"Don't trust me to show you beauty"

Bob Dylan's Aesthetics

By Eyolf Østrem

 

An' I locked myself an' lost the key
An let the symbols take their shape
An' form a foe for me t' fight
T' lash my tongue an' rebel against
An' spit at strong with vomit words
But I learned t' choose my idols well
T' be my voice an' tell my tale
An' help me fight my phantom brawl
An' my first idol was Hank Williams
For he sang about the railroad lines
An' the iron bars an' rattlin' wheels
Left no doubt that they were real
An' my first symbol was the word "beautiful"
For the railroad lines were not beautiful
They were smoky black an' gutter-colored
An' filled with stink an' soot an' dust
An' I'd judge beauty with these rules
An' accept it only 'f it was ugly
An' 'f I could touch it with my hand
For it's only then I'd understand
An' say "yeah this's real"
An' I walked my road an' sung my song
Like a saddened clown
In the circus a my own world --

Cold Irons Bound
It's such a sad thing to see beauty decay



Where Are You Tonight?
As her beauty fades and I watch her undrape,


Trust Yourself
Don't trust me to show you beauty
When beauty may only turn to rust.


Tough Mama
Dark Beauty
Dark Beauty
Dark Beauty


Tomorrow is a Long Time
There's beauty in the silver, singin' river,
There's beauty in the sunrise in the sky,
But none of these and nothing else can touch the beauty


Shelter from the Storm
Beauty walks a razor's edge, someday I'll make it mine.


Long Time Gone
So you can have your beauty,


Hard Times
2. While we seek mirth and beauty and music light and gay.


Desolation Row
The beauty parlor is filled with sailors


Dark Eyes
But I feel nothing for their game where beauty goes unrecognized,