Dylan started his musical odyssey in 1959 when he began playing in Dinkytown, Minneapolis while attending the University of Minnesota. Shortly after starting to play he changed his stage name to Bob Dylan, after being influenced by the poetry of Dylan Thomas before legally changing his name in 1962.
Much of his best known work is from the 1960s, when he became an informal documentarian and reluctant figurehead of American unrest, promoted by Joan Baez. Some of his songs, such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are A-Changin'", became anthems of the anti-war and civil rights movements, with Joan Baez and Dylan singing together at the March on Washington in 1963. However he later became disenchanted with the civil liberty protest scene, feeling that he had been used by them.
His album Bringing It All Back Home marked a move away from the folk scene and a move towards rock and roll and Dylan began to consciously distance himself from his early association with civil rights. He also started to become irritated when being interviewed, often given facetious or irreverent answers to questions. Bringing It All Back Home was a controversial album as it the first on which he played electric guitar. This was seen by some of his fans as a betrayal of this folk roots, with some saying that it obscured his meaningful and poetic lyrics.
The second half of the 1960s was marked by a string of well received releases, with his song "Like a Rolling Stone", released in July of 1965, later being named "The Greatest Song of All Time" by Rolling Stone magazine in 2004, placing #1 in a list of 500 titles. It also marked the formation of Dylan's backing band The Hawks (who would later call themselves simply The Band). Dylan embarked on a world tour of Australia and Europe in 1966, during which he seemed to be under a lot of strain and pressure by both his fans, the music press and his own promoters. Dylan himself admitted that he began taking drugs seriously whilst on this tour, and found it immensely hard work. On returning to New York he crashed his motorbike, sustaining serious injuries in the process, and went into a period of withdrawal while he recuperated. During the late 1960s, Dylan again changed stylistic tradition, moving away from the psychedelic culture of the time. It was then that he recorded All Along the Watchtower, perhaps more famously recorded by Jimi Hendrix.
The 1970s were a period during which Dylan was more sporadic in his output, releasing some poorly received LPs. He rarely appeared in person until 1974, when he began touring again with his backing band The Band. He also wrote one of his most extensively covered songs, Knockin' On Heaven's Door, as well as what is now recognised as one of his best albums Blood On The Tracks. Towards the end of the 1970s, Dylan discovered Christ, and released some albums of gospel music. He started to talk to the crowd about his faith during his performances, and wouldn't play any of his early work, which alienated some of his previous fans.
Dylan today still remains an influential and popular artist; despite a period of little note between 1980-2000, his 2006 album Modern Times reached the US chart at #1, as did his 2009 album Together Through Life, in the US, Britain, France and several other countries. His 2012 album Tempest was also critically acclaimed. Since 1988, Dylan has been on the so-called Never Ending Tour, during which his performances have provoked controversy, with some critics claiming that his lyrics have become incomprehensible, an experience which is not helped by his tendency to change his set-list and vocals almost every performance.
Bob Dylan's strong influence over the past few years is becoming even more prominent amongst a growing group of younger emerging artists such as George Ellias and Devendra Banhart. Dylan's early lyrics incorporated politics, social commentary, philosophy and literary influences, defying existing pop music conventions and appealing widely to the counterculture of the time. While expanding and personalizing musical styles, Dylan has shown steadfast devotion to traditions of American song, from folk and country/blues to rock and roll and rockabilly, to Gaelic balladry, even jazz, swing and Broadway.
Dylan performs with the guitar, keyboard and harmonica. Backed by a changing lineup of musicians, he has toured steadily since the late 1980s. He has also recently performed alongside other iconic artists, such as Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, Tom Petty and Eric Clapton. Although his contributions as a performer and recording artist have been central to his career, his songwriting is generally held as his highest accomplishment.
Nobel Prize for Literature (2016) - On October 13, 2016, Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”. The prestigious award has been given annually since 1901 and previous Nobel Laureates for Literature include Harold Pinter and Samuel Beckett. Here is the speech written by Dylan, although unable to attend:
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/10/arts/bob-dylan-nobel-prize-acceptance-speech.html?_r=0
Quinn the Eskimo
Bob Dylan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Some are building monuments
Others jotting down notes
Ev'rybody's in despair
Every girl and boy
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
Ev'rybody's gonna jump for joy
Come all without, come all within
Come all without, come all within
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
You know, I like to do just like the rest
You know, I like my sugar sweet
But jumping queues and making haste
You know, it ain't my cup of meat
Everybody's out there
Feeding pigeons on a limb
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
The pigeons gonna run to him
Come all without, come all within
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
A cat's meow and a cow's moo
You know, I can recite them all
Tell me where it hurts you, honey
And I'll tell you who to call
Nobody can get any sleep
You know there's someone on everybody's toes
When Quinn the Eskimo gets here
Ev'rybody's gonna wanna doze
Come all without, come all within
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Come all without, come all within
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
The lyrics to Bob Dylan’s song “Quinn the Eskimo” are imbued with a sense of joy and deliverance. The song begins with the observation that people are all building big ships and boats, while others make monuments or jot down notes. However, everyone seems to be in despair. Yet when Quinn the Eskimo arrives, this despair is replaced with joy. Dylan suggests that the arrival of Quinn brings an indescribable kind of joy and freedom - “Every girl and boy, But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here, Ev'rybody's gonna jump for joy.”
