Good music, like good poetry, tells a story within the tight framework of the song’s lyrics. Good songwriters, like good poets, craft words to create images that will move and inspire the listener/reader. Among contemporary songwriters, Bob Dylan’s words consistently deliver powerful images that grab the listener and fire the imagination.
Here are two examples of Dylan’s carefully crafted lyrics. In the first song, LAY LADY LAY, Dylan talks about two lovers who need a little encouragement to keep things going. The man in the song is one of the good guys, a working man, whose “clothes are dirty, but his hands are clean.” The woman is a little hesitant to commit to the man; she is searching for something, “why wait any longer for the one you love, when he is standing in front of you.” Will she stay with the man until the break of dawn?
The second song is about a dying man, a deputy, who now realizes that his life is coming to an end. He will never again fire his gun or use his shield (badge). The second song is as sad as the first one is hopeful. One is about the possible beginning of a love affair; the second is about the end of a life.
LAY LADY LAY
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed
Whatever colors you have in your mind
I’ll show them to you and you’ll see them shine
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed
Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile
Until the break of day, let me see you make him smile
His clothes are dirty but his hands are clean
And you’re the best thing that he’s ever seen
Stay, lady, stay, stay with your man awhile
Why wait any longer for the world to begin
You can have your cake and eat it too
Why wait any longer for the one you love
When he’s standing in front of you
Lay, lady, lay, lay across my big brass bed
Stay, lady, stay, stay while the night is still ahead
I long to see you in the morning light
I long to reach for you in the night
Stay, lady, stay, stay while the night is still ahead
Trivia: "Lay Lady Lay" was written by Bob Dylan and originally released in 1969 on his album Nashville Skyline. Legend has it that Dylan was attended a concert by the Everly Brothers. At the end of the concert Dylan went up to the Everlys dressing room because he wanted them to record his song. Dylan picked up a guitar and sang the song. Dylan sang very softly and the Everlys could not clearly make out all the words. They both thought that they heard Dylan sing, “…lay lady lay, lay across my big breasts, babe." Thinking it was a song about lesbians, Don Everly said "thank you, it's a great song, but I don't think we could get away with that", and declined to record it. Dylan did not question them about it and went on to cut the track himself. The Everlys later recorded the song on their album, EB 84
And now for your listening pleasure….
KNOCKIN’ ON HEAVEN’S DOOR
Mama, take this badge off of me
I can’t use it anymore.
Its gettin dark, too dark for me to see
I feel like I’m knockin on heavens door.
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Mama, put my guns in the ground
I can’t shoot them anymore.
That long black cloud is comin down
I feel like I’m knockin on heavens door.
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
Knock, knock, knockin on heavens door
"Knockin' on Heaven's Door" was written by Dylan for the 1973 Western "Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid". The song describes the feelings and impressions of a dying deputy, who notices that it is getting dark around him as he is knocking on heaven's door. He realizes that he will never use his badge or his guns anymore. The song reached #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. In 2004, representatives of the music industry and the press voted it #190 in Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time issue.
