Bob Dylan's masterpiece "Tangled Up In Blue" tells the story of a vagabond, a drifter, as he reminisces about a love affair that obviously touched him, but just didn't quite work out. Told in first person, the story is quite moving, both emotionally and literally. Emotionally, you can feel the attraction the two had for each other, as well as the pain of the liaison not working out. Literally, the song covers a pretty significant time period, weaving in and out through various locations. This song is brilliantly written, solidifying Dylan's stature as a master songwriter.
He has written so many great songs, many from the sixties, such as "Blowin' In The Wind", "Desolation Row", "Chimes of Freedom", "Like A Rollin' Stone" and "Lay Lady Lay", just to name a few. During this same period, he also penned songs that became huge hits for other artists, most notably "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "My Back Pages" for the Byrds, and "It Ain't Me Babe" for Sonny and Cher. After such a prolific and fruitful period in the sixties, he kinda fell into a lull; but came roaring back in 1975 with what many, including myself, consider to be his best record, "Blood On The Tracks" (pictured below).
This record was amazing, with so many incredible tracks including "Simple Twist of Fate", "Shelter From The Storm", "Idiot Wind", the 9 minute mini-western movie "Lily, Rosemary, and the Jack Of Hearts", and of course, "Tangled Up In Blue". It quickly rose to the peak position on the charts worldwide with critical acclaim, and is now in the Grammy Hall of Fame. And is on my list of best albums ever made.
Back to the song; as we've discussed with all the other "Songs of the Week", musically this one is again, straight forward and relatively simple. Most master songwriters realize that simple is usually best, as it allows the focus to be on the song, not the music. The music sets the backdrop for the song. This is a very important concept in songwriting.
"Tangled Up In Blue" is written in the key of "D", mostly utilizing the I, IV, V major chords, the D, G, and A, with the VI, a Bm, occasionally thrown in.
Two things I think are really important in this song are first, the constant rhythm of the guitar strumming. This keeps the song moving, allowing the story to be told in such a way as to maximize the impact. The second point is the structure. This song has no chorus nor a bridge, just 7 verses, allowing the story to be told continuously without interruptions or distractions. He uses the title as the last line of every verse, cleverly rhymed with the preceding line, to kind of have somewhat of a chorus effect. Ingenious.
As usual with most Bob Dylan songs, the focus is on the lyrics, and this is no exception. The imagery throughout the song is so vivid the listener can picture the locations, the actions, the facial expressions, everything. The listener really becomes part of the song. And of course you get tidbits of keen human insight, as Bob Dylan does so well in most of his great songs. One of my favorite lines in this song are at the end of the last verse where he reflects on the relationship saying:
"We always did feel the same
We just saw it from a different point
of view,
Tangled up in blue"
I think there is a lot of truth in that observation. And it's stated so succinctly that it hits you in the face. Great songwriting. Below is a video of the performance of "Tangled Up In Blue" from a show in Albuquerque not too long after the song was written.
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