The sweet pretty things are in bed now, of course
The city fathers, they're trying to endorse
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
But the town has no need to be nervous
The ghost of Belle Starr, she hands down her wits
To Jezebel the nun, she violently knits
A bald wig for Jack the Ripper, who sits
At the head of the Chamber of Commerce
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
The hysterical bride in the penny arcade
Screaming, she moans, "I've just been made"
Then sends out for the doctor, who pulls down the shade
And says, "My advice is to not let the boys in"
Now, the medicine man comes and he shuffles inside
He walks with a swagger and he says to the bride
"Stop all this weeping, swallow your pride
You will not die, it's not poison"
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
Well, John the Baptist, after torturing a thief
Looks up at his hero, the Commander-in-Chief
Saying, "Tell me, great hero, but please make it brief
Is there a hole for me to get sick in?"
The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry"
And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky
Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken"
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
The king of the Philistines, his soldiers to save
Puts jawbones on their tombstones and flatters their graves
Puts the pied pipers in prison and fattens the slaves
Then sends them out to the jungle
Gypsy Davey with a blowtorch, he burns out their camps
With his faithful slave Pedro behind him, he tramps
With a fantastic collection of stamps
To win friends and influence his uncle
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in trouble with the tombstone blues
The geometry of innocence, flesh on the bone
Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown
At Delilah, who's sitting worthlessly alone
But the tears on her cheeks are from laughter
I wish I could give Brother Bill his great thrill
I would set him in chains at the top of the hill
Then send out for some pillars and Cecil B. DeMille
He could die happily ever after
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
Where Ma Rainey and Beethoven once unwrapped their bedroll
Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole
And the National Bank at a profit sells road maps for the soul
To the old folks' home and the college
Now, I wish I could write you a melody so plain
That could hold you, dear lady, from going insane
That could ease you and cool you and cease the pain
Of your useless and pointless knowledge
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues, oh right
The city fathers, they're trying to endorse
The reincarnation of Paul Revere's horse
But the town has no need to be nervous
The ghost of Belle Starr, she hands down her wits
To Jezebel the nun, she violently knits
A bald wig for Jack the Ripper, who sits
At the head of the Chamber of Commerce
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
The hysterical bride in the penny arcade
Screaming, she moans, "I've just been made"
Then sends out for the doctor, who pulls down the shade
And says, "My advice is to not let the boys in"
Now, the medicine man comes and he shuffles inside
He walks with a swagger and he says to the bride
"Stop all this weeping, swallow your pride
You will not die, it's not poison"
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
Well, John the Baptist, after torturing a thief
Looks up at his hero, the Commander-in-Chief
Saying, "Tell me, great hero, but please make it brief
Is there a hole for me to get sick in?"
The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry"
And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky
Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken"
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
The king of the Philistines, his soldiers to save
Puts jawbones on their tombstones and flatters their graves
Puts the pied pipers in prison and fattens the slaves
Then sends them out to the jungle
Gypsy Davey with a blowtorch, he burns out their camps
With his faithful slave Pedro behind him, he tramps
With a fantastic collection of stamps
To win friends and influence his uncle
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in trouble with the tombstone blues
The geometry of innocence, flesh on the bone
Causes Galileo's math book to get thrown
At Delilah, who's sitting worthlessly alone
But the tears on her cheeks are from laughter
I wish I could give Brother Bill his great thrill
I would set him in chains at the top of the hill
Then send out for some pillars and Cecil B. DeMille
He could die happily ever after
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues
Where Ma Rainey and Beethoven once unwrapped their bedroll
Tuba players now rehearse around the flagpole
And the National Bank at a profit sells road maps for the soul
To the old folks' home and the college
Now, I wish I could write you a melody so plain
That could hold you, dear lady, from going insane
That could ease you and cool you and cease the pain
Of your useless and pointless knowledge
Mama's in the factory, she ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley, he's lookin' for food
I'm in the kitchen with the tombstone blues, oh right
Lyrics submitted by roger wilco, edited by Funky_Nickie
Tombstone Blues Lyrics as written by B. Dylan
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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The city father's first ridiculously trying to legislate the reincarnation of a horse. He then characterizes them "the chamber of commerce": Belle Starr (a famous criminal), Jezebell the nun (hypocrit), Jack the Ripper (famous killer.)
The chorus just puts it in perspective, real, everyday people are just trying to survive.
