Thursday, July 21, 2011

Dylan Lyrics On My Mind & "Tempest Review"

Review of "Tempest by Bob Dylan"

9/30

The album conveys a sense of grave diggin' somber finality and grim recklessness. The songs are powerful, unadulterated and unexpected. Dylan, at his fiery preacher's best, tells of tragedy, evil psychotic episodes, furtive activities, lowlife assemblies and faceless reckoning.

Thoughts and feelings pertaining to his personal life (if indeed such is touched upon) are disturbingly contradictory -- tender but also dispirited, irate and intimidating... and yet a sense of unwavering, definitive preference comes across in an inimitable randy rockin' rodeo fashion.

As if ghosts were caught up in the mix, "Scarlet Town" is strikingly haunting -- it makes the hair on the back of one's neck stand up, and the cordial heartfelt eulogy of "Roll on John," is a misty eyed experience -- relating as well to all innocent souls laid to rest by demons who beset the minds of some individuals.

"Tolling for the rebel, tolling for the rake
Tolling for the luckless, the abandoned and forsaken
Tolling for the outcast burnin' constantly at stake
And we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing"
The album, particularly the hypnotic "Titantic" recalls what one imagines the singers of Homeric tales, the ancient art of the rhapsode, may have sounded like.

 5/6/13
 
 "
"I'm doomed to love you, I've been rolling through stormy weather
I'm thinking of you and all the places we could roam together" B. Dylan




May 2013

The moving, plaintive and impressive "One Too Many Mornings" by Bob Dylan

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zjsr7q3F8EU


 
Many favorites -- however, listening to "Dylan" is a journey of rediscovery and the following, in particular, captivated me at the other day (not in any particular order):

 

"Black Crow Blues" -- a tight, jammin' precursor of things to come

"My Back Pages" -- an enduring brilliant classic in the bard tradition

"The Groom's Still Standing at the Altar" -- rousing and compelling

"Mr. Tambourine Man" -- ever joyful

"Dignity" -- inviting, instructive and sustaining

"Forever Young" -- touching and consoling

"Tangled Up in Blue"--  passionate and inspiring

 "Serve Somebody" -- revelatory, hypnotically rhythmic and universally understood

"Is Your Love in Vain" -- emotional and majestic

" Señor" -- dramatic, powerful, disconsolate and sacred

"New Pony" -- playfully risqué with a muscular tribal beat

"Brownsville Girl" a favorite of the talking songs, in the best storytelling tradition

"Boots of Spanish Leather" -- soulful and mournfully expressive

"Restless Farewell -- a tender, poignant tribute to love/friendship

"Series of Dreams" -- seductively haunting

 "You and me we had completeness
I give you all of what I could provide
We weren’t on the wrong side, sweetness
We were the wrong side


I’ve already ripped out the phones, honey
You can’t walk the streets in a war
I can finish this alone honey
You’re driftin’ too far from shore" Bob Dylan
 






" She was a backwoods girl, but she sure was realistic" or "Reality has always had too many heads"...one to suit either twin.


" Now, little boy lost, he takes himself so seriously ..."



"I can't provide for you no easy answers 


Who are you that I should have to lie ?


You'll know all about it, love ..."

"I can't believe after all these years that you didn't know me any better than that, sweet lady".


 

"If I can't work up to you


You'll surely have to work down to me someday"


 

" I'll always do my best for her on that I give my word ..."



"Oh if there's an original thought out there, I could use it right now ..."



"The truth was obscure, too profound and too pure
To live it you have to explode
In that last hour of need, we entirely agreed
Sacrifice was the code of the road
--


There’s a new day at dawn and I’ve finally arrived
If I’m there in the morning, baby, you’ll know I’ve survived
I can’t believe it, I can’t believe I’m alive
But without you it just doesn’t seem right
Oh, where are you tonight?"

" Well, I risk my neck for you


Didn't I take chances?


Didn't I rise above it all


The most unfortunate circumstances?"


"I tell myself something's coming, but it never does"


"Well, I have had some rotten nights

Didn't think that they would pass

I'm just thankful and grateful

To be seeing the real you at last
I'm hungry and I'm irritable

And I'm tired of this bag of tricks

At one time there was nothin' wrong with me

That you could not fix"

"Now I just can't rest without your love, I need your company."

