Monday, June 30, 2008

Don't think twice, it's all right

It looks like Barack Obama isn't the only Bob Dylan fan out there -- Chief Justice of the Supreme Court John Roberts is also one.

Good.

I've always felt that Dylan's work is a lot less political than most people assume. First and foremost Dylan is an artist. While songs like "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Hard Rain" have a pretty overt political message, I don't think there's much to read into "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" or "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right."

In fact, "Like a Rolling Stone" might be the greatest (and meanest!) indictment of hippies and their "slumming it" style ever written.