Shooting in the Dark too Long: Essential Dylan # 16

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1985`
Tangled Up in Blue (Live)
Real Live 1984
If you want to hear why Bob’s voice is so polarizing, look no further. Some hear the deranged grunt of a man on the run. I agree, minus the grunting and the derangement. Anyways, this song is pure genius.

Here, Bob is the artist and storyteller, recounting lives lived, roads driven, jobs worked, and feelings felt. The cast of characters is hard to pin down, but Bob paints a tapestry of people and places that all revolve around a search for love and connection.

Bob famously changes words and tempos of a song from night to night, and he does so here. Tangled up in Blue was first released on Bob Dylan’s 1974 classic Blood on the Tracks. In the Real Live version that I recommend the most, many lyrics are changed. Bob’s now in Baton Rouge and Delcroix. He’s reading from a book of Italian poetry again, although during his gospel era he was quoting scripture. Previously, he’s held jobs as a cook and a warehouse attendant. Now he’s working on a fishing boat. Point is, the lyrics change, but this masterpiece remains. The song is like a machine of poetry, with interchangeable parts, yet the same heart.

This song indeed has it all, the stories, the rhymes, and the voice that emphasizes certain words almost to change their meaning in some sort of dynamic way. It is the quintessential Bob Dylan song.

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