I knew those lyrics were just too genius for a teenage girl to come up with. This is obviously a Dylan cover.
I first experienced this song in 1976 on a road trip with my best friend from Chattanooga to St. Paul. As we were crossing into Minnesota, we stopped at a truck stop. My friend called home on a pay phone, only to find out that his mother had just been hit by a car driven by a teenager without a driver's license. It was a Friday. This song came on the radio. Our road trip was ruined, but the emotional impact this song had on us really shaped us into who we are today.
The story behind these lyrics brings tears to my eyes. As a young man, Dylan drove his mother to see many of his early shows. On this one occasion, she asked him whether he wanted her to "kick it in the front seat or to sit the backseat." Without giving much thought to the question, Dylan simply told her join him in the front. Sadly, a car crash happened that night. Dylan was saved, but his mother tragically died. For years Dylan held the guilt inside. This is emotion. Pure and simple.
I saw him do this live on a Friday night in '73. It was the only time I ever heard it until it resurfaced later in his career. All I can say is the crowd was in tears. Our boys were just coming home from Nam and all. The world was changing and we all had to decide if we should sit in the front or back seat. Regardless, we we all looking towards that 'weekend'
This song was about the JFK assassination. He died on Friday, Nov. 22, 1963, and he was originally planning on riding with his friends, but decided to just go with his wife. Before he left, he got some cereal, and he couldn't decide which seat to take, much similar to the Abraham Lincoln assassination. Bob Dylan dedicated this song to the memory of JFK at Woodstock. I was there. It was on a Friday. Unfortunately, Mr. Kennedy, you couldn't see the weekend you were looking forward to. RIP.
Don Mclean said in "American Pie" that the generation that grew up in the 50's and 60's was a "generation lost in space." This song really shows that. The front seat - back seat dichotomy shows this generation's disillusionment with the social and racial disparity of the preceding few decades.It is a shame that this classic has been pissed on by Rebecca Black in much the same way that "American Pie" was ruined by Madonna's cover. Disgraceful.
I'm a history teacher...I'm using this song to teach my students about the civil rights movement. Truly a moving song. It doesn't matter whether you sit in the front or the back of the bus, and it doesn't matter what color our skin is.
This is the greatest musical performance ever put together. There is so much awesomeness in this to even explain...
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