More Than Just the Words

I was in a conversation on music the other evening. It centered around the thought that some have said that Bob Dylan is the greatest musician from Minnesota. (Present company excluded, of course.) Prince was either tied with Dylan or a close second. Admittedly there are not a lot of famous musicians of any genre who hail from Minnesota and to compare Dylan and Prince to others is also unfair.  But that's not the point of this post.

A couple of the people I was talking with (musicians themselves) were appalled that Dylan and Prince would be considered the greatest Minnesota musicians. Prince's revolution in music and multi-instrument talent was good, but, meh, they didn't like him. No problem with that. Differences in taste are understandable.

But neither of them cared for Bob Dylan, either. To a dyed-in-the-wool Dylan fan that is nothing short of heresy. They were willing to give him being a good songwriter/poet, but musician? Double "meh!" "You can't understand what he's even singing."

As I have said here before about Dylan, it isn't just the words themselves, it is also about how he sings and phrases the words. Even odd and make-no-sense lyrics are part of the music. Dylan uses words and his voice as instruments in and of themselves. The poetry can flow with the music and vice versa, even when you wonder about what it is about being out on "Highway 61." I have to admit that he is not as good at that today as he was in earlier decades, but you can still hear the power of the vocal and verbal instrument in his newer stuff.

Today I was listening to my iPod and "Highway 61 Revisited" came on the shuffle. As I paid attention to it with the discussion the other day on my mind, I noticed even more about the use of the vocals. I realized that it reminded me of a great deal of what Louis Armstrong did with the trumpet and jazz music 100 years ago. Armstrong added extra notes, sliding into or out of the melody, playing with the rhythm in ways that no one else had ever done. In that he invented a whole new way of playing music. Jazz and popular music was forever changed.

Bob Dylan is to vocal folk and rock music what Armstrong was to jazz. He was doing things with his voice that no one was doing. (The Beatles can't be ignored in this process, but the cross-fertilization of Dylan and the Beatles is well documented.) Part of it was admittedly because Dylan was not a great singer like the other pop performers or folk artists. He slid around the notes, he mumbled some words, he added odd harmonies. Often the music itself was relatively simple- it was the combination of simple styles that made the complexity adding to the words. Sometimes it was by mistake, like Al Kooper's iconic organ on "Like a Rolling Stone." It always worked. (Listen to the chorus of that song as well to see Dylan's use of melody and harmony.)

So, for my money, Dylan ranks right up there with Satchmo in the pantheon of music revolutionaries. (Miles Davis, the Beatles and Rolling Stones, Johnny Cash, John Coltrane are in that group, too.) Here are two examples. First, the greatest first step into jazz ever made with Armstrong's "West End Blues." As radical as Dylan with an electric guitar. The opening cadenza? Unique! The grace notes and style- music never before created.

Then one of Dylan's early songs. It has all the form of folk music. It's just Dylan and his guitar and harmonica. Hear the vocals; hear the words. See how they all fit together. "Don't Think Twice It's All Right."

Dylan- The Immortal Three

I was originally planning on posting this back on December 10 when Dylan was scheduled to (not) pick up his Nobel Prize. Things got in the way and I pushed it off until now. No reason that I chose today other than it seemed like a good day- the day before Epiphany.

2016 Nobel Prize in Literature

The Nobel Prize in Literature for 2016 is awarded to Bob Dylan "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition".

I had posted my favorites among Dylan's many songs. I skipped these three. I see these as his immortal songs. They defined the myth and music of Bob Dylan. Everything he has done since then is growth from these three.

• Blowing In the Wind-1963
  Protest and hope in the first two songs. Firmly in the folk tradition, but hints of new worlds of music, new standards of sound, hints of becoming Dylan.
  
  
  
  
• The Times They are A-Changin'-1964
  A call to one generation from a so-called voice of the new. But he wasn't that. He was a voice of change, challenging all generations to get out of the way if you can't understand. Perhaps there is a message here for our day. This is a video from a performance at the White House remembering the music of the Civil Rights Movement. This is more than that.
  
