The Last Temptation of Dylan- Watching the new documentary.

slate ^ | Posted Friday, Sept. 23, 2005 | David Yaffe

[dennisw]

About an hour into Bob Dylan: No Direction Home, Joan Baez—in an interview that will be edited by your PBS station—recalls an invincible young Dylan imagining what they'll be saying about him in the future: "A bunch of years from now, all these (expletive deleted) are going to be writing about all this (expletive deleted) I write, and I don't know where the (expletive deleted) it comes from and I don't know what the (expletive deleted) it's about, and they're going to write about what it's about." Here we are. This documentary comes complete with a Starbucks tie-in, an Apple logo, and a celebrity director's credit. That director is Martin Scorsese, who has surely coveted access to this footage—donated by D.A. Pennebaker, Murray Lerner, and others—having already shot Dylan as the pièce de résistance to his documentary about The Band, The Last Waltz. But before you get too excited about this crossroads meeting, viewer, beware: This project was co-produced by Dylan's manager Jeff Rosen. Scorsese was brought in well after Rosen had already conducted the interviews and approved the material. What will all these assholes be saying about Dylan? In this "Martin Scorsese Picture," whatever the Dylan people want.

We'll take it gratefully, of course. No Direction Home is framed by footage from a 1966 European tour in which Dylan was hounded by the folkie furies for plugging in with the Hawks, who later became The Band. (This footage is from Pennebaker's never-released and seldom-seen Eat the Document.) As the documentary opens, we see Dylan performing the classic rock warhorse "Like a Rolling Stone." The record had already been a No. 2 single, but it was still a rock 'n' roll Rite of Spring, too raw

[af_vet_1981]

all the other subverted and, ultimately, wasted talent of my g-g-generation

Sadly, I'm starting to agree with you.

[af_vet_1981]

How do you see Dylan as wasted talent?

He could have used his talent for G-d, family, and country but that might not be good for business ...

[Black Tooth]

With all the bumps and bruises, the Boomer generation was much better than what we have today. In the 60s I never heard of daily drive by shootings, or tens of thousands of murderous organized gang members, mass murders, and school and work place massacres at a regular rate as we have today. A few of our cities had riots over the race thing, but that was generally the young against the older establishment. The boomer generation was pretty tame compared with today. And without a doubt, the boomer generation put out the best Rock n Roll ever.

[Itaintwhy]

The last line from the lyrics you cited - "Look up, look up, seek your Maker, 'fore Gabriel blows his horn" - was lifted from an old song called "Lonesome Road". Sinatra recorded the definitive version on his 1957 "A Swingin' Affair" album. Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Van Morrison & scores of others have also taken a stab at the tune.

Your point that Dylan isn't and never really was a man of the left bears repeating. Liberals so dearly want to claim him as one of their own that they're willing to ignore over forty years of music, lyrics and interviews that suggest otherwise.

[fnord]

Tangled Up In Blue
Desperation Row
Idiot Wind
Queen Jane Approximately
I Want You
To Make You Feel My Love
Simple Twist of Fate
My Back Pages
Mr Tambourine Man
It's Alright Ma
Shelter From the Storm
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again

quite the poet

[50sDad]

For what it is worth, have you ever given three years of income to the church?

Strike that. Substitute: "For what it is worth, have you ever worked three years with your main focus as publicly declaring your faith in the Salvation gift of Jesus Christ."

I am completely happy with my church. Our pastor is working on developing a community-outreach mentality where the Church's main work is serving those who can't serve themselves, and witnessing to Christ's live through the works we do for others. Ten percent of our church's budget is always given to Missions, local and national, often food kitchen and educational missions. If you are unhappy with your church, whatever flavor of Christianity, get out and find another that serves in a way you want to serve!

[Dr. Eckleburg]

The boomers were decimated by drugs, Viet Nam, the pill, the untimely deaths of Presidents and poets, and the break-up of Lead Zeppelin.


Some of the fortunate ones found their way back home.


