Brownsville Girl Lyrics
About a man riding 'cross the desert and it starred Gregory Peck.
He was shot down by a hungry kid trying to make a name for himself.
The townspeople wanted to crush that kid down and string him up by the neck.
as the dying gunfighter lay in the sun and gasped for his last breath.
Turn him loose, let him go, let him say he outdrew me fair and square,
I want him to feel what it's like to every moment face his death.
And you know it blows right through me like a ball and chain.
You know I can't believe we've lived so long and are still so far apart.
The memory of you keeps callin' after me like a rollin' train.
In your busted down Ford and your platform heels
I could never figure out why you chose that particular place to meet
Ah, but you were right. It was perfect as I got in behind the wheel.
And we slept near the Alamo, your skin was so tender and soft.
Way down in Mexico you went out to find a doctor and you never came back.
I would have gone on after you but I didn't feel like letting my head get blown off.
Now I know she ain't you but she's here and she's got that dark rhythm in her soul.
But I'm too over the edge and I ain't in the mood anymore to remember the times when I was your only man
And she don't want to remind me. She knows this car would go out of control.
Brownsville girl, show me all around the world, Brownsville girl, you're my honey love.
We pulled up where Henry Porter used to live. He owned a wreckin' lot outside of town about a mile.
Ruby was in the backyard hanging clothes, she had her red hair tied back. She saw us come rolling up in a trail of dust.
She said, "Henry ain't here but you can come on in, he'll be back in a little while."
But ya know, she changed the subject every time money came up.
She said, "Welcome to the land of the living dead." You could tell she was so broken-hearted.
She said, "Even the swap meets around here are getting pretty corrupt."
"We're going all the way 'til the wheels fall off and burn,
'Til the sun peels the paint and the seat covers fade and the water moccasin dies."
Ruby just smiled and said, "Ah, you know some babies never learn."
But I can't remember why I was in it or what part I was supposed to play.
All I remember about it was Gregory Peck and the way people moved
And a lot of them seemed to be lookin' my way.
Brownsville girl, show me all around the world, Brownsville girl, you're my honey love.
I was crossin' the street when shots rang out.
I didn't know whether to duck or to run, so I ran.
"We got him cornered in the churchyard," I heard somebody shout.
You went out on a limb to testify for me, you said I was with you.
Then when I saw you break down in front of the judge and cry real tears,
It was the best acting I saw anybody do.
Oh if there's an original thought out there, I could use it right now.
You know, I feel pretty good, but that ain't sayin' much. I could feel a whole lot better,
If you were just here by my side to show me how.
Yeah, but you know it's not the one that I had in mind.
He's got a new one out now, I don't even know what it's about
But I'll see him in anything so I'll stand in line.
Brownsville girl, show me all around the world, Brownsville girl, you're my honey love.
The only thing we knew for sure about Henry Porter is that his name wasn't Henry Porter.
And you know there was somethin' about you baby that I liked that was always too good for this world
Just like you always said there was something about me you liked that I left behind in the French Quarter.
I don't have any regrets, they can talk about me plenty when I'm gone.
You always said people don't do what they believe in, they just do what's most convenient, then they repent.
And I always said, "Hang on to me, baby, and let's hope that the roof stays on."
I don't remember who I was or where I was bound.
All I remember about it was it starred Gregory Peck, he wore a gun and he was shot in the back.
Seems like a long time ago, long before the stars were torn down.
Brownsville girl, show me all around the world, Brownsville girl, you're my honey love.

Brilliant. This song is a masterpiece. A story of confusion and the path that life takes you on. A path that you have no say in. The line, "Way down in Mexico you went out to find a doctor and you never came back. I would have gone on after you but I didn't feel like letting my head get blown off" is particularly troubling to me. The Kerouac-On the Road comparison is dead on, a book and man that proved to be a significant influence on Dylan in his early years. I actually think there's more Ginsberg in this than Kerouac. Great lines like "You always said people don't do what they believe in, they just do what's most convenient, then they repent. And I always said, "Hang on to me, baby, and let's hope that the roof stays on" and "But I'm too over the edge and I ain't in the mood anymore to remember the times when I was your only man. And she don't want to remind me. She knows this car would go out of control" depict struggles in life and confusion when looking back on the past. Time has always been troublesome to Dylan (and Cohen alike) and this song brings out the same themes seen in earlier ones like Simple Twist of Fate. The feeling of having fallen in love but not realizing it until after, when it's too late. All in all this song shows that Dylan never 'lost it', rather his expansion to greater themes and multiple types of music have led him to areas that devoted Dylan fans aren't necessarily impressed by. It was like when Dylan went electric and pissed off all his earlier fans, but most Dylan fans are fans of albums like Highway 61 and Blood, so it shows that ppl shouldn't be excommunicating Dylan for his various eras (Reborn) and should be appreciating all of the prophet's music. Bit of a rant.