  
  
  
• Like A Rolling Stone-1965
  He was criticized when he did this song, electric, at the Newport Folk Festival. He opened new doors for music and some feel it is the greatest rock and roll song ever written. The song grows with Dylan. Poetry in motion.
  
  

The argument on whether Dylan deserved a Nobel Prize will continue. There will most likely be no final answer. That's okay. Dylan is who he is. For that those of us who grew up with his music over the last 55 years can be grateful!

Let's finish this off with the remarkable and emotional performance of Patti Smith at the Nobel Prize ceremony. She sang what may be Dylan's most powerful protest song, and fine poetry- A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall.

Dylan- My First Ten

Well, Dylan has sure been keeping everyone in suspense. As of this writing no one has heard from him and he isn't answering the phone. Is he just being "Dylan" or what? (Yes, there are those who have refused the prize, or have been forced to  by their country- the Soviet Union.) I hope that isn't what Dylan is up to.

Anyway, I said I was going to post about some of my favorites. Instead of ordering them, an impossible task, I am going to list mine chronologically. (I will do the three iconic, forever great songs in a separate post.)

So here are the ten in that first decade of greatness.
(All lyrics, Bob Dylan)

Protest- As a folk-singer in the early 60s, Dylan would naturally have been seen as a protest singer. That's what the Greenwich Village scene would have been all about. But Dylan was not one to do it as blatantly- or unambiguously as some. You were often uncertain what he was getting at, thanks to incredibly well-written verses. These three from that era spoke volumes, even when he would deny or be non-committal about meanings.
1. A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall (1963)

I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow
I met one man who was wounded in love
I met another man who was wounded with hatred
And it’s a hard, it’s a hard, it’s a hard, it’s a hard
It’s a hard rain’s a-gonna fall

2. Masters of War (1963)

Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good
Will it buy you forgiveness
Do you think that it could
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul

3. Chimes of Freedom (1964)

Starry-eyed an’ laughing as I recall when we were caught
Trapped by no track of hours for they hanged suspended
As we listened one last time an’ we watched with one last look
Spellbound an’ swallowed ’til the tolling ended
Tolling for the aching ones whose wounds cannot be nursed
For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones an’ worse
An’ for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe
An’ we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing

Musical Revolution- Yes, everyone points to the Newport Folk Festival and Dylan "going electric." But it sure didn't change his writing style any. In fact, the electric sound only enhanced the words.These five are truly my top favorites among all Dylan's songs. They are fun, they have depth, they can be inscrutable. But they are Dylan at his poetic best. He took the poetry and made it rock- and sing- and go into all kinds of unusual places. The protest songs had poetry and power. These are just immortal.
4. Highway 61 Revisited (1965)

Now the rovin’ gambler he was very bored
He was tryin’ to create a next world war
He found a promoter who nearly fell off the floor
He said I never engaged in this kind of thing before
But yes I think it can be very easily done
We’ll just put some bleachers out in the sun
And have it on Highway 61 

5. Subterranean Homesick Blues (1965)

Maggie comes fleet foot
Face full of black soot
Talkin’ that the heat put
Plants in the bed but
The phone’s tapped anyway
Maggie says that many say
They must bust in early May
Orders from the D.A.
Look out kid
Don’t matter what you did
Walk on your tiptoes
Don’t try “No-Doz”
Better stay away from those
That carry around a fire hose
Keep a clean nose
Watch the plain clothes
You don’t need a weatherman
To know which way the wind blows

6. Mr. Tambourine Man (1965)

Though you might hear laughin’, spinnin’, swingin’ madly across the sun
It’s not aimed at anyone, it’s just escapin’ on the run
And but for the sky there are no fences facin’
And if you hear vague traces of skippin’ reels of rhyme
To your tambourine in time, it’s just a ragged clown behind
I wouldn’t pay it any mind
It’s just a shadow you’re seein’ that he’s chasing

Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me
I’m not sleepy and there is no place I’m going to
Hey! Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me
In the jingle jangle morning I’ll come followin’ you

7. Maggie’s Farm (1965)

I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
No, I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
Well, I try my best
To be just like I am
But everybody wants you
To be just like them
They sing while you slave and I just get bored
I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more

 8. Rainy Day Women #12 and 35 (1966)

They’ll stone ya when you’re at the breakfast table
They’ll stone ya when you are young and able
They’ll stone ya when you’re tryin’ to make a buck
They’ll stone ya and then they’ll say, “good luck”
Tell ya what, I would not feel so all alone
Everybody must get stoned

New Depth- Here was a whole new Dylan- again. Motorcyle accident, Nashville singing, reacing middle age. The poetry was no less profound, and he was still speaking for himself. No, he was not the poet for a generation. He spoke from his life and his views. The fact that we could go with him was a bonus. These two of that first decade spoke to a longing we didn't even know we had.
9. All Along the Watchtower (1968)

“There must be some way out of here,” said the joker to the thief
“There’s too much confusion, I can’t get no relief
Businessmen, they drink my wine, plowmen dig my earth
None of them along the line know what any of it is worth”

“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 you and I, we’ve been through that, and this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now, the hour is getting late”

All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants, too

10. I Shall Be Released (1971)

They say ev’ry man needs protection
They say ev’ry man must fall
Yet I swear I see my reflection
Some place so high above this wall
I see my light come shining
From the west unto the east
Any day now, any day now
I shall be released

Let's end with an iconic music video. A classic of a fun song. Yes, it is the song that gave the "Weathermen" radical group its name. It is fun, it makes you smile.

It's Dylan.

An Excellent New Album

I came across the new Avett Brothers album the other day. It is titled True Sadness. Here's the trailer:



They are a folk-rock-Americana band from North Carolina who capture spirituality and life in remarkable ways. As I was listening to the album, the title track hit me. These two verses say a great deal.

When I was a child, I depended on a bottle
Full-grown I've been known to lean on a bottle
But you're the real deal in a world of imposters
And I've seen the program make men out of monsters


I cannot go on with this evil inside me
I step out my front door and I feel it surround me
Just know the kingdom of God is within you
Even though the battle is bound to continue

Here's a live version of the song.



Here's a link to a Rolling Stone interview that talks a little about the new album.

The Bells Ring For All

I heard Sarah Jarosz sing this on A Prairie Home Companion last week and was struck by its power and message. It is a Bob Dylan song from the late 1980s. Some consider it part of his "Christian" period. Yet the message is broader than that and its depth reminds us to pay attention to what - and who - is around us. Dylan has the amazing ability to make us think. Listen to this at least once, letting the words carry you into a deeper connection with your Higher Power.



Ring them bells, ye heathen
From the city that dreams
Ring them bells from the sanctuaries
’Cross the valleys and streams
For they’re deep and they’re wide
And the world’s on its side
And time is running backwards
And so is the bride

Ring them bells St. Peter
Where the four winds blow
Ring them bells with an iron hand
So the people will know
Oh it’s rush hour now
On the wheel and the plow
And the sun is going down
Upon the sacred cow

Ring them bells Sweet Martha
For the poor man’s son
Ring them bells so the world will know
That God is one
Oh the shepherd is asleep
Where the willows weep
And the mountains are filled
With lost sheep

Ring them bells for the blind and the deaf
Ring them bells for all of us who are left
Ring them bells for the chosen few
Who will judge the many when the game is through
Ring them bells, for the time that flies
For the child that cries
When innocence dies

Ring them bells St. Catherine
From the top of the room
Ring them from the fortress
For the lilies that bloom
Oh the lines are long
And the fighting is strong
And they’re breaking down the distance
Between right and wrong
Copyright © 1989 by Special Rider Music

When Will We Ever Learn?