As well as "We Better Talk this Over" (again!) and  "Everything's Broken

"Pointed threats, they bluff with scorn
Suicide remarks are torn
From the fool’s gold mouthpiece the hollow horn
Plays wasted words, proves to warn
That he not busy being born is busy dying"

 

"I married Isis on the first day of May/But I couldn't hold on to her very long"/St. Augustine Concert, Florida, May5, 2013





 "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine"

I dreamed I saw St. Augustine
Alive as you or me
Tearing through these quarters
In the utmost misery
With a blanket underneath his arm
And a coat of solid gold
Searching for the very souls
Whom already have been sold
“Arise, arise,” he cried so loud
In a voice without restraint
“Come out, ye gifted kings and queens
And hear my sad complaint
No martyr is among ye now
Whom you can call your own
So go on your way accordingly
But know you’re not alone”
I dreamed I saw St. Augustine
Alive with fiery breath
And I dreamed I was amongst the ones
That put him out to death
Oh, I awoke in anger
So alone and terrified
I put my fingers against the glass
And bowed my head and cried

B. Dylan


St. Augustine quotes:

To many, total abstinence is easier than perfect moderation."

"Love is the beauty of the soul."

"Beauty is indeed a good gift of God; but that the good may not think it a great good, God dispenses it even to the wicked. "

"Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance."

"God loves each of us as if there were only one of us."

"O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams."

"What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like. "


abyss

 

Current Tour -- "Love Sick," Bethlehem, Pa. 4/18/13

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9q1C7JWIT0

Lookin' and sounding terrific.

 


March 2013


"
Uttering idle words from a reprobate mind

Clinging to strange promises, dying on the vine

Never bein' able to separate the good from the bad

Ooh, I can't stand it

I can't stand it

It's makin' me feel so sad

 ***

Since we've been out of touch
I haven't felt that much
From day to barren day
My heart stays locked away
I walk the boulevard
Admitting life is hard
Without you near me



***
If you see her (him) say hello


She still lives inside of me, we've never been apart

If you get close to her (him) kiss her once for me
I always have respected her (him) for busting out and gettin'  free

***

We eat and we drink, we feel and we think
Far down the street we stray
I laugh and I cry and I'm haunted by
Things I never meant nor wished to say
The midnight rain follows the train
We all wear the same thorny crown
Soul to soul, our shadows roll
And I'll be with you when the deal goes down
***

Just don’t know what to do
I’d give anything to be with you

***

You and me we had completeness
I give you all of what I could provide
We weren’t on the wrong side, sweetness
We were the wrong side
***

If you see me this way
You’d come back and you’d stay
Oh, how could you refuse
I’ve been living the blues
Ev’ry night without you

***

Oh well, I love you, pretty baby

You're the only love I've ever known

Just as long as you stay with me

The whole world is my throne
Beyond here lies nothin'

Nothin' we can call our own

***

I need your love so bad, turn your lamp down low

I need every bit of it for the places that I go

Sometimes I wonder just what it's all coming to

Well, I'm tryin' to get closer, but I'm still a million miles from you"

3/24


Make You Feel My Love - Bob Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXBjzUkG8x4

"Lay Lady Lay" by Bob Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWz88VY-FkA


(l965, In the studio/Greenwich Village, N.Y.C. - last personal episode of "Mad Men".)



Peggy Day by Bob Dylan


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peW0XjEQm4Y
 
___________________________________________

I pay in blood, but not my own"
Bob Dylan



Lonesome Day Blues
When the Deal Goes Down - Bob Dylan
____________________________________________ 

"Dignity" Bob Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atseImSMIWs

"A Sweetheart Like You"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpRKstHl7Y0

 
"Where Teardrops Fall" Bob Dylan
___________________________________________
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ix5Hn_NaTM
Clip from Dharma and Greg
It's nice to see him smiling and relaxed. This was in 1999 -- much water under the bridge since then.

"If Not For You"
It's been said that this song is about God...may well be. Professors spent a lot of time interpreting Bob Dylan's songs.

