Sufjan Stevens>The Perpetual Self or What Would Saul Alinsky Do?

Well, here's to the song with the longest title I'll probably ever attempt to write about! If you know anything about American singer-songwriter and player of pretty much every instrument you can imagine - Sufjan Stevens - you'll know that long song titles are one of his fortes. A lot could be said about Sufjan and his religious connections but no time for that right now - what I'm particularly interested in writing about is why I chose this song of his. Mainly it's because of the man mentioned in the ridiculously long title of this song - Saul Alinsky. And he's someone who I have recently become very interested in.

Saul Alinsky is known as the father of 'community organising'. The term was probably not that well known until this time last year when its most famous proponent started banging on about it on his way to the White House. Having got involved in community organising here in East London through London Citizens a couple of years back, I've read Alinsky's two short books - Reville for Radicals (1946) and Rules for Radicals (1971) and been gripped by them. They're not quite like anything I've ever read - irreverent, funny, passionate, political and ultimately empowering. If you want to do politics or social justice it's the only place to start. I'll never be the same again having read that stuff (and incidently, I've seen the principles work here in my neighbourhood!).

So what's this song about? Truthfully, I'm not sure - every version of the lyrics on the internet are different and none of them are obvious in meaning. Having listened to the song carefully a few times I would suggest that it appears to be an Alinsky anthem of sorts. You'll just have to listen to it yourself - strangely uplifting despite the opening salvo of 'Everything is lost...'. But then in an odd kind of way that is Alinsky's message - when you're down and losing, get organised, act together and you're on your way up. And make sure you have a lot of fun doing it!

Steve Earle>John Walker Blues

It feels appropriate for a post on Townes Van Zandt to be followed by one on Steve Earle given his recent TVZ covers album and general hero-worship. Also, as I write the news is on in the background and I'm being told that President Obama is currently in Saudi Arabia trying 'to reach out to the Muslim World'. Obama would do well to listen to Earle's 'John Walker Blues' (Jerusalem, 2002) as a starting point in American relations with Islam. (Actually, if my take on this song is right - he probably has!).

The song is about John Walker, an American convert to Islam, who fought with the Taliban in Afghanistan before being captured in 2001. He's currently serving a 20 year sentence in the US. Lyrics can be found here. Now I can imagine that this subject is a pretty emotive issue for lots of people - Walker is considered a traitor and his story came as a shock to many.

However, I don't think for a moment that Earle is condoning violence or fundamentalism in this song. What I think he does instead is to transfer the emotion to a different place by writing the song from Walker's point of view - a regular guy looking for meaning in life and who follows his convictions (however misguided) once he finds something that makes sense to him. I personally find the song very challenging because it cuts through so much of the hysteria surrounding Islam - it is an individual that is being sung about, not the breathtakingly overstated 'clash of civilizations' agenda. The 'blues' is not just a take on Walker's own story of being hauled back to the US as a prisoner but in America's failure to offer Walker something in the first place that touched his soul. Of course we could offer many excuses for why that may be - no doubt his family, his upbringing would be cited - but then again we in the Western world could perhaps take a hard look at ourselves and wonder why we're surprised at all.

Townes Van Zandt>Waitin' Around to Die

If you're feeling slightly low or depressed please click away now! If you're in a emotionally-secure enough place to be moved - read on.

The East End of London is just the most vibrant, interesting, and sometimes challenging place to live, work and raise a family. After 6 years of being here it takes a lot to surprise me about people and the way they live - but there's always one place that just touches my soul in a way nowhere else does. Every Wednesday morning I play football with a group of men from a drop-in centre that provides breakfast for those with no permanent place to live. At 10:30 I pass by the centre to see who will play with us that day. 20m from the door the smell of cheap and nasty beer hits you in the face. A group clutchering their cans of lager crowd around the door. Once inside there are people milling about - some getting showers others drinking tea - whilst more are lying across the tables trying to sleep. The last two times I've visited one character with a hat pulled low over his face is marching up and down the room talking to himself in a loud voice. I always wonder what the stories are behind the faces - so many things, so much hardship, so much sadness.

This week, as I looked around the room trying to find someone who was either sober enough or awake enough to come and play football the opening strains of Townes Van Zandt's 'Waitin' Around to Die' played like a soundtrack in my ears. You see, I've asked myself numerous times why we do what we do - why those with chaotic lifestyles seem to choose more chaos. And the answer is in the song - it's easier than just 'waitin around to die'. If you can watch the clip below and not shed a tear like the guy in the background then you have a heart of stone!

Bob Dylan>This Dream of You

Now to my favourite song on Dylan's new album. If Together Through Life's opening track 'Beyond Here Lies Nothing' sounds like a denial of any form of heaven; if 'Life is Hard' takes us into Dylan's dark night of the soul; if 'Forgetful Heart' seems pretty conclusive about Dylan's state of faith with the final lines: 'The door has closed forevermore/If there ever really was a door'; - if all this is the evidence we can glean regarding Bob's current spiritual state from Together Through Life, then we can agree here is a man who has lost whatever hope he once espoused. And yet... and yet... there is one track that contradicts all of the above.

