Dylan's ''Lay Lady Lay'' written about his daughter.

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Jackson, Nov 14, 2007.

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  1. Jackson

    Jackson Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    MA, USA
    So i'm driving around this morning doing some chores and listening to my favorite ''progressive radio'' station when the very knowledgeable female DJ goes on about Dylan writing ''Lay Lady Lay'' about his daughter.This took me for a loop since i've always assumed he was singing about his lover.The DJ also mentioned that the song was to be included on the soundtrack to ''Midnight Cowboy'' but that Dylan didn't submit it in time,and that the song was offered to the ''Everly Brothers'' who turned it down,only to regret it later,when they listened to ''Nashville Skyline''.They eventually recorded it on their ''EB 84'' album.Am i the only Dylan fan who wasn't aware of any of this.
     
  2. RapsodiaStellare

    RapsodiaStellare New Member

    Location:
    Florida
    I don't think so:

     
  3. il pleut

    il pleut New Member

    i hope not!
     
  4. mermaidautopsy

    mermaidautopsy New Member

    Location:
    United States
    I thought it was about his dog.
     
  5. FredCamp

    FredCamp Senior Member

    Location:
    Virginia
    It was meant for the Midnight Cowboy soundtrack, but Dylan didn't get the song finished in time so they went with Nilsson.

    I've never heard that it was written about his daughter. Sounds far-fetched to me.
     
  6. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
    Maybe he wrote it for someone else's daughter, one who was a little older :D
     
  7. John DeAngelis

    John DeAngelis Senior Member

    Location:
    New York, NY
    I read an interview with either Don or Phil Everly (in a book about 1960s music), who said that Dylan came backstage to see them when they were playing in NYC and sang them the song. They said that Dylan was mumbling the words and when he got to the part about "lay across my big brass bed", they thought he was singing "lay across my big breasts, babe". They thought "We're not gonna be able to get away with that!" and they passed on the song.
     
  8. TommyTunes

    TommyTunes Senior Member

    If it was call SVU. Creepy.
     
  9. rstamberg

    rstamberg Senior Member

    Location:
    Riverside, CT
    Nice.
     
  10. QuestionMark?

    QuestionMark? 4TH N' GOAL

    Location:
    The End Zone
    I'm glad they used 'Everybody's Talkin' for the movie. Its classic.
     
  11. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    That's what I have heard. "Whatever colours you have in your mind..." works because dogs are colour blind. I'm not sure though...sure sounds like a love song. :shrug:
     
  12. QuestionMark?

    QuestionMark? 4TH N' GOAL

    Location:
    The End Zone
    I don't think so. I told my dog to go get the blue Easter egg, and he did! :agree:
     
  13. lobo

    lobo Music has always been a matter of Energy to me...

    Location:
    Germany
    Mhm? I smell another Songs about animals-thread, hopefully not :D
     
  14. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
    Lighten up. It's no worse than speculating it was written for his daughter, which is utterly ridiculous.
     
  15. Baron Von Talbot

    Baron Von Talbot Well-Known Member

    Stay Lady Stay - was he afraid his kid runs away ? Long To Touch You In The Night ? Can't wait for that baby to wake him up, crying ?
    What a strange fella.
    Then again never believe what people say on the radio. typical hear say. Maybe Dylan wanted to crack a joke and someone mis-interpreted that, or it was just made up. Anyway - Don't believe that before his Bobness tells me in person.
     
  16. lschwart

    lschwart Senior Member

    Location:
    Richmond, VA
    This strikes me as one of those absurd sort of urban legends about pop music that can only be sustained by a lazy or a willful misreading of the lyrics.

    As others have pointed out, if this song is about his daughter, it's a song about incest. And, really, how likely--or for that matter how artistically attractive--is that? You wanna sing this to your daughter or sing it in your imagination to your image of or fantasy of a daughter you wanna "reach for in the night," be my guest. I much prefer imagining a lover of roughly my age (or at least of legal age) and to whom I am not in any way related!

    In matters of interpretation, you can "have your cake and eat it, too," but you do have to be prepared to eat what you make.

    L.
     
  17. crimsoncing

    crimsoncing New Member

    Location:
    virginia beach
    God bless these "hip-in the know" DJ's who do not have a clue. Of course a few years from now there will be a whole book on this subject.
     
  18. I'm pretty sure if Bob Dylan actually said that, the quotes would be everywhere.

    Celebrities has said things a lot less controversial than this and been crucified by the press.
     
  19. Dave D

    Dave D Done!

    Location:
    Milton, Canada
    The same people still think Zappa ate poo on stage.
     
  20. Dr. Weber

    Dr. Weber New Member

    Location:
    USA
    My favorite song ever, the original recording, although some of the live versions back in the '90s with a pedal steel resonate profoundly, too...
     
  21. Larry L

    Larry L Senior Member

    Location:
    Allen, Texas
    I don't doubt the Dylan wrote a song for his daughter, but it wasn't Lay Lady Lay.
     
  22. lschwart

    lschwart Senior Member

    Location:
    Richmond, VA
    By the by, if someone wants a song that's really about daddy/daughter love, try these:

    Serge Gainsbourg, "Lemon Incest"
    Richard Hell and the Voidoids, "The Plan"

    L.
     
  23. johnny 99

    johnny 99 Down On Main Street

    Location:
    Toronto
    Forever Young maybe, but Lay Lady Lay no way!

    Misinformation about Dylan is rampant on the radio because a lot of the people on the radio right now know next to nothing about his history.
     
  24. kevinsinnott

    kevinsinnott Forum Coffeeologist

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    Dylan is one of my favorite songwriters. Lay Lady Lay is one of my favorite records.

    Dylan is a master of disinformation.
     
  25. Terry

    Terry Senior Member

    Location:
    Milwaukee
    Forever Young was written for his son when he was born in 1973 or 1974. Jacob perhaps?


     
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