Subterranean Homesick Blues

"Subterranean Homesick Blues"
Single by Bob Dylan
from the album Bringing It All Back Home
B-side "She Belongs to Me"
Released March 8, 1965
Format 7" single
Recorded January 14, 1965, Columbia Recording Studios, Studio A, New York
Genre Folk rock, blues rock, rock and roll
Length 2:20
Label Columbia
Producer(s) Tom Wilson
Bob Dylan singles chronology
"The Times They Are a-Changin'"
(1965)		 "Subterranean Homesick Blues" / "She Belongs to Me"
(1965)		 "Maggie's Farm"
(1965)
Bringing It All Back Home track listing
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"Subterranean Homesick Blues" is a song by Bob Dylan, recorded on January 14, 1965, and released as a single on Columbia Records, catalogue 43242, on March 8.[1] It appeared some two weeks later as the lead track to the album Bringing It All Back Home.[2] It was Dylan's first Top 40 hit in the U.S., peaking at #39 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also entered the Top 10 on the singles chart in the United Kingdom. The song has subsequently been reissued on numerous compilations, the first being his 1967 singles compilation Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits. One of Dylan's first 'electric' pieces, "Subterranean Homesick Blues" was also notable for its innovative film clip, which first appeared in D. A. Pennebaker's documentary, Dont Look Back.

An acoustic version of the song, recorded the day before the single, was released on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991.

References and allusions

"Subterranean Homesick Blues" is a three-way amalgam of Jack Kerouac, the Guthrie/Pete Seeger song "Taking It Easy" ('mom was in the kitchen preparing to eat/sis was in the pantry looking for some yeast') and the riffed-up rock'n'roll poetry of Chuck Berry's "Too Much Monkey Business".[3]

In 2004, Dylan said, "It's from Chuck Berry, a bit of 'Too Much Monkey Business' and some of the scat songs of the '40s." [4]

Dylan has also stated that when he reached the University of Minnesota in 1959, he fell under the influence of the Beat scene: "It was Jack Kerouac, Ginsberg, Corso and Ferlinghetti."[5] Kerouac's The Subterraneans, a novel published in 1958 about the Beats, has been suggested as a possible inspiration for the song's title.[6][7]

The song's first line is a reference to codeine distillation and the politics of the time: "Johnny's in the basement mixing up the medicine / I'm on the pavement thinkin' about the Government".[2][8] The song also depicts some of the growing conflicts between "straight" or "square" (40-hour workers) and the emerging 1960s counterculture. The widespread use of recreational drugs, and turmoil surrounding the Vietnam War were both starting to take hold of the nation, and Dylan's hyperkinetic lyrics were dense with up-to-the-minute allusions to important emerging elements in the 1960s youth culture. According to rock journalist Andy Gill, "an entire generation recognized the zeitgeist in the verbal whirlwind of 'Subterranean Homesick Blues'."[8]

The song also references the struggles surrounding the American civil rights movement ("Better stay away from those / That carry 'round a fire hose"). (During the civil rights movement, peaceful protestors were beaten and sprayed with high pressure fire hoses.) Despite the political nature of the lyrics, the song went on to become the first Top 40 hit for Dylan in the United States.[9]

Influence

Listed by Rolling Stone magazine as the 332nd "Greatest Song of All Time",[10] "Subterranean Homesick Blues" has had a wide influence, resulting in iconic references by artists and non-artists alike. Most famously, its lyric "you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows" was the inspiration for the name of the American radical left group the Weathermen, a breakaway from the Students for a Democratic Society.[11] In a 2007 study of legal opinions and briefs that found Bob Dylan was quoted by judges and lawyers more than any other songwriter, "you don't need a weatherman..." was distinguished as the line most often cited. [12][13][14]

John Lennon was reported to find the song so captivating that he did not know how he would be able to write a song that could compete with it.[15][16] The group Firehose (former Minutemen members) took its name from another of the song's enigmatic warnings: "Better stay away from those that carry around a fire hose..." In addition, the opening of the last verse, "Ah get born, keep warm", provided the Australian garage rock band Jet with the title of their debut album Get Born.

