Did Dad inspire a line from a Bob Dylan song?
When my father was living in Boulder, he got a Siamese cat for a pet. Her name was Cat, and that was probably Dad's idea of a joke--a cat named Cat. He used to take her for walks on a leash, but sometimes he would carry her around on his shoulder. At that time my dad was a very large, powerful-looking man with dark red hair and a beard. You could not help but notice him.
Bob Dylan was hanging around Boulder for a while, and one can't help but wonder if he noticed my dad and was inspired to write this:
"You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat"
It's actually my father's fault that I ended up with an obsession with music and writing. I remember this song from my youth. It wasn't till I was talking to my mother after my father's death that I became aware that Dad may well have been the inspiration for a line in one of the songs that he used to play when I was a child. I loved Bob Dylan then and still do.
Bob Dylan
Once upon a time you dressed so fine
You threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn't you ?People'd call, say, "Beware doll, you're bound to fall"
You thought they were all kiddin' you
You used to laugh about
Everybody that was hangin' out
Now you don't talk so loud
Now you don't seem so proud
About having to be scrounging for your next meal.
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be without a home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone ?
You've gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it
And nobody has ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you find out you're gonna have to get used to it
You said you'd never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but know you realize
He's not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And say do you want to make a deal?
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone ?
You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns
When they all come down and did tricks for you
You never understood that it ain't no good
You shouldn't let other people get your kicks for you
You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat
Ain't it hard when you discover that
He really wasn't where it's at
After he took from you everything he could steal.
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone ?
Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people
They're drinkin', thinkin' that they got it made
Exchanging all precious gifts
But you'd better take your diamond ring, you'd better pawn it babe
You used to be so amused
At Napoleon in rags and the language that he used
Go to him now, he calls you, you can't refuse
When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose
You're invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal.
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone ?
Cross-posted from my private blog dedicated to memories of my father. Also cross-posted to Rattling Bones Undead Musician Magazine (RBUMM)
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