If not for you I would never have made any attempts at poetry. Well time is a wastin'....guess I'll get back to it today and fool with what I've been trying tackle (one poem is tart and the other sweet to make up for it :-) ) It's the only thing personal and close to my heart I can give...under the circumstances.

Keep you posted, d.m. Eventually we'll run out of time..that we can count on.

"Simple Twist of Fate" by B. Dylan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-YjEGyaRGc

So, o.k. I love him!

"But she’d never met anyone quite like the Jack of Hearts"

Seems, like no matter the day, there's always a Dylan song to suit the mood."

Rollin' and Tumblin'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-V9U6aRexTA


Handy Dandy - Bob Dylan (no video available)

"Handy dandy, he got a stick in his hand and a pocket full of money
He says, darling, tell me the truth, how much time I got?
She says, you got all the time in the world, honey.
Handy dandy, handy dandy"

***

Whereas this blog is dedicated to Bob Dylan, we all are exposed to other influences and although not a dyed in the woold C/W fan, there is something appealing about traditional "folk" music of all kinds. Turner's baritone voice reminds me much of Cash's and the message? Well "I'd go with you anywhere d.m."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRf8VdaGwf0
"Would You Go With Me" - Josh Turner

Lots of "covers" on the internet of "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go"...but not the real thing....and that, after all, is the crux of the matter.
________________________________

"Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts," "Covenant Woman" by Bob Dylan (the web sheriff has been busy, no videos available. (2/18 - Note: Lorenzo and Mathilde have been consigned to the trash bin.)





"Oh Sister" Bob Dylan

"When the Night Comes Falling from the Sky" Bob Dylan
9/1


"If I ever saw you coming I don’t know what I would do
***

Well, your railroad gate, you know I just can’t jump
…With all these promises you left for me
***

I could make you happy, make your dreams come true
Nothing that I wouldn’t do for you
Go to the ends of the earth for you
To make you feel my love
***

There’s not much more to be said
***

If ye cannot bring good news, then don’t bring any
***

I’m glad to see you’re still alive
***

Say anything you wanna, I have heard it all
***

It ain’t no use a-talking to me
It’s just the same as talking to you
***

Oh no, I don’t need any reminder
***

Who would remember better then you
***
______________________________

Well, my hat’s in my hand
Babe, I’m walkin’ down the line
An’ I’m lookin’ for a woman
Whose head’s mixed up like mine
***

I see my light come shining, from the west unto the east
***

I’ll always do my best for her, on that I give my word
***

Whatever colors you have in your mind
I’ll show them to you and you’ll see them shine
***

And when finally the bottom fell out
I became withdrawn
The only thing I knew how to do
Was to keep on keepin’ on like a bird that flew

…I got to get to her somehow
All the people we used to know
They’re an illusion to me now

…We always did feel the same
We just saw it from a different point of view
***
_____________________________

Tonight you got the power to take it, tomorrow you won't have the power to
keep it.
***

But just beyond the door he felt jealousy and fear
Just another night in the life of the Jack of Hearts
***

You fill me up with nothin' but self doubt
When all else fails I'll make it a matter of self-respect
***

We grew up together
From the cradle to the grave
We died and were reborn
And then mysteriously saved
***

People tell me it’s a sin
To know and feel too much within
I still believe she was my twin, but I lost the ring
She was born in spring, but I was born too late
***

I know it's wrong to be apart this long
***

I left my life with you somewhere back there along the line
***
_____________________________________

People think they know, but they're all wrong
***

It’s the end of the chase and the moon is high
It won’t matter who loves who
You’ll love me or I’ll love you
When the night comes falling from the sky
***

You can’t find no salvation, you have no expectations
***

You hang the flame, you’ll pay the price
***

We weren’t on the wrong side, sweetness
We were the wrong side
***

Don’t think of me and fantasize on what we never had
Be grateful for what we’ve shared together and be glad
Why should we go on watching each other through a telescope?
Eventually we’ll hang ourselves on all this tangled rope
***
________________________________________

