beat track behind that and it will sound phenomenal. The words bounce off your mind in the way that any truly insightful rap lyric does. I could definitely see Bob putting out a successful Hip-Hop album, simply because the musical gift that he has can grow into a perfect song no matter what genre you choose. Go listen to Bob's stuff with the Staple Singers if you want to hear some good old gospel. And of course in the country category he did Nashville Skyline among others. Rock, pop, americana, blues, folk, and yeah, he could surely do hip-hop too.
Another Dylan masterpiece! I suggest the following Dylan songs: Things Have Changed & It's All Over Now Baby Blue
One time I saw Jim in concert and he did this song. The crowd went crazy when he sang the line about the President standing naked. The President at the time was Richard Nixon. Can you imagine the audience reaction?
Dylan is a masterpiece. Takes people with an intelligent deep thinking within oneself to appreciate. Thankfully, there are millions. Dylan will live with us forever.
One of my favourites of his, in the top 5.
Yes! I've been waiting for this one.
2 things. about Dylan, from a 77 year old scientific psychologist. One, he brought "the talking blues" into rap or hip-hop, and 2 if you paid attention to what he said about his music he says what any greatest of all time talents says, "I don't know where it came from or what it means."
It means whatever it means to you. That's the beauty of Dylan. Am loving you starting to love Bob. He's very much a "Marmite" artist. People either love or loathe him. I highly, HIGHLY recommend his best live album "Live at The Budokan" which is Dylan perfection. His live gigs are famously "difficult" but Budokan is superb. Also the 15 minutes of "Desolation Row" is completely worth every second. There is a reason he was awarded a Nobel Prize in Literature. If I don't hear a notification from you before, I wish you a Happy Christmas 🎄
Not with this song. Along with "Masters of War" it is one of the most direct, didactic and pointed assaults on the madness and dysfunction of modern America life of the times. No surrealism like Tombstone Blues, Highway 61 and Desolation Row, Pick any verse,. It's obvious what he is doing. what he is assaulting
"Disillusioned words like bullets bark
As human gods aim for their mark
Make everything from toy guns that spark
To flesh-colored Christs that glow in the dark
It’s easy to see without looking too far
'That not much is really sacred"
"Advertising signs they con
You into thinking you’re the one
That can do what’s never been done
That can win what’s never been won
Meantime life outside goes on
All around you"
For them that must obey authority
That they do not respect in any degree
Who despise their jobs, their destinies
Speak jealously of them that are free
Cultivate their flowers to be
Nothing more than something they invest in"
"Old lady judges watch people in pairs
Limited in sex, they dare
To push fake morals, insult and stare
While money doesn’t talk, it swears
Obscenity, who really cares
Propaganda, all is phony."
The mark of an intelligent man, when he says that he can't break it all down just listening once. Measure twice, cut once.
Dylan is unique, a one off, irreplaceable, the likes of whom we will never see again. So much amazing output, like no other. Listen to "Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie" more of less my "yard stick" on Bob Dylan, who else has written anything like this ? He's just amazing ...
In your reference to Eminem, it’s ironic that I just read an article where Eminem said Dylan was one his most important influences. I love Dylan and if you haven’t heard, Subterranean Homesick Blues. That song seems so connected to rap and the story and stories are awesome. Love your channel.
Dylan is the greatest living songwriter but this style (in this song) is derived from Chuck Berry and before that "The Dozens" “The dozens” is a tradition of African American street rhyming and verbal combat that ruled urban neighborhoods long before rap. At its simplest, it is a comic concatenation of “yo' mama” jokes. At its most complex, it is a form of social interaction that reaches back to African ceremonial rituals. Whether considered as vernacular poetry, verbal dueling, a test of street cool, or just a mess of dirty insults, the dozens has been a basic building block of African-American culture". Most Western popular culture comes from the Black community from the turn of the 20th Century and Rap/Hip-Hop is just it modern day equivalent. From Blind Lemon, Armstrong, Berry etc. Interesting video. Nice one.
Try to imagine hearing this 60 years ago !!!
It’s growing up in the 60’s with drugs and war, it’s was a struggle in many peoples lives
Bob won a NOBEL for Literature, The Presidential Medal of Honor, bestowed by President Obama and..... Isn't he amazing? DIG, BLOOD ON THE TRACKS.. FEELS LIKE... NO MORE WORDS. GENIUS.
