| Bob Dylan – When the Night Comes Falling from the Sky Lyrics | 3 years ago |
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@[Louis126:35307] Thanks for the feedback on my interpretation. The title of ‘The groom’s still waiting at the altar’ clearly points to a careless bride but most of the lyrics appears too unspecific to me for drawing reliable conclusions. ‘Sweetheart like you’ (about temptation) and especially ‘Sugar baby’ are about the ‘bride’ as well and have more coherent messages. Living in Germany, I have never heard about the Jim and Tammy Baker fiasco. The song ‘When the night comes falling from the sky’ certainly has a wider, more global scope. Dylan’s criticism on traditional churches aims at their refusal of using their senses and brain when reading the bible. See ‘cobwebs in your mind, dust upon your eyes’ in ‘Dead man, dead man’, a song already included in the album ‘Shot of love’. See also ‘you ain’t got no brain’ and ‘you ain’t got no sense’ in ‘Sugar baby’. This religious style is a state of walking in darkness and – even worse – spreading darkness. Therefore, ‘there are thousands who could have overcome the darkness’. |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Hi VanDylan, I would like to share further thoughts with you on the two quotes in your contribution of 30 Sept. 2013: John 16:13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth John 15:26 ... But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he shall testify of me The Spirit of truth is not the truth but only part of it. His origin is in the Father, as is Jesus’ origin. So it is the Father’s spirit, his way of thinking. Jesus has adjusted his own thinking to that of the Father, and now the Father’s spirit is also Jesus’ spirit. We are challenged to adjust our thinking to Jesus’ thinking and thereby to the Father’s thinking. My (still hypothetical) understanding is that the Father is identified as the consciousness with knowledge of what is possible plus the power to create it. Everything is part of the father, as Paul said in Acts 17,28: ‘For in him we live, and move, and have our being’. It seems that he cannot simultaneously be everything and part of everything. God’s representative as part of everything is Jesus. The Spirit appears to be the mode and power of interaction between the Father on one side and persons of things within this world on the other side. You certainly have read that ‘All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men.’ (Matthew 12,31, e.g.) Blasphemy against the Spirit means chopping Gods positive influence on us, similar to disabling electricity supply by chopping the cable. The different roles in actions of this ‘divine machinery’ are for example reflected in Matthew 12,28: ‘But if I [Jesus as an individual in creation] cast out devils by the Spirit of God [mediator of instructions and power], then the kingdom of God [creator and controller of all] is come unto you.’ Jesus is at the Father’s right hand, but where is the Spirit? You know that in the very beginning ‘the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters’ (Genesis 1,2). This may make the difference between this earth and billions of similar planets in the universe upon which the Spirit is not ‘breeding’. Jesus was the incarnation of God’s character and of the truth. He also was and still is the prototype of a son of God. Only John used the term ‘comforter’ for the Spirit. In Greek it is ‘parakletos’, a person assisting in a trial. The comforter ‘testifies of Jesus’, thereby showing us how to behave as God’s child and how to live in agreement with God’s truth. Our sharing of thoughts is about to leave the scope of ‘songmeanings’. If you are interested in continuing it, this might take place outside this website. My email address is weiss-marl@t-online.de. I am a German scientist who escaped from the labyrinth of traditional Christian theology in early 2001 and has explored the New Testament ‘from scratch’ in the following ten years, including an assignment of milestones in the book of revelation to the history of the last two millenniums (as indicated in my reply of 22 Sept. 2013 to Sujit’s question of 12 Sept. 2013 under Bob Dylan’s song ‘Sugar baby’). |
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| Bob Dylan – Tempest Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Hi CampYahweh, sorry I did not note your reply sooner. #1) My interpretation is not wrong just because a different explanation is possible. #2) I do not have as much experience with drugs as you seem to have. A chorus usually stresses a key idea of a song. Whatever kept the watchman asleep – he heavily failed to do his duty. You should take a look at reply # 2 to comment # 1 on song # 1 of the album = Duquesne whistle which also addresses a tempest in a meteorological sense. You should also note that Bob Dylan again and again watches out for disasters approaching slowly and insufficiently recognized: A hard rain’s a-gonna fall; The times they are a-changin’; When the ship comes in; Foot of pride; All along the watchtower; Slow train coming; When the night comes falling from the sky; certainly some more can be found. The climate change, a collapse of the world economy, and Jesus returning to a sleeping Christianity are the most urgent threats today. Do you still prefer synthetic dreams? |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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In the course of the dialogue with VanDylan my attention was drawn to the shoes and the walk. ‘I've made shoes for everyone, even you, while I still go barefoot’ is the last line except the final refrain and appears to be a personal complaint: While Bob Dylan has extensively given support to all others including the