| Bob Dylan – When the Night Comes Falling from the Sky Lyrics | 3 years ago |
| @[Mikesch:35306] If you're looking for a song from Dylan about the unprepared bride, take a listen to 'Groom's Still Waiting at the Atlar' | |
| Bob Dylan – When the Night Comes Falling from the Sky Lyrics | 3 years ago |
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The line: "I saw thousands who could have overcome the darkness For the love of a lousy buck, I've watched them die..." is about the Jim and Tammy Baker fiasco of the '70's and '80's. There is no doubt about this. The remainder of song appears to go on to see how THIS, along with other atrocities seem to explain how Dylan himself may have decided to not be a part of a mainline church-related organization. That is the reason he wrote this song. |
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| Bob Dylan – Cold Irons Bound Lyrics | 3 years ago |
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I think kynative might be on to something here. I was surprised just now to discover that there is actually a town in Kentucky called ‘Boston’. I always thought Dylan was referring to the big city in Massachusetts in the song Highlands. But he’s not. Bear with me a moment. I can prove this. You see, in addition to Boston, KY, just a little ways north of there lies Louisville. And in the Eastern-Central section of Louisville, KY lies a suburb known as Highlands. I’m not making this stuff up. I just used Google and Google Maps. I really DO believe that kynative is on to something here. I always thought that The Highlands’ was an imaginary place in Dylan’s heart. I realize now that I was wrong. |
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| Eric Clapton – Let It Rain Lyrics | 7 years ago |
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One of my favorite Clapton tunes. One interesting observation, something which has always stood out, the line, 'harder said than done'. I wonder if he intentionally said this backwards (to throw people off of truly knowing the real meaning of the lyrics), or if he did so because it just sounded better or fit better with the music this way. Harder said than done doesn't really make any sense. What he's really trying to say is, 'Easier said than done'. That is the phrase that we all know and use (in our American English vernacular). If it really was harder said than done, then it would also obviously be easier done than said. |
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| Vance Joy – Riptide Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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The line about his concern that she's going to "sing the words wrong" ... I don't think this has anything to do with singing a song, per se. It is more metaphorical or analogous to her either making a wrong decision, or saying something she shouldn't say. Consider for example a man who is in love with a woman. But she is unfortunately engaged to marry someone else. When the minister asks her if she takes him to be her husband ... yadda yadda yadda ... I realize that this example has absolutely NOTHING to do with this song or video. But I feel that what the composer of this song is trying to tell us is that he is for all intents and purposes DREADING an event or situation which is as of yet in the FUTURE. But even though it hasn't taken place yet, he KNOWS what the outcome is going to be. And he is sad and frustrated that there is nothing that he can do to stop it from happening. In other words (getting back to the actual song), he KNOWS that she is going to make the wrong decision (or say the wrong thing) when the time comes ("You're gonna sing the words wrong")... |
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| Vance Joy – Riptide Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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Here's a little something to add to what everyone else has contributed. I am attempting to add a link to the official music video (from youtube --- if it will allow me to). I don't know if this has any significance or not, but I am noticing some interesting references here. Specifically, Tarot references. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJ_1HMAGb4k Not really sure what it all means, but anyway, just thought I'd add this to everything else. I don't personally subscribe to any type of Tarot belief system. I just wander if there's more to what the artist is trying to portray, than meet's the eye. |
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| Bob Dylan – Absolutely Sweet Marie Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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I agree with Elephant_Range. I believe it's about Edie Sedgwick. |
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| Bob Dylan – High Water (For Charley Patton) Lyrics | 9 years ago |
| I was wondering if anyone had any idea(s) about what the significance might be about the intersection mentioned near the beginning of the song, "Twelfth Street & Vine" (in Kansas City) ... | |
