Bob Dylan and The Band was a long-lived collaboration with few official rel… Read Full Bio ↴Bob Dylan and The Band was a long-lived collaboration with few official releases, their recordings together often released under Dylan's name alone.

The members of The Band first worked together as The Hawks, the backing band of rockabilly singer Ronnie Hawkins from 1959 until 1963. Shortly afterwards, Bob Dylan came to Toronto and recruited the quintet for his history-making 1965/1966 world tour. The Band also worked with Dylan on the initial Blonde on Blonde sessions which, bar two tracks, were ultimately abandoned in favour of versions recorded with Nashville session musicians.

After a motorcycle accident in mid-1966, Dylan retreated from the public eye to his country house near Woodstock, New York. He was joined by the Band for some informal jam sessions starting in the autumn of 1967, nearly all of which were recorded. After being heavily bootleged, Columbia Records finally released The Basement Tapes in 1975, a selection of the better tracks recorded during the sessions along with new recordings by The Band.

Bob Dylan and The Band were reunited in 1974, recording Planet Waves for Asylum Records, Dylan's first album recorded for a record label other than Columbia. Although the album was released under Dylan's name alone, The Band joined Dylan for his first tour in eight years in support of Planet Waves, with some of the material recorded and released on the 1975 concert record Before the Flood.

Columbia Records finally released The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete in November 2014, featuring every surving recording from the original sessions in Woodstock.

Blues Jam
Bob Dylan and The Band Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Si ça jam ça jam pas
Si ça jam pas ça jam
Si ça jam ça jam pas
Si ça jam pas ça jam

En route pour la pratique
On est pris dans l'traffic
Y'a dla corruption

Y'a d'la construction

Si ça jam ça jam pas
Si ça jam pas ça jam
Si ça jam ça jam pas
Si ça jam pas ça jam

C'est la collusion
C'est la collision

C'est la congestion
C'est la frustration

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Blues Jam" by Bob Dylan and The Band is a reflection on the inner battles that one goes through. The song starts with the singer speaking about how people are always curious and inquisitive about others. They constantly ask questions and pry into other people's lives, and once they get their answers, they pull you in. This intrusive behavior can leave one feeling frustrated and wanting to die.

The second verse goes on to describe the feeling of being suffocated by one's own emotions. The singer talks about how sometimes things can get on top of you, and you can't shake them off. Life will not break your heart, but it will crush it. This line is perhaps the crux of the song, conveying that life is difficult, and it can sometimes feel overwhelming.

The third verse then speaks about the duality of opening one's heart to others. It can make one feel good and well, but at the same time, it leaves them vulnerable to others' hurts, and the bleeding may never end, resulting in knives in their mind. The song's title, "Blues Jam," is fitting as the lyrics are an exploration of the blues that can take place in one's mind and heart.

Line by Line Meaning

They always pry
People always want to dig into your personal life

They always want to know why
People want to know the reasons behind your actions

And then they pull you in
Then they start asking you too many questions

And then you want to die
You feel ashamed or embarrassed about the situation

You'll burn so deep inside
You will feel your emotions magnified inside you

And then it gets on top of you
You feel like the situation is overwhelming you

It won't let you go
You feel stuck in the situation

Believe me when I tell you
Trust me when I say

Life will not break your heart
Life won't disappoint you

It'll crush it
It'll exceed your expectations and put too much pressure on your heart

You never felt so good
You never felt happier before