Too much of nothing
Can make a man ill at ease
One man's temper rises
Where another man's temper might freeze
Now it's a day of confession
And we cannot mock a soul
Oh, when there's too much of nothing
No one has control

Say hello to Valerie
Say hello to Vivian
Give her all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

When there's too much of nothing
Can cause a man to weep
He can walk the streets and like most and boast
Of what he'd like to keep
But it's all been done before
It's all been written in the book
And when there's too much of nothing
Nobody should look

Say hello to Valerie
Say hello to Vivian
Give her all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

Now too much of nothing
Can make a man a liar
It can cause some men to sleep on nails
It can cause others to eat fire
Everybody's doin' somethin'
I've heard it in a dream
But when there's too much of nothing
It just makes a fella mean

Say hello to Valerie
Say hello to Vivian
Give her all my salary
On the waters of oblivion

Edit Lyrics

Lyrics submitted by Philadelphia Eagles, edited by Mellow_Harsher

Too Much of Nothing Lyrics as written by Bob Dylan

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Too Much of Nothing song meanings

Add Your Thoughts

6 Comments

0
General Comment
I always thought the song's name said it all. Too much of nothing = meaninglessness and despair. And, "idle hands make the devil's playground." Healthy relationships and meaningful work is always helpful. The first stanza is incredibly relevant today:

Too much of nothing Can make a man ill at ease One man's temper rises Where another man's temper might freeze Now it's a day of confession And we cannot mock a soul Oh, when there's too much of nothing No one has control

The pandemic has made everyone more isolated, and agency (a healthy sense of control), in many big ways, is out of reach. This is also a time of confession, because of tech. exposing the dark side of our institutions. The mocking the soul part reminds me a line from "All Along the Watchtower:"

No reason to get excited The thief, he kindly spoke There are many here among us Who feel that life is but a joke But, uh, but you and I, we've been through that And this is not our fate So let us stop talkin' falsely now The hour's getting late...

And the pain of Nihilism (from, "It's allright Ma...") :

"Although the masters make the rules For the wise men and the fools I got nothing, Ma, to live up to..."

Apparently the women named were the wives of T.S. Eliot, who drained him of his "salary." This doesn't seem like a reach because Dylan mentions him in "Desolation Row." :

"Praise be to Nero's Neptune, the Titanic sails at dawn Everybody's shouting, "Which side are you on?!" And Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot fighting in the captain's tower While calypso singers laugh at them and fishermen hold flowers Between the windows of the sea where lovely mermaids flow And nobody has to think too much about Desolation Row..."

"The waters of Oblivion" reminds me of Eliot's "The Wasteland" "

I think we are in rats’ alley Where the dead men lost their bones.

“What is that noise?” The wind under the door. “What is that noise now? What is the wind doing?” Nothing again nothing. “Do “You know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember “Nothing?”
```
   I remember
```
Those are pearls that were his eyes. “Are you alive, or not? Is there nothing in your head?”

Like many songs, this one uses the boiler plates of Existentialism: Freedom (everybody's doin' something...but I have the choice to also do something. Meaninglessness, Isolation and Death.
I always thought the song's name said it all. Too much of nothing = meaninglessness and despair. And, "idle hands make the devil's playground." Healthy relationships and meaningful work is always helpful. The first stanza is incredibly relevant today: Too much of nothing Can make a man ill at ease One man's temper rises Where another man's temper might freeze Now it's a day of confession And we cannot mock a soul Oh, when there's too much of nothing No one has control The pandemic has made everyone more isolated, and agency (a healthy sense of control), in many big ways, is out of reach. This is also a time of confession, because of tech. exposing the dark side of our institutions. The mocking the soul part reminds me a line from "All Along the Watchtower:" No reason to get excited The thief, he kindly spoke There are many here among us Who feel that life is but a joke But, uh, but you and I, we've been through that And this is not our fate So let us stop talkin' falsely now The hour's getting late... And the pain of Nihilism (from, "It's allright Ma...") : "Although the masters make the rules For the wise men and the fools I got nothing, Ma, to live up to..." Apparently the women named were the wives of T.S. Eliot, who drained him of his "salary." This doesn't seem like a reach because Dylan mentions him in "Desolation Row." : "Praise be to Nero's Neptune, the Titanic sails at dawn Everybody's shouting, "Which side are you on?!" And Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot fighting in the captain's tower While calypso singers laugh at them and fishermen hold flowers Between the windows of the sea where lovely mermaids flow And nobody has to think too much about Desolation Row..." "The waters of Oblivion" reminds me of Eliot's "The Wasteland" " I think we are in rats’ alley Where the dead men lost their bones. “What is that noise?” The wind under the door. “What is that noise now? What is the wind doing?” Nothing again nothing. “Do “You know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember “Nothing?” I remember Those are pearls that were his eyes. “Are you alive, or not? Is there nothing in your head?” Like many songs, this one uses the boiler plates of Existentialism: Freedom (everybody's doin' something...but I have the choice to also do something. Meaninglessness, Isolation and Death.

Reason:

solaris2013on August 14, 2021 Link
- No Replies Log in to reply
There was an error.

@solaris2013