Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast, where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

Henry welcomes Twin Cities musician, Peter Hayward to talk and sing about "Early Roman Kings," from Dylan's 2012 album Tempest.

Check out Peter's amazing music and follow him here: https://linktr.ee/peterhayward 

Written by: Bob Dylan

All the early Roman Kings in their sharkskin suits
Bowties and buttons, high top boots
Driving the spikes in, blazing the rails
Nailed in their coffins in top hats and tails
Fly away little bird, fly away, flap your wings
Fly by night like the early Roman Kings

All the early Roman Kings in the early, early morn’
Coming down the mountain, distributing the corn
Speeding through the forest, racing down the track
You try to get away, they drag you back
Tomorrow is Friday, we’ll see what it brings
Everybody’s talking ‘bout the early Roman Kings

They’re peddlers and they’re meddlers, they buy and they sell
They destroyed your city, they’ll destroy you as well
They’re lecherous and treacherous, hell bent for leather
Each of them bigger than all men put together
Sluggers and muggers wearing fancy gold rings
All the women going crazy for the early Roman Kings

I'll dress up your wounds with a blood clotted rag
I ain’t afraid to make love to a bitch or a hag
If you see me coming and you’re standing there
Wave your handkerchief in the air
I ain’t dead yet, my bell still rings
I keep my fingers crossed like the early Roman Kings

I'll strip you of life, strip you of breath
Ship you down to the house of death
One day you will ask for me
There’ll be no one else that you’ll want to see
Bring down my fiddle, tune up my strings
Gonna break it wide open like the early Roman Kings

I was up on black mountain the day Detroit fell
They killed them all off and they sent them to hell
Ding Dong Daddy, you’re coming up short
Gonna put you on trial in a Sicilian court
I’ve had my fun, I’ve had my flings
Gonna shake ‘em all down like the early Roman Kings
 

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

On Tuesday, December 3. Michael Smith and I flew down to Orlando, FL from Chicago, IL for a press and guild screening of the new James Mangold film about Bob Dylan. It was an amazing experience. Immediately after the film, Michael and I went to the AMC theatre bar and talked for almost 2 hours about the film. Unfortunately I only hit record about halfway through our conversation, so you will be joining us mid-convo. First you’ll hear the 45 second spoiler free reaction and then we’ll transition to the full conversation. Please be aware this is a FULL SPOILER REVIEW. If you haven’t seen the film yet, I highly recommend you turn this off now, and wait until after you see it. You have been warned! Enjoy!

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast, where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

Henry welcomes Christopher Vanni to the show to talk about Bob Dylan's North Country Blues from the 1964 album, The Times They Are A-Changin'. 

Listen to North Country Blues

and follow along with the lyrics:

WRITTEN BY: BOB DYLAN

Come gather ’round friends

And I’ll tell you a tale

Of when the red iron pits ran plenty

But the cardboard filled windows

And old men on the benches

Tell you now that the whole town is empty

In the north end of town

My own children are grown

But I was raised on the other

In the wee hours of youth

My mother took sick

And I was brought up by my brother

The iron ore poured

As the years passed the door

The drag lines an’ the shovels they was a-humming

’Til one day my brother

Failed to come home

The same as my father before him

Well a long winter’s wait

From the window I watched

My friends they couldn’t have been kinder And my schooling was cut

As I quit in the spring

To marry John Thomas, a miner

Oh the years passed again

And the givin’ was good

With the lunch bucket filled every season

What with three babies born

The work was cut down

To a half a day’s shift with no reason

Then the shaft was soon shut

And more work was cut

And the fire in the air, it felt frozen

’Til a man come to speak

And he said in one week

That number eleven was closin’

They complained in the East

They are paying too high

They say that your ore ain’t worth digging

That it’s much cheaper down

In the South American towns

Where the miners work almost for nothing

So the mining gates locked

And the red iron rotted

And the room smelled heavy from drinking

Where the sad, silent song

Made the hour twice as long

As I waited for the sun to go sinking

I lived by the window

As he talked to himself

This silence of tongues it was building

Then one morning’s wake

The bed it was bare

And I’s left alone with three children

The summer is gone

The ground’s turning cold

The stores one by one they’re a-foldin’

My children will go

As soon as they grow

Well, there ain’t nothing here now to hold them

Follow Christopher Vanni @Vanni621 and check out his substack - https://christopherv.substack.com/

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast where we explore the man and the music one song at a time. 

