Songs of the Week

Here are the songs I can't stop playing on the guitar this week.

1. Bob Dylan, "Changing of the Guard": Dylan is my personal songwriting hero. The man takes a song with three or four simple chords, strings those chords together in a way you wouldn't have thought of, and makes an interesting tune to go along with his surreal lyrics. This song I've never been able to really figure out (granted, most of Dylan's songs are like that for most people), but there are a lot of references to what I've read is actually Joan of Arc--a girl whose head is shaved at the age of sixteen (Joan of Arc's head was shaved when she was sixteen, right before she was burnt at the stake), all the military imagery (palace guards, dog soldiers, and a captain), and things like that. Still fun to play, though.

2. Bob Dylan, "Isis": Yeah, I know, two Dylan songs in a row. But hey, I figured out that you could play these two songs with chords I already knew if you just capo'd in the first fret (ah, the capo: friend to mediocre strummers everywhere!). This is one of those great story songs Dylan does so well, and the chord progression is this great circular thing that just keeps looping into itself, becoming a part of the story itself.

3. U2, "Hawkmoon 269": Another song that I figured out is really easy to play capo'd in the first fret (hey, who knew songs in Ab were so damn easy to play if you just capo'd?). It's got this great incessant rhythm to it that just builds and builds throughout the song. Also one of Bono's more restrained vocal performances (well, except for the end, when he starts kinda screaming into the microphone, but I usually don't sing it that way, 'cause I'm not Bono).

4. Creedence Clearwater Revival, "Who'll Stop the Rain?": Everyone who plays the guitar ought to know at least one CCR song. At least. I mean, they're just a great band. Hell, I'm of the impression that their Chronicle CD ought to be required listening for anyone who has even the slightest interest in popular music. Their ability to craft a rock and roll song is second to almost none (I mean, obviously the Beatles are the top, but these guys are still pretty damn good). This song, like so many of CCR's, has a sense of foreboding and doom that just permeates the whole thing. You can't help but shudder, really.

5. The Minus 5, "I'm Not Bitter": It's just a damn funny--and rather meloncholy--song about trying to move on. And failing. Miserably. And being in denial about it. And it features the line "I walk around the block to avoid you/And that's when I'm in a social mood." Also, "Bitterness is reserved for stupid people/Not for someone intelligent like me." The fact that the song features Wilco and is just damn fun to play helps, too.

And finally, though it's not a song I can play (I haven't been able to find the song yet, unfortunately), I think Bob Dylan's "Where Are You Tonight (Journey Through Dark Heat)" is an underappreciated gem. Dylan tosses a song or two like this on every album, even the mediocre ones: a tune that just gets under your skin and gets its hooks in your soul and won't let go. This particular tune is about the deterioration of the world around our protagonist and his amazement at the fact that he continues to survive, even despite all his scars...mostly because it doesn't seem right for him to be alive without her. It has this excellent buildup throughout the song, a chugging and undeniable push towards the final verse. Everything gets more and more tense as the song progresses, the music gains power and volume, and everything explodes at the end of the final verse in a terse, powerful electric guitar solo. That solo, that payoff, makes the entire song worth the wait.

Okay, that's enough musical musings. Go...um...listen to some Dylan. Now.