Workingman's Blues #2

I think that Bob is talking about his current life on the Never Ending Tour in this song. He views his never ending tour as just going to work in the morning. It could embody some bit longing for normal life in a life where he is now treated as an icon- a "thing". He has an inescapable wall built between himself, (the icon, the spokesman of a generation, etc...) and everyone else he encounters on a day to day basis. When Bob Dylan speaks, everyone listens. Everything he says is examined at a microscopic level for some pearl of wisdom. He can no longer speak on a human level with anyone that is around him. So Working Man Blues then might be about his reflections on how he views his current life situation and about getting up and doing the day to day work that makes Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan. Its about his life on tour (ie “sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall”- telling of life on the tour bus.) But hey, what do i know, i'm just a simple caveman :)

this song is a somewhat familiar theme in Bob's music. He is singing about what is important in life - the simple things are the most meaningful to us all (memories of people you love, sounds of a creek, nightbirds call, lovers breath, cheerful dance). There is some kind of nod that the working class understands/appreciates these simple pleasures. The last verse seems inspired on the recording when he sings about being able to live on rice and beans, noting that some people don't understand what work even means. I bet he's talking about himselft here... A truly classic, wonderful Dylan song.

Right from the start we get a clue that this may be a song about the years after the fall of communism in Russia. (The buyin' power of the proletariat's gone down) A little about that time in Russian history. For 8 decades Russia was a communist state with some success. It was a super power. It's people relied totally on the state and adapting to capitalism was very hard, especially for the older people, alcoholism was rampant and the mafia was very powerful.

In many areas there was anarchy. Many people starved with little pensions to fall back on. The military still had powerful weapons including the bomb, that America was scared to death would be sold on the black market. With the end of the cold war America was no longer constantly worried about what will the USSR do. This fall from power was especially hurtful to Russian pride.

I think this song is an old man singing about his time adjusting to the new,less powerful, Russia. Dylan often moves back and forth between subjects and here the old man talks both to his life in Russia and appeals directly to America for help and friendship. Examples: The buyin' power of the proletariat's gone down Money's gettin' shallow and weak Well, the place I love best is a sweet memory .... Death of the USSR he knew and tough economic times

My cruel weapons have been put on the shelf Come sit down on my knee You are dearer to me than myself As you yourself can see...... Nuclear weapons.. talking to America as a new friend

Just sitting here trying to keep the hunger from Creeping its way into my gut...tough economic times

I'll drag 'em all down to hell and I'll stand 'em at the wall I'll sell 'em to their enemies....Nuclear weapons.

Now the place is ringed with countless foes.. Anarchy.. Mafia

I sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall Sleep is like a temporary death...Alcoholism

Sometimes no one wants what we got Sometimes you can't give it away...Adjusting to capitalism

Well, they burned my barn, and they stole my horse I can't save a dime I got to be careful, I don't want to be forced Into a life of continual crime...Mafia

tell me now, am I wrong in thinking That you have forgotten me?...Question to America

In you, my friend, I find no blame Wanna look in my eyes, please do No one can ever claim That I took up arms against you...Talking to America

Now I'm down on my luck and I'm black and blue Gonna give you another chance I'm all alone and I'm expecting you To lead me off in a cheerful dance...Talking to America

I got a brand new suit and a brand new wife I can live on rice and beans Some people never worked a day in their life Don't know what work even means..Getting better at adjusting to America (sounding like a capitalist)

Even if Dylan did not write this with these themes in mind, they sure do fit well

To me the song strongly suggests the period of Reconstruction after the American Civil War. The narrator could be a soldier mustered out after the war (from either the North or the South) who is contemplating going home and getting his life back together. He's "listening to the steel rails hum" or he's "sailing on back ready for the long haul." In either case he is going home to his "brand new wife" who seems to have forgotten him and whose tongue will have to be straightened out.

The term "proletariat" came into wide usage during this period of time when Karl Marx (1818 - 1883) used it to describe a class of citizens who have only their own labor to sell. That's a good description of a workingman. Now, after the war, it's time to put your cruel weapons up on the shelf and get back to work, selling your labor. But as the enemy troops retreated, they burned your barn and they stole your horse so you'll have to live on rice and beans for a while to get back on your feet.

The line about "peaceful sacred fields" seems to be an allusion to battlegrounds like Gettysburg, of which Abraham Lincoln said, "The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract." The workingman/soldier/veteran knows from experience that "they'll break your horns and slash you with steel" in battle. "I say it, so it must be so," he asserts.

I interpret this song, with its haunting beauty, as a tribute to those who returned home after the worst conflagration is U.S. history and rolled up their sleeves to work again. Dylan's genius wove this narrative into a love ballad with layer upon layer of profound meaning. I can't get this song out of my head. Thank you, Mr. Dylan.

Basically, this song is about(and narrated by) a factory worker who was laid off, probably in the late 80s/early 90s, as a result of outsourcing and automation. furthermore:

There's an evenin' haze settlin' over town Starlight by the edge of the creek The buyin' power of the proletariat's gone down Money's gettin' shallow and weak Well, the place I love best is a sweet memory It's a new path that we trod They say low wages are a reality If we want to compete abroad

The narrator is musing on the situation--the dollar is weak, and times are changing. "it's a new path we trod/they say low wages are reality/if we want to compete abroad" was common anti-union logic in this time period.