With the latest school shooting in Oregon, this one line from Pete Seeger's antiwar song kept coming to mind:

When will they ever learn?

But often Pete and others would change that last line the last time through to

When will WE ever learn?

In memory of the latest names added to the tragic list, here is Joan Baez's version. When will we work to end this war that is happening in our own nation with the victims being innocent people like any of us?

Monday Music

# 6,000- In Memory of Another Pilgrim

Normally I would simply note the passing of post # 6,000 in the history of this blog which started over 12 years ago. But in the last couple weeks a fellow-pilgrim, friend, and very special person came to the end of his pilgrimage.

So I dedicate this post, number 6,000 of pilgrim wanderings for my friend, Ron, a true and dedicated pilgrim throughout his life.

We met about 45 years ago in the midst of our shared objections to the Vietnam War and our desire to help those who wanted peace. We spent the next years in our common interests. He and his wife gave me a place to learn a bit about what it means to mature and become yourself. He was almost exactly 10 years older than I was and became a role model and older brother.

We shared a common desire to grow and wrestle with our Christianity and what it means in these days to be a Christ-follower. We knew that this included standing up for what is right, caring for those who were the least and the lost, asking hard questions of ourselves, the government, and the churches. We learned and challenged each other to keep the faith and trust in the God who is the Creator.

His living room sanctuary was where I came to know another pilgrim who was soon to become my wife. We all worked together for peace as being something more than anti-war. It was a way of being and accepting, even in our human imperfections, the ways of God as the way of life.

He is also the impetus that got me into the Moravian Church and on the path that I have followed for these past 40+ years. God puts the right people in the right place at the right time. I was a young college graduate who had no idea what it meant to find his way in the world. He was present at the creation of what I have become and with his wife and mine helped me discover me.

It seems like a cliche to say that he was one of those people who is the "salt of the earth." Yet, in all the ways Jesus meant that phrase, that describes Ron. He was a "blue-collar" person who was able to relate to people on a deep and intuitive level, regardless of their place or standing. This included the gay co-worker (in 1971!), the kids at the local youth center that I directed for the city, returning Vietnam veterans- or this seminarian trying to be real.

It is appropriate that he died on July 4th. He was patriotic, again in the very best sense of the word. He wanted this country to live up to its ideals in the midst of a time when those principles were being torn to shreds, we felt, by the government itself. It will also be easy for me to remember his "Saint's Day", the day his pilgrimage found its answers and the reunion with his wife and others who have gone before us.

Rest in Peace, my dear friend. Thanks!!

An old American folk song made famous by Dave van Ronk, Bob Dylan and others speaks of my feelings these past months since I learned of his terminal situation. While it isn't about Ron, it is about all those friends who walk into our lives and will not leave us unchanged.

A Leap of Faith

I love listening to Folk Alley, the Internet music service from Kent State University. Hardly a day goes by when some song grabs my attention. The one that got me the other day was a Guy Clark song sung by acoustic blues-master Eric Bibb. The chorus goes thus:

He's one of those who knows that life
Is just a leap of faith
Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape

What a great line

life is just a leap of faith!

Truth can be made so real in such a short phrase. We may think life is supposed to be so many things- fair, just, fun, always good, centered on "me". Ah, but we learn that none of these is true. Life is less about fairness than it is about living. It is living with a "faith" that believes that something matters.

Concerns like fairness and justice are what we do with life. They are the ways we treat others. It is the building of community, rooted in our common life.

Today's Gospel lesson was Jesus telling his followers (and us) that we are branches on a bigger- greater- vine. He is that greater vine for those of us who are Jesus' followers. He is the way to be fed and nourished. But we are in it together. No single branch survives if it is disconnected.

The "leap of faith" we are called to take is simply to live in our awareness of our connections

• to each other
• to the communities we are part of
• to the Higher Power that created and feeds us
• to the power within each of us that allows us to follow.

