Song Seed #1 continued

In reference to my post regarding Dylan's self-ordained professors Scott Warmuth pointed out to me that what he wrote was actually this:

"Is this where Dylan got the title of the album [Together Through Life]? Perhaps."

I implied that he "was convinced" of the origin of Dylan's source--which was by no means correct. So I will strive to be more accurate in the future when representing other folks opinions. I must confess to writing rather flippantly because after a steady diet of Dylan criticism over a number of years, I cannot believe the size of the army of people that is out there finding the various allusions that are consistently present in Dylan's lyrics.

For adherents like me, it is rather wondrous that, however big his catalogue is, Dylan can cram so many allusions to literature (not to mention other forms of culture) into his body of work while still remaining one of the most resoundingly original artists in the English-speaking music scene. Michael Gray's Song and Dance Man III is the book that first opened my eyes to how deeply affected Bob is by blues music and lyrics. I recommend it to anyone interested in such things.

I value what folks like Scott Warmuth do because, as a songwriter, it is always valuable for me to see new examples of how the greatest songwriter alive digests his sources. The thing that I miss from Warmuth's dispatches is analysis of these references and allusions in the context of the song as a whole. For instance, how does "I'm gonna pluck off your beard and blow it in your face," one of the many lovingly-stolen lines off of Dylan's new album, contribute to the larger themes at work in the song? It's neat to see from whence (some of) Bob's inspiration comes, but it's even more valuable to read someone who is being Sherlock Holmes in his most vital sense--not just gathering the clues but seeing how they fit together in their ever-changing contexts.