I see two major themes that intertwine and alternate.
First, Dylan sees himself as the gunfighter in the movie. Dylan is a rock legend that perhaps is constantly facing challenges of being on top. Dylan keeps saying that he is in the movie (but unsure of the part). For example, I see his getting caught in the churchyard as a reference to his potential loss of popularity as a Christian.
Secondly, i think there is a "Jack Kerouac-style" love story.
I love the song, and wonder if the love part if a compilation of fact or a fiction.

Back when Bob was awarded a Kennedy Center medal for his contribution to American arts and culture (or whatever), Gregory Peck read his citation and jokingly referred to Brownsville Girl. Any fan of Peck's especially his role as Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird, will understand Bob's reference. The narrator in Brownsville Girl is on that great American search for integrity-- on the road, across borders, in himself, in a companion, even at the movies. And when he finds it, he's willing to stand on line in the rain.

The narrator had this vision of how his life would go, (probably with a girl, considering the "lost love" theme mixed in with it,) and has found that what he got was something totally different- and he's still not sure whether its good or bad. Either way, he knows that whether he got what he thought he would get (the Gregory Peck movie he saw) or another life totally different, life is an adventure and you're still you, whether or not you're who you intended to be. "I'll see him in anything so I'll stand in line." Now looking back at his past, his regrets, his loves, his ideals; he's revealing everything he's learned. No, his life isn't perfect, but he's stronger, wiser and tougher. On the Road shares some similar themes (by the way- if you haven't read it, read it. If you like Bob I guarantee you'll love it!!) I always thought his life post- Sara might've played a role in the theme of this song.
For some reason, hearing this song on iTunes radio made me feel like a "complete" Dylan fan. Like FootofPride said, most folks think of Bob and think of "Highway 61," and I always thought he sorta tucked this one away for his "real fans." Definitely see the Leonard Cohen influence too, on how they did the music- emphasis on lyrics without losing the power of the music.

cool but long

A songwriting experiment with Sam Shepard that is the best moment of the otherwise mixed-up 'Knocked-Out Loaded'. Like the other songs on that album, it suffers from mid-80's overproduction...the backing vox are cool but mixed too high.
The good thing is that Dylan was getting back into the storytelling side of his writing, something that had been neglected since 'Street Legal'. This song is epic without being intense. Appropriately, it is best listened to as if it were a movie. It gets better with each listen; there is more than enough detail in it to keep you from getting bored. It is just about a guy reminiscing about a particular woman's good qualities and her strength in the face of the bad situation they were in. Play this for anyone who accuses Bob of being a misogynist writer.

Brilliant song, and there's not many of Dylan's 80s tunes you can say that about. Written partly as a response to Lou Reed's "Doing The Things That We Want To" - which is a tribute to among others Sam Shepard. Dylan keeps getting stuck on the image from "The Gunfighter" and "can't remember why I was in it or what part I was supposed to play" - is he the young upstart, the wise lawman or the oldie has-been? Mix that up with the memories of a woman he once loved and the one he's with now, various ruminations on storytelling, identities and "keeping on keeping on". Something tells me there's some very personal stuff in this, buried under the western clichés and whatnot; the man from "Dont Look Back" looks back, 20 years later.
Also, I love the chorus girls' "Oh yeah?" after Dylan claims not to have any regrets. Oh, and how the hell does he fit all those words into one line?

This song cover many aspects of nostalgia but mostly talk about materialism in our world and the lack of simplicity "All I remember about it was Gregory Peck and the way people moved" and in I believe that 80% of the song talks about it in many various ways.

I think all of the song is about Dylan's relationship with his fans as he journeys through life like the journet in teh song. He saw the movie (Gunfighter) once and he lived it once - saying that he was in the movie. I think Dylan is like Henry Porter from "Rawhide" - changing his name like Dylan did - but more importantly we really do not know much about him.

"Way down in Mexico you went out to find a doctor and you never came back." isn't this straight out of the ending of On the Road? i don't know about finding a doctor, but Dean leaves Sal in the hospital and never comes back