Time and love has branded me with its claws
***

I still can’t remember all the best things she said
***

Lot of water under the bridge, lot of other stuff too
***

… If indeed there ever was a door
***

I’ll remember you
At the end of the trail
I had so much left to do
I had so little time to fail
There’s some people that
You don’t forget
Even though you’ve only seen ’m one time or two
When the roses fade
And I’m in the shade
I’ll remember you

***
The truth is far from you, so you know you got to lie
Then you’re all the time defending what you can never justify
Down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves
The haunted, frightened trees, out to the windy beach
Far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow
Yes, to dance beneath the diamond sky with one hand waving free
Silhouetted by the sea, circled by the circus sands
With all memory and fate driven deep beneath the waves
Let me forget about today until tomorrow
***

’Til the sun peels the paint and the seat covers fade and the water moccasin dies”
***
_________________________________________

Well these times and these tunnels are haunted
I waited years sometimes for what I wanted
***

But you can never steal away memories of what used to be
***

I laugh and I cry and I'm haunted by
Things I never meant nor wished to say
***

Well, he deep in number and heavy in toil
Mighty Mockingbird, he still has such a heavy load
Beneath his bound’ries, what more can I tell
With all of his trav’lin’, but I’m still on that road
***

The old Rounder in the iron mask slipped me the master key
Somebody had to unlock your heart, he said it was up to me
***
______________________________________

If I say I’m not loving you for what you are
But for what you’re not
***

She was a backwoods girl, but she sure was realistic
***

The walls of pride are high and wide
Can’t see over to the other side
It’s such a sad thing to see beauty decay
It’s sadder still to feel your heart torn away
***

Now, I can’t go back to what was, baby
I can’t unring the bell
You took my reality
And cast it to the wind
And I ain’t never gonna be the same again
***

…Reality has always had too many heads
Some things last longer than you think they will
There are some kind of things you can never kill
***

Blame it on a simple twist of fate
***
_____________________________________

Now, each of us has his own special gift
***

But you’re gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re gonna have to serve somebody
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody
***

The air burns and I’m trying to think straight
***

There ain't nothin' in this world, girl
You can say I didn't give to you.
***

Been workin’ on the mainline—workin’ like the devil
The game is the same—it’s just on a different level
Poor boy—dressed in black

…The game is the same—it’s just on a different level
… Poor boy, pickin’ up sticks

Build ya a house out of mortar and bricks
***
____________________________________

We’ve done nothing to each other time will not erase
***

But, sooner or later, one of us must know
You just did what you’re supposed to do
Sooner or later, one of us must know
That I really did try to get close to you
***

Never needed to call you my whore
I give you all of what I could provide
***

Did you respect me for what I did
Or for what I didn’t do, or for keeping it hid?
Did I lose my mind when I tried to get rid
Of everything you see?

… But you were closer to me than my next of kin
When they didn’t want to know or see

…More frailer than the flowers, these precious hours
That keep us so tightly bound
***
__________________________________________
We banged the drum slowly
And played the fife lowly
You know the song in my heart
In the turning of twilight
In the shadows of moonlight
***

Covenant woman, intimate little girl
Who knows those most secret things of me that are hidden from the world
You know we are strangers in a land we’re passing through
I’ll always be right by your side, I’ve got a covenant too

***
I owe my heart to you, and that's sayin' it true
And I'll be with you when the deal goes down
***

We live and we die, we know not why
***

How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?
Yes, ’n’ how many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, ’n’ how many times must the cannonballs fly
Before they’re forever banned?
The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind
The answer is blowin’ in the wind
***

I am hanging in the balance of the reality of man
Like every sparrow falling, like every grain of sand
***

Beyond here lies nothin'
Nothin' done and nothin' said

***
When you’re standing at the crossroads
That you cannot comprehend
Just remember that death is not the end
And all your dreams have vanished
And you don’t know what’s up the bend
Just remember that death is not the end

…Oh, the tree of life is growing
Where the spirit never dies
And the bright light of salvation shines
In dark and empty skies

…Just remember that death is not the end"

All lyrics by BOB DYLAN
____________________________________________

Photo: Hazel Brock (pseudonym) Spring 2011 (Age: 68)