| Bob Dylan – Pay in Blood Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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This song is about the current president. So many references point in this direction ... - The line about proving who your father is, is one of them ... And again, the line 'You bastard...I'm supposed to respect you'? Bastard being an illegitimate child. - The line saying that he's been accused of murder ... Speaks to me of the whole controversy surrounding his grandmother and the cause of her death ... I realize there are a lot of other lines which don't seem to fit my interpretation however, I am not really sure what to make of them. For example, the line about circling the Southern Zone, etc ... The song might not just be a protest against the president, but could also be a protest against an entire political group, I suppose ... And even with some Military undertones as well. But this is arguably the best song on 'Tempest', with the possible exception of the title track, IMHO. |
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| The Cars – It's All I Can Do Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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One of my favorite Cars songs, if not perhaps my all time favorite (along with Let's Go, Best Friends Girl, and Dangerous Type) ... Gotta add this tidbit: The first responder missed it a bit here. Let me tell you why I think this is so. He was not involved in a one-night-stand with this lady. How do I know, you ask ... Well, consider the line about keeping her renditions (photos) up on the wall .. where Holiday Romance means nothing at all ... I think he spent the holidays with this woman ... he took her to some classy island chain for a majorly expensive and classy vacation. Lots of photos were taken (which he he has up on his wall --- in hopes she'll come back to him --- its all that he can do is keep hoping she will one day return. But they must have had something a little more serious than just a one-night-stand, now, wouldn't you agree? |
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| Thousand Foot Krutch – Wish You Well Lyrics | 9 years ago |
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I do believe that Trevor is referring to a former member of the band, TFK. Either Dave Smith, or the one who replaced him, Myke Harrison. Both of these individuals reportedly participated with the band but ended up leaving at some point thereafter. I can definitely understand Trevor's frustration. If you watch the music video for 'Rawkfist' you can see four people ... I wonder if the person Trevor is talking about is the one of those four who we no longer see any longer after that (in videos or album photos or concert pics, etc ... ). I don't know, I could be way off. I always thought that the person he was talking about might have been a member who had written much of their material on 'Phenomenon' and 'The Art of Breaking', since this song appears on the next album they released after TAoB (The Flame in All of Us). I also believe that the songwriting style changed drastically between TAoB and TFiAoU. Its different, but that doesn't mean that its either better or worse. I like them both equally ... It just depends on what mood I'm in as far as which one I'll listen to at any given time (the same goes for any other band or artist for that matter, as well) ... Just my two cents ... |
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| Chevelle – Brainiac Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Funny, I just went back and saw my previous comment (about not giving a rats' ass, etc...) ... Well, I actually cannot believe I even posted such a a CRAP comment here. I wonder if I was drunk when I did it (possibly). I wish there was a way to edit our previous posts, but I can't seem to figure out how. At any rate, I was obviously oblivious to the rest of the lyrics of the song when I did post that crazy comment. But just now I went and actually read all of the lyrics, and have now formed a slightly different opinion than before. I am starting to wonder if the song might be either about drug addiction and/or about the controversies behind such things as stem cell research. Maybe they (Chevelle) are suggesting that we (doctors, researchers, but more specifically HUMANITY as a whole) has way too much power and ability to mess up or to mess with the human creation as we know it. All of the stuff that started surfacing in the news back in the 90's regarding stem cell research and cloning, etc, etc, etc ... I wonder if that has anything to do with these lyrics. But my previous comment is completely pointless, irrelevant and wholeheartedly disrespectful. All I needed to do was to ask the question, "Does anyone know what might be behind the reference to pentagrams in this song?" That's all I needed to ask or say. Why I went off on a tangent like I did, I have no clue. |
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| Chevelle – Brainiac Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I don't really care about anything else regarding this song except the line that says that "...each of these men holds a pentagram..." Can someone please explain why in the crap they would say something like this in the song. I don't care what the rest of the lyrics are. I really couldn't care less especially about the line about penicillin. I actually don't even give a rats' ass. I just want to know why they make mention of men holding pentagrams... This is the most interesting and mysterious line in the song I believe. |