PRESSING ON


Well I'm pressing on
Yes, I'm pressing on
Well I'm pressing on
To the higher calling of my Lord.
Many try to stop me, shake me up in my mind,
Say, "Prove to me that He is Lord, show me a sign."
What kind of sign they need when it all come from within,
When what's lost has been found, what's to come has already been?


Well I'm pressing on
Yes, I'm pressing on
Well I'm pressing on
To the higher calling of my Lord.
Shake the dust off of your feet, don't look back.
Nothing now can hold you down, nothing that you lack.
Temptation's not an easy thing, Adam given the devil reign
Because he sinned I got no choice, it run in my vein.


Well I'm pressing on
Yes, I'm pressing on
Well I'm pressing on
To the higher calling of my Lord.

[fnord]

she wrote "Diamonds and Rust" (about Dylan) which is very well done ... but that is about all

[Black Tooth]

Not sure, but I think that's "Desolation Row".

[50sDad]

Prior to the hijacking of the word "gay" from the English language, it also meant "cheerful, witty, clever, and upbeat." It was once possible to be gay without being homosexual, although Noel Coward and Oscar Wilde managed to be both. However, in the last fifty years or so, those afflicted with Same Sex Affection Disorder (SSAD), have stolen the word to help them lie to themselves that they are gay, when they are really just SSAD homosexuals.

"Gay girl, why do you look so sad?" ---Tony Newley

[Dr. Eckleburg]

I agree. And people forget young men would rather have been drafted and killed rather than declare themselves 4F.

Today's generation can't even comprehend that one.

[fnord]

great pic .. where'd ya get it?

[Moby Grape]

This "wasted talent" being mentioned, now in his 60's is STILL being nominated for Grammys.

And you seem unable to accept the possibility that you are just plain WRONG about his using his talent for "G-d, family, and country."

God:

Truth is an arrow and the gate is narrow that it passes through,
He unleashed His power at an unknown hour that no one knew.
How long can I listen to the lies of prejudice?
How long can I stay drunk on fear out in the wilderness?
Can I cast it aside, all this loyalty and this pride?
Will I ever learn that there'll be no peace, that the war won't cease
Until He returns?


For Family:

As his youth now unfolds
He is centuries old
Just to see him at play makes me smile
No matter what happens to me
No matter what my destiny
Lord, protect my child

For Country:

Man's ego is inflated, his laws are outdated, they don't apply no more,
You can't rely no more to be standin' around waitin'
In the home of the brave, Jefferson turnin' over in his grave,
Fools glorifying themselves, trying to manipulate Satan
And there's a slow, slow train comin' up around the bend.

[hlmencken3]

He could have used his talent for G-d, family, and country but that might not be good for business ...

Interesting point. Bob Dylan certainly wanted to be Elvis more than he wanted to be Jeremiah (he said so). But the very name Bob Zimmerman assumed from Dylan Thomas made him more complicated. He definitely feels annoyed at being considered a leftist, and it seems to me his flirtation with Christianity is just something else he considers a passing phase. But note that he has no problem making money from either era. In the end he's just offering what customers will pay for. Maybe he is Elvis.

[hosepipe]

"You gotta serve somebody" - Bob Dylan...

A heavy concept among many other heavy concepts penned by this guy.. Dylan can't sing but his singing on his worse day beats any RAP travesty, hands down..

[HitmanLV]

Yep.

[fnord]

Not sure, but I think that's "Desolation Row"

of course you are right ...
wow, bad spell-checker, lol

[MrLee]

Most artists would jump through hoops to have three such unprofitable albums as his "Christian" ones. "Slow Train" is a classic.

[Moby Grape]

I am not sure that Dylan was not, at one time, a lefty...he may well have been..he was, after all, buddies with Alan Ginsberg and Lenny Bruce...

I believe his faith may have changed his world view to a large extent...His songs reflect a pro-Israel viewpoint (The Neighborhood Bully), he laments dependence on foreign oil (Slow Train Coming)..and he decries pornography in the schools (When You Gonna Wake Up)...hardly the stuff of the ACLU and the People For The American Way..

Thanks for the note about the lifted line...

[MrLee]

How can we forget "Trouble In Mind"! The single left off "Slow Train" because it was too Christian!