In an interview for Spin in December 1985, Bob Dylan said the following about the act of songwriting: “The best songs are the songs you write that you don’t know anything about. They’re an escape. I don’t do too much of that because maybe it’s more important to deal with what’s happening rather than toContinue reading “Where Are You Tonight? (Journey Through Dark Heat)”
Tag Archives: Greil Marcus
See You Later, Allen Ginsberg
“See you later, alligator” is an expression of which we don’t know the original author or point of origin, similar to a street joke. According to research, the first known recorded usage of the phrase was “published in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin (Honolulu, Hawaii) of 1st May 1952” in a column titled “Teenagers’ Slang Expressions AreContinue reading “See You Later, Allen Ginsberg”
Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)
In the days after my wife and I told our friends that we were expecting our first child, a friend handed me an article torn out of GQ or Esquire with examples of music that parents can play for their kids that won’t turn the parents’ stomach. Included on the list was Bob Dylan’s TheContinue reading “Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)”
Lo and Behold!
The origins of the expression “lo and behold” came from “the shortening of the word ‘look,’ commonly seen in Middle English texts…The literal meaning of the expression is ‘look and see’, and it is always used as if in the imperative.” Werner Herzog titled his exploration into the world of the Internet and artificial intelligence,Continue reading “Lo and Behold!”
King of France
Scheherazade is the major female character and the storyteller in the framing narrative for One Thousand and One Nights also known as Arabian Nights, the essential collection of stories from the Middle East. As the framing story goes, the ruler of the land finds out that his wife has been unfaithful and vows revenge byContinue reading “King of France”
Kickin’ My Dog Around
In 1967 after a grueling world tour fueled by revenge, disgust, and who knows what kind of substances, Bob Dylan retreated from public life to family life in Woodstock, NY. Living out his fantasy of “a nine-to-five existence, a house on a tree-lined block with a white picket fence, pink roses in the backyard” asContinue reading “Kickin’ My Dog Around”
I’m Not There
At some point in their career, every film critic has to contend with Blade Runner. Similarly, every aspiring Dylanologist will need to have a take on Bob Dylan’s “I’m Not There.” Anyone can hear “Like A Rolling Stone” or “Blowin’ in the Wind” and have an opinion. But “I’m Not There” is different because, beforeContinue reading “I’m Not There”
Subterranean Homesick Blues
My paternal great-grandfather was a legend for my Dad and my Uncle Scott and then later for me and my sisters. His name was Junebug Middelton. He ran away from home to join the circus and became a whistler. He played minor league baseball and met famed Yankees manager Casey Stengel in those days. OneContinue reading “Subterranean Homesick Blues”
Crash on the Levee (Down in the Flood)
Find me on a certain day and The Basement Tapes is my favorite Bob Dylan album. It has been written about extensively, most notably by Greil Marcus in The Old Weird America: The World of Bob Dylan’s Basement Tapes and has been the subject of two different releases by Dylan: the first official release inContinue reading “Crash on the Levee (Down in the Flood)”
Recliner Notes 