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

You're right.
If it's about anyone, "Lay Lady Lay" is probably about Sara!

 

I always loved his vocals on "Lay Lady Lay". My favorite Dylan tune. I wonder if he had a cold or something when he recorded it.

He never sounded better.

 

He supposedly quit smoking cigarettes around this time. Hence, the change in the tone of his voice. Not sure if I buy that though. There were flashes of this same voice earlier in Bob's career.

 

Or Zappa's charming "Magdellena."

 

Could some kind, copy-editing-inclined moderator please put a question mark at the end of the header? This information gets ickier each time I read it as a declarative sentence.

 

Thanks for the info Spadeygrove.

 

So was it written about his dog or what? "Desolation Row" seems to mention the same "Lady".

 

Did Bob Dylan even have a daughter in 1969?

 

"So was it written about his dog or what? "Desolation Row" seems to mention the same 'Lady'."

No "Desolation Row" is about his dog. He had a dog named Desolation starting some time in early '65. Apparently the dog could handle an oar pretty well. That's why they moved to upstate NY. Wanted to give the dog his own canoe. He and a couple of trained fleas that lived on his head named Ezra Pound and T.S. Eliot (they were literate fleas). Anyway, they called the dog "the captain" whenever he'd go out on the lake rowing, and he was a tall dog, hence, "captain's tower." the rest of the song falls into place after that. Everything's sinking. You gotta just keep telling the dog to row.....

Cool song.

Good dog.

"Idiot Wind" is about how he died.

L.

 

Today, that same DJ said that Dylan's "Joey" was written for the birth of his son and that it was originally intended for the Banana Splits soundtrack. Unfortunately, Dylan didn't deliver it in time.

I'd never heard that, either. But it really opens up the song for me.

 

Noo, it isnt about his daughter.The song was written for Midnight Cowboy but lost out to Everybodies talking to me.Or wasnt submitted in time. Dylan really didnt think the song had anything to do with what he was about as a songwriter and was surprised at its success.It ushered in his "new" voice.Great song though. Too bad both songs werent used for the movie.

 

Can a Gort add a ? to the thread title please?

 

This may not add too much to the discussion, but just for the record, dogs aren't color-blind.

http://www.uwsp.edu/psych/dog/LA/davis2.htm

 

This is only slightly more absurd than some of the analysis of Dylan songs I've read. But I actually chuckled on the "his own canoe" line.

 

All of which, by the way, also deftly explains the age old question What is Grand Funk's "I'm Your Captain" about?
Very neat, Louis.

 

Weird threads today.

 

Well, Charlotte Gainsbourg is pretty hot.

There was an episode of "Celebrity Jeopardy" (no kidding) that had "This singer wrote 'Lay Lady Lay' for his wife Sara" as a question, IIRC.

 

Yeah, they took care of the dog for a while while Dylan was recovering from the motorcycle accident. The song is written from the point of view of the dog, who misses his master a great deal. Not a lot of people know what one of Sara's nicknames for Bobby in those days was "Mother Earth" (Lord knows why, but there it--see Heylin's bio. pp. 124), so that line, "I will kiss you mother earth," makes perfect sense.

The dog, apparently had pretty bad breath, too, so that business about "I'm feeling might sick," probably has something to do with the stomach problems and the sort of "barf-mouth" he reportedly had.

The "ship of love" in Zappa's otherwise nonsensical lyrics to "Dog Breath in the Year of the Plague" are also, some think, a reference to old Desolation. Which is also the name (with "Row" reattached) of an alley out back from the old Legion Stadium in El Monte.

L.

 

Or his own daughter when she became a little older.

We're always learning something new about Bob "Woody Allen" Dylan. The man is just amazing, I tell you. He never fails to keep my interest.

Or maybe the song wasn't about his daughter... can't believe everything you hear.

 

That she is. Glad she's not my daughter!

L.