Yes, 'n' how many ears must one man have

WEEK 1 Before he can hear people cry?

Yes, 'n' how many deaths will it take 'til he
Bob Dylan: Blowin’ in the Wind (1962)
knows
That too many people have died?
How many roads must a man walk down
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the
Before you call him a man?
wind
How many seas must a white dove sail
The answer is blowin' in the wind
Before she sleeps in the sand?
Yes, 'n' how many times must the cannon
***
balls fly
No more auction block for me
Before they're forever banned?
No more, no more
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the
No more auction block for me
wind
Many thousands gone
The answer is blowin' in the wind
No more pint of salt for me
Yes, 'n' how many years can a mountain
No more, no more
exist
No more pint of salt for me
Before it is washed to the sea?
Many thousands gone
Yes, 'n' how many years can some people
exist
No more driver's lash for me
Before they're allowed to be free?
No more, no more
Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his
No more driver's lash for me
head
Many thousands gone
And pretend that he just doesn't see?
The answer, my friend, is blowin' in the
No more auction block for me
wind
No more, no more
The answer is blowin' in the wind
No more auction block for me
Many thousands gone
Yes, 'n' how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky?
Hints for Interpretation of Songs (the separation on the four “domains” is just for
our analytical purposes and problematic, of course)

LYRICS
* Grammar of lyrics (pronouns, tense –1. sg. 3.sg, past tense, present tense; questions, or
affirmative or conditional sentences; rhymes and vertical metaphors, composition … „We“ in
nationalistic and communist songs.) Who is speaking? Who is s/he speaking to? Does the object
have a voice?
*Phonetics of lyrics. Alliteration, etc. Beauty, euphony, cacophony, etc.
*Structure: Strophic structure or lacking this structure. Chorus and verse – collective vs.
individual principle.
*Analysis of (recurring) imagery, metaphors, motifs... how does the imagery carry meaning…
*Symbol vs. Allegory. (Cf. „wreath“, „water“, „green“; „train“ in folklore. Yet symbolism can also
be unique for authors – what is the “wind?”) Literal meaning and „symbolic meaning“.
* Intertexuality (context within the album, with other albums/texts, alusions!, “dialogue” as
relating to folklore – No More Auction Block for Me.
* Narrative (does it tell a story?) or is it statement? What kind of words prevail? nouns, verbs…
* What values are affirmed? What values are questioned in the song? (Or in the song corpus like
the album?)
* Regular and irregular form (pop vs. alternative) [is Dylan regular or irregular?]*Word rhythm
and its harmony or clash with musical rhythm?

MUSIC
* DNA of the genre! (cf- blues) and DNA of the musical part (e.g. Blowin’ in the Wind and No
More Auction Block for Me)
* Musical meanings (within given culture): Minor/Major/different; fast or slow; danceable; beat
(upbeat , offbeat..), relatable or not, harmony vs . disharmony; dissonance; noise
* Relation between singing and instrumental part!
* Dynamics (from whispering to shouting)
* Chord progressions and its musical meanings (settled, nervous…) intro, verse (2-3),
pre-chorus, chorus (repetitive, high and powerful), bridge (new lyrics and music to make us long
for something familiar again- ie. chorus!), outro…POP! Or alternative?
PERFORMANCE–VOICE!
* Audience? * Engineered to be palatable? Commercial (aiming for Top 40, or not?)
* Group or solo?...
* Style of rendering (expressive, poppy…) (self-)Irony?
* Good performance, bad performance, why?
* Music video! (Imagery, story, shots, angle, framing…)

WORLD (HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT, AUDIENCE, VALUES)

* Subversive or affirmative of the current context? Political, cultural, social contexts from which
the lyrics arise and relate to? When? Intrinsically political? Explicitly political? Songs
reception?
*Values? (Self)Irony ?
* What the author says about the song…yet we must be careful about this [“There ain't too much
I can say about this song except that the answer is blowing in the wind. It ain't in no book or
movie or TV show or discussion group. Man, it's in the wind — and it's blowing in the wind. Too
many of these hip people are telling me where the answer is but oh I won't believe that. I still say
it's in the wind and just like a restless piece of paper it's got to come down some ... But the only
trouble is that no one picks up the answer when it comes down so not too many people get to see
and know ... and then it flies away. I still say that some of the biggest criminals are those that
turn their heads away when they see wrong and know it's wrong. I'm only 21 years old and I
know that there's been too many wars ... You people over 21, you're older and smarter.” – Bob
Dylan]
And the relations between these four…cf. Relation between text and music: harmony or
dissonance? (cf. „Ach jo“: ach není, tu není…, hej rup!, country song about blm ] Irony…

Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey, 1981

Just a small town girl

Livin' in a lonely world Strangers waitin'
She took the midnight train going Up and down the boulevard
anywhere Their shadows searchin' in the night
Just a city boy Streetlights, people
Born and raised in South Detroit Livin' just to find emotion
He took the midnight train going anywhere Hidin', somewhere in the night