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| Caedmon's Call – Love Is Different Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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I think he's possibly talking about a long-distance relationship he was in at the time, and the difficulties which are associated with that type of relationship. I've been in a few of them, so I can relate. At the time I first started listening to the CD that this song is off of (Long Line of Leavers), I was in a very serious long-distance relationship with someone, so I could really relate with a lot of what (I thought) he was going through at the time. I think the notion of a possible long-distance relationship is further evidenced by a few other songs on this same CD, namley 'Can't Lose You', 'What You Want', and Mistake of My Life'. But these are all great songs though, and brought me a lot of inner strength, healing, and catharsis (cathartic healing) during a relationship which she and I both knew would have been very difficult to have sustained at the time, due to several personal factors. |
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| Bob Dylan – Desolation Row Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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I really like your interpretation a lot. And taking it one step further, the reference to Einstein disguised as Robin Hood, and his friend a jealous Monk. I was wondering if this could possibly be a reference to Simon and Garfunkel. It could make sense....they started out in the Folk scene before making it big with Sounds of Silence, which was initially recorded as a primarily accoustic track, but was later 'electrified' prior to it release as a single, thus catipulting S&G as successful big hit BEAT musicians (their transformation from the Folk scene to the Beat scene? It might be somewhat of a stretch I suppose. |
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| Supertramp – Goodbye Stranger Lyrics | 11 years ago |
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No, its not about pot or a one night stand. The singer is bidding goodbye to the Catholic Church (and possibly to his faith in God, as well). "Mary" is a reference to the Mother of Christ. "Jane" is a PsudoName for Jesus, Himself, but without sounding overly religious. The singer describes himself as a "Ship without an anchor", and that he "must be moving on" Even though he has enjoyed his stay, he must be moving on. Remember, he still claims to believe everything that the Catholic Church SAYS, as the UNDISPUTED TRUTH. But, he goes on to say that he still must have things his own way ("Have to have things my own way, just to keep me in my youth") Lastly, the singer claims that "the d***** is his savior" (and by deductive reasoning, his "Savior" is either not, or is no longer, Christ --- Who it would be arguably if he was still a part of the Catholic (or ANY Christian) Church). Therefore, the singer is bidding goodbye to the Catholic Church, and quite possibly to his faith in God, which is actually a very sad thought, in reality, in my opinion. |
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| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Lodi Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| Always thought this song was somewhat reminiscent of The Beatles', 'The Ballad of John and Yoko'. | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Travelin' Band Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| About the Jailhouse Rock reference, I believe that it also might have a 'Long Tall Sally' sound, as well (LTS --- a song The Beatles copied/covered from someone else in the early '60's). | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Born On The Bayou Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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This has long been one of my favorite CCR tracks. When I was a kid my dad owned the first edition of the Creedence Gold LP, you know the one that actually had each band member's picture on a separate tab, which in turn was uniquely represented by the silhouetted cut-out of each respectively (this would probably be worth something today, but I have no idea what ever happened to it, though). Anyway, this song was on that LP, and my dad played this album all the time throughout my childhood (he was the one who got me hooked on CCR). But alas, I am embarrassed to actually admit this, but all this time I actually thought that JF was saying (speaking of his hound dog) ". . .barking, chase him down from HOO TO THERE. . .", which I always just thought was his way of saying ". . .chase him down from here to there. . .", but with a real heavy accent or something. Yes, embarrassing as it is, I actually had no idea he was saying the word, 'Hoodoo'. |