The "simple musical approach"...that is, just the acoustic guitar and voice...was very much the standard way of recording a great many folk albums at that time. That is what's being done on Dylan's first 4 albums (with the frequent addition of his harmonica, of course), and on half the songs on his 5th album, which is where this song comes from. The singer just walked up to the microphone, played his instrument(s) and sang. No sidemen needed. There was nothing unusual about that at the time. That's the way most folksingers who did a solo act were recorded in the late 50's through the early 60's. Dylan's playing with a Dropped D tuning here, and he did that frequently. It provides a deep base and permits the notable riffs he uses in the song. I think this song is the single greatest piece of lyrical work Dylan has done in his entire career....(although that can certainly be debated). He later "electrified" the song and used a very powerful backup group to do it, which can be heard in some live recordings such as the one at Budokan (1978) or in the concert video "Hard To Handle" (1986), among others. It's very interesting to hear how that changes the effect of the song, taking it from an "intimate" performance on the original recording to an apocalyptic avalanche of sound in the late 70's and after, but the incredible words remain the same. "He not busy being born is busy dying" is probably the most stiking line in the whole song, but there are many others of similar power.
Thanks for covering Dylan. I wish I understood more of the meaning behind the words, maybe being an artist, it only matters what meaning we perceive. It’s most likely timeless and fluid.
Understanding the meaning of Dylan's words is sometimes an exercise in futility. But, still, we like to go along to the places he takes us.
He is not "covering" Bob... he is using our Bob for his inane purposes; fooled you I guess.
I think much of Dyan is about one person standing in the winds of the apocalypse
Bob Dylan’s the man I remember the first time I heard him back in 1993 when everybody was listening to dance music hip hop etc it was a cassette tape one side had another side of bob dylan and the other side was blood on the tracks blew my young mind at the time I’ve never looked back since
Dylan started off as just a folksinger, then he started doing social commentary and suddenly found many people agreed with what he was saying in his songs. At first, he reveled in the role of spokesperson, but eventually came to see that role as a kind of trap they'd never let him get out of. They tried to make him "the voice of his generation" and he rebelled against that. Then he started to explore the abstract, daring to go where very few had ever gone. I'll admit, sometimes I don't get him at all. He's still doing something no one quite can explain, but that's what's so cool about him. But this particular song isn't really as deep as it seems. He's just talking about the many reasons he feels alienated, while at the same time trying to assure his mom that he'll be all right. I think this song is from 1964 or 1965, when most people were still trying to deal with The Beatles.
"It's only peoples' games that you got to dodge." -- Dylan.
The opening line describing nuclear war is so well written.
Before rap and hip-hop there was Bob Dylan
Don't try to figure out Dylan's lyrics . He himself said they mean nothing they are just words . But that is what you would expect Dylan to say . But you know that's not true they meant something to him when he wrote it . He was and is an Enigma
Desolation Row. DESOLATION ROW!! You gotta listen to that one. Mick Jagger said it was one of his favorites....the way he could just put stuff together and keep you fascinated for 11 minutes. Jagger said it was quite inspirational for him--and probably opened up the possibility of him doing stuff like Sympathy For The Devil and more compkex themed things. They all said that about Dylan--that he opened doors and creative channels for them.
Great choice of a song for you to react to, Syed!
If you like Bob Dylan now, just wait because within a couple of years from now he'll be essential listening to you.
I know you're focused on Dylan's early works now, but when you reach the 80s, you'll have to hear "Infidels", an album produced by Dylan and Marc Knopfler. Dylan chose Knopfler and former Rolling Stones member Mick Taylor as the guitarists he plays with on the album.
There's a song from the 90s that stands with Dylan's best work called "Not Dark Yet" that's stunning. I've a friend who's a huge Dylan fan and seen him a hundred and fourteen times, last I heard. He knows a guy who had the chorus of this song tattooed on his arms. On one arm he has "it's not dark yet", and on his other arm he has "but it's getting there".
I've seen Dylan a few times and it's amazing how he's like a chameleon from one song to the next, almost like he's actually become a different character. He would've been a great actor if he'd wanted to; thank God he chose to be a songwriter.
"you dont need to be a weatherman to know which way the wind blows"...
It’s always funny to hear young people say “hey this Bob Dylan guy can really write a song..”
No shit - welcome to the past 60 years of music reviews
Master of stream of consciousness poetry
"Temptation's page flies out the door..." means when you go out into the adult world tempted by things that they say you can achieve but you crash against the reality of life harshnesss and when you are about to scream you realize everyone else is also having a hard time
I really like your analysis of Bob Dylan. You always try to go deeper and pay attention to what he's saying, rather than stopping superficially at the sound of the words, like most people do. What you have to say, even if it's just guesses, is always interesting.
You have to agree that this is a predecessor to rap.
Like the reaction. Agree with the comments that Subterranean homesick blues is a song worth your attention.
Born from Catholic and Jewish Holocaust survivor folks, ethical but not religious, I took Dylan's first 7 albums as my gospel. If you're willing to listen and think and apply it to your life, he will keep you up at night and inspire you. I became a public school teacher and my brother a public defender cuz my parents and Dylan (and Belafonte, etc) demanded a lot from us. He's the Dean of American Folk Music; not just his groundbreaking writing but his commitment to keeping great American music alive and informing us of the history we're in... He recorded 18 songs in one day... production? whatever. one take. Content matters.
My favorite song ever, possibly