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Thursday, June 9, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
"JUDAS!"
Crowd: "Judas!"
Dylan: "I Don't Believe You!....
You're A Liar!...
Play Fuckin' LOUD!"
The date was May 17, 1966. The venue was The Free Trade Hall in Machester, England. This was Dylan's first tour with The Hawks as his backup band--and his first tour going electric. For years Bob Dylan was the 'voice of a generation' to beatniks and fans of the folk movement. Simple acoustic guitar and harmonica would suffice for his devout followers. He was their folk hero.
This tour, as you can imagine, was blasphemy to his folk fans. Throughout the tour he was heckled as a traitor, his fans felt betrayed, they felt he sold out, and many booed and expressed their dislike in various harsh ways. But many did not realize they were in attendance for the start of a revolution; it was the dawn of a new era; and they were first hand witnesses to the birth of Bob Dylan, ROCK STAR.
Dylan first debuted his electric persona at the Newport Folk Festival in the summer of 1965. It was around the release of the LP Highway 61 Revisted, which included his classic "Like A Rolling Stone," (which was recorded in one take, and is rumored that Dylan said afterwards he'd 'never make a record like that ever again'). By May of 1966, not even a year after Highway 61 Revisted's release, Dylan was prepping to "drop" his next album, Blonde On Blonde, which includes the famous and misunderstood track "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" (Everybody Must Get Stoned!... its a raucous, vulgar drinking song--not a 'drug song'), "Visions of Johanna" (a personal favorite), "Stuck Inside of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again," and "Sad Eyed Lady of the LowLands."
The rock gods must have been watching over Dylan, and thankfully this actual concert was recorded on video and released on Bob Dylan The Bootleg Series Volume IV.
It has to be one of the greatest recorded moments in all of rock-n-roll history. Words can never fully describe the mood, the tension, the sounds of the crowd, Dylan's reaction, and the band blasting away those hecklers. "How Does it Feeeeeeeeeel," as Dylan sings in the chorus, seems aimed right at those who would criticize him, pretty much a "fuck you" to his dissenters. Pure genious, Bob.
www.bobdylan.com
http://www.amazon.com/Bootleg-Vol-Dylan-Albert-Concert/dp/B00000D9TO
Dylan: "I Don't Believe You!....
You're A Liar!...
Play Fuckin' LOUD!"
The date was May 17, 1966. The venue was The Free Trade Hall in Machester, England. This was Dylan's first tour with The Hawks as his backup band--and his first tour going electric. For years Bob Dylan was the 'voice of a generation' to beatniks and fans of the folk movement. Simple acoustic guitar and harmonica would suffice for his devout followers. He was their folk hero.
This tour, as you can imagine, was blasphemy to his folk fans. Throughout the tour he was heckled as a traitor, his fans felt betrayed, they felt he sold out, and many booed and expressed their dislike in various harsh ways. But many did not realize they were in attendance for the start of a revolution; it was the dawn of a new era; and they were first hand witnesses to the birth of Bob Dylan, ROCK STAR.
Dylan first debuted his electric persona at the Newport Folk Festival in the summer of 1965. It was around the release of the LP Highway 61 Revisted, which included his classic "Like A Rolling Stone," (which was recorded in one take, and is rumored that Dylan said afterwards he'd 'never make a record like that ever again'). By May of 1966, not even a year after Highway 61 Revisted's release, Dylan was prepping to "drop" his next album, Blonde On Blonde, which includes the famous and misunderstood track "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" (Everybody Must Get Stoned!... its a raucous, vulgar drinking song--not a 'drug song'), "Visions of Johanna" (a personal favorite), "Stuck Inside of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again," and "Sad Eyed Lady of the LowLands."
The rock gods must have been watching over Dylan, and thankfully this actual concert was recorded on video and released on Bob Dylan The Bootleg Series Volume IV.
