Dylan is as Dylan does

 

from this week in June, 1978 (I was 33)

 

                           Dylan is as Dylan does

         Bob Dylan just finished touring Japan and Australia.  From what

I’ve read, he was well received, particularly in Australia where he

featured new arrangements of old works.  Rolling Stone reports he

has three albums ready for summer release (two in Japan) and will be

launching a European tour after completing a seven night warm up in

Los Angeles.  New music is to be introduced on the tour.

         I find all this entirely appropriate.  As much as I’d like to hear

that he had pulled up his Winnebago next to the little bar in Sunol, and

that his crew was unloading equipment, and this guy had been sent by

Dylan himself to tell me to come down the hill for the little show, I think

it good that he has chosen to assert his international stature instead.

People are going to listen to Dylan a hundred years from now, so there’s

no reason they shouldn’t listen to him now.

         I have not heard, however, that he has planned to join the Bill

Graham tour of the Soviet Union.  It is obviously important that he play

there.  Certainly ambassador William G. has thought to annex Robert Z.

for the Moscow connection.  After all, we already know how well Jimmy C.

likes him.

Give your coins to the beggar

 

January 22, 1978. (I was 33)

 

Give your coins to the beggar

Who greets you as you enter the city

It is not good to arrive with the curse of the outcast

The city does not feed him

So he taxes the visitors

He has remained a stranger here

The spare change that separates you from him

Acknowledges your momentary brotherhood

Proceed directly to the place you are welcome

Contract Negotiations

 

July 22, 1978  (I was 33)

 

Contract Negotiations

The organizer did all the real work

but no one called it that

figuring it was his life.

He had to explain the issues

explain that it was all right to demand dignity in labor

explain that the work was noble and good and valuable

explain that no God was appeased by sacrificing family

explain that the Company had big profits to share

that a job was a mutual transaction

that one need not be thankful to have and penitent to hold

that the collective power of the Worker is a force to be respected

that their division fostered the autocratic arrogance of management.

The organizer did all of that

and when he called for the vote and lost

he told them Some were meant to be peasants and slaves after all

something they had already known.

He left town and they went to work.

The mechanical brush

 

July 19, 1978  (I was 33)

 

The mechanical brush as machines pass in the hallway

the spark that jumps from the lip of one electrode to another

the clap of like-charges meeting in midair

space hardware passing orbits after obligatory pirouette

modified mating move without the actual docking

a cool maneuver of recognition, a courtesy

Daytime programming never sells as well as night

The first time we listened to the alarm clock together

that was the beginning the impatient social harangue

standing naked and admitting obligation

bumping heads as we grabbed for the bell

If you buy groceries in Sunol you buy them at Ben’s

 

June 17, 1978  (I was 33)

 

If you buy groceries in Sunol you buy them at Ben’s

it’s a lesson in the cost of convenience

to learn to pay his prices gladly

Time is the main thing Ben deals

 

When Ben does business quietly

he is out of sorts

One uncharitable might say disinterested

Still most often he’s flashing gold from the teeth

 

Knowing you Ben will joke and flirt with your young cousin

and ask how things are with your work

And when someone calls to him

Hey Chink, where’s the beer?

he hands over your bag and thanks you

before showing him where

I read slow

 

from this week in May 1978  (I was 33)

 

I read slow

real slow

I think I read good

but I do read slow

 

I have to say the dialog

at least in my head

sometimes 3 or 4 interpretations

I want to know if I would have said that

or how I’d inflect it if I did

 

Sometimes I don’t think I see the print well

it kind of disappears

or the words turn around

until I say dyslexia

then they line up straight again

(that’s why I think it’s just me

rather than the equipment)

 

I’m not a patient reader either

I mean I’ll wait for awhile

but I’d just as soon go throw Frisbee

or just daydream as I look at the words

I’m pretty entertaining myself

Even when I’m attentive I read slow

Dylan is as Dylan does

from this week in June, 1978 (I was 33)

                           Dylan is as Dylan does

         Bob Dylan just finished touring Japan and Australia.  From what

I’ve read, he was well received, particularly in Australia where he

featured new arrangements of old works.  Rolling Stone reports he

has three albums ready for summer release (two in Japan) and will be

launching a European tour after completing a seven night warm up in

Los Angeles.  New music is to be introduced on the tour.