My cruel weapons have been put on the shelf Come sit down on my knee You are dearer to me than myself As you yourself can see While I'm listening to the steel rails hum Got both eyes tight shut Just sitting here trying to keep the hunger from Creeping its way into my gut

He was formerly a soldier, and is talking to a child, or maybe grandchild, probably one that he has some hand in supporting. because of this, he is living in poor conditions--by the railroad tracks, literally. He is trying to fight off hunger pangs as he sleeps.

Meet me at the bottom, don't lag behind Bring me my boots and shoes You can hang back or fight your best on the frontline Sing a little bit of these workingman's blues

the basic gist is that it doesn't matter if you'er a soldier or a factory worker, you're still a working man, and as such will suffer.

Well, I'm sailin' on back, ready for the long haul Tossed by the winds and the seas I'll drag 'em all down to hell and I'll stand 'em at the wall I'll sell 'em to their enemies I'm tryin' to feed my soul with thought Gonna sleep off the rest of the day Sometimes no one wants what we got Sometimes you can't give it away

He is reminiscing about his days as a soldier, and, emboldened by that, thinks about what he would do to his "enemies," those who used him and then threw him to the side when he was no longer convenient. Finally, he realizes that he's just bluffing, that he couldn't do any of that. he rationalizes his poverty and unemployment by saying that "sometimes nobody wants what you've got/sometimes you can't give it away".

Now the place is ringed with countless foes Some of them may be deaf and dumb No man, no woman knows The hour that sorrow will come In the dark I hear the night birds call I can feel a lover's breath I sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall Sleep is like a temporary death

the first two lines are in reference to his former workplace--now full of enemies, most of them(to his mind), idiots and unworthy of what they have. the rest of the stanza is a continuation from the last--he decided to go to sleep, but, as he says, he "sleeps in the kitchen with his feet in the hall" -- another description of his poor housing. As he lays down for bed, he feels that maybe death isn't so bad now, it's just like going to sleep.

Meet me at the bottom, don't lag behind Bring me my boots and shoes You can hang back or fight your best on the frontline Sing a little bit of these workingman's blues

Well, they burned my barn, and they stole my horse I can't save a dime I got to be careful, I don't want to be forced Into a life of continual crime I can see for myself that the sun is sinking How I wish you were here to see Tell me now, am I wrong in thinking That you have forgotten me?

"they" is again, his employers(i feel like "barn" is probably a metaphor for his retirement savings, which at the time were often company managed, so when he lost the job, he lost his savings. Horse is probably his car, which he lost, again possibly to his employers(in the past, employers would provide loans for things like this--now that he can't pay the loan, they repossessed the car). He doesn't want to have to resort to crime, and for whatever reason, this leads him to think back to a former acquaintance, or maybe a lover.

Now they worry and they hurry and they fuss and they fret They waste your nights and days Them I will forget But you I'll remember always Old memories of you to me have clung You've wounded me with your words Gonna have to straighten out your tongue It's all true, everything you've heard

still talking about this acquaintance, it's clear that where he fomented as a factory worker, his acquaintance rose up into the corporate world("they worry and they hurry and the fuss and they fret/they waste your nights and days" is about the best description of corporate management i've ever heard). He holds that against this person, but feels that while he will eventually forget that, this person will always hold a special place in his heart. this person defends him, but he doesn't feel like he's worth defending.

Meet me at the bottom, don't lag behind Bring me my boots and shoes You can hang back or fight your best on the frontline Sing a little bit of these workingman's blues

In you, my friend, I find no blame Wanna look in my eyes, please do No one can ever claim That I took up arms against you All across the peaceful sacred fields They will lay you low They'll break your horns and slash you with steel I say it so it must be so

now his thoughts turn to a former coworker who was not laid off. he doesn't blame his coworker for working there, but he's warning him that they will work him to death.

Now I'm down on my luck and I'm black and blue Gonna give you another chance I'm all alone and I'm expecting you To lead me off in a cheerful dance I got a brand new suit and a brand new wife I can live on rice and beans Some people never worked a day in their life Don't know what work even means

finally, as he drifts to sleep, he thinks back on all the good things--the "you" he's referring to is life. "a cheerful dance" is just his way of saying that he hopes things get better. he's apparently found a new wife, and with his new suit he's prepared to go out and find work again. He can eat beans and rice for now. He realizes that his experiences are a gift to him, something that some people will never have("some people never worked a day in their lives/don't know what work even means").

Well, meet me at the bottom, don't lag behind Bring me my boots and shoes You can hang back or fight your best on the frontline Sing a little bit of these workingman's blues

The best song on Modern Times IMO.

Can someone please give me some explanations about this song, i love dylans music so much but i'm too dumb too understand most of the lyrics...

what a song...I cant even begin to describe what it means to me....He sounds like a such a wise man in this song like he's going over his experiences and just humming a tune to them all...he kind of is I guess in a way... he's always been able to be so down to earth...and able to sing to the blue collar, hard working person who fights to survive....this song to me is about the ups and downs of life but you have just got to keep fightin....just a wonderful album in general..he gets better as the years go on..he's always been so mysterious to me..my favorate line is "I sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall, sleep is like a temporary death."..simply beautiful.

Easily the best song Dylan has written since Mississippi.

I'm tying to figure out the line: I sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall Sleep is like a temporary death

I seem to remember way back in my head that there was some old west/cowboy superstition about sleeping with your feet in the hall. Does that ring a bell with anyone?