A singer in a smokey room Workin' hard to get my fill

A smell of wine and cheap perfume Everybody wants a thrill
For a smile they can share the night Payin' anything to roll the dice
It goes on and on and on and on Just one more time
 This town, is coming like a ghost town
Some'll win, some will lose Government leaving the youth on the shelf
Some are born to sing the blues This town, is coming like a ghost town
Whoa, the movie never ends No job to be found in this country
It goes on and on and on and on Can't go on no more
The people getting angry
Strangers waitin'
Up and down the boulevard This town's becoming like a ghost town
Their shadows searchin' in the night This town's becoming like a ghost town
Streetlights, people This town's becoming like a ghost town
Livin' just to find emotion This town's becoming like a ghost town
Hidin', somewhere in the night

Don't stop believin' The Specials - Vote For Me – YouTube,

Hold on to that feelin' 2018
Streetlights, people
https://www.youtube.com › watch
Don't stop believin'
Hold on If we vote for you, do you promise
Streetlights, people To be upright, decent and honest
To have our best interest at heart
Don't stop believin' You understand why we don't believe you
Hold on to that feelin' You're way too easy to see through
Streetlights, people Not the best places to start
There are no rocks at Rockaway beach
And all that glitters isn't gold
You're all so drunk on money and power
Ghost Town, Specials 2019 Inside your Ivory tower
This town, is coming like a ghost town Teaching us not to be smart
All the clubs have been closed down Making laws that serve to protect you
This town, is coming like a ghost town But we will never forget that
Bands won't play no more You tore our families apart
Too much fighting on the dance floor There are no rocks at Rockaway beach
And all that glitters isn't gold
Do you remember the good old days before So if we vote for you, do you promise
the ghost town? To be upright, decent and honest
We danced and sang, and the music played And take away all of the fear
in a de boomtown You sit and wait for us to elect you
But all we'll do is reject you
This town, is coming like a ghost town Your politics bore us to tears
Why must the youth fight against There are no rocks at Rockaway beach
themselves? And all that glitters isn't gold
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Horace Panter / Lynval "Son, " him said, "Come join me"
Golding / Nikolaj Torp Larsen / Terry Hall So I set sail on a ship called the Askena
Vote For Me lyrics © BMG Rights When I reached Northampton on a cold
Management, Universal Music Publishing winter's night
Group Boy, I was freezing
I wanted to tell the captain to just take me
Relates to Ghost town, written 37 before! back to Jamaica
As the last song of the old Specials! But no, I was here to stay
So my father sent me to a school
The Specials: BLM, 2019 Linden Road school in Gloucester
Lynval Golding, born 1951 I remember the first playtime
Mendes, St Catherine, Jamaica A boy shout across at me
The year was 1954, you know "Oi, you black bastard, come 'ere"
Sir Winston Churchill shout across the I said, "What?"
Western islands He said, "Come 'ere, you black bastard"
He said, "Come, help us rebuild this I still couldn't believe, I says, "What?
country devastated by war" Are you talking to me?
And so anyway, my father set sail upon the Are you talking to me?"
wind rush, born for a new life Boy, welcome to England
My father was a tailor by trade
And so this could be the possibility of all I'm not here to teach you
possibilities I'm not here to preach to you
But no, there was no cloth to stitch I just want to reach out
Instead, you know what? And say
He found work in a steel foundry
Pouring hot metal day and night, day and In 1994, I move again
night The land of the free, the home of the brave
And even worse, you know what then? The United State of America
Him tried to find a room to rent And there I was
This was becoming a nightmare for him Just walking along in the sun, minding my
He'd knock on door after door after door own business
But the sign on the window kept saying the Such a beautiful day, man, when I
same thing remember
"No dogs, no Irish, no blacks" I had to buy a watch for my sister's
Welcome to England birthday
When why eventually I found this store
I'm not here to teach you As I walk through the door
I'm not here to preach to you This woman in the store shouted at me
I just want to reach out "What you doing here, you goddamn
And say nigger?"
I said, "I-I'm just, I'm just trying to buy a
Time move on watch for my sister"
In 1964, my father shout across Jamaica When she heard my accent, she said
"Oh, you're not from here, you're not one Peter should know better
of them"
Your cover up is caving in
"One of them?" I said, "You mean me
being black? Man is such a fool, why are we saving
Well ma'am, let me tell you something him?
right, I am black Poisoning themselves now
Is that all you see? The color of my skin?"
In England, them call you a black bastard Begging for our help, wow
In America, they call you a goddamn
nigger
Boy, welcome to my world Hills burn in California
But I'm not here to teach you My turn to ignore ya
I'm not here to preach to you
I just want to reach out and say Don't say I didn't warn ya
Black lives matter
All the good girls go to Hell (All the good
Billie Eilish: All the Good Girls Go to Hell
girls go to Hell)
(2019)
'Cause even God herself (God herself) has
My Lucifer is lonely enemies

Standing there, killing time And once the water starts to rise (Water
Can't commit to anything but a crime starts to rise)
Peter's on vacation, an open invitation And Heaven's out of sight
Animals, evidence
Pearly Gates look more like a picket fence She'll want the Devil on her team
Once you get inside 'em
Got friends but can't invite them
My Lucifer is lonely
Hills burn in California
My turn to ignore ya There's nothing left to save now
Don't say I didn't warn ya My god is gonna owe me
All the good girls go to Hell
'Cause even God herself has enemies There's nothing left to save now
And once the water starts to rise Haha!
And Heaven's out of sight
She'll want the Devil on her team I cannot do the snowflake
My Lucifer is lonely

Look at you needing me

You know I'm not your friend without
some greenery
Walk in wearin' fetters