In this episode, I take the show on the road to the home of my dear friend Roberta Rakove, to talk about the 1970 song, The Man In Me from the album New Morning.

You can follow Roberta @roberta_rakove on twitter.

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

2 days after 3 nights at the Outlaw Festival, we welcome Robin Haar and Adam Selzer to give a first hand field report from the 3 shows!

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

In this episode, we welcome international guest Elle Paniche from Venezuela, here to talk about the 1985 song, Tight Connection To My Heart (Has Anyone Seen My Love?) from the album Empire Burlesque. 

You can follow Elle @l0velyelena on twitter. 

Stream or Download Tight Connection To My Heart (Has Anyone Seen My Love?)

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice. 

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

In our inaugural episode, we welcome acclaimed Chicago filmmaker Michael Glover Smith, here to talk about the 2012 title track, Tempest from, Tempest. 

You can follow Michael @whitecitycinema, and check out his film Relative now streaming on all platforms. 

Stream or Download Tempest on Apple Music

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast, where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Acclaimed filmmaker Michael Glover Smith invited me to fly to Orlando, FL from Chicago to attend a Press and Guild Screening of James Mangold's film A Complete Unknown which is being released on December 25. Although it was a long way to travel and expensive, it was worth it. This is a 45 second SPOILER-FREE (so that means NO SPOILERS) reaction. Enjoy and go see this film!

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify

Welcome to Songs of Experience: A Bob Dylan Podcast, where we explore the man and the music one song at a time.

Henry welcomes fellow Bob Dylan Podcaster, Erin Callahan to talk about "False Prophet," the second track off of Dylan's 2020 album Rough & Rowdy Ways.

Follow along with the lyrics below.

Check out Erin's amazing substack and podcast on https://thefm.club/dylan/ and follow Erin on Instagram and Twitter

Written by: Bob Dylan

Another day without end - another ship going out
Another day of anger - bitterness and doubt
I know how it happened - I saw it begin
I opened my heart to the world and the world came in

Hello Mary Lou - Hello Miss Pearl
My fleet footed guides from the underworld
No stars in the sky shine brighter than you
You girls mean business and I do too

I’m the enemy of treason - the enemy of strife
I’m the enemy of the unlived meaningless life
I ain’t no false prophet - I just know what I know
I go where only the lonely can go

I’m first among equals - second to none
I’m last of the best - you can bury the rest
Bury ‘em naked with their silver and gold
Put ‘em six feet under and then pray for their souls

What are you lookin’ at - there’s nothing to see
Just a cool breeze encircling me
Let’s walk in the garden - so far and so wide
We can sit in the shade by the fountain side

I’ve searched the world over for the Holy Grail
I sing songs of love - I sing songs of betrayal
Don’t care what I drink - don’t care what I eat
I climbed a mountain of swords on my bare feet

You don’t know me darlin’ - you never would guess
I’m nothing like my ghostly appearance would suggest
I ain’t no false prophet - I just said what I said
I’m here to bring vengeance on somebody’s head

Put out your hand - there’s nothin’ to hold
Open your mouth - I’ll stuff it with gold
Oh you poor Devil - look up if you will
The City of God is there on the hill

Hello stranger - Hello and goodbye
You rule the land but so do I
You lusty old mule - you got a poisoned brain
I’m gonna marry you to a ball and chain

You know darlin’ the kind of life that I live
When your smile meets my smile - something’s got to give
I ain’t no false prophet - I’m nobody’s bride
Can’t remember when I was born and I forgot when I died
 

Follow us @songsofbob

If you would like to support hosting my  podcasts, please check out my Patreon where for $5 I will give you a shout out on the podcast of your choice.  For $10, in addition to the shout-out I'll send you a surprise piece of vintage Bob Dylan merch! Thank you to my Patrons, Rob Kelly, Roberta Rakove, Matt Simonson and Christopher Vanni.

Email us at songsofbobdylan@gmail.com

Subscribe: YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify