Sign on the Window isn't the Bob Dylan podcast you need, but it's definitely the one that you want! Each week we select a Dylan song at random, live with the song for a week (or two) and then get together to discuss. This week 2006's "Spirit on the Water" off Modern Times.
This week, Daniel and Kelly talk MURDER! (10:30 for Daniel's take, 17:00 for Kelly's). Also, how lovely and transportive this track is, Dylan's voice, Johnny Cash, Ovid and Sonny Boy Williamson.
Next week: our final episode sliding into summer where we watch the river do as rivers do
CONTEXT (3:20)
“Spirit on the Water” was recorded in February 2006 in Sony Recording Studios in New York City. It’s been played 547 times at the time of the recording and will surely be wrong when you are reading this sentence!
SONG ITSELF (5:00)
Clinton Heylin notes “the whole shebang comes across like another consciously anachronistic parlor song that perversely owes more to the works of Sonny Boy Williamson than Stephen Foster.” That’s a great description. Like "Soon After Midnight," there’s the dichotomy between the crooning and what we at the podcast call “Murder Bob.” This is a quintessential Murder Bob song. Daniel (10:30) and Kelly (17:00) take turns with their murder scenarios. Like so many songs post-89, the apocalyptic visions creep in and give the song a different heft, which is, for the most part, welcome. “Ain’t Talkin'” is a better version of this song.
The song is also littered with references, from the Bible and Ovid to “Black Gal Blues” and “Sugar Mama Blues” by Sonny Boy Williamson.
THE EPISODE’S BOOKLET & PLAYLIST
RECOMMENDATIONS (31:00)
Kelly’s been watching Future Man (and some Happy Endings when there’s a moment).
Daniel has been listening to tons of new music, but the highlights are definitely Hop Along’s Bark Your Head Off, Dog and Wonder Years’ Sister Cities.
ENDINGS
Daniel: We’re almost there. We’re almost at our destination! Kelly: Summer! Daniel: Summer.
We’ll close out our Funtime Slide into Summer with "Watching the River Flow."
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056 - "Spirit On The Water"