In the same way that Dylan paid homage to Jack Kerouac's novel, The Subterraneans,[6] "Subterranean Homesick Blues" has been referenced in the titles of various songs, for example, Radiohead's "Subterranean Homesick Alien" from 1997's OK Computer, the ska punk band Mustard Plug's "Suburban Homesick Blues" from 1997's Evildoers Beware and the Memphis indie band The Grifters' "Subterranean Death Ride Blues", the B-side of a 1996 single, the British folk rock band Deaf Havana's "Subterranean Bullshit Blues" from 2013's Old Souls. It was also the basis for the title of the second episode of Law & Order's premiere season, "Subterranean Homeboy Blues".

In the 1980s sitcom Murphy Brown, a flashback sequence shows Brown (Candice Bergen) and her future head writer (Joe Regalbuto) meeting for the first time in a bar. In order to prove to one another their genuine counterculture credentials from the mid-1960s, they join in a "challenge duet" of the "Subterranean Homesick Blues" first verse.

Cover versions

Covers of the song span a range of styles, including those by reggae great Gregory Isaacs on Is It Rolling Bob?, his 2004 album of Dylan songs with fellow artist Toots Hibbert,[17] bluegrass musician Tim O'Brien on his 1996 album of Dylan covers, Red on Blonde, rock band The Red Hot Chili Peppers on 1987's The Uplift Mofo Party Plan, Cajun-style fiddle player Doug Kershaw on Louisiana Man in 1978, and singer/songwriter Harry Nilsson on his 1974 release Pussy Cats.[18] The song was also covered by Alanis Morissette when she stood in for Dylan at his 2005 induction into the UK Music Hall of Fame.[19] In addition, Robert Wyatt's "Blues in Bob Minor", on his 1997 album Shleep, uses the song's rhythm as a structural template.[20] In December 2009, rapper Juelz Santana released the single Mixin' Up the Medicine, which features lyrics in the chorus, performed by alternative rapper Yelawolf, and maintains some of the song's original acoustics. Ed Volker of The New Orleans Radiators also has done the song in his solo shows and with The Radiators, often paired with Highway 61 Revisited. Arizona band Chronic Future covered the song on their 2004 Lines in My Face EP. In 1994, The Day Today, a British spoof television news series, claimed that Dylan's performance was in fact a cover version of an original by ukulele virtuoso George Formby. The programme aired a clip of the purported newly discovered original, showing Formby performing to troops in a black and white newsreel with the song overdubbed.

Allusions in other artists' songs

Echo & the Bunnymen's 1980 song, "Villiers Terrace," includes the line, "There's people rolling 'round on the carpet/Mixin' up the medicine."

Robert Wyatt's song "Blues in Bob Minor" from his 1997 album Shleep includes the line, "Genuflecting, bowing deeply/It don't take a weathergirl to see/Where the wind is blowing/What the wind is bending."

Radiohead's song "Subterranean Homesick Alien", from their 1997 album OK Computer, pays homage by referencing Bob Dylan's track in the title.

The Gaslight Anthem's song "Angry Johnny and the Radio", from their 2007 album Sink or Swim, includes the lines "And I'm still here singin', thinking about the government" and "Are you hidin' in a basement, mixin' up the medicine?"

Deaf Havana's album Old Souls contains the song 'Subterranean Bullshit Blues', which references the title in homage to the songwriter James Veck-Gilodi's respect for Dylan.

Adam Green's song, "Novotel," includes the line, "Novotel/The phone's tapped anyway."

Promotional film clip

The three locations for the "cue card" clip as seen in Dont Look Back.
The clip was originally a segment of D. A. Pennebaker's film, Dont Look Back.

In addition to the song's influence on music, the song was used in what became one of the first "modern" promotional film clips, the forerunner of what later became known as the music video. Although Rolling Stone ranked it 7th in the magazine's October 1993 list of "100 Top Music Videos",[21] the original clip was actually the opening segment of D. A. Pennebaker's film, Dont Look Back, a documentary on Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England. In the film, Dylan, who came up with the idea, holds up cue cards for the audience, with selected words and phrases from the lyrics. The cue cards were written by Donovan, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Neuwirth and Dylan himself.[8] While staring at the camera, he flips the cards as the song plays. There are intentional misspellings and puns throughout the clip: for instance, when the song's lyrics say "eleven dollar bills" the poster says "20 dollar bills". The clip was shot in an alley behind the Savoy Hotel in London where Ginsberg and Neuwirth make a cameo in the background. For use as a trailer, the following text was superimposed at the end of the clip while Dylan and Ginsberg are exiting the frame: "Surfacing Here Soon | Bob Dylan in | Don't Look Back by D. A. Pennebaker." Thanks to the back of the Savoy Hotel retaining much of the same exterior as in 1965, the alley used in the video sequence has been identified as the Savoy Steps.[22]

In addition to the Savoy Hotel clip, two alternate promotional films were shot: one in a park (Embankment Gardens, adjacent to the Savoy Hotel) where Dylan, Neuwirth and Ginsberg are joined by Dylan's producer, Tom Wilson, and another shot on the roof of an unknown building (actually the Savoy Hotel). A montage of the clips can be seen in the documentary No Direction Home.