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| Creedence Clearwater Revival – (Wish I Could) Hideaway Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| I wonder if, instead of a "friend" in the strictest sense of the word, could he have instead been directing this at or toward his brother, who was most likely contemplating leaving the band around this time. | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Fortunate Son Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Its interesting to look at all of the different perspectives that are out there regarding the meanings and interpretations of a lot of these songs, especially this one, among others. But I would like to interject something here, which will most likely be either taken the wrong way, and/or cause some element of offense (but I really don't care if it does or not). This is in response to everyone who thinks that this song was written about the social injustice of the selectivity process of how certain people were (randomly) chosen for the draft (primarily the poorer, lower class), while the wealthier segments of the population could buy their way out. And by the way, let me first say right off the bat that I don't doubt that this is true, and that it did indeed happen (and I really don't doubt that this song most likely inspired that notion, or that reality at the time). But there was another segment of society which needs to be addressed. What kind of focus or what kind of attention or interest then, should be placed upon the generation or community of the scholarly elite of that day, who, though not wealthy enough necessarily to "buy their way out of the draft", but who specifically not selected for the draft solely on the basis of their exceptional scholarly achievements at the time. To illustrate, I have 2 family members who would have been at the ripe age for being drafted for the Vietnam War in the mid-to-late-60's. Both were attending Ivy league Universities at the time, on full-fledged Presidential scholarships. And therefore both were exempt from the draft of their day. One of these family members' younger brother, who did not fare so well in the scholarly educational sense of the word, was drafted to the Vietnam War, and lost his life not long after he arrived there. This, in turn gave his brother (who happens to be my dad) the Sole Surviving Son provision (while the other family member who also was enrolled in the other Ivy league school, my Uncle from my Paternal side of the family) evidently would have had this provision given to him anyway, since he was actually the only son in that family, to begin with. Anyway, I guess I am just curious to know if these types of instances are what you all believe that Fogerty was talking about with this song (hopefully not). |
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| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Down On The Corner Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| Or, actually I should say that, Willy and the Poorboys is/was their response the whole Sgt. Pepper thing. . . | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Down On The Corner Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| This song is CCR's response to The Beatles' Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band. | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Bad Moon Rising Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'd like to respond to CrappyBassist (above). That's so stupid, idiotic, ridiculous, and absurd, that it is IRONICALLY actually funny. NOT But in all truth and honesty, I love this song. . .one of CCR's all time best, if not THE all time best of theirs. I have no idea what its about. Sounds pretty scary. . .maybe it is supposed to be apocalyptic.. As a matter of fact, I think this has more likelihood of being Apocalyptic, whereas 'Run Through the Jungle', on the other hand, might have more significance to the Vietnam War. But I could be wrong though. . . |
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| Creedence Clearwater Revival – Proud Mary Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I gotta say, I'm laughing my butt off here, reading what smartestpersonever wrote (above). That is hilarious --- you should be doing stand up comedy, man. And, equally, if not even a bit more ludicrous is (the member) CCR's response (also above). I gotta say, if I didn't know any better I would have to conclude that the 2 of you must have conversed with each other regarding your opinions on here. You see it makes perfect sense: I don't know anyone could have come up with the 'cow feeding' interpretation theory of this song unless they HAD been tripping out on acid. You 2 must somehow be affiliated or associated with one-another. But anyway. . .as far as this song goes, no they are not talking about drugs, or cows, or political (or war or anti-war) protest of any kind in any conceivable fashion. This song is about the Riverboat Queen on the Mississippi River, Proud Mary, rolling down the river, just like it sounds. No other in-depth interpretation is necessary. Why can't you all just take this at face value. And on a related note, I seriously doubt that 'Lookin' Out My Back Door' was about an acid trip, either. This was not CCR's style. It might have been The Beatles' style, and it most definitely is the prevailing style of The Rolling Stones. But not Creedence. |
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| Bob Dylan – Maggie's Farm Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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This song is about his split from the Folk Music Community. I don't recall exactly where I read it, or even exactly what it said verbatim, but there was an article I read recently somewhere that stated the significance of the name, Maggie and the significance of the Farm theme, as well. It is a very real place somewhere, possibly where the Folk Music Community congregated. But as far as thinking that Maggie is a "real" person, per se, I don't know about that. Even if "she" is a "real" person, she is NOT the focus of this song. |