It has to be one of the greatest recorded moments in all of rock-n-roll history. Words can never fully describe the mood, the tension, the sounds of the crowd, Dylan's reaction, and the band blasting away those hecklers. "How Does it Feeeeeeeeeel," as Dylan sings in the chorus, seems aimed right at those who would criticize him, pretty much a "fuck you" to his dissenters. Pure genious, Bob.
www.bobdylan.com
http://www.amazon.com/Bootleg-Vol-Dylan-Albert-Concert/dp/B00000D9TO
Monday, April 18, 2011
Bob Dylan, Jean Paul Sartre, and their Existentialist Connections
In the study of world philosophy, and the critique of numerous philosphers throughout history, shows that one comparing and arguing against a fellow philosopher’s thoughts and opionions is a technique used to step-ladder one’s way up past the predecessor’s theory and make it ones own. Nietzsche crudely criticized Plato; Jean-Paul Sarte stood over Kierkegaard and Hurssell to improve his own theory; and so-on, so forth…
In grasping the 21st century meaning of Existential philosophy, two individuals who existed in the 20th century served as architects to the modern day existentialist movement and comprehension. Although they are born three decades apart, the lives they led, and the experiences they endured, resulted in perhaps the two most enlightening collection of masterpieces that shaped and defined existentialism. Two continents apart, a huge barren ocean of vast nothingness separated the two. They were not correspondants nor did one believe the other had much to do with their own work. But with an interval of sufficient time to look back survey the broad catalogues of both men and their importance and influence over the society they existed in brings me to an inevitable conclusion that these two characters are somehow linked, colleagues of a ‘movement’ which itself was ill-defined and subject to distortion by society at large. In fact, as more individuals experienced and pined over their works, the more removed from pure intent the repertoire became. Fighting back at critics, and being aggravated with their corrupt and nonsensical interpretations of their brilliant works fueled both men to defend, or completely ignore, their meaning and purpose against society and mass culture.
Jean-Paul Sarte and Bob Dylan are two individuals with huge intellects and an unprecedented way of observing history, society, and deep philosophical issues with such incredible insight and poetic artistic creations. They were also two men who were at nature fundamentally human. Driven by desires we all face, standing on unique foundations of past experiences to motivate their artistic publications. These two men parallel eachother in ways that are only coincidental, but today can now be seen as bizarre connections that prove they were historical counterparts to a philosophy and political view of existentialism and commentaries on political currents and cultural advancements (good and/or bad).
One can see Sartre at a Parisian café following the liberation of France after world war II, reflecting on the new freedom and liberty the people have recovered. Spending time to intellectually advance his existence at these hip, avent garde social gatherings, Sartre would muse over philosophical issues with many of his French contemporaries, like Albert Camus and Simone deBeuvior. Smoking cigarettes, drinking wine and using mind altering substances that became popular post WWII is what is typically rumored when one reads into how he spent his time at these Parisian café’s—these temples of cultural and intellectual renassaince.
One can later see Bob Dylan, cigarette in mouth, guitar case in hand, wondering the Village in New York City, frequenting bars and pubs which were safe havens to a wave of people following the beat generation of the 1950s. By the early 60s when Dylan came to NYC, American history and culture was on the verge of a major overhaul. Though not as harrowing as World War II was to the French, the prosperous post war America gave way to a inundation of new babies, new wealth, a new American society where the depression of the 30s and war of the 40s were inked in the parents of the vastly expanding generation of newly born Americans. This ‘baby boom’ would be the groundwork for social revolution, a cultural renassaince similar to what France was and would experience. Bob Dylan was of this generation, and by 1960, he trekked his way from the mid-west to NYC to follow a dream, an ambition, a thing he was just plainly good at. It was what he knew he was capable of. Its would he did. That’s all. But whatever Dylan subjectively felt or feels about the way events played out had a bigger role in society than he wanted or intended, it happened.
This work is meaningless or it is the most meaningful thing in the world. It is for all to read or it is meant for no one to see it. It is existentialism. It is “life, and life only.”1
_______________________________________________
1 Dylan, Bob. "Its Alrite Ma, I'm Only Bleeding". Bringing It All Back Home. New York: Special Rider Music, 1964.
In grasping the 21st century meaning of Existential philosophy, two individuals who existed in the 20th century served as architects to the modern day existentialist movement and comprehension. Although they are born three decades apart, the lives they led, and the experiences they endured, resulted in perhaps the two most enlightening collection of masterpieces that shaped and defined existentialism. Two continents apart, a huge barren ocean of vast nothingness separated the two. They were not correspondants nor did one believe the other had much to do with their own work. But with an interval of sufficient time to look back survey the broad catalogues of both men and their importance and influence over the society they existed in brings me to an inevitable conclusion that these two characters are somehow linked, colleagues of a ‘movement’ which itself was ill-defined and subject to distortion by society at large. In fact, as more individuals experienced and pined over their works, the more removed from pure intent the repertoire became. Fighting back at critics, and being aggravated with their corrupt and nonsensical interpretations of their brilliant works fueled both men to defend, or completely ignore, their meaning and purpose against society and mass culture.
