5.9.10

My Addiction to Bob Dylan

The first Bob Dylan song I heard was 'Blowing in the Wind' back when I was still in school. My dad brought home a music CD one day and told me, "These are the evergreen classics". I still remember there were 8 tracks in that compilation including 'Imagine', 'Let it Be' and 'Hey Jude' by The Beatles.I listened to 'Blowing in the Wind' again and again and again. I replayed it over and over again trying to figure out the lyrics. I always had this idea that Bob Dylan was a black guy from the 40's till that point. Once I got the lyrics in my head I told myself "this guy is a poet". I started collecting Bob Dylan songs from that day onward. I went to my friends, my cousins and collected from them every single song of Bob Dylan they had in their music collection. Three years later I was addicted to Dylan. I listened to him more than my dad did. I analyzed his lyrics and each time I did I found a new story behind every song. The songs which really pulled me to Dylan was the 'Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest'. 'Desolation Row' was a clincher too. I was awestruck when I first heard the lines:

Between the windows of the sea
Where lovely mermaids flow
And nobody has to think too much
About Desolation Row.

I still quote this now and then. I don't know why. It just hits me every time and puts a philosophical smile on my face. 




0 comments: