Ballad In Plain D

I've been listening to Another Side Of Bob Dylan this weekend. I managed to fall in love with one song.

Ballad In Plain D - Bob Dylan


The song deals with hi recent break-up with Suze Rotolo and her sister. I think the song is fantastic, even though Dylan once said, refering to the song: "I look back at that particular one and say...maybe I could have left that alone."

Lyrics:

I once loved a girl, her skin it was bronze.
With the innocence of a lamb, she was gentle like a fawn.
I courted her proudly but now she is gone,
Gone as the season shes taken.

Through young summers breeze, I stole her away
From her mother and sister, though close did they stay.
Each one of them suffering from the failures of their day,
With strings of guilt they tried hard to guide us.

Of the two sisters, I loved the young.
With sensitive instincts, she was the creative one.
The constant scapegoat, she was easily undone
By the jealousy of others around her.

For her parasite sister, I had no respect,
Bound by her boredom, her pride to protect.
Countless visions of the other shed reflect
As a crutch for her scenes and her society.

Myself, for what I did, I cannot be excused,
The changes I was going through cant even be used,
For the lies that I told her in hopes not to lose
The could-be dream-lover of my lifetime.

With unknown consciousness, I possessed in my grip
A magnificent mantelpiece, though its heart being chipped,
Noticing not that Id already slipped
To a sin of loves false security.

From silhouetted anger to manufactured peace,
Answers of emptiness, voice vacancies,
Till the tombstones of damage read me no questions but, please,
Whats wrong and whats exactly the matter?

And so it did happen like it could have been foreseen,
The timeless explosion of fantasys dream.
At the peak of the night, the king and the queen
Tumbled all down into pieces.

The tragic figure! her sister did shout,
Leave her alone, God damn you, get out!
And I in my armor, turning about
And nailing her to the ruins of her pettiness.

Beneath a bare light bulb the plaster did pound
Her sister and I in a screaming battleground.
And she in between, the victim of sound,
Soon shattered as a child neath her shadows.

All is gone, all is gone, admit it, take flight.
I gagged twice, doubled, tears blinding my sight.
My mind it was mangled, I ran into the night
Leaving all of loves ashes behind me.

The wind knocks my window, the room it is wet.
The words to say Im sorry, I havent found yet.
I think of her often and hope whoever shes met
Will be fully aware of how precious she is.

Ah, my friends from the prison, they ask unto me,
How good, how good does it feel to be free?
And I answer them most mysteriously,
Are birds free from the chains of the skyway?

The Times They Are A-Changin'

The Times They Are A-Changin' is a clear example of Dylan's political and rebellious songs. It has a straight message where he criticizes the American society. It's a song for the generation of the youth which can be proved by the fact that he even criticizes parents (fourth verse).

The Times They Are A-Changin' - Bob Dylan



Dylan has written many protest songs like this one but he has never really confessed their influence and importance to people. He doesn't want to get a certain label put on him. That’s why he’d always hated media and critics whom always tell him who he is and what he have done. He once said as a comment on peoples thoughts about the song reflecting the gap between the generations:

"Those were the only words I could find to separate aliveness from deadness. It had nothing to do with age."

Even though that statement sounded quite clear, he one year later said:

"I can't really say that adults don't understand young people any more than you can say big fishes don't understand little fishes. I didn't mean 'The Times They Are a-Changin' as a statement... It's a feeling."

In that sense, he can be quite confusing but he’s still very interesting to listen to. Important to remember is also that it’s always the listener’s interpretation that counts. Myself, I think that the song has a straight message and a touching topic, and that’s why I really like the song.

//Ednel

If you have any comments on either my language or what I've been writing about, LET ME KNOW! You can write in the comment box bellow or send me an email at: edward_nehlback@hotmail.com