listener for their walks, he himself has received insufficient support in return. Though, one crucial element of support has been given to him by the stranger who taught him. Imagine him walking barefoot the darkest part of an untrodden path in narrow lanes: Something must be pushing him forward in this unusual direction, while he ‘got nothin' to say, 'specially about whatever was’. |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Hi VanDylan, Our ways of thinking are still significantly different. Though the task is ‘growing up in all things into Him who is the head – Christ’ (Eph 4,15) ‘till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting’ (Eph 4,13-14). I think that in our hearts we do not have the truth but instead a sense of recognizing the truth when it is revealed to us (by the light of the world). Have you ever wondered why merely all religious people behave as if there were numerous creators sending their folks to fight against each other? Instead they all should co-operate on clarification of that part of reality which is not accessible to empirical research. But the less unequivocal a matter is the more is it subject to speculation, particularly in religion. I think this observation is in conflict with the assumption of having the truth in our hearts. I do not understand what you meant to say with ‘the duality apparent in Paul's writings’. - Until now I cannot confirm that love cannot be depleted. - Your words on Jesus’ leaving the Holy Spirit is inspiring and correct, though in conflict with the trinity dogma. It is confirmed by Jesus receiving the Spirit when baptized. Similarly the dogma of Jesus being man and god similarly is in conflict with Philippians 2,6-7 where Jesus did not cling to being equal to God but ‘made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant’. This world is God’s workshop where me shapes personalities. Thereby he is overcoming the ‘I and I’ conflict. He is following a plan he made before the foundation of the world (Eph 1,4), which was not inhibited by sin but apparently included it. Eph 1,11: ‘… Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will’. You might wish to read my comments on Dylan’s Song ‘Sugar baby’ for better understanding my background. The law is a crude guide for the immature. Jesus (explained by the New Testament and by his Spirit) is a better, though more challenging guide. God has more interest in growth than in avoiding formal violations of the law. There is only one ethics that makes sense without limitations: What would Jesus do in my situation? Take care Mikesch |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Hi VanDylan, Lies: Intentional lies are only the tip of the iceberg. All people have a tendency towards understanding the world in a simplified way that is favorable for their personal interests. Then they seek allies confirming this view. This is what the devil works with most. I am quite sure that Assad is convinced he does his best to protect his nation from terrorists. Everybody closely around him not only accepts and confirms this view but even suggests it. So he is not intentionally telling lies. You might even say he is honest. Truth: Jesus claimed that he himself was the (incarnation of) truth (John 14,6; John 18,37). The Holy Spirit is not the truth – he makes Jesus clearer visible and better comprehensible (John 16,14). Gospel is a campaign against error. The Greek word does not necessarily mean pleasant news – it means crucial news. Following the truth up = following Jesus. The Greek word for sin means missing a target and therefore is a matter of direction rather than a matter of moral or law. The basis process for overcoming sin is penance which does not mean subordination under a moral standard or under a set of dogmas but checking one’s convictions, goals and values. This appears to be an inconvenient process, but it is the essential prerequisite for forgiveness. Bob Dylan as a Christian: The above mentioned effect of convenient simplification of the truth also applies to Christianity. Claiming that Bob Dylan is a Christian sounds to me like claiming that he is my ally (in the sense used above), so I should not be wrong and accordingly I do not need penance. Bob Dylan’s charisma is making reality more visible and helping to train one’s senses. Like him I am a Christian that cannot find his place in traditional Christianity but rather feels cheated by it. Love: This term is used as if there was a worldwide agreement on its meaning. Though, everybody appears to have his own interpretation. In the New Testament love is defined by voluntary suffering for the (ultimate) benefit of others. In particular, God gave his son and let him suffer terribly (John 3,16). Love is an investment, but today love is usually seen as a matter of fortune and consumption. This also is a convenient simplification. |
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| Bob Dylan – Sugar Baby Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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The theological character of this song becomes evident from the following line : Look up, look up - seek your Maker - 'fore Gabriel blows his horn This implies that there is a maker who will call to account in the future, which may happen unexpectedly even for those who believe in him. The judgment will be initiated by Gabriel blowing his horn. This refers to 1.Corinthians 15,52: in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. (This is also cited in Handel’s Messiah). The last book of the bible called Revelation describes in mysterious pictures a plan of God, represented by a book sealed with seven seals that could not be realized before Jesus died, which is expressed as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals (chapter 5). Each seal opens a new phase of history. The seventh seal brings seven trumpets given to angels (chapter 8). Each trumpet brings a new type of global war. Gabriel’s horn stands for the last of these seven trumpets. Chapter 10,7 reads: but in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets. The believers are addressed as Sugar Baby. The bible speaks more of Christianity as the body of Jesus than of Christianity as his bride. For example 1.Corinthians 12,27: Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. - However, the characterization of Christianity as Jesus’ bride can be found in several more Bob Dylan songs: Sweetheart like you, When the night comes falling from the sky, perhaps Cry a While and the scenery of The groom’s still waiting at the altar. The initial report on creation in the bible (Genesis 1) ends with: Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. This is followed by a detailed view on the creation of Eve, where unexpectedly something was not good: It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him. This leads further to a statement cited by Paul in Ephesians 5,31 and characterized by him as a great mystery: For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. Paul understood it tentatively as a prediction of what Jesus did for not staying alone. I hope this is sufficient, though not too long. |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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A woman in one’s bed symbolizes the closest familiarity and intimacy between two persons. Even in this situation the narrator is a deadly threat to her I (and vice versa). Your statement about the absence of lies in the arms of a stranger amazed me and made me think. The (preliminary?) result of this thinking is that in a relationship with strangers the fundamental competition between the two persons is out of sight, so there is no need for lies. The more a freshly formed couple learns about one another and needs to arrange the interests of both sides, the more conflicts become evident. Honest love is not the initial blindness for the conflicts – honest love is accepting the conflicts and working on fair solutions. |
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| Bob Dylan – When the Night Comes Falling from the Sky Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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This song sketches the situation of Jesus returning to an unprepared church, his bride. She is in embarrassment because her neglect of her groom is obvious: After some time for thinking about their relationship she is just burning his letters. I think that “It won't matter who loves who, / You'll love me or I'll love you” means that discussions on each other’s love will make no sense in this situation because the deficiencies in love are obvious. The time of living separately has not been easy for her, and she has been looking for comfort at wrong addresses (“flirting with disaster”; “protecting someone last time I called”). “Stick around, baby, we're not through” gives her another chance (which is in conflict with some relevant predictions in the New Testament). She will have to seek him “and you'll find me in the wasteland of your mind”. Though the consequences of her failure have been serious: “I saw thousands who could have overcome the darkness, / For the love of a lousy buck, I've watched them die.” |
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| Bob Dylan – Trust Yourself Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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The album “Empire Burlesque” and the song “Trust Yourself” are among my favorites. “Trust Yourself” is complementary to “Political World” (Album: Infidels): If you “Trust Yourself” you can make “courage” from “a thing of the past” to a factor of the presence. Unfortunately people are extremely easy on their common sense. They avoid using it whenever the result might be inconvenient. As a consequence the common sense loses its fitness. When you become aware that “you're on your own … in a land of wolves and thieves” you will find out that training your common sense is essential for not being betrayed by any kind of leaders. Dylan recommends caution even towards himself: “Don't trust me to show you the truth”. My most important allies are my common sense and the Holy Spirit. In 1 Thessalonians 5:21 we read: “Test all things; hold fast what is good.” |
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| Bob Dylan – Dead Man, Dead Man Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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This song is addressed to Christians that are evasive towards reality and truth while for a Christian following the truth should be the same as following Jesus. Their sense of reality has gone lost while they live in an alternative, hypothetical world. This world is constructed with elements from the bible which have been selected and arranged to fit unauthorized human purposes. Now they are trying aggressively to overpower others and to define places for them in their ghetto world. With this song Dylan is turning away from a type of Christianity that has disappointed and even misused his trust. The album “Slow Train Coming” is characterized by discovering truth in Christianity, the central verse being “Gonna change my way of thinking”. The next album “Saved” includes more phrases than thoughts with “I’m saved” and “Are you ready” as the basic messages. “Shot of Love” as the last album of the Christian trilogy marks a refusal of cheap slogans and hypothetic worlds. |
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| Bob Dylan – All Along the Watchtower Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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For an adequate interpretation we need to look at the direct meanings first: (1) The first verse accuses the ruthless and obviously bad activities of thieves. Not only criminals are identified as thieves but also businessmen and plowmen who rob the vital necessities from others by more or less legal means. (2) The second verse claims that the jokers’ “talking falsely” is just as bad as theft, however not as obvious. I believe that this is the most important message of the song. The joker keeps people from realizing how serious their situation is, which will in the end be not less fatal than theft. The negative effects of the joker seem to have been overlooked by most commenters. The joker is neither God (who certainly does not “talk falsely”) nor an aspect of Dylan. (3) The third verse drafts a scenario of an approaching disaster, realized by only few. The pictures used in this verse certainly remind of Jehovah’s Witnesses. Similar scenarios of approaching disasters not noted sufficiently are “Slow train Coming” (Album: Slow Train Coming) and “Tempest” (Tempest). |
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| Bob Dylan – I and I Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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This is a beautiful and very inspiring song. Thanks for the numerous proposals for interpretation including valuable background information. Let me add some more ideas: The song looks at the human nature, which is seen as not very honorable but needing forgiveness. Not in a moral sense but in an existential sense, just like a predator which cannot live if he does not kill. I believe this interpretation is certain. Further I assume that the identification of each person as an “I” refers to man being like God after eating the dangerous fruit: “Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever”. God cannot tolerate any independent “I” with the power to live forever. Analogously, any growing “I” will see himself as the center of the world. His thinking will arrange the world according to his individual view of good and evil, which occurs in competition with all the other “I”s. The woman as a second “I” beside the narrator therefore must not survive when she becomes aware of his nature. |
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| Bob Dylan – Sweetheart Like You Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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The song describes a situation of temptation. The tempter as such is the devil. In the absence of the boss (the Lord) he explains that Christianity — Jesus’ bride — deserves a better life than she has. There are more songs where a woman representing Christianity is addressed by Dylan: “Sugar Baby” (Album: Love and Theft), “When the night comes falling from the sky” (Empire Burlesque), perhaps “Cry a While” (Love and Theft) and the scenery of “The groom’s still waiting at the altar” (Shot of Love). The consequence should be a check by every Christian which temptations he has given in to and what should be revised about his way of life — even if it leads him back into a dump. |
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| Bob Dylan – Roll On John Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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I can hear this catchy tune again and again. Thanks to EsmonDo for the collection of identifiers for John Lennon. The song is not only a tribute to John Lennon but a wish to have John’s bright light shining on. Lennon became a victim of various anonymous actors. They made him a “slave”, “tied your hands and they clamped your mouth”, “tore the heart right out and cut it to the core” and finally “shot him in the back”. Still he shone (and still shines) a bright light, which means that he makes things visible that need attention and correction. He was a provoking actor for peace and sharing. “Imagine no possession”, “All we are saying is give peace a chance.” I understand Dylan’s song as a contribution to keeping Lennon’s message alive. |
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| Bob Dylan – Disease of Conceit Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Yes, conceit has very much to do with sin. This includes the observation that most religious people are quite confident that their personal problems with sin have essentially been solved. They are sure: A thorough check of convictions (= penance) is certainly of fundamental importance, but only for others. However much their personal “beliefs” deviate from those of others or from the overall evidence in the scriptures: On judgment day the judge day will bow to their versions if they remain free from doubt. What nonsense! They will miss the mark because of this unjustified conviction of safety. Those who do not need to listen will become deaf. “Over your senses / You have no control.” Do you believe that Assad thinks he is a cruel tyrant? I assume he rather thinks he loves his people and has to protect it from terrorists. There are hundreds around him that confirm this thinking. Deceit is much more common than you think. |
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| Bob Dylan – What Was It You Wanted Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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My impression is that this song presents an uneasy atmosphere where attention and lack of concentration coincide. The singer exposes himself to more stimuli (“back in a minute”) than he can process. Even a kiss cannot reach his mind directly. He is increasingly losing control of what he wants himself. The “record breaking” has nothing to do with commercial success but with mechanical damage of vinyl records. Otherwise “Did the needle just skip” would not follow. I also have significant doubts that Judas and Jesus had any deficiencies in concentration and perception at the betrayal. |
