bokap: Back to the OP-
There is some information on the lyrics HERE.(scroll down a little)
It’s not much, but might help a little. I’ve been a Dylan fan since the 60s, and there have always been long, unresolved discussions about what his lyrics mean. I wonder if he knows himself sometimes.
Sent e-mail to bokap to rejoin his thread.
I’d appreciate it if y’all would take a minute too.
Thanks
Q
Done it, Quasi.
*Visions of Johanna
Louise, she’s all right, she’s just near
She’s delicate and seems like veneer
But she just makes it all too concise and too clear
That Johanna’s not here*
(deep sigh) I think we’ve all had a Johanna in our lives.
Hi people,
I’m back. Thank you Quasimodem for telling me to check the thread. I was turned off by the initial comment so I did leave. I have done many searches for Dylan over the years and really never found what I was looking for. I thought a discussion group would be a really good way to share Dylan thoughts.
It’s not like I am a major Dylan fanatic or anything. He is just someone I have listened to since Bringing it All Back Home was released. I have always liked the images from the songs and I have always loved the way he puts the words togther when he sings. I have seen him live many times. I just can not really make out what he is generally talking about in a lot of his great songs. I just know that the words and music effect me on some level. There have been so many great, great Dylan albums but I think Blonde On Blonde has been my favorite although I like so many of them.
As far as someone knowing what his lyrics mean, I think they are very personal to Dylan and know one but Bob can really know what the songs really mean. I would at least like to get a better understanding of the obvious.
Besides Dylan I mostly listen to Blues and Jazz and Rock. I was a big fan of the Dead.
Thanks for the support.
Bob G
Bob G
Welcome, bokap, and thanks for giving SDMB another chance!
I am also a fan of The Dead, but not as knowledgable as some people regarding their music. Maybe you can help fill the void?
We’ll be waiting for you at the diner over on Highway 61 in case you ever have have 48 red white and blue telephones that won’t ring that ya wanna sell!
Quasi
I think it was around this time that Dylan sacked his manager, Albert Grossman, so that kinda makes sense. That is what I always thought ‘Dear Landlord’ from the same album was about too.
Welcome back bokap
Someone mentioned Idiot Wind earlier and I say “Amen.” Just a biting song. Blood on the Tracks is such a good album.
I’ll also take Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues any day of the week (with Phil Lesh on vocals):
I started out on Heineken, but soon hit the harder stuff…
Hi, I started this thread years ago. I really do appreciate the great responses the topic generated. I still am mostly clueless on the meaning of the songs but it really does not matter to me as I have always loved the music and the way he sings the songs. Definitely feel the songs in an emotional way. I do really love his songs that are stories that can be easily understood such as Hurricane, Joey, Blind Willie McTell, which I really love. Like I said previously, I have listened to Dylan from the beginning, when Bringing It All Back Home was released. Also I have seen him many times over the years including The Last Waltz, and the tour in the early 70’s with the band. Also got to see him with Grateful Dead, and a few of the Gospel shows.
Hope everyone enjoyed Bob’s 72nd birthday!
Dylan and some guy are in a cab. They argue, and one of them throws the other out on the street corner and says, “You’re a fucking journalist!”
Who was the other guy and who called whom what?
Dylan threw Phil Ochs out of the cab.
Some of them are just fun wordsmithing, I think, like Subterranean Homesick Blues (although it does contain references to the politics of the time). Others are somewhat coded, like Mr. Tambourine Man (which is about drug use and addiction). The man was a master storyteller.
And don’t ever think that Bob Dylan isn’t grinning every time someone is confused about the Meaning of his lyrics. Peace, long live Bobby D.