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
Tears of Rage
Bob Dylan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On Independence Day
And now you'd throw us all aside
And put us on our way
Oh, what dear daughter 'neath the sun
Would treat a father so
To wait upon him hand and foot
Yet always answer, "no?"
Why am I the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief
It was all pointed out, the way to go
And scratched your name in sand
Though you just thought that it was nothing more
Than a place for you to stand
Now I want you to know that while you watched
Discovered that there was no one true
That I myself really thought
It was just a childish thing to do
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I always the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief
It was all very, very painless
When you ran out to receive
All that false instruction
Which we never could believe
And now the heart is filled with gold
As if it was a purse
But oh, what kind of love is this
Which goes from bad to worse?
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I the always one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief
In Bob Dylan and The Band's song "Tears of Rage," the lyrics paint a picture of a strained relationship between a father and his daughter. The opening lines, "We carried you in our arms on Independence Day," seem to suggest a happy moment in the past, but the following line, "And now you'd throw us all aside and put us on our way," reveals a discordant present. The father asks a poignant question in the next lines, "Oh, what dear daughter 'neath the sun would treat a father so, to wait upon him hand and foot and always tell him 'No?'" It seems that the father feels neglected, unappreciated, and frustrated with his daughter's behavior. He is filled with "tears of rage" and "tears of grief."
The next stanza shifts from the question of the father's treatment to how the daughter was raised. The father remembers pointing out the way to go and scratching the daughter's name in the sand. However, the father feels that his efforts were not appreciated, that the daughter thought it was merely a place for her to stand. In the last stanza, the father describes a painful moment when the daughter received "false instruction" somewhere else, leading to a "kind of love" that "goes from bad to worse." The song ends with a plea for the daughter to "come to me now" as they are "so alone, and life is brief." The song touches on themes of disappointment, regret, and the complex emotions that come from fractured family relationships.
Line by Line Meaning
We carried you in our arms
On Independence Day
And now you'd throw us all aside
And put us on our way
We once took care of you with love and pride, but now you reject us and leave us to fend for ourselves.
Oh, what dear daughter 'neath the sun
Would treat a father so
To wait upon him hand and foot
And always tell him "No?"
What parent would accept such a disrespectful behavior from their own child, who refuses to appreciate their efforts?
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I the one who must be the thief ?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief.
We cry in anger and sadness, wondering why we are being blamed for something we didn't do. Please, come back to us before it's too late, as we have so little time left alone.
We pointed out the way to go
And scratched your name in sand
Though you just thought that it was nothing more
Than a place for you to stand
We showed you the path to follow in life, and we tried to leave a legacy of your name, but you saw it as just another place to stand.
Now I want you to know that while you watched
You discover there was no one true
Must everybody really thought
It was a childish thing to do
We want you to realize that you were mistaken about the people around you and that they did not share your values. Everyone considered your behavior immature and inappropriate.
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I the one who must be the thief ?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief.
We are frustrated and saddened by being made the scapegoat for something that is not our fault. We urge you to come back to us, as we are lonely and know that life is short.
It was all very painless
When you went out to receive
All that false instruction
Which we never could believe
You were more than happy to receive misguided teachings without questioning them, even though we knew they were wrong all along.
And now the heart is filled with gold
As if it was a purse
But oh, what kind of love is this
Which goes from bad to worse ?
Your heart may seem full of riches, but what kind of love is it that only leads to more problems and disappointments?
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I the one who must be the thief ?
Come to me now, you know
We're so alone
And life is brief.
We are torn apart by feelings of anger and sadness, asking again why we have to take the blame. Please, come back to us, we are desperate and short on time.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Richard Manuel, Bob Dylan
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@johansterk354
How mature was this man at the mere age of 26?? Ancient blood singing ... The lyrics:
We carried you in our arms on Independence Day
And now you'd throw us all aside and put us all away
Oh, what dear daughter 'neath the sun could treat a father so?
To wait upon him hand and foot and always tell him "No"
Tears of rage, tears of grief, why must I always be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone and life is brief
It has all been pointed out the way to go and scratched your name in sand
Though you just thought it was nothing more than a place for you to stand
Now I want you to know that while we watched you discovered there was no one true
That I myself really thought it was just a childish thing to do
Tears of rage, tears of grief, why am I always the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone and life is brief
It was all very painless when you went out to receive
All that false instruction which we never could believe
And now the heart is filled with gold as if it was a purse
But, oh, what kind of love is this which goes from bad to worse?
Tears of rage, tears of grief, why must I always be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone and life is brief
@bryankeisling132
Lyrics:
We carried you in our arms on Independence Day
And now you'd throw us all aside and put us on our way
Oh, what dear daughter 'neath the sun would treat a father so
To wait upon him hand and foot, yet always answer no?
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I always the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone
And life is brief
It was all pointed out the way to go and scratched your name in sand
Though you just thought that it was nothing more than a place for you to stand
Now I want you to know that while you were watched, discovered that there was no one true
That I myself really thought
It was just a childish thing to do
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I always the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone
And life is brief
It was all very, very painless when you ran out to receive
All that false instruction which we never could believe
And now the heart is filled with gold as if it was a purse
Oh, but what kind of love is this which goes from bad to worse?
Tears of rage, tears of grief
Why am I always the one who must be the thief?
Come to me now, you know we're so alone
And life is brief
@Argotero
Fantastic song, and sublime singers... The Band and Bob Dylan is been the greatest gift to all of us...thanks so much.
@stephenglasse9756
Great great singer ❤️. Everyone goes on about his lyrics but as Jann Wenner said, Dylan's voice is God's greatest gift to him.
@monicatolipan3238
Another fantastic song carrying the intensity of great romantism. Loved it.
@JorgeLMarquezsM
Emocionalidad completa! Qué hermosa canción! Somos padres adoloridos, como los de la letra!
@Davidgeorgegerard
Somos es la verdad
@jonnijames
one of your best Bob, love it with my heart and soul!!
@DutchComedian
Credit to Dylan for creating this masterpiece (one of dozens in his catalog) but I think almost everyone can agree that The Band's version on "Big Pink" is a superior rendition.
@Everton176
What a song, I wouldnt be who i am today without the basement tapes.
@davejonsson3440
Bob and Richard, Macca, and Ray Davies knew how to write from a parent's perspective, and these songs were so compassionate and, in a way, revolutionary.
@mortimerzilch2608
in 1974 Bob touring with the Band played this solo back to back with Wheels on Fire....and I thought he was going to explode. people were freaking out crying and hugging each other...most amazing singinng I ever heard...way better than even this fantastic rendition. But that particular convert is nowhere around on YouTube, at least I can't find it.