The Times, They Are A-Changin' (1964)

1. The Times, They Are A-Changin' (3:15)
2. Ballad of Hollis Brown (5:06)
3. With God on Our Side (7:08)
4. One Too Many Mornings (2:41)
5. North Country Blues (4:35)
6. Only A Pawn in Their Game (3:33)
7. Boots of Spanish Leather (4:40)
8. When the Ship Comes In (3:18)
9. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll (5:48)
10. Restless Farewell (5:32)

All songs written by Bob Dylan








Come gather 'round people, wherever you roam 
and admit that the waters around you have grown


Review: Bob Dylan opened his previous album, 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan,' with 'Blowin' in the Wind,' which quickly became a folk standard, popularized by the folk trio Peter Paul & Mary.

He opens this album in similar fashion, with the anthemic 'The Times, They Are A-Changin.'  Like 'Blowin' and many other songs Bob wrote around this time period, 'The Times' would be covered by myriad other artists - Peter Paul & Mary put it on their live album released the same year - but unlike 'Blowin,' Bob's version probably remains the most famous cut,  It's inclusion in the opening sequence of the 2009 blockbuster film 'Watchmen' gets across the song's timelessness.

Despite the apparent optimism in the opening title track, this is an album with a lot of despair.

The next track, 'Ballad of Hollis Brown,' is a 5 minute bluesy riff about a farmer who runs out of money, crops, and friends, and the song ends in shocking fashion, although a glimmer of hope is seen in the very end "...seven new people born."

From the farms to the schoolyard for the history lesson of 'With God On Our Side,' a song that is never quite as clever as it seems to try to be.  Still, an attack on faith back in 1964 - this was unheard of!  Perhaps Bob's inclusion of Biblical figure - Jesus, Judas - in traditional fashion placated the church and religious folks.  The final line, "If Gods on our side, he'll stop the next war" also could be taken a couple of ways.  The second protest song on the album, it is also one of the weakest tracks.  It was a concert favorite, Bob often performing it with his partner Joan Baez.  Still, its a laborious melody and it goes on for far too long.  The harmonica, which was used to great effect on 'The Times' and would be likewise used on the following track, is a bit grating and overwrought here.  A weak link on an otherwise strong fence.

'One Too Many Mornings' is another song of heartbreak, in the same vein as 'Dont Think Twice' from the previous album.  A beautiful little song.  'You are right from your side, I am right from mine.'  Bob is peerless in poetically stating the simple truths of life.

From pleasant to sour, 'North Country Blues' is a commentary on the closing of a mine and the subsequent effect on the jobs of the community.  Sung well, the song paints a bleak, hopeless picture of life for the miners and their families when they lose their jobs.

Back to protest songs with 'Only a Pawn in Their Game,' a song that opens with the death of Medgar Evers, it's refrain aimed towards poor white folks who are used by the rich white folks and divided against blacks.

The heartbreaking 'Boots of Spanish Leather' is one of Bob's best.  Quite similar to 'Girl of the North Country' from his previous album in melody and guitar, it describes a narrator communicating with his love who sailed across the ocean, the narrator trying to convince her to come back until finally accepting their separate fates in the end.

'When The Ship Comes In' is an attack on the powerful.  There is a lot of venom behind this song, though you might not know that in listening to it - Bob sings it sweetly enough.  A nice little chestnut that has been mostly forgotten.

'The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll' is Bob's second track here about a black person killed by a white person.  But unlike 'Only a Pawn in Their Game,' here the entire song is about this injustice.  Lyrically the song is brilliant.  Bob may take some creative license with the facts (a harbinger of things to come), but the song couldn't be spoken any better.  Bob continues his habit of last verses/lines that strike the listener to the bone.

The closer is 'Restless Farewell,' the most unique song in the set.  Sung in first person, it seems to have Bob looking back a bit wistfully.  In talking about his friends the song has something in common with 'Bob Dylan's Dream,' but whereas that song was pure nostalgia, here Bob is making a proclamation - farewell - to the past.  Indeed, he would not return to protest songs for several years, much to the dismay of his fans.  Again the last line is telling "...I'll bid farewell, and not give a damn."  The folk crowd would learn this a year later in harsh fashion.

Overall another excellent collection of material from Bob.  Even more amazing is how many terrific songs he wrote but did not include on both this album and Freewheelin'.  In 1991 The Bootleg Series Vol. 1-3 would reveal many of these songs.

If the only weak points on the album are a live favorite (With God On Our Side) and maybe the 2 song stretch of 'North Country Blues' and 'Only A Pawn,' your songwriting is tremendously strong.

Rating: 10/10 **********/**********

Best song: The Times, They Are A-Changin' (but One Too Many Mornings and Boots of Spanish Leather are right there)

Best 3 song run: Boots of Spanish Leather/When the Ship Comes In/The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll

Song I'm most likely to skip: With God on Our Side

Steven Sroczynski is an author and attorney from Massachusetts.  He can be reached at Steve.Sroczynski@gmail.com

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