“Art is disagreement.” — Bob Dylan
There is a contradiction built into the work of any artist who achieves success. The artist wishes, needs to keep changing, while those celebrating the art really just want to celebrate the known.
Such is the reality of Bob Dylan and his never-ending experiment. He hasn’t stopped changing or following his instincts, but his audiences have often had trouble keeping up.
Of course, in the commercial realm, he has one of those problems that is good to have — old songs that keep generating new revenue. The fans may want him to play them over and over, long after he has moved on.
I admire Dylan the writer, the storyteller who can spin a good tale within the limited parameters of a song. Well, not so limited in some cases — among my many favorites are his impossibly long, soulful ballads that seem like they could go on and on forever.
Just like the man.
But I’m in awe of him as an artist and his unending commitment to his art. Not to mention his sheer life force — he has kept writing and singing into his eighties. And he never stops breaking new ground because that is what he’s always really been all about.
Recommended Reading: “Art is Disagreement — A Complete Unknown and the myths of Bob Dylan” (The Nation)
HEADLINES:
New evacuations ordered for largest wildfire in LA County (NBC)
Inconvenient truths about the fires burning in Los Angeles from two fire experts (LAT)
Residents return to a hellscape in southern California (Reuters)
Who Pays to Rebuild California When Insurance Falls Short? Everyone Else (WSJ)
How Hitler Dismantled a Democracy in 53 Days — He used the constitution to shatter the constitution. (Atlantic)
Special counsel Jack Smith has resigned (CNN)
U.S. puts new sanctions on Russian oil (Reuters)
The Intellectual Rationalization for Annexing Greenland (Atlantic)
Ukraine captures two North Korean soldiers in Kursk, Zelenskiy says (Reuters)
South Korea air crash recorders missing final four minutes (BBC)
Who is responsible for the Palestinians? (Reuters)
Supreme Court to hear case challenging Obamacare’s preventive coverage (WP)
“It’s total chaos internally at Meta right now.” (Verge)
Biden calls Meta’s decision to drop factchecking ‘really shameful’ (Guardian)
Diversity takes a beating before Trump takes office (Reuters)
Amazon cuts mentions of DEI and LGBTQ rights from public policies (WP)
The President-Elect Is a Felon, but His Sentence Carries No Penalty (NYT)
What Trump’s unconditional discharge sentence means in the hush money case (WP)
TikTok warns of broad consequences if Supreme Court allows ban (Reuters)
Researchers underscore link between decline of marriage, plummeting fertility rates (Catholic News Agency)
"‘I was shaking when I first unearthed it': 11th-century silver coin hoard unearthed in England (Live Science)
Bob Dylan Agreed to ‘A Complete Unknown’ Because James Mangold Honored This Moving Request (Collider)
Humanoid AI Robots Go Full Service at CES 2025 (IOT)
Mark Zuckerberg Defends Decision To Fly Confederate Flag At Facebook Headquarters (The Onion)
TODAY’S SONG:
Bob Dylan - I've Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You (Official Audio)
I'm sitting on my terrace, lost in the stars
Listening to the sounds of the sad guitars
Been thinking it all over and I've thought it all through
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
I saw the first fall of snow
I saw the flowers come and go
I don't think that anyone ever has ever knew
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
I'm giving myself to you, I am
From Salt Lake City to Birmingham
From East L.A. to San Antone
I don't think I can bear to live my life alone
My eyes like a shooting star
It looks at nothing here or there, looks at nothing near of far
No one ever told me, it's just something I knew
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
If I had the wings of a snow-white dove
I'd preach the gospel, the gospel of love
A love so real, a love so true
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
Take me out traveling, you're a traveling man
Show me something I don't understand
I'm not what I was, things aren't what they were
I'll go far away from home with her
I've traveled a long road of despair
I've met no other traveler there
Lot of people gone, lot of people I knew
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
Well, my heart's like a river, a river that sings
Just takes me a while to realize things
I've seen the sunrise, I've seen the dawn
I'll lay down beside you when everyone's gone
I've traveled from the mountains to the sea
I hope that the gods go easy with me
I knew you'd say yes, I'm saying it too
I've made up my mind to give myself to you
No comments:
Post a Comment