Guitar chords for joker and thief full#

Suddenly, in only four words, the first two verses are connected with the last. But what are they guarding against?Ī wildcat growls from a distance, suggesting the savage, untamed power of nature lurking just beyond the well-ordered lights of the castle. These figures guarding their castle seem to represent established society, and the existing power structure. This new scene is populated with princes, women, and barefoot servants, establishing a time and place in the past, although again using enduring, archetypal figures.

Guitar chords for joker and thief full#

In contrast to the first two verses, which were full of conversation, this verse unfolds almost cinematically, full of visual imagery. The beginning of this final verse suddenly shifts the scene, without at first giving us any sense of how this new setting connects to the first one. Then the last line of the verse brings us back from exposition to a sense of drama and movement, and impending action: “the hour is getting late.” Since they understand the value of life, it is important for them to be truthful with one another. So while others may still be confused, these two are not. The thief goes on to say that while there are those who think that life is “but a joke,” the thief and the joker know better, having lived through that. This adverb lets us know that he is sympathetic and that he, perhaps, understands the worth of the joker and his efforts. The second verse begins with the thief speaking “kindly” to the joker. So the confusion is about values: what is valuable and what is not. But neither understands the worth of their efforts. But what is confused? Others are benefiting from his labors, and working for him to help produce the results. The rest of the verse tells us why the joker wants to escape: there is too much confusion. And, of course, the joker and the thief are both outsiders of a sort, united in their separation from more ordered segments of society. The joker, or jester, can be seen in general to represent the artist: someone whose role is to amuse other members of the established order, but also to provoke them, to suggest alternate ways of looking at reality. Because these figures are broad archetypes, there is already a suggestion that this might be a parable of some sort, a story whose essence remains the same over many different times, places and characters. By identifying them in this way, Dylan invokes a sense of timelessness. We find out that the two people speaking are “the joker” and “the thief.” These are archetypal characters that have existed in one form or another for thousands of years. We don’t know where the “here” is from which the speaker wants to escape, but we know he wants out. Notice how Dylan starts the song by throwing us into the middle of a conversation, and begins with an urgent statement. “There must be some kind of way out of here,” Yet the three verses are packed with meaning and drama. The song consists of only three verses, with no chorus.

In contrast, “All Along The Watchtower” is spare and restrained. His use of language was unusual, and called attention to itself by juxtaposing words and images not usually associated with each other. His lyrics had often been pointed and sharply critical. His older compositions often had many more than the standard three verses of popular songs - “Positively Fourth Street” boasted twelve. This song came off of Bob Dylan’s John Wesley Harding album, which marked a radical departure from his previous recordings.