Between the complex metaphysics of When The Deal Goes Down and the luxurious poetry of Workingman’s Blues No. 2, we get a little light relief as Dylan communes once again with the ‘ghosts’ who loom behind the surfaces of Modern Times. Someday Baby is another ‘my baby done left me’ blues. Like Rollin’ and Tumblin’...
Author: chrisgregory (Chris Gregory)
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POEM: John Wayne In Heaven
Ol’ Glory is a-flyin’ now In that breeze that never ceases, My heart it fairly bursts with pride As the heavenly wind increases The stars and stripes are way up high, Over Macdonalds and The 7-11, Things have really gotten goin’ Since we invaded heaven Long ago it all got written down In...
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BOB DYLAN: When The Deal Goes Down
…We all wear the same thorny crown… Perhaps the most striking aspect of Modern Times is its lyrical and emotional clarity. The lyrics of 2001’s Love And Theft, like so many Dylan albums before it, featured often wildly allusive patterns of reference. But here the songs are carefully constructed to convey specific emotions and themes...
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POEM: Even The Doctors Cried
Even the doctors cried, they said. Even the doctors, their emotions Cauterised by having to deal With endless Lines of hopeless cases, Even the doctors, With their dead eyes And blank expressions, Kalashnikovs slung over their shoulders, To stop the gangs of hungry looters Coming to the hospital to steal The food from the...
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BOB DYLAN: Rollin’ And Tumblin’
..I’ve been conjuring up all these long dead souls from their crumblin’ tombs… And so the thoughts revolve around the poet’s mind. He’s been up all night. Sleep has been impossible. He sits on the edge of the bed, watching the young woman sleeping, her luxuriant dark hair tossed across her face. He...
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POEM: Great White Whale
The founding fathers of America Are now preparing to set sail, Lining up behind Captain Ahab, On a quest for the Great White Whale… The Fathers dream of a pristine world, Cleansed of sin by fiery breath… All those possessed by impure thoughts Allowed a swift and precise death. But those who oppose the...
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BOB DYLAN: Spirit On The Water
After the apocalyptic thunder subsides, a soft, jazzy shuffle takes us back to the beginning of all things: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters. God said,...
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BOB DYLAN: Thunder On The Mountain
…Everybody got to wonder What’s the matter with this cruel world today… MODERN TIMES begins, as it ends, in an apocalyptic landscape. The earth itself is in tumult. Volcanoes, hurricanes and whirlwinds scour the land. The power is cut. It’s like Hell’s Kitchen. Everything is broken. Hot stuff everywhere. For the singer, the writing is...