'This Dream of You' is a magnificent track - the best on the album for me. It has a very similar feel to the gorgeous 'Red River Shore' (and I have written about that one already). Take a look at the lyrics - worth a full outing here:

How long can I stay
In this nowhere café ‘fore night turns into day
I wonder why I’m so frightened of dawn
All I have and all I know is this dream of you which keeps me living on

There’s a moment when
All old things become new again
But that moment might have come and gone
All I have and all I know is this dream of you which keeps me living on

I look away but I can see in it
I don’t want to believe but I keep believing it
Shadows dance upon the wall
Shadows that seem to know it all

Am I too blind to see
Is my heart playing tricks on me
I’m lost in the crowd, all my tears are gone
All I have and all I know is this dream of you which keeps me living on

Everything I touch seems to disappear
Everywhere I turn, you are always here
I’ll run this race until my earthly death
I’ll defend this place with my dying breath

From a chairless room
In a curtain gloom, I saw a star from heaven fall
I turned and looked again but it was gone
All I have and all I know is this dream of you which keeps me living on

Incorporated into the lyrics are several Biblical allusions - see how many you can spot!? You may have your own take on this song but here's mine for what it's worth. Bob is addressing God. For whatever reason, God is distant - a memory of sorts - but ultimately it's all he's got. And despite the distance between them, there are fleeting moments when even earthly reality pales into insignificance compared with the presence of the living God. But try and put your finger on it or pin it down and it melts away like a dream.

Does Bob Dylan have 'the blood of the lamb' in his voice?

Slowly but surely the official lyrics from Together Through Life are being released. There's been nothing printed on the CD sleeves so most reviewers and commentators have had to use their ears - not as simple as it sounds when Bob's voice is so ragged. I noticed today that one or two of the song lyrics had been put up on BobDylan.com but not the one that has caused some discussion. In the song I Feel a Change Coming On Bob sings: 'I've got the blood of the land in my voice'. Or does he? Some very reputable music critics claim to hear 'I've got the blood of the lamb in my voice.' Not sure what I was hearing myself I started a discussion on Expecting Rain - the ultimate Bob fan site. 53 replies later and no-one's the wiser. I think we're going to have to wait until it gets put up on the offical site. Listen to it yourself below - 4mins 9 secs.

Does it really matter, though? Well, for the hard-core dylanologists it does because they hang on to their prophet's every word. As someone pointed out on Expecting Rain - perhaps both versions are correct - after all in Bob's own analysis of songwriting there is no complete perfect song - it's an organic and developing process which can change with every performance.

So even if we assume that when the lyrics finally are published it'll be 'blood of the land' (I personally think I hear a 'd' sound at the end of the word!), does this mean that Bob hasn't got the 'blood of the lamb' in his voice? Absolutely not - you just have to listen to his songs since he began and the voice of God shines through time and again. I don't need Bob to confirm this in a lyric, it's there for all to hear - well if you have ears to hear that is.

Bob Dylan>LIfe is Hard

Bob Dylan appears to like ironic titles for his more recent albums. Take his previous release, Modern Times (2006), for example - clearly nothing modern about it since it's a collection of songs (mostly great songs!) based on structures and themes of times gone by. So what should we make of Together Through Life his latest effort? Well, not be taken in by the title that's for sure. I've been somewhat puzzled by a number of reviews that have suggested that Dylan is 'enjoying' himself on this album - I can only surmise that they've forgotten to listen to the lyrics and more importantly his voice. For me, Dylan's voice is usually the key to his albums and on this record it's ragged, scarred and suffering. And that's the image of 'togetherness' that Dylan is projecting through these songs - basically a 'togetherness' that is lost, betrayed and hewn with violence on a personal, spiritual and communal level.

According to his Bobness the inspiration for the album came from the track 'Life is Hard', a song he was recording for a movie soundtrack. The rest of the album followed in a rush, clinging to the coat-tails of this song. It's a terribly sad song that brings tears to my eyes as it weaves a tale about the loss of friendship and love and the resulting emptiness of life. Now, I have absolutely no evidence for what I'm about to write and yes it is a song for a movie, but I cannot help but project Bob Dylan into this song. The fact that this theme is picked up time again across the whole album I believe that Dylan is singing about his own spiritual loss - a dark night of the soul if you like.

Should I be worried for Dylan, then, when I hear this song? Perhaps, but then it's not the last word. A couple more songs to write about later...

The lyrics:
The evening winds are still I've lost the way and will
Can’t tell you where they went I just know what they meant
I’m always on my guard admitting life is hard
Without you near me

The friend you used to be, so near and dear to me
You slipped so far away, where did we go astray
I passed the old school yard, admitting life is hard
Without you near me

Ever since the day, the day you went away
I felt that emptiness so wide
I don’t know what's wrong or right
I just know I need strength to fight, strength to fight that world outside

Since we've been out of touch I haven't felt that much
From day to barren day my heart stays locked away
I walk the boulevard, admitting life is hard
Without you near me

The Sun is sinking low I guess it's time to go
I feel a chilly breeze In place of memories
My dreams are locked and barred admitting life is hard
Without you near me
hummmm
Without you near me

Listen here:

Bob and I are back!

Well, my two most loyal readers have commented that they haven't heard from me for a while so it's time to put fingers to the keyboard. Now let me say, there's also a VERY good reason to post something and that is that Bob has released a new album - something that was only a wild web rumour last time I put up a post. Today, my CD dropped through the letterbox - one day after release date thanks to our pathetic postal system!

This weekend I had the joy of seeing the great man twice in as many days - once up close and personal in a relatively small north London venue. I loved the gigs and was able to share them with my friend Nick as well as my Mum and Dad, which made them extra special. Dylan clearly gave it everything - not something he always does - but you could see the sweat pouring off him!

Now to the new record - my Dad just called and said there were at least 3 tracks on 'Together Through Life' that would bring tears to my eyes. As I type, I'm having my first listen of the whole album and I must say I'm loving it. And, yes there are tracks that deserve whole posts of their own because they clearly say something about Dylan and God. I endeavour to put them up over the next week, so let's see...