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3 commentsMonday Morning Music #17 (Observed)
So, I know this is cliche, but I’m going with Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’”. I happened to be listening to Bob Dylan yesterday, and this came on, so I couldn’t pass it up, as it’s one of my favorites.
Full lyrics here
Some may hear this as emblematic of the mood of a lot of the country, and the anticipation of the new President, but the more I listen to it, the more I think about the fact that Obama was just over 2 years old when this song was recorded. He’s our first post-Boomer president, and he’s not framed in the context of the Vietnam War. We seem to have to keep fighting the Vietnam War every four years (see: Bill Ayers, Swift Boats, draft dodging), but these divisive themes grow less powerful each year. The difference isn’t just Vietnam itself, but the divisions that it solidified, fomenting the larger-scale “culture war”.
This is part of a larger post I tried to write a couple of times during the campaign and failed. Maybe one of these days I’ll figure out what I want to say.
3 comments
Thanks Matt.. I was down at the inauguration today.. and at the end, there was an incredible temperature change— maybe from the body heat dispersing— it was really, brutally cold— anyway, one of the guys I was with said “damn, the weather’s changing”… and as a Dylan fan I, of course, remarked “the times they are a-changin”. It was really cold down there… but tons and tons of happy people. What impressed me most with this and the concert Sunday was how civil the crowd was… we were really jammed as close as strangers could be together… but there were a lot of “excuse me’s” and very courteous, helpful people. It was a great experience. Anyway… great song… “Please get out of the new one/ if you can’t lend your hand/ for the times they are a-changin’”. Dylan might be might favorite artist– definitely one of the tops– because the substance of his lyrics don’t really diminish over time. sorry if this seems rambling, but i’m still defrosting… -P
Good to hear… the event sounds like the sort of thing that is not really empirically enjoyable on its own, but the symbolic and communal value is worth it.
[...] is the sort of pragmatism I’m looking forward to. Obama seemed to complete the thought I had on Inauguration Day (before hearing the speech). This speech used plenty of language with which conservatives and [...]
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