Analysis of Album

         By listening to and examining Bob Dylan’s Bringing It All Back Home, a significant feature of the album was revealed to us. Unlike Dylan’s previous albums which were rooted solely in the folk style, Bringing It All Back Home contains both folk and rock music. In fact, the 7 songs on Side A of the record are of the electric style while the 4 others on Side B are more folk. Leading up to the release of Bringing It All Back Home, Dylan’s fan base was largely comprised of folk listeners. That is why it was so risky of Dylan to publish an album that’s style was so different from that of his previous works. How would his audience react to the electric instruments and rock lyrics? Even more shocking was the fact that these electric songs could also be interpreted as protest music. The lyrics of the 7 Side A songs address issues in American society that were very controversial in the 1960’s, issues such as the Vietnam war and Civil Rights. Though Dylan declares to this day that he is “Not a protest musician,” his songs do cast a critical light on significant features of American history.

                The first song of the album, Subterranean Homesick Blues, is written in the “stream of consciousness” style. The lyrics flow from Dylan without so much as a breath between lines. The rhyme scheme and rhythm of the song are very catchy and repetitive, making this song easy to listen and sing along to. This feature of the song probably helped spread its message of political corruption. The inability for the common man to rise above the wealthy, as well as America’s dependence on conformity, are expressed through its lyrics. Subterranean Homesick Blues is often considered a precursor to rap music due to its style, sound, and content, and was a great stylistic leap for Bob Dylan.

                She Belongs To Me is the second song on Bringing It All Back Home, and it has a more relaxed and bohemian tempo or style than Subterranean Homesick Blues. There is even a harmonica solo, bringing back traces of Dylan’s folk past. Rather than critique establishments, this song comments on the constant needs of an artistic woman who looks to her lover for creative inspiration. Many young people were turning to this type of a creative or artistic lifestyle, and Dylan is expressing how superficial he believed it to be. The girl in the song uses her lover to feed her creative energy, causing him to wait on her hand and foot. She Belongs To Me is Dylan’s way of critiquing the needy flower child individuals within American society, again distancing himself from previous works. Love Minus Zero/No Limit is the fourth song on the album, and it too is a type of love ballad that addresses the inability of a man to please his lover. Both She Belongs To Me and this song are meant to connect with listeners on an emotional level by assessing the painful nature of love. Love Minus Zero/No Limit can be considered a protest song against the harsh realities of love that is similar in style to She Belongs To Me.

                In his third song, Maggie’s Farm, Dylan jumps back to an upbeat electric music style. Maggie’s Farm has a catchy rhythm, rock guitar, and fast drumming, a style that is in strict contrast with She Belongs to Me. This song not only deals with Civil Rights, but is also a declaration or Dylan’s freedom from the confines of folk music. Maggie’s Farm can be interpreted as the need for African Americans to reject the limits imposed upon them by society. Many African American’s have ancestors who worked as slaves on various plantations, and Dylan uses Maggie’s Farm to promote the idea of rejecting any racist treatment. The first line of the song, “I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more,” is a clear statement to African Americans that they must no longer settle for segregation, and instead work for equality. Maggie’s Farm can also be interpreted as Dylan telling his fans that his musical styling will not be limited to folk music. He will instead be free to explore rock music despite what critics have to say. We consider this song to be the most outspoken and electric one in the album, officially recognizing Dylan as a rock artist in addition to folk.

Outlaw Blues, the fifth song in Bringing It All Back Home, is another declaration of Dylan about being free from the classification of a folk artist. The track combines both rock and folk elements like the electric guitar and tambourine, is loud and upbeat, and also has many instrumental solos. This rock song expresses Dylan’s desire to explore a more bohemian or “outlaw” lifestyle than folk music allowed him to. Again, Dylan is making a very distinct leap from his old self to a new image. But in his next song, On The Road Again, more folk instruments are integrated into the song. This track is also a critique on the poor living conditions that a bohemian lifestyle imposes on an individual. While Outlaw Blues expressed Dylan’s desire to live a more free spirited life, On The Road Again makes this dream seem unpleasant; it is almost like a step backward toward his folk past. Perhaps this is why Dylan does not classify himself as a protest musician, since he cannot identify with one particular attitude.

Being the longest song in the album, Bob Dylan’s 115^th Dream, is an elaborate and fantastical recollection of one of Dylan’s dreams. This song catalogues the discovery of North America involving characters from Moby Dick. Interestingly, the song starts out with an acoustic and folk style, is interrupted by laughter, and then restarts in a rock style with electric instruments. As the last song on Side A of Bringing It All Back Home, this track serves as a transition from the rock to the folk side of the album. This is why it started out as folk because Dylan was preparing his audience for his old musical styling. The content of the song is a mixture of crazy fantasy, which can be seen to represent rock, and history, which can be represented by the more docile folk style. Dylan combines these two attributes to create a balanced rock and folk song, readying his listeners Side B of the album.

Side B of Bringing It All Back Home begins with Mr. Tambourine Man, one of Bob Dylan’s most celebrated songs. It is undoubtedly of the folk style for it uses instruments like the tambourine, harmonica, and acoustic guitar, and has a slower yet catchy tempo. Dylan encourages artistic growth and development through this track, for he calls upon the tambourine to lighten his mood throughout the song. Only the cheerful, upbeat influence of the tambourine is able to give Dylan back his senses. The next song, Gates of Eden, builds on the message of Mr. Tambourine Man. It too is of the low key folk style, and comments on the tribulations of society. But unlike Mr. Tambourine Man, there is no tambourine to lighten the mood. The loss of innocence and sense of foreboding for the future that the younger generation was experiencing is expressed through this song.

Though the folk style of It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding), may make the song appear harmless, Dylan uses it to again attack the state of politics in America. Through lines such as: "It's easy to see without looking too far / That not much is really sacred"; "Even the president of the United States / Sometimes must have to stand naked"; "Money doesn't talk, it swears"; "If my thought-dreams could be seen / They'd probably put my head in a guillotine.," it is clear that Dylan is not pleased with the state of U.S society. This second to last song of Bringing It All Back Home reasserts Dylan’s initial distrust of American government that he first mentioned in Subterranean Homesick Blues. Followed by It’s All Over Now Baby Blue, these last two tracks of Dylan’s album end Bringing It All Back Home on a dismal note. Baby Blue is short, slow, and typically folk with a harmonica solo in the middle of its performance. This track is a call to society to start anew, rather than continue to live in current society. That type of lifestyle is “all over,” and people need to “strike another match, go start anew,” because the current state of America was not working.

Bob Dylan himself chose to “start anew” through this album, and redefined himself as a musician through it. Though daring, his leap from folk to electric music helped spark much discussion over his music. Additionally, the protest nature of the songs in Bringing It All Back Home reflect a deep and intellectual musician behind the microphone.