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.

Spanish Is The Loving Tongue
Bob Dylan and The Band Lyrics

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Broke her heart, lost my own
Adios mi corazón

Spanish is the loving tongue
Soft as music, light as spray
'twas a girl I learned it from
Living down sonora way
Well I don't look much like a lover

Still I say her loved words over
Mostly when I'm all alone
Mi amor, mi corazón

Haven't seen her since that night
I can't cross the line, you know
They want me for the gamblin' fight
Like as not it's better so
Still I've always kind of missed her
Since that last sad night I kissed her
Broke her heart, lost my own
Adios, mi corazón
Broke her heart, lost my own

Adios, mi corazón
Adios, mi corazón

Overall Meaning

In Bob Dylan & The Band's song Spanish Is The Loving Tongue, the lyrics describe a poignant tale of lost love, regret and heartbreak. The singer speaks of learning the Spanish language from a girl he loved who lived in Sonora. He repeats her loving words, such as 'mi amor' and 'mi corazón,' to himself when he is alone, reminding himself of what he has lost. However, despite his deep feelings for her, he is unable to be with her again due to the fact that he is being pursued for a gambling incident.

The lyrics convey a sense of pain and longing, as well as a sense of resignation that things may be better this way. Interestingly, the song explores themes of cultural exchange and romantic language, with Spanish being portrayed as a beautiful and lyrical language. The line "Spanish is the loving tongue, soft as music, light as spray" reinforces the idea of Spanish being a language of love, and shows the singer's admiration for the language he learned from his lost love.

Overall, the song beautifully captures the intense emotions associated with lost love, and also highlights the idea of language and culture being a part of what makes romance so beautiful and heartbreaking.

Spanish Is The Loving TongueBob Dylan and The Band Lyrics

Spanish Is The Loving Tongue
Bob Dylan and The Band Lyrics