Sunday, May 24, 2015

Gotta Serve Somebody

Whatever your job,
You can choose one manager:
The Devil or God.

The opening song on the 1979 born-again-Christian-themed album "Slow Train Coming" is one of Bob Dylan's masterpieces. "Gotta Serve Somebody" makes clear that whatever you choose to do in your life, you're serving one master or the other, and if it's not God or the Devil, it's someone else. The argument cuts across class, race and every other way we slice up humanity. Dylan won a Grammy Award for best male rock vocal performance for this song.

Things you could be, while still having to serve somebody:

- Ambassador to England
- Ambassador to France
- Gambler
- Dancer
- World heavyweight champion
- Socialite with pearls
- Rock n' roll addict
- Drug dealer
- User of women
- Businessman
- High-tech thief
- Doctor
- Chief
- State trooper
- Young Turk
- TV network executive
- Rich
- Poor
- Blind
- Lame
- Expatriate or emigre
- Incognito
- Construction worker
- Mansion inhabitant
- Dome inhabitant
- Gun runner
- Tank seller
- Landlord
- Banker
- Preacher
- City councilman taking bribes
- Barber
- Mistress
- Heir
- Wearer of cotton
- Wearer of cotton
- Drinker of whiskey
- Drinker of milk
- Eater of caviar
- Eater of bread
- Someone sleeping on the floor
- Someone sleeping in a bed

Names by which you might know Bob:
- Terry
- Timmy
- Bobby
- Zimmy
- RJ
- Ray
- Anything else you can think of


Here is someone's strange, homemade remix of the song. Oddly compelling.



1 comment:

  1. Well Robert, another slice of musical history from Bob Dylan's Music Box http://thebobdylanproject.com/Song/id/225/Gotta-Serve-Somebody Join us inside and listen to every version of every song composed, recorded or performed by Bob Dylan.

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