"... in a swirl of chain-lit Camels cigarette smoke, his bony, long-nailed fingers tapping the words out on my stolen canary-colored Saturday Evening Post copy paper... Marvin Gaye sang 'Can I Get A Witness'’ from the six-foot speakers of my hi-fi in the room next to where he was, with Bob getting up from the typewriter each time the record finished in order to put the needle back at the start.”
Said Al Aronowitz, quoted in
"Bob Dylan’s Draft of Lyrics, Once Tossed in Trash, Sells for $500,000/Two pages of lyrics, written in the kitchen of a pioneering rock ‘n’ roll journalist, offer glimpses into the Nobel Prize-winning musician’s writing process" (NYT).
Imagine writing one song while listening to another song — quite intentionally and through 6-foot speakers.
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To paraphrase Indiana Jones in the Temple of Doom (1984), [That] "belongs in a museum!" That scrap would be a nice addition to the R&R Hall of Fame too but for the money...
Berkeley Heights NJ was my stomping grounds from 1972-1977, ages 4-9. Did not write any enduring songs there, but did see my first Playboy magazine.
And take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind
Down the foggy ruins of time
Good times, good times.
"Imagine writing one song while listening to another song — quite intentionally and through 6-foot speakers."
Ok. Now what?
" 'He never threw anything away,' said Aronowitz’s son, who has spent years sifting through some 250 boxes containing his father’s personal collection, a time capsule of 1960s music and writing."
So for hoarders who are unwilling to get rid of those massive piles of old papers, in case they might be valuable someday -- turns out you could be right!
Imagine writing one song while listening to another song — quite intentionally
Yep. Done that.
Imagine paying half a million for a scrap of paper with lyrics typewrittne on it.
Hope its signed or something. Otherwise, who knows if the guy simply typed the lyrics himself and tried to sell it...
It's covered with Dylan's handwritten lyric changes. Also, it's on the colored copy paper that was used by the Saturday Evening Post, where the journalist worked, in the 1960s. And the journalist recounted everything that happened that day in a newspaper column published in 1973. I don't think anyone could replicate all that believably -- but if they did, more power to them.
I will never hear "play a song for me" the same way again.
Big speakers were emblematic of penis size in the 1960's.
In the early '70s, one of my techie friends had Magnaplaners, taller than a man.
We all know you idolize Dylan but, come on already. He was good but not John Prine good. Take another listen to "Sam Stone" and listen to some amazing lyrics.
For some reason, Joni Mitchell has a real bug up her backside re: Bob Dylan. Don’t know the details…
Althouse writes, "Imagine writing one song while listening to another song — quite intentionally and through 6-foot speakers."
Later. Maybe tomorrow. Meanwhile, I'm trying, with difficulty, to imagine "Mr. Tambourine Man" constituting a song.
Althouse writes, "Imagine writing one song while listening to another song — quite intentionally and through 6-foot speakers."
That either speaks to Bob Dylan's powers of concentration, or to the less than compelling power of Marvin Gaye's music. Mere noise can be filter by the mind quite effortlessly.
Unless I’m misunderstanding, Dylan didn’t write a SONG while listening to another song, only the LYRICS
"play a song for me in the jingle jangle mornin'"
I always heard it as Mr Tangerine man. Sort of a Chiquita Banana song.
Hey, Mr. Tangerine Man, I need some Vitamin C
I'm not healthy and there is no OJ where I'm going to
Hey, Mr. Tangerine Man, I need some Vitamin C
In the jingle jangle morning I'll come squeezing you
Though I know that golden citrus orb has returned into sand
Vanished from my hand
Left me blindly here to stand, but still not sleeping
My deficiency amazes me, I really need to eat
I have scurvy in my feet
And the ancient empty Kroger's only in my dreaming
How many million copies did you sell?
Witness single is 2:53. I wonder how many times he played it.
Handel Dixit Dominus in which a counter-tenor is substituted for an alto, leaving the alto by his side dejected, and the women standing silent in solidarity with her.
Thanks for posting this as I'm sure I'd have missed it otherwise, and its a real mind melter ;-)
Me & Quaestor! Guess you'd have to be a really impressionable adolescent in the 60's to carry such admiration into senior Citizen years.
"I have scurvy in my feet." That knocked me outta my chair!
Wit is pretty lost on Dylan and his troops.
^ far fkn out ,man, far fkn out.
Wow it's hard to even imagine the number of boats you must have missed in your life.
I don't know about any symbolism of big speakers, but I shared an apartment in college with a guy who had two speakers the size of refrigerators. He loved Frank Zappa, and "Billy the Mountain" sounded great on them.
"Wow it's hard to even imagine the number of boats you must have missed in your life."
I missed all the ones that sank or ran aground. I plan to miss Charon's next.
And which boat did you not miss, Paul from Minneapolis? The one bound for a lifelong pot habit?
Prine was Prine Good. Joni was Joni Good. Dylan was Dylan Good. None would have been better by being someone else.
As for "bugs up backsides..." Young creative people, often on ther own for the first time, are easily moved by new ideas and new people. And, horribly disappointed and resentful when their dreams are crushed by reality. Add drugs and sex and you've really got something (See Fleetwood Mac).
Dylan. I think, when all was understood, described and performed, was able to accept that "Shit happens." Joni (AND Joanie) may have resented the fact that Bob didn't find it necessary to wallow in it. Joni refused to be happy and fought like hell anytime it threatened her.
I am moved by each of them.
It was always my impression they gave Davy a skinless tambourine and told him to act all enthusiastic because he lacked the talent to even pretend he could play a musical instrument, unlike, say, Peter.
"Mr. Tambourine Man" was my entry point to Bob Dylan. I could see that he was an honored songwriter and felt impressed by Peter, Paul and Mary's "Blowin' in the Wind," but it was The Byrds suddenly appearing with "Mr. Tambourine Man" that made me really care. (Why do Byrds suddenly appear?) I remember standing in the record department of Two Guys staring at the cover of "Bringing It All Back Home," which was in the folk section, trying to decide whether the spend the money it would take to find out if I wanted to actually hear this guy sing his own song.
"That either speaks to Bob Dylan's powers of concentration, or to the less than compelling power of Marvin Gaye's music. Mere noise can be filter by the mind quite effortlessly"/"Unless I’m misunderstanding, Dylan didn’t write a SONG while listening to another song, only the LYRICS"
I said "Imagine writing one song while listening to another song" and that's the most rational visualization. He was listening to his own mind for the words and the verbal part of his brain overrode the words coming off the record. He was writing words at that point, not music, so having music playing got him into mental space of music where he could fit the words. That way, the record helped. It helped strongly enough that he got up repeatedly to move the needle back to the beginning of the song so he could maintain the music environment for song-lyric writing. He'd have to do the music later.
Here's the karaoke track for "Can I Get a Witness." See if you can sing along with the lyrics of "Mr. Tambourine Man."
The piano part seems absurdly easy. But he had his hands on the keyboard that was the typewriter.
Here it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Chobe1iTG1g
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