The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #107573 Message #3044158
Posted By: GUEST,Desi C
01-Dec-10 - 10:23 AM
Thread Name: Stolen melodies/Bob Dylan
Subject: RE: Stolen melodies/Bob Dylan
He proudly admits to being heavily influenced by Woody Guthrie in his early days and you can certainly hear that in the recordings. He was accused outright of palgirism by Irish writer Domininc Behan re Behan's song The Patriot Game, and indeed the tune is the same as Dylan's God On Our Side. But much as Im a fan of Behan's work, Behan himself notable nicked the tune for the Patriot game from an old Irish trad tune. And Dylan's God On our side is totally different lyrics. Behan was quite a cantankerous fellow and often flung accusations around.
Famously to the Clancy Bros for leaving a verse out of Patriot Game on their first album, the verse featuring Eamon Devalera. In fact Behan should have known that such a verse at that time would not be allowed under Eire's secret Censorship laws, it had already happened to him.
Dylan is reported to have kept a 'dignified silence, quite rightly, and as Pete seeger said in his book Rise Up Singing 'It's all part of the Folk Process'