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| Bob Dylan – Ring Them Bells Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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From Dylan's Jewish background, Christians are heathen. Their bells symbolize their activities for reminding the world of God's will. This is certainly an important job. Though the result is that "they're breaking down the distance / Between right and wrong". Perhaps due to their variety and dividedness. Yes, Christianity is Jesus' bride. But Dylan sees it is developing backwards. The "sacred cow" was not meant to be a God other than Jahwe but just a means of better control over Jahwe. The specific "beliefs" of all the different Christian demonimations can be seen as "sacred cows" and thereby as a reason for going backwards. |
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| Bob Dylan – Shooting Star Lyrics | 10 years ago |
| This seems to be a prayer of a person that was reminded (too late?) of Jesus returning and calling to account. | |
| Bob Dylan – Political World Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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This song should be interpreted considering the following quote from "Union Sundown" (Album: Infidels): Democracy don't rule the world, You'd better get that in your head. This world is ruled by violence But I guess that's better left unsaid. I keep trying to find out what is making our world politial, how this works, and what would be the better, non-political character. It appears that political decisions are dominated by consderations of finding enough allies to have them pushed through. They are led by tactics. "Polticial world" tells us what gets lost when our decisions and our consciences are censored by political considerations. |
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| Bob Dylan – Floater (Too Much to Ask) Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Yes the song sketches a relaxed scenery and is very nice to listen to. No problem in sight - except in the title ("Floater") and in the last two lines: "Sometimes somebody wants you to give something up And tears or not, it's too much to ask" Nobody loves to have an easy life questioned by any wish or need. Similarly: - "People don't live or die, people just float" (Man in the Long Black Coat, Oh Mercy Album) - "I step outside back to the busy street, but nobody's going anywhere" (Highlands, Time out of Mind Album) |
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| Bob Dylan – Beyond the Horizon Lyrics | 10 years ago |
| The song is a try to glance at heaven, though heaven is still out of sight. There is only a short look at the present time, which is "dark and it's dreary" while beyond the horizon "the sky is so blue". Mortality is just a necessary transition for reaching this world where loving is easy, successful and without end. | |
| Bob Dylan – Ain't Talkin' Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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This song closes the album trilogy "Time out of Mind", "Love and Theft", "Modern Times", which is opened with the words "I'm walkin' (through streets that are dead)", sung with a minor third upward. Now this is picked up with "Ain't talkin' - just walkin'", again with a minor third. This construction pronounces that Dylan sees his life primarily as a "long and lonesome road" to be walked, a hard way and a painful process. He cannot adequately share this experience with others ("No one on earth would ever know"), so talking will not help. Maybe prayer will - why not try? He is "a-tryin' to love my neighbor and do good unto others / But oh, mother, things ain't going well". So he is losing illusions and developing ruthless considerations. Keeping control of his thoughts is difficult because "the whole world is filled with speculation ... They will tear your mind away from contemplation / They will jump on your misfortune when you're down". So there is nothing left but focus on the essentials, "not nursin' any superfluous fears". The melancholic song ends with a suprising major accord, indicating a happy end. |
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| Bob Dylan – Soon After Midnight Lyrics | 10 years ago |
| I cannot discover a deeper sense than the following: A soldier sets his cruel job aside in his mind and enjoys a date with a woman he desires. | |
| Bob Dylan – Narrow Way Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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The contents of the lyrics are heterogeneous. The core is a prayer characterizing the singer's life as a process comparable to a very long way, hard to find (narrow) and hard to walk (desert, fight, scars). The goal is becoming "right in my mind" or working up to being with Jesus, who comes closer working from the upper side. "Go back home, leave me alone" is a message to those trying to divert him. "For a drink of wine and a crust of bread" reminds of the last supper. You may also discover Pilate washing his hands and Jesus crying "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Though these elements are camouflaged with dissimilar ones. The challenges and the personal forces change daily. The yearning for reaching the end is strong, and the best to do is "Be gentle brother, be gentle and pray." |