You can define these in any way that is appropriate for your theology and spiritual outlook. The greater reality is that none of us is in this alone- and we don't need to be.

So jump into life- take that leap of faith.

Which is what the rest of the chorus tells us:

Spread your arms and hold your breath
Always trust your cape

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I debated on using Guy Clark's or Eric Bibb's version of the song. Both are wonderful. I stuck with the one that I heard that inspired this post.

A Good Way To Look At It

I really do like Folk Alley. It introduces me to so much good music that I would never have found otherwise. Here's the lyrics to one I heard last week that made me sit up and take notice. A video of it follows. Chuck Brodsky's version of Nick Annis' In the Beginning.

In The Beginning (by Nick Annis)

In the beginning God created the Heavens and the earth,
and the earth was without form, and void, and darkness was upon
the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters."
It's an oral history, passed down, word of mouth, from father to son.
From Adam to Seth, from Seth to Enos, from Enos to Caanan, for 40 generations
a growing, changing story, passed down, word of mouth, father to son.

Till Moses finally gets it down on lambskin.
But lambskins wear out, need to be copied.

So you have a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy
of an oral history passed down through 40 generations.

From Hebrew it's translated into Arabic. From Arabic into Greek.
From Greek into Latin. From Latin into Russian, from Russian into German,
from German into an Olde form of English that you could not read.
Through 400 years of evolution of the English language to the book we have today.
Which is:
A translation of a translation of a translation of a translation of a translation
of a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy
of an oral history passed down through 40 generations.

You can't put a grocery list through that many copies, translations and re-tellings
and not get some big changes in the dinner menu when the kids make it back from Superfresh.

And yet people are killing each other over this written word.

Here's a tip.

If you're killing someone in the name of God...
you might be missing the message.

A Taste of the Original

"Cotton Fields" is a song written by blues musician Huddie Ledbetter, better known as Lead Belly, who made the first recording of the song in 1940.

Without further wasting of time, enjoy the real thing.

A 50-Year Memory: An Iconic Day

Fifty-years ago today, Dylan recorded one of his fun and classic songs- Subterranean Homesick Blues." It was became famous for two reasons. First, the last line of the second verse was the founding name of a radical group:

You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows.

And second, the video of the song from a documentary became a template for future videos. Here, first, is the video with a talkover by director D. J. Pennebaker and Bob Neuwirth.

But we can't let it just go without hearing the whole thing without extraneous commentary.

Thanks, Bob, for this amazing song.

Bob Dylan - Subterranean Homesick Blues - HQ
from Noisefield on Vimeo.

A Video for the Month: Go in Peace

Sam Baker.

A wonderful way to start the year.

Happy January 1!!

When the Lyrics Catch You

One of the top rated Americana music albums of the year (Swimmin' Time) is from a husband and wife duo, Shovels and Rope. Listening to Folk Alley the other evening I got caught by the opening chorus lyrics:

when the devil is all around
got you crawling on the ground
on your hands and your knees
with an apple in your mouth
you will know how far you'll go
to make your peace with God

The whole song is outstanding, but the set-up with this chorus is a real grabber! The image of

• The devil all around
• Crawling on hands and knees
• With an apple in your mouth

Amazing lyricism.

BTW, just want to give a big end of the year shout-out to Folk Alley. I have the link to them on my sidebar there. They provide a truly interesting and eclectic mix of the very broad category of acoustic music. If you haven't listened- or joined as a member- give it a thought!

Great music programming!

Preparing For The Night (3): Joyful Noise

Sandhadi (Joyful Noise) Christmas Folk song

Different and joyous.

Preparing for the Night (1): Waiting

The Reliques: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Music video of a folk version with all the feel of the song in great ways.

The first of five days of video to prepare for the night of birth.

Roots Music Rocks in 2014

To me one of the most exciting and innovative musical genres today is Roots Music. It can be "Americana", blues, bluegrass, rockabilly or country, some exciting things are happening there.