The second verse shows us that the singer is just like everyone else: they too love sweet things like sugar. However, it’s not their nature to jump queues and make haste. Dylan implies that everyone is moving too fast, but when Quinn arrives, the pigeons will come to him. This shows a theme of liberation from the pressures of society. The final verse uses the metaphor of animals like cats and cows, saying the singer can recite all their sounds, but still there’s someone stepping on everybody’s toes. When Quinn arrives, he brings peace and everyone will want to doze.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, everybody's building the big ships and the boats
Everyone is busy building large ships and boats.
Some are building monuments
Some are also working on monuments, statues or other structures that will endure after they are gone.
Others jotting down notes
Others are writing down their ideas and theories.
Ev'rybody's in despair
The current state is gloomy and hopeless for everyone.
Every girl and boy
Everyone, regardless of age or gender.
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
But when Quinn arrives on the scene.
Ev'rybody's gonna jump for joy
Everyone will be happy and excited.
Come all without, come all within
Everyone is invited to join in.
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Quinn is unique and one-of-a-kind, you won't see anyone else like him.
You know, I like to do just like the rest
I like to follow the trend and do what everyone else is doing.
You know, I like my sugar sweet
I have a sweet tooth and enjoy sugary treats.
But jumping queues and making haste
But I don't like to cut in line or rush things unnecessarily.
You know, it ain't my cup of meat
It's not my thing.
Everybody's out there
Everyone else is outside.
Feeding pigeons on a limb
They are busy feeding pigeons perched on a tree branch.
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
But when Quinn arrives on the scene.
The pigeons gonna run to him
The pigeons will abandon their perch and fly to Quinn.
A cat's meow and a cow's moo
I can imitate the sounds made by different animals with ease.
You know, I can recite them all
I remember all the different sounds and can recite them on demand.
Tell me where it hurts you, honey
Let me know where you are in pain, dear.
And I'll tell you who to call
I can recommend the right person to call for medical help or assistance.
Nobody can get any sleep
Everyone is having trouble sleeping.
You know there's someone on everybody's toes
Everyone is feeling pressured or crowded by someone else.
When Quinn the Eskimo gets here
But when Quinn arrives on the scene.
Ev'rybody's gonna wanna doze
Everyone will suddenly feel like dozing off.
Come all without, come all within
Everyone is invited to join in.
You'll not see nothing like the mighty Quinn
Quinn is unique and one-of-a-kind, you won't see anyone else like him.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Bob Dylan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@christnaaawisam4277
Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
Everybody's building ships and boats
Some are building monuments
Others jotting down notes
Everybody's in despair, every girl and boy
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
Everybody's gonna jump for joy
Come on without
Come on within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
I like to go just like the rest
I like my sugar sweet
But jumping queues, and making haste just ain't my cup of meat
Everyone's beneath the trees
Feeding pigeons on a limb
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
All the pigeons gonna run to him
Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
Come all without
Come all within
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
Let me do what I wanna do
I can't decide 'em all
Just tell me where to put 'em
And I'll tell you who to call
Nobody can get no sleep
There's someone on everyone's toes
But when Quinn the Eskimo gets here
Everybody's gonna wanna doze
Come all without (just singin' a song)
Come all within (everybody)
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn (I wanna hear you sing)
Come all without
Come all within (here he comes now)
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn (let's come on and sing)
Come all without (just singin' a song)
Come all within (everybody)
You'll not see nothing like the Mighty Quinn
come all without
Come all within
You'll not-
@Mr040268
Something about the way his voice and the guitar resonate is just music to my ears
@hamricmike8
You can tell it's The Band playing with him from Danko's backing vocal and Robertson's lead guitar sound
@dylanmcdermott1110
I can't believe I didn't notice that until you pointed it out. Sure enough, this was from the Basement Tapes sessions.
@Fred_and_Brandy
Always dug Rick Danko alot😏
@Dom901_
Finally I found this version. Jeez, I’ve been looking for months.
@thebluedragon07
Took me years to find the Manfred Mann version.
@kristianharper5607
You are looking for his album “the basement tapes:raw”
@justenbenally522
Me too. I originally discovered it on the greatest hit box set, but when my car got stolen, so did the box set. I was never able to find it again after that. I decided to learn the guitar tabs for it today and found that it was a studio outtake from 1967. So the next thing I did was search that very thing on YouTube and here I am.
@jimfeiten8415
That basement tape sound is like none other !!
I love ❤️ it !!!
@kamilziemian995
Dylan is incredible musician.