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| Bob Dylan – Maggie's Farm Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| Yes, I applaud you for putting that @$$ in his place. Thank you very much! He has no idea what he's talking about, and probably needs to be locked in a padded cell, in a straight jacket. | |
| Bob Dylan – Maggie's Farm Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I'm sure that no one here gives a rat's ass what your political opinions are. So keep them to yourself. OK? I for one, certainly don't give a crap about them, since they are obviously very biased, and completely meaningless and totally wrong. |
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| Bob Dylan – It Ain't Me Babe Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Until I read these comments I had always thought this song was his own personal way of letting a former lover know that he had found someone else (as one might imagine what it must have been like for him to have had to tell someone like Joan Baez about, say, Sara Lowndes, for example (ie --- ". . .there's nothing in here moving, AND ANYWAY I'M NOT ALONE). But now that I have read some of these comments, I am more inclined to believe that this song was either a message to his fans and/or to the Folk Music Community, which he no longer wanted anything to do with (go back and listen to Maggie's Farm. . .it is (also) about his split from the Folk Music Community). At this seems a lot more plausible to me than the anti-war/anti draft take (or theory) regarding this song. |
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| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Which logically leads me to yet another interesting question (in response to sarahbee), why do you suppose he was ". . .wondering if. . .her hair was still red. . ."? This could only mean one of two things as I see it. Either she was not a 'natural' red-head. . .or perhaps because she HAD been an older woman, maybe he was wondering if she had gone gray? Well, I guess there IS one last possibility. . .maybe he was wondering if she had colored it a different color. Interesting question. . .or maybe I'm just reading way too much into it all. . .who knows? |
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| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I've got an interesting question (or at least I hope its not a stupid one). After having done some digging I've discovered that Sara's folks had most likely died before she met him (her father died in 1956, and her mother I believe in 1961). If this is true, how then could the line, ". . .her folks they said our lives together sure was gonna be rough. . ." be applicable to Dylan and Sara. . .could this part of the song be about someone else he knew before Sara, like either Suze Rotolo or Joan Baez? Interesting question, in my opinion. It certainly does make you wonder. . . |
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| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Yes, you're right, they did end up living very close by each other (prior to marriage to each other). They both lived in separate rooms in New York's famed Chelsea Hotel. . .hence the line in the Desire song, Sara (". . .stayed up for days in the Chelsea Hotel, writing Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands for you. . ."). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sara_Dylan |
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| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| I totally agree with your position on this line. Thank you. You are the first person here to say this. I thought I was going to have to be the first one. The reason Dylan felt "uneasy" was excactly the reason you give here. I have always thought that about this line of the song. Although, granted, he may have felt even a little more uneasy if she had been facing away from him when she did this, though. But I don't see how this could be physically possible to do (as much as I have tried to imagine it. It just doesn't work physically). | |
| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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How on earth could being "famous" ever possibly legitimately un-emotion-alize a human being? It neither wouldn't, nor couldn't in any conceivable way or fashion reduce a human being to an unemotional being. He (Dylan) would still have felt and experienced all of the emotion and pain of the moment, regardless of how "famous" he was. Who gives a crap about popularity? |
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| Bob Dylan – Tangled Up in Blue Lyrics | 14 years ago |
| Shirley Nozinsky, but she changed it to Sara Lownds during her marriage to the person she was married to prior to meeting Dylan. This explains why Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands was actually a play on words (Lowlands/Lownds). | |
