5.20.2008

That complete flip, in Idiot Wind, after seven minutes of rollicking insults, from an accusative you to an inclusive we.

From this:

Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your mouth,
Blowing down the backroads headin' south.
Idiot wind, blowing every time you move your teeth,
You're an idiot, babe.
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe.

to this:

Idiot wind, blowing through the buttons of our coats,
Blowing through the letters that we wrote.
Idiot wind, blowing through the dust upon our shelves,
We're idiots, babe.
It's a wonder we can even feed ourselves.

4 Comments:

Blogger BB said...

yeah, for sure

and to further complicate things, "idiot" etymologically means something like "private (individual)" , tho that's simplifying things. Reading Arendt recently, she talks about the "idiot life" and how for ancient Greek culture, private life WOULD be "idiotic" with our valence.

I kind of wonder if that's not what Dylan had in mind, actually, and just got to have the contemporary meaning make it seem like another "It's all over now baby blue" or "Just like a woman" Dylan-and-the- sort of inadequate-partner song.

20 May, 2008  
Blogger suzanne said...

I was listening to this song just this morning.

20 May, 2008  
Blogger Alli Warren said...

I listened to Idiot Wind eight times yesterday. Count em!

21 May, 2008  
Blogger suzanne said...

i would like to say that now that i've been robbed in broad daylight of my cherished iPod---the cheapest non-shuffle one, mind you, hardly worth 50 bucks on the street i bet---I can no longer participate in my favorite manner of replaying and replaying songs permanently right out of listenability, ie, on the street, in the car, on the train, in the park, in the hall, and on the stair. it fucking sucks.
xxxooo

02 June, 2008  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home