Bob Dylan’s Success as a Songwriter

What makes Bob Dylan special? Bob Dylan was a man that was awarded with the Nobel Prize for literature, an extraordinary award that someone can receive. Bob Dylan is an incredible storyteller, and songwriter. Mr. Dylan constructed beautiful lyrics, that brings messages to the listers that listen to his music. Dylan never thought his music would reach the level, to win the Nobel Prize. Adding, a phrase that Dylan spoke in his speech “Bob Dylan’s acceptance speech for the Nobel Prize in Literature” (2016) I got to wondering exactly how my songs related to literature.” He reflects how his songs could be related to literature. Dylan’s songs “Tangled up in blue”, “Homesick Blues”, bring people to there imagination, brings confusion, and enthuse, that’s why people fell in love with his songs. It feels like stories, that’s why they awarded Dylan because they saw he qualified with his work, not all songwriters receive this honorable awarded. Dylan is an extraordinary idealistic person, that brings dramatic feeling, for example “Tangled Up in Blue”, it felt like a sad feeling, sense of traveling because of the notes he plays. This is why Bob Dylan is a remarkable person, and deserved the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Dylan wrote a song that is extremely confusing, but enjoying. I really acknowledge this piece that Dylan wrote “Tangled Up in Blue” (1975). This song was based on lost and confused love story, many things that this song has makes you, with a question, or an imagine. In the first verse in “Tangled up in Blue” (1975) made me think, and give lots of inferences. Some believe this is him, but it can be a random made up character that Dylan made, or it could be him or what he went through. This is one of the pieces that he wrote that is also can be a part of the Nobel Prize.

In the second verse it say’s “She was married when we first met soon to be divorced, I helped out of a jam, I guess but I used a little too much force. We drove that car as far as we could. Abandon it out west. Split up on a dark, sad night . Both agree it was best. She turned around to look at me. As I was walking away I heard her say over my shoulder, “We’ll meet again someday on the avenue.” This part I believe that he try to help her but, something went wrong, meaning he killed the girl husband or something happen, it say’s “I helped out of a jam, I guess, But I used a little too much force.” In my perspective I believe that what happen because later in the verse they went different way’s I might be wrong because “out of a jam” can be defined something else. The next verse the last phrase, say’s “I seen a lot of women But never escaped my mind, and I just grew” This part wants to state that he misses her and thinks about her, and little by little to forget about her but he can’t. Another, verse is verse 4, he stops by the bar, mostly it is a strip club. He sees a woman that looks very familiar, but doesn’t want to say anything. It say’s I just kept lookin’ at the side of her face in the spotlight so clear.” Then, she walked up to him and he didn’t know to say to the girl, another phrase say’s, Don’t I know your name?” I muttered somthin’ underneath my breath, she studied the lines on my face. In the last verse it say’s he wants to get back with her, like it say’s “I’m goin’ back again I got to get to her somehow.”If you can hear in the last verse when it’s being sung with a harmonica solo and then jump back to the start, it feels like all he did was chase a girl with no point in it. Next 3 lines it say’s “But me, I’m still on the road headin’ for another joint”, all he did was chase it was like adventure. In the last line it say’s we always did feel the same, we just saw it from a different point of view”. Meaning now he can move on with his life.

Another, song that he wrote is “Homesick Blue” (1965) this is another song that is terrific, and interesting because in the song “Homesick Blue” (1965) in the verse 1 it is about doing drugs, because it say’s in the first line “Jonny’s in the basement, mixin’ up the medicine” and the other line underneath that it say’s “I’m on the pavement, thinkin’ about the government.” Meaning he is paranoid and worry if the cops would show up. The next line it say’s “look out kid, it’s somthin’ you did, god knows when, but you’re doin it again.” Probably means that they caught him for something but he say’s he didn’t do nothing but he might sell drugs again. Another thing that came in mind is that it can be referred to as the prosecution of Jack Johnson for violating the Mann Act in 1912. The Mann Act was not actually voted into law until 1910, but Johnson’s conviction came on charges for offenses that allegedly took place in 1909. This was an interesting and can be interpreted in many different ways.

Bob Dylan, got up and spoke about how he was inspired, how he reacted to how he won the Nobel Prize. His speech in the “Bob Dylan Acceptance Speech For The Nobel Prize.” (2016) showed how shocked he was when receiving the Award. Dylan gets his inspiration from a few artists. Some of the artists were Buddy Holly, jean Richie, and etc. He mostly got almost all his inspiration in books, themes, the bible, and the melody and he liked how jazz, country blues, and Ragtime Blues. The guy named Buddy Holly, was also a musician and songwriter but he didn’t when anything, but Dylan did. Dylan reflected why he deserves it, there is other poetry people, other people that do true literature. His work is marvelous because he states and makes it a story, and that’s what grabs people's attention. Also, some books that inspire him are Moby Dick, All Quiet on the Western Front, and The Odyssey.

Bob Dylan is one of the most creative, storytelling people, now seeing and hearing the words he says it is very enjoying, fun, and gives you the question, that makes one want to hear more about what goes on next. The work that he puts in really makes his music interesting, like a book, the nice rhythm, the melody of his acoustic guitar that he plays, it involves a mixture of country music and Jazz. To conclude, he did deserve to win the honorable Nobel Prize of Literature. This is what makes Bob Dylan special.