| Paul Simon – You Can Call Me Al Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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I disagree, though I really think Paul Simon is extemely wonderful. . .but no one ever has, or ever will, surpass the person I believe to be the best songwriter of all time, which is Bob Dylan. Period. |
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| Bob Dylan – Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts Lyrics | 14 years ago |
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Although I have not read through all of the comments here, I am going to chime in with my 2 cent's worth. The lyrics to this song have always intrigued me (as do most of Dylan's song lyrics, for the most part). Up until just recently I had always tried to fit this song into the trials and tribulations that Dylan was going through with his wife, Sara, which is what most of the rest of this album sees to be about. But it wasn't until just very recently (I had listened to AND SUNG) this song over and over again on my way home from work in my car, and started seeing something very different here. I now believe that this song is a re-visitation of Maggie's Farm, an allegorical presentation of Dylan's transition from ACOUSTIC FOLK, to ELECTRIC FOLK/ROCK, in the mid-'60's, and how he was initially received by his fan base as a result of this transition. Let me try to explain: First of all, I see Dylan as the Jack of Hearts here. Big Jim represents the WEALTH and REPUTATION which Folk music had generated in its CLASSIC state (up to that time). Lily represents the FAN BASE which followed CLASSIC FOLK who would not be comfortable having to endure any kind of change to Folk Music ("It was known all around that Lily had Jim's ring. . .") Rosemary represents the ever-growing FAN BASE of CLASSICAL FOLK MUSIC, which was getting tired of "business as usual", and would have eagerly welcomed a CHANGE to the established status quo of its day. The group of crooks who were breaking into the bank safe represents Dylan's possee, his stage hands, those who would travel with him from town to town and set up his stage, and get things ready for his concerts, etc. ("In the darkness by the riverbed they waited on the ground, for one more member who had business back in town, for they couldn't go no further, without the Jack of Hearts. . .") The band of bank robbers were stealing funds from the BANK. We must ask ourselves this question: Who would have been hurt most by this: Big Jim. Because Big Jim represented the WEALTH and REPUTATION of the CLASSIC FOLK MUSIC of the day. And the Jack of Heats was obviously a part of that group who came to take away what was precious to them. The backstage manager represented anyone in the recording business whose financial future might have been affected by Dylan's transition to ELECTRIC FOLK/ROCK ("there's something funny going on, I can just feel it in the air. . ."). Other tidbits: Rosemary says she's glad to see Big Jim is still alive, and that he's looking like a "saint", She was not really glad to see him still alive, since she was obviously planning on doing him in. As she looked at her reflection in the knife, she realized just how frail and empty her own life had been (a wasted life, in a sense all for not). We will later see that the knife could represents (Dylan's) acoustic (guitar) music in general. Then. . .the door to the dressing room burst open and a colt revolver clicked. The colt revolver represents (Dylan's) electric (guitar) music. But remember, Big Jim did not die due to a gunshot wound; "Big Jim lay covered up, killed by a pin knife in the back. . ."). So, you see, it was Big Jim's (the WEALTH and REPUTATION of CLASSIC FOLK MUSIC('s) own device(s) which actually ended up killing Big Jim in the end. At the end. . .Lily: Had already taken all of the dye out of her hair. This indicates to me that she was wearing a facade or a mask of her real self the whole entire time, and didn't even realize it. There was some element of CLASSIC FOLK MUSIC which was evidently a FARCE all along (this is definitely further evidenced by Dylan's song, Maggie's Farm, from many years earlier). I think that it's also interesting, if you take a listen to Idiot Wind, and I just got this "revelation" (for lack of a better word) just earlier this afternoon: Listen very carefully to the first few lines of Idiot Wind. . .and what do you hear? You hear the entire story of Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack of Hearts being played out, in a matter of just perhaps a minute or two (instead of nearly 8 or 9 minutes, which it took Dylan to tell the story in L,R, & the JoH). Think about it: "They say I shot a man named Gray (Gray, was the dull shade or condition of CLASSIC FOLK MUSIC before Dylan came and turned into ELECTRIC FOLK ROCK), "and took his wife to Italy...(could either represent Lily or Rosemary, I'm not really sure), and when she died (when CLASSIC FOLK MUSIC died) the inheritance came to Dylan. . .he can't help it if he's lucky (he's not really to blame for doing anything wrong, unlike what his (former) fan base would have wanted us to believe back then, right after he first appeared on stage with an ELECTRIC guitar, perhaps at one of those FOLK FESTIVALS) --- (ie --- once again, "the FESTIVAL was over, and the boys were all planning for a fall. . ."). So, anyway. . .what do you think of all this? |
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