         I find all this entirely appropriate.  As much as I’d like to hear

that he had pulled up his Winnebago next to the little bar in Sunol, and

that his crew was unloading equipment, and this guy had been sent by

Dylan himself to tell me to come down the hill for the little show, I think

it good that he has chosen to assert his international stature instead.

People are going to listen to Dylan a hundred years from now, so there’s

no reason they shouldn’t listen to him now.

         I have not heard, however, that he has planned to join the Bill

Graham tour of the Soviet Union.  It is obviously important that he play

there.  Certainly ambassador William G. has thought to annex Robert Z.

for the Moscow connection.  After all, we already know how well Jimmy C.

likes him.

Give your coins to the beggar

January 22, 1978. (I was 33)

Give your coins to the beggar

Who greets you as you enter the city

It is not good to arrive with the curse of the outcast

The city does not feed him

So he taxes the visitors

He has remained a stranger here

The spare change that separates you from him

Acknowledges your momentary brotherhood

Proceed directly to the place you are welcome

Contract Negotiations

July 22, 1978  (I was 33)

Contract Negotiations

The organizer did all the real work

but no one called it that

figuring it was his life.

He had to explain the issues

explain that it was all right to demand dignity in labor

explain that the work was noble and good and valuable

explain that no God was appeased by sacrificing family

explain that the Company had big profits to share

that a job was a mutual transaction

that one need not be thankful to have and penitent to hold

that the collective power of the Worker is a force to be respected

that their division fostered the autocratic arrogance of management.

The organizer did all of that

and when he called for the vote and lost

he told them Some were meant to be peasants and slaves after all

something they had already known.

The mechanical brush

July 19, 1978  (I was 33)

The mechanical brush as machines pass in the hallway

the spark that jumps from the lip of one electrode to another

the clap of like-charges meeting in midair

space hardware passing orbits after obligatory pirouette

modified mating move without the actual docking

a cool maneuver of recognition, a courtesy

Daytime programming never sells as well as night

The first time we listened to the alarm clock together

that was the beginning the impatient social harangue

standing naked and admitting obligation

bumping heads as we grabbed for the bell

If you buy groceries in Sunol you buy them at Ben’s

June 17, 1978  (I was 33)

If you buy groceries in Sunol you buy them at Ben’s

it’s a lesson in the cost of convenience

to learn to pay his prices gladly

Time is the main thing Ben deals

When Ben does business quietly

he is out of sorts

One uncharitable might say disinterested

Still most often he’s flashing gold from the teeth

Knowing you Ben will joke and flirt with your young cousin

and ask how things are with your work

And when someone calls to him

Hey Chink, where’s the beer?

he hands over your bag and thanks you

before showing him where

I read slow

from this week in May 1978  (I was 33)

I read slow

real slow

I think I read good

but I do read slow

I have to say the dialog

at least in my head

sometimes 3 or 4 interpretations

I want to know if I would have said that

or how I’d inflect it if I did

Sometimes I don’t think I see the print well

it kind of disappears

or the words turn around

until I say dyslexia

then they line up straight again

(that’s why I think it’s just me

rather than the equipment)

I’m not a patient reader either

I mean I’ll wait for awhile

but I’d just as soon go throw Frisbee

or just daydream as I look at the words

I’m pretty entertaining myself

Even when I’m attentive I read slow

Dylan is as Dylan does

from this week in June, 1978 (I was 33)

                                    Dylan is as Dylan does

            Bob Dylan just finished touring Japan and Australia.  From what

I’ve read, he was well received, particularly in Australia where he

featured new arrangements of old works.  Rolling Stone reports he

has three albums ready for summer release (two in Japan) and will be

launching a European tour after completing a seven night warm up in

Los Angeles.  New music is to be introduced on the tour.

            I find all this entirely appropriate.  As much as I’d like to hear

that he had pulled up his Winnebago next to the little bar in Sunol, and

that his crew was unloading equipment, and this guy had been sent by

Dylan himself to tell me to come down the hill for the little show, I think

it good that he has chosen to assert his international stature instead.