Jean-Paul Sarte and Bob Dylan are two individuals with huge intellects and an unprecedented way of observing history, society, and deep philosophical issues with such incredible insight and poetic artistic creations. They were also two men who were at nature fundamentally human. Driven by desires we all face, standing on unique foundations of past experiences to motivate their artistic publications. These two men parallel eachother in ways that are only coincidental, but today can now be seen as bizarre connections that prove they were historical counterparts to a philosophy and political view of existentialism and commentaries on political currents and cultural advancements (good and/or bad).
One can see Sartre at a Parisian café following the liberation of France after world war II, reflecting on the new freedom and liberty the people have recovered. Spending time to intellectually advance his existence at these hip, avent garde social gatherings, Sartre would muse over philosophical issues with many of his French contemporaries, like Albert Camus and Simone deBeuvior. Smoking cigarettes, drinking wine and using mind altering substances that became popular post WWII is what is typically rumored when one reads into how he spent his time at these Parisian café’s—these temples of cultural and intellectual renassaince.
One can later see Bob Dylan, cigarette in mouth, guitar case in hand, wondering the Village in New York City, frequenting bars and pubs which were safe havens to a wave of people following the beat generation of the 1950s. By the early 60s when Dylan came to NYC, American history and culture was on the verge of a major overhaul. Though not as harrowing as World War II was to the French, the prosperous post war America gave way to a inundation of new babies, new wealth, a new American society where the depression of the 30s and war of the 40s were inked in the parents of the vastly expanding generation of newly born Americans. This ‘baby boom’ would be the groundwork for social revolution, a cultural renassaince similar to what France was and would experience. Bob Dylan was of this generation, and by 1960, he trekked his way from the mid-west to NYC to follow a dream, an ambition, a thing he was just plainly good at. It was what he knew he was capable of. Its would he did. That’s all. But whatever Dylan subjectively felt or feels about the way events played out had a bigger role in society than he wanted or intended, it happened.
This work is meaningless or it is the most meaningful thing in the world. It is for all to read or it is meant for no one to see it. It is existentialism. It is “life, and life only.”1
_______________________________________________
1 Dylan, Bob. "Its Alrite Ma, I'm Only Bleeding". Bringing It All Back Home. New York: Special Rider Music, 1964.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Song to Woody; my Blog to Bobby
"I’m out here a thousand miles from my home
Walkin’ a road other men have gone down
I’m seein’ your world of people and things
Your paupers and peasants and princes and kings.
Hey, hey, Woody Guthrie, I wrote you a song
’Bout a funny ol’ world that’s a-comin’ along
Seems sick an’ it’s hungry, it’s tired an’ it’s torn
It looks like it’s a-dyin’ an’ it’s hardly been born.
Hey, Woody Guthrie, but I know that you know
All the things that I’m a-sayin’ an’ a-many times more
I’m a-singin’ you the song, but I can’t sing enough
’Cause there’s not many men that done the things that you’ve done"
http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/song-to-woody
Walkin’ a road other men have gone down
I’m seein’ your world of people and things
Your paupers and peasants and princes and kings.
Hey, hey, Woody Guthrie, I wrote you a song
’Bout a funny ol’ world that’s a-comin’ along
Seems sick an’ it’s hungry, it’s tired an’ it’s torn
It looks like it’s a-dyin’ an’ it’s hardly been born.
Hey, Woody Guthrie, but I know that you know
All the things that I’m a-sayin’ an’ a-many times more
I’m a-singin’ you the song, but I can’t sing enough
’Cause there’s not many men that done the things that you’ve done"
http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/song-to-woody
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