The film clip was used in September 2010 in a promotional video to launch Google Instant.[23] As they are typed, the lyrics of the song generate search engine results pages (SERPS).

Similar videos

The "Subterranean Homesick Blues" film clip and its concepts have been popularly imitated by a number of artists. Influenced and imitative videos of note include:

Personnel

Personnel per Olof Bjorner.[38]

Notes

  1. ↑ The Original Mono Recordings. Legacy Records, 2010, liner notes, p. 51.
  2. 1 2 Gilliland, John (1969). "Show 32 - Ballad in Plain D: An introduction to the Bob Dylan era. [Part 2]" (audio). Pop Chronicles. Digital.library.unt.edu.
  3. ↑ "Bob Dylan - Uncut January 2005 CDs". Uncut Magazine. January 2005. Retrieved 2012-02-05.
  4. ↑ "Rock's Enigmatic Poet Opens a Long-Private Door". Los Angeles Times. April 4, 2004.
  5. ↑ Biograph, 1985, Liner notes & text by Cameron Crowe.
  6. 1 2 Michael Gray, 2000, Song & Dance Man III, p. 83.
  7. ↑ city-journal.org
  8. 1 2 3 Andy Gill (1998). Classic Bob Dylan 1962-69: My Back Pages: pp.68-69,96
  9. ↑ sundazed.com
  10. ↑ "The Rolling Stone 500". Rhino Records. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  11. ↑ Wakin, Daniel J. (August 24, 2003). "Quieter Lives for 60's Militants, but Intensity of Beliefs Hasn't Faded". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  12. ↑ Williams, Carol J. (2011-05-09). "Judges hand down the law with help from Bob Dylan". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
  13. ↑ Siegel, Robert (host) (2011-05-10). "Bob Dylan's Words Find Place In Legal Writings". NPR. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
  14. ↑ According to the study, Dylan was cited in court documents 186 times; the next closest was The Beatles, 74 times (Los Angeles Times, May 9, 2011).
  15. ↑ "News". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 24, 2010. Retrieved 2012-08-13.
  16. ↑ "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-06-23.
  17. ↑ "Leading reggae acts have recorded cover versions of Bob Dylan songs for a new tribute album". BBC News. 2004-03-17. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  18. ↑ Bjorner, Olof (2001). "Covers: Subterranean Homesick Blues". Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  19. ↑ "Alanis Morissette happy to look back". United Press International. 2005-11-15. Retrieved 2008-12-09.
  20. ↑ Amorosi, A.D. (March 12–19, 1998). "Review: Robert Wyatt's Thirsty Ear". Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  21. ↑ rockonthenet.com
  22. ↑ musicpilgrimages.com
  23. ↑ google.com
  24. ↑ Weird Al's "Bob" on YouTube
  25. ↑ dvdverdict.com
  26. ↑ "Les Claypool's Flying Frog Brigade: "Buzzards of Green Hill"". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-04-09.
  27. ↑ alain-chamfort.net
  28. ↑ lukeski.com
  29. ↑ "Royal Canadian Air Farce: Bob Dylan Christmas Songbook". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-04-09.
  30. ↑ "Flaming Lips At War with the Mystics UK Commercial". YouTube. Retrieved 2009-06-21.
  31. ↑ filmlounge.de
  32. ↑ "Belle & Sebastian: "Like Dylan at the Movies"". YouTube. Retrieved 2011-04-09.
  33. ↑ Chasers War On Everything on YouTube
  34. ↑ "Chasers War On Everything". YouTube. Retrieved 2009-06-21.
  35. ↑ julianvelard.com
  36. ↑ BBC Sport 17th March 2012
  37. ↑ Bio: Kenny Rankin
  38. ↑ Bjorner, Olof, Still on the Road 1965, 790

External links

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