On the Road Again (Bob Dylan song)
Encyclopedia
"On the Road Again" is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan
for his album Bringing It All Back Home
. The song appears on the album's electric first side, between "Outlaw Blues
" and "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
". Like the rest of Bringing It All Back Home, "On the Road Again" was recorded in January, 1965 and produced by Tom Wilson.
", "Outlaw Blues", and "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream". The song also reflects other songs on the album, such as "Maggie's Farm" in that resistance to society is enacted through self-exile, removal and denial. This is particularly reflected in the lyrics:
The song also previews the comic grotesques that will become more prominent on songs in later albums. The song reflects a paranoid version of dread of dealing with in-laws. The narrator wakes up in the morning and has to face a surreal world where his mother-in-law hides in the refrigerator, his father-in-law wears a mask of Napoleon and the grandfather-in-law's cane turns into a sword, the grandmother-in-law prays to pictures and an uncle-in-law steals from the narrator's pockets, in lyrics such as:
In addition, frogs live in his socks, strange things occur when the narrator tries to eat, and deliverymen and servants have a sinister presence. As a result, it is not surprising that the narrator does not want to live there.
breaks. The music is untidy, with a thrusting beat and an opposing riff
.
's novel On the Road
, which was a defining work of the Beat Generation
. Dylan has acknowledged being influenced by Kerouac. However, it seems more likely that the title, and the song in itself, is a response to the song 'On The Road', a traditional blues performed by the Memphis Jug Band
with more serious lyrical content concerning an unfaithful woman . As befitting the album in general, Dylan has taken an old influence and turned it on its head.
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
for his album Bringing It All Back Home
Bringing It All Back Home
Bringing It All Back Home is singer-songwriter Bob Dylan's fifth studio album, released in March 1965 by Columbia Records. The album is divided into an electric and an acoustic side. On side one of the original LP, Dylan is backed by an electric rock and roll band - a move that further alienated...
. The song appears on the album's electric first side, between "Outlaw Blues
Outlaw Blues (song)
"Outlaw Blues" is a song by Bob Dylan. It was originally released in 1965 on Dylan's fifth studio album, Bringing It All Back Home.An alternate version of the song was released as part of the "Three Song Sampler - EP", which contained outtakes from the soundtrack of the Martin Scorsese Dylan...
" and "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
"Bob Dylan's 115th Dream" is a song by Bob Dylan, released on his fifth album, Bringing It All Back Home. In 2005, Mojo Magazine rated the song as the #68 greatest Bob Dylan song....
". Like the rest of Bringing It All Back Home, "On the Road Again" was recorded in January, 1965 and produced by Tom Wilson.
Meaning
The song's lyrics continue to address the myth of sensitive artist versus venal society that informs several other songs from side one of the album, such as "Maggie's FarmMaggie's Farm
"Maggie's Farm" is a song written by Bob Dylan, recorded on January 15, 1965, and released on the album Bringing It All Back Home on March 22 of that year...
", "Outlaw Blues", and "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream". The song also reflects other songs on the album, such as "Maggie's Farm" in that resistance to society is enacted through self-exile, removal and denial. This is particularly reflected in the lyrics:
- You ask why I don't live here
- Honey, how come you don't move?
The song also previews the comic grotesques that will become more prominent on songs in later albums. The song reflects a paranoid version of dread of dealing with in-laws. The narrator wakes up in the morning and has to face a surreal world where his mother-in-law hides in the refrigerator, his father-in-law wears a mask of Napoleon and the grandfather-in-law's cane turns into a sword, the grandmother-in-law prays to pictures and an uncle-in-law steals from the narrator's pockets, in lyrics such as:
- Your mama, she's a-hidin' /
- Inside the icebox /
- Your daddy walks in wearin' Napoleon Bonaparte mask
In addition, frogs live in his socks, strange things occur when the narrator tries to eat, and deliverymen and servants have a sinister presence. As a result, it is not surprising that the narrator does not want to live there.
Musical Style
The music for "On the Road Again" is a simple rock structure with harmonicaHarmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
breaks. The music is untidy, with a thrusting beat and an opposing riff
RIFF
The Resource Interchange File Format is a generic file container format for storing data in tagged chunks. It is primarily used to store multimedia such as sound and video, though it may also be used to store any arbitrary data....
.
Title inspiration
The song's title echoes the title of Jack KerouacJack Kerouac
Jean-Louis "Jack" Lebris de Kerouac was an American novelist and poet. He is considered a literary iconoclast and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his spontaneous method of writing, covering topics such as Catholic...
's novel On the Road
On the Road
On the Road is a novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, written in April 1951, and published by Viking Press in 1957. It is a largely autobiographical work that was based on the spontaneous road trips of Kerouac and his friends across mid-century America. It is often considered a defining work of...
, which was a defining work of the Beat Generation
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
. Dylan has acknowledged being influenced by Kerouac. However, it seems more likely that the title, and the song in itself, is a response to the song 'On The Road', a traditional blues performed by the Memphis Jug Band
Memphis Jug Band
The Memphis Jug Band was an American musical group in the late 1920s and early to mid 1930s. The band featured harmonicas, violins, mandolins, banjos, and guitars, backed by washboards, kazoo, and jugs blown to supply the bass; they played in a variety of musical styles...
with more serious lyrical content concerning an unfaithful woman . As befitting the album in general, Dylan has taken an old influence and turned it on its head.