This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines:
"Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet"
So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other:
"I had all and then most of you"
Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart
"Some and now none of you"
Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship.
This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Gonna change my way of thinking,
Make myself a different set of rules.
Gonna change my way of thinking,
Make myself a different set of rules.
Gonna put my good foot forward,
And stop being influenced by fools.
So much oppression,
Can't keep track of it no more.
So much oppression,
Can't keep track of it no more.
Sons becoming husbands to their mothers,
And old men turning young daughters into whores.
Stripes on your shoulders,
Stripes on your back and on your hands.
Stripes on your shoulders,
Stripes on your back and on your hands.
Swords piercing your side,
Blood and water flowing through the land.
Well don't know which one is worse,
Doing your own thing or just being cool.
Well don't know which one is worse,
Doing your own thing or just being cool.
You remember only about the brass ring,
You forget all about the golden rule.
You can mislead a man,
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes.
You can mislead a man,
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes.
But there's only one authority,
And that's the authority on high.
I got a God-fearing woman,
One I can easily afford.
I got a God-fearing woman,
One I can easily afford.
She can do the Georgia crawl,
She can walk in the spirit of the Lord.
Jesus said, "Be ready,
For you know not the hour in which I come."
Jesus said, "Be ready,
For you know not the hour in which I come."
He said, "He who is not for Me is against Me,"
Just so you know where He's coming from.
There's a kingdom called Heaven,
A place where there is no pain of birth.
There's a kingdom called Heaven,
A place where there is no pain of birth.
Well the Lord created it, mister,
About the same time He made the earth.
Make myself a different set of rules.
Gonna change my way of thinking,
Make myself a different set of rules.
Gonna put my good foot forward,
And stop being influenced by fools.
So much oppression,
Can't keep track of it no more.
So much oppression,
Can't keep track of it no more.
Sons becoming husbands to their mothers,
And old men turning young daughters into whores.
Stripes on your shoulders,
Stripes on your back and on your hands.
Stripes on your shoulders,
Stripes on your back and on your hands.
Swords piercing your side,
Blood and water flowing through the land.
Well don't know which one is worse,
Doing your own thing or just being cool.
Well don't know which one is worse,
Doing your own thing or just being cool.
You remember only about the brass ring,
You forget all about the golden rule.
You can mislead a man,
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes.
You can mislead a man,
You can take ahold of his heart with your eyes.
But there's only one authority,
And that's the authority on high.
I got a God-fearing woman,
One I can easily afford.
I got a God-fearing woman,
One I can easily afford.
She can do the Georgia crawl,
She can walk in the spirit of the Lord.
Jesus said, "Be ready,
For you know not the hour in which I come."
Jesus said, "Be ready,
For you know not the hour in which I come."
He said, "He who is not for Me is against Me,"
Just so you know where He's coming from.
There's a kingdom called Heaven,
A place where there is no pain of birth.
There's a kingdom called Heaven,
A place where there is no pain of birth.
Well the Lord created it, mister,
About the same time He made the earth.
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In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
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This incredible song sung by Bob Dylan and Mavis Staples on the 2003 album "Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan" is Bob Dylan's one-two punch to those that claim Bob Dylan renounced his faith. In the late 1980's Bob Dylan described his 1979-1981 albums as instruments of "laying down the law" for his later music. While his faith can be found in all of his 1979-2006 albums, this song cleary shows that his faith in Christ is still present. This song, along with the 2002 "Cross the Green Mountains", is an encouraging statement of faith and a man's belief that looking to God is the only way to find truth in a world where (to quote his words from Masked and Anonymous) truth and beauty have become "in the eye of the beholder". Yes, there are storms on the ocean and mountains, but the sun is shining and Jesus is calling and we must pray for guidance every day to give us the strength to step out of the dark woods.
In addition to having a fantastic message and lyrics, this is one of Bob Dylan's hardest-rocking recordings. It's "Love and Theft" meets "Slow Train Coming". Amazing.
Jesus is coming,<br /> He's coming back to gather His jewels.<br /> Jesus is coming,<br /> He's coming back to gather His jewels.<br /> Well, we live by the Golden Rule,<br /> Whoever's got the gold, rules.<br /> <br /> Love the jewels reference and like the twist on the golden rule. Dylan as a vocalist is quite simply beyond compare. <br /> <br />
Wow, thanks for that insight...mpr played about 5 hours of Bob the other night, his music is unlike other, and totally speaks to faith and doubt of any 'true' believer/seeker, to my mind.<br /> <br /> your comment really sheds a lot of light, esp.."Gonna sit at the welcome table,<br /> I'm as hungry as a horse."...<br /> like, being labelled something other than "welcome" for so long, he's starving...<br /> but, maybe getting older he's caring less about who "makes the rules" - whether he can eat or not...<br /> idk...'<br /> he's freakin beautiful.
An analysis of the reworked lyrics of this song is available: keesdegraaf.com/index.php/166/bob-dylan-s-gonna-change-my-way-of-thinking-buddhas-jewels-or-jesuss-an-ana