Who would John the Baptists commander and chief be, has to be Jesus Christ. After torturing a thief, putting judgement to a sinner, feels sick with guuilt. He looks to the commander in chief wondering, is this really what we should be doing? Christ is portrayed as so freaking tough that he is pumping a barbell, saying death to all those who don't have the stomach for this, and challenging the sun directly (its a cool play on words, but also conveys the insane conviction.) Anyway, the abuse of power by christianity is the theme of these verses.
The king of the philistines puts jawbones on the tombstones of his soldiers. Then heaps them with honors. Samson killed the philistines with a jawbone. Its the same as putting a rifle on the grave of a soldier (the impliment of their death!) and honoring them. The hypocrisy of probably the president in particular, but the US governemt in general, blithely sending soldiers off to die, and honoring their deaths so shallowly, at the same time, jailing pied pipers (those who would lead the youth presumably to protest the war). Fattening the slaves before sending them out tio the jungle, is the same hypocracy of honoring the soldiers deaths.. If you had so much honor for them, you'd not send them off to die!.
Gypsy davy, is the soldier in the army. He's burning down camps, ie burning villages, the fantastic collection of stamps means, enjoying travelling around the world, to win friends and influence his Uncle (Sam), that is to gain favor in the military. He's saying, the avergae Joe soldier burning down villages, isn't thinking about what he's doing, he's thrilled to be travelling the world, and not looking at the bigger picture.
Brother Bill is probably Billy Graham, or some one like him, a reactionary judgemental rightwing christian type, and he's ironically saying, that he wishes he could give him his greatest wish and let him die a martyr in cecil b. demill cinemagraphic glory.
Ma Raney was a famous Blues-Woman, he is equating her to bethoven as a true musical originator, they've now been replaced by tuba players saluting the flag, its a humorous image of crappy music that serves the mainstream purpose. And any one trying to save your soul is making a profit, preying off the old and naieve.
Theres more here, its all in that vein i think.
GROS CON ! IMMENSE CON ! Yewh son o' a B. Dirty schoolboy, thou did 21 mistakes in thy comment ! TWENNY ONE MISTAKES ! Go f*ck thyself IDIOT !
Yellow's most obvious connotation is the color.
However, it can also mean "cowardly" or "scared."
Chicken's most obvious connotation is the food.
However, it can also mean the same thing as the second connotation of yellow -- scared (You're chicken!)
So, no matter which way you look at this statement, one of the words will screw up the sentence's meaning.
For instance, the sun definitely can't be chicken, but something that's yellow can be.
What an awesome pun. This song is amazing. The lyrics are great, and Michael Bloomfield's guitar work is exceptional.
By the way, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken," may just be one of my favorite lines ever.
The Biblical references are a bit easier. Jezebel (corrupt queen of Israel) shows up in the first verse, John the Baptist in the second, but Samson (though unnamed) is the big allusion.
He killed 1000 Philistines with a donkey's jawbone (see third verse), married and was betrayed by Delilah (fourth verse), and finally killed his captors by tearing down the pillars of the great house of the Philistines (fourth verse; note the reference to Cecil B. DeMille, who directed several major Biblical epics in the 1950s).
As far as how Samson and the others fit into the larger context of the song, I have no idea. Any thoughts?
Jezebel is "knitting a bald wig for Jack the Ripper who sits at the head of the chamber of commerce. I know this seems pretty far out, but were there any bald people in control of financial/banking systems back then? I could be a current pun... or maybe it just paints out the typical image of most rich, white, upper-classed individuals. Or it could just be a way of saying the privelaged people have nothing to offer, as in hair, or have no brains, or he could be making a stark contrast between the people in control of the money and the longhaired beatniks and hippies of the day... of course, Jack the Ripper would be the heir of Jezebel. OR could it be that he is refering to how rich, corrupt people like Jezebel create murderers and theives like the real Jack the Ripper... crime out of despiration? Nah, who knows? Only Dylan could get us all talking for so long about one fucking line! What a genius!!!
Gypsy Davy is the title of a Woody Guthrie song that was based on a folk song of Scottish origin usually called "The Raggle Taggle Gypsies." It concerns a wealthy young woman who renounces her fortune to live a peripatetic life with gypsies. One of the characters with whom she associates is known as Black Jack Dave or Davy or Gypsy Davy.
Yewh poor ignorant ! Ma Rainey iz a great Blues singer an' Gypsy Davey iz the famous personnage from XVII th century english folk song an' it's also the name o' closer Donovan's companion.
Get the rite informations instead o' a-loosin' thy time wi' the stinkin' bible, yewh dummy !
Diamonds and Rust - You who are so good with words and at keeping things vague.
Just a first impression, you understand. I'm sure there are broader and deeper interpretations, but mine certainly fits the anger of the song and the death motif.