This song is really trash-talk aimed at God, the Bob Dylan bits are a smoke screen.
Clearly, the chorus is not about Bob Dylan.
My take:
"Painted Lady" = sex worker (Ref. Sweet Painted Lady - Elton John)
"Super Brain" = God
"Here she comes again
Same old painted lady from the brow of the super brain"
Translation:
Here she comes again
Same old whore from God
(Preaching temperance like in the 1920s)
She hates the devil's music but we'll shut her down with some zingers from Bob Dylan.
The above, I believe, are the words of a demon muse Bowie acquired after he started paying tribute to Alister Crowley ( see "Quicksand" also from Hunky Dory).
This song is really trash-talk aimed at God, the Bob Dylan bits are a smoke screen. Clearly, the chorus is not about Bob Dylan. My take: "Painted Lady" = sex worker (Ref. Sweet Painted Lady - Elton John) "Super Brain" = God
"Here she comes again Same old painted lady from the brow of the super brain" Translation: Here she comes again Same old whore from God (Preaching temperance like in the 1920s) She hates the devil's music but we'll shut her down with some zingers from Bob Dylan.
The above, I believe, are the words of a demon muse Bowie acquired after he started paying tribute to Alister Crowley ( see "Quicksand" also from Hunky Dory).