People are going to listen to Dylan a hundred years from now, so there’s

no reason they shouldn’t listen to him now.

            I have not heard, however, that he has planned to join the Bill

Graham tour of the Soviet Union.  It is obviously important that he play

there.  Certainly ambassador William G. has thought to annex Robert Z.

for the Moscow connection.  After all, we already know how well Jimmy C.

likes him.

Give your coins to the beggar

January 22,1978

Give your coins to the beggar

who greets you as you enter the city

It is not good to arrive with the curse of the outcast

The city does not feed him

so he taxes the visitors

He has remained a stranger here

The spare change that separates you from him

acknowledges your momentary brotherhood

Proceed directly to the place you are welcome

Contract Negotiations

July 22, 1978  (I was 33)

Contract Negotiations

The organizer did all the real work

but no one called it that

figuring it was his life.

He had to explain the issues

explain that it was all right to demand dignity in labor

explain that the work was noble and good and valuable

explain that no God was appeased by sacrificing family

explain that the Company had big profits to share

that a job was a mutual transaction

that one need not be thankful to have and penitent to hold

that the collective power of the Worker is a force to be respected

that their division fostered the autocratic arrogance of management.

The organizer did all of that

and when he called for the vote and lost

he told them Some were meant to be peasants and slaves after all

something they had already known.

He left town and they went to work.

The mechanical brush

July 19, 1978  (I was 33)

The mechanical brush as machines pass in the hallway

the spark that jumps from the lip of one electrode to another

the clap of like-charges meeting in midair

space hardware passing orbits after obligatory pirouette

modified mating move without the actual docking

a cool maneuver of recognition, a courtesy

Daytime programming never sells as well as night

The first time we listened to the alarm clock together

that was the beginning the impatient social harangue

standing naked and admitting obligation

bumping heads as we grabbed for the bell

If you buy groceries in Sunol

June 17, 1978  (I was 33)

If you buy groceries in Sunol you buy them at Ben’s

it’s a lesson in the cost of convenience

to learn to pay his prices gladly

Time is the main thing Ben deals

When Ben does business quietly

he is out of sorts

One uncharitable might say disinterested

Still most often he’s flashing gold from the teeth

Knowing you Ben will joke and flirt with your young cousin

and ask how things are with your work

And when someone calls to him

Hey Chink, where’s the beer?

he hands over your bag and thanks you

before showing him where

I read slow

from this week in May 1978  (I was 33)

I read slow

real slow

I think I read good

but I do read slow

I have to say the dialog

at least in my head

sometimes 3 or 4 interpretations

I want to know if I would have said that

or how I’d inflect it if I did

Sometimes I don’t think I see the print well

it kind of disappears

or the words turn around

until I say dyslexia

then they line up straight again

(that’s why I think it’s just me

rather than the equipment)

I’m not a patient reader either

I mean I’ll wait for awhile

but I’d just as soon go throw Frisbee

or just daydream as I look at the words

I’m pretty entertaining myself

Even when I’m attentive I read slow

Dylan is as Dylan does

from this week in June, 1978 (I was 33)

                          Dylan is as Dylan does

         Bob Dylan just finished touring Japan and Australia.  From what

I’ve read, he was well received, particularly in Australia where he

featured new arrangements of old works.  Rolling Stone reports he

has three albums ready for summer release (two in Japan) and will be

launching a European tour after completing a seven night warm up in

Los Angeles.  New music is to be introduced on the tour.

         I find all this entirely appropriate.  As much as I’d like to hear

that he had pulled up his Winnebago next to the little bar in Sunol, and

that his crew was unloading equipment, and this guy had been sent by

Dylan himself to tell me to come down the hill for the little show, I think

it good that he has chosen to assert his international stature instead.

People are going to listen to Dylan a hundred years from now, so there’s

no reason they shouldn’t listen to him now.

         I have not heard, however, that he has planned to join the Bill

Graham tour of the Soviet Union.  It is obviously important that he play

there.  Certainly ambassador William G. has thought to annex Robert Z.

for the Moscow connection.  After all, we already know how well Jimmy C.

likes him.