By Tony Attwood
This series of articles takes the songs that Bob Dylan discussed in his post-Nobel Prize book “The Philosophy of Modern Song” and looks at those songs individually, rather than reviewing Bob’s comments upon them. And, just in case you have not had a chance to listen to the songs in question, at least one recording of each song is included in the article.
What is interesting for me, as the author (even if it is of interest for no one else) is that in a number of cases, the songs are new to me, and so I am starting from the outside when trying to understand why Bob chose each particular song.
Obviously, I have no idea about the history behind the song as until this moment, all I knew was the song, and I found the lyrics poignant. Now, with the knowledge of the background to the song the word “poignant” is hopelessly inadequate and inappropriate.
Interestingly, Bob sees the character portrayed in the song as a menace to the world – someone who shared the ideals of the 60s but then instead bought into an aspect of the American dream. For Bob, it seems the song is, at least in part, about the failure of the 1960s idealism. Now, sixty years later, I hear it as the failure of the composer who was married to the woman who took her own life, although of course that is utterly and totally unfair. I have never had to face the horrors of a friend or lover who takes her own life. What on earth do I know?
But for me, there is the notion within the song that we all have to stand up to what is around us and cope with it for our own sake, and for the sake of those around us. I’ve never been very good at that, and I guess that influences my take on the song.
And there is here a very deeply rooted question: do we accept the world around us and just carry on, or do we try to make things better, and if the latter is that to be done on a personal level, or are we attempting to work on a wider landscape? I leave such dilemmas to you.
Musically this is probably the most complex song that Dylan has included in the Philosophy – although it is conventionally described as regular verse – verse – middle 8 – type of song. It is in fact much more varied than that, as indeed befits the lyrics and the story that is told. I hear it as a “through composed” song – a total rarity in the pop d rock genre, and that makes the message of the lyrics even more emotionally powerful than they already are as lyrics. And of course the lines
Say a prayer for the Pretender Who started out so young and strong Only to surrender
do indeed sum it all up.
This is an extraordinary piece of music, and, I would suggest not one to be listened to when one is feeling lost or under intense pressure. Nor indeed when one is doing anything else – it deserves your absolute attention. It is also many, many miles from anything that Bob would ever write, and yet here he is including it in his “Philosophy” book. It shows, if we didn’t already know, just how widespread his knowledge of the music is, and how deep his understanding of where the songs can take us in the hands of the most skilful of songwriters.
Previously in this series
- Cheaper to Keep Her
- CIA Man – the Fugs
- Detroit City
- Don’t let me be misunderstood
- Dirty Life and Times
- Detroit City
- Dirty Life and Times
- Don’t let me be misunderstood
- I got a woman
- I’ve always been crazy
- Jesse James and Po Boy
- Keep my Skillet Good and Greasy
- Money Honey
- My Generation and Desolation Row
- Nellie was a Lady
- Old Violin by Johnny Paycheck
- On the road again (save a horse)
- Pancho and Lefty
- Please don’t let me be misunderstood
- Poor Little Fool
- Pump it up
- Saturday night at the movies
- Strangers in the Night
- Take Me from This Garden of Evil
- The Pretender
- There stands the glass
- Tutti Fruiti (A wap bop a … etc)
- Waist Deep in the Big Muddy
- When
- Where or When
- Willy the Wandering Gypsy and Me
- Without a song