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| Bob Dylan – Tempest Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Two observations indicate that this song is not merely a retold of the Titanic story and point towards a different interpretation: (1) The Titanic did not sink because of a storm but because of colliding with an iceberg. (2) A sleeping watchman is mentioned four times. Therefore I believe that the song should make us aware of an approaching desaster which is not announced adequately by those in charge. Several ongoing processes may lead to such a desaster, many of them driven by the call for further growth, which means driving full speed into a dead end street. My present favourite is the climate change, which goes with an increasing frequency and intensity of meteorological events like storms (in agreement with the album title), high and low temperature, high and low precipitation. From the scientific view the situation with the climate change is comparable to a ship with a leak. The ship will sink sooner or later if the leak is neither closed nor the water is pumped out at a rate at least as high as the one it comes in with. Analogously carbon dioxide is added one-way to the system we live in at a rate of approximately 30 billion tonnes a year or 3.5 ppm atmospheric concentration. The 400 ppm threshold has been passed already, and 450 ppm will be reached in the mid of the next decade - not even half a generation from now. A quantitatve compensation of this carbon dioxide release is not even considered at any relevant level. Those in political responsibility primarily care for their lobbies and budgets, those in the NGOs care for their campaigns while solutions to problems have significantly lower priorities. This is my personal experience from an information campaign last year. So watch out you dreaming watchmen! |
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| Bob Dylan – When the Deal Goes Down Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Like Shep1986 and LoganWalter I see this song as a prayer. The singer is in a process of striving to have his wisdom grow in a world "full of disappointment and pain" where many experiences are "not what they seem". Though in the "darkness on the pathways of life" his toiling often appears in vain, he is sure that he will succeed in finally being together with his addressee, who is indicated as Jesus with the "thorny crown" while I whonder who it should be for a Buddhist. Wearing a thorny crown like Jesus indicates suffering like him instead of passively relying on his suffering. Similarly active strife is found necessary. Still the reasons for living and dying remain hidden - at least to most people. Yes, " A great reflection on putting our lives in perspective" (Shep1986). |
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| Bob Dylan – Highlands Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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Just like rama3296 more than six years ago, I understand that "Highlands" expresses the desire of being in heaven while having to face the "Same ol' rat race - Life in the same ol' cage" every day. Whereas on the "busy street" of life "nobody's going anywhere", Dylan keeps trying to figure out the way to the highlands. The central scene in the Boston town restaurant probably reflects his experience with some type of Christianity which initially fascinated and then confused and frustrated him. He is mislead (supposed to order something unavailable), misused (turned from a customer into a worker - no excuse helps), misunderstood (artists either paint portraits or write novels) and left puzzled. The verse about the highlands following this experience is accordingly filled with aggression: "Horses and hounds", " twang of the arrow and a snap of the bow". While people around him have more joy in life ("I'd trade places with any of them / In a minute, if I could"), he has to be satisfied with being in the highlands in his mind. |
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| Bob Dylan – This Dream of You Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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While all other lyrics on "Together through Life" was co-written by Robert Hunter, "This dream of you" was written by Bob Dylan alone. Accordingly it is the top candidate for searching a personal communication from Bob Dylan. In my perception it is a prayer reflecting the questions of a person pursuing his lonesome way of faith (for several decades now) among atheists on one side and religious people immune to learning on the other. There are new challenges each day where he might fail or get hurt. Perception and interpretation of the signs and phases along the way requires sharpened senses. Messages often arrive with uncertain clarity like in a dream. Though the reality of the process is not doubted, and it gives the singer a goal for his life to which there is no alternative. |
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| Bob Dylan – Sugar Baby Lyrics | 10 years ago |
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The song is a lament for Christianity, the bride of the Christ, going her own way not asking for any real directions or feedback from her groom. Her brain and her senses have become stunted and lost their functions by not being used adequately. - Her eyes are closed so she does not see where she and her groom are. - The male members offer illegal drugs (useless emotions) instead of healthy "bread of life". - The female members are beautiful traps instead of pleasant enrichments of life. - The situation is out of control and the chances for help close to zero. - The singer himself was one of the victims. The advice is to "seek your maker before Gabriel blows his horn", i.e. to replace unquestioned beliefs by work on clarification without prejudice. |
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