The wonderful people at Bluegrass Situation have come out with their list of the Best of 2014. If you think you know what "roots music" is, give their list a try. Some good, old boot-stompin' music, some amazing storytellers, some old-timers and some newcomers. It is nothing short of amazing.

Here's one of them from an amazing young musician named Parker Millsap who, as Bluegrass Situation says deserves to be on the list for using the name Tucumcari in the lyrics.



Then there's 22-year old Jonah Tolchin bring Delta Blues into the 21st Century with power!



And one more, this one a plaintively beautiful and haunting song by Water Liars.



Amazing music- and this is only a small sample.

A Remarkable Song's Ascent

It's about Biblical images of a shepherd King named David; it's a story of Samson and Delilah; it's a reflection on making love; it's a universal awareness that in the end there's nothing but standing before a Creator and singing.

Hallelujah.

Leonard Cohen wrote the original verses; John Cale sang the first variation; Jeff Buckley turned it into an anthem; Rufus Wainwright made it more playful; k d lang performed it at the Olympics and helped make it international.

It has been used for weddings, Yom Kippur services, movie and TV soundtracks and 9/11 reactions.

Hallelujah.

I just finished reading the book, The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, and the Unlikely Ascent of "Hallelujah" by Alan Light. It tells the now 30-year journey of what has become an iconic song. Light traces the composer, Cohen, through his career and how this song, barely noticed for the first ten years of its existence slowly rose to the stature it has today.

It is a remarkable song that has a life of its own thanks in part to Cohen's own openness to change. The melody is simple, haunting and unforgettable. The first time one hears it, you think you've heard it before. It builds on its own familiarity and pulls you in. Light examines the song, the various verses added to it, it's use in the movie Shrek, American Idol and as the instrument for a resurgence and appreciation for Leonard Cohen, who as Light points out does the simple and radical thing of rhyming "what's it to you?" or "come to fool you" with "Hallelujah."

In the end for many, it may be the closing stanza of Cohen's original lyrics that speak of an attitude and a spirituality that we all seek to live. It is a holy or broken

Hallelujah!

I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah

Here is the now wise elder Cohen singing at the Montreal Jazz Festival in 2008.

Note: Go to You Tube and hear the other three remarkable interpretations by
John Cale
Jeff Buckley (life at Sin-e) and
Rufus Wainwright.
Each is unique and will bring out different emotions.

To End All Wars?

The war that was so awful it was supposed to end war started 100 years ago this week. It was July 28, 1914, that war was declared, one month following the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand while visiting the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo. It was a horrible war. It was known as The Great War or The World War until 1939 when another war surpassed it as the Second World War.

Watching the news the past months reminds us that if World War I was supposed to make wars unthinkable, it failed. So did modern communications, mutually assured destruction or worse and worse horrors. Today it's the Ukraine or Gaza or Syria. It has been other places. It will be still other places.

War.

Again we are reminded that it isn't the soldiers who are the only ones killed. A civilian airliner is shot down in a show of bravado gone wrong. Children and civilians in close quarters the main losses in Gaza. On and on and on it goes.

As Pete Seeger sang in Where Have All the Flowers Gone:

When will we ever learn?

Or in the timelss words of Bob Dylan:

Yes, how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky ?
Yes, how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry ?
Yes, how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

It's Been A While

I haven't posted a video from the fine folks at Playing for Change in a little while. This one is neat. Here's what they have posted about it:

We started the song with Carlos Varela in Havana and it features over 75 Cuban musicians around the world, from Havana and Santiago to Miami, Barcelona and Tokyo. We recorded and produced this track with Jackson Browne, who explains that “traveling with Playing For Change across Cuba was one of the most rewarding and inspiring musical experiences of my life.”

Music brings us so much light and helps us find our way back home. In honor of the late great Manuel Galbán, ”un hombre sincero de donde crece la palma”, with music you live in our hearts forever.