In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Well the pressure's down, the boss ain't here
He's gone North, for a while
They say that vanity got the best of him
But he sure left here in style
By the way, that's a cute hat
And that smile's so hard to resist
But what's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know, I once knew a woman who looked like you
She wanted a whole man, not just a half
She used to call me sweet daddy when I was only a child
You kind of remind me of her when you laugh
In order to deal in this game, got to make the queen disappear
It's done with a flick of the wrist
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know a woman like you should be at home
That's where you belong
Taking care for somebody nice
Who don't know how to do you wrong
Just how much abuse will you be able to take?
Well, there's no way to tell by that first kiss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know you can make a name for yourself
You can hear them tires squeal
You could be known as the most beautiful woman
Who ever crawled across cut glass to make a deal.
You know, news of you has come down the line
Even before ya came in the door
They say in your father's house, there's many a mansions
Each one of them got a fireproof floor
Snap out of it baby, people are jealous of you
They smile to your face, but behind your back they hiss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
Got to be an important person to be in here, honey
Got to have done some evil deed
Got to have your own harem when you come in the door
Got to play your harp until your lips bleed.
They say that patriotism is the last refuge
To which a scoundrel clings
Steal a little and they throw you in jail
Steal a lot and they make you king
There's only one step down from here, baby
It's called the land of permanent bliss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
He's gone North, for a while
They say that vanity got the best of him
But he sure left here in style
By the way, that's a cute hat
And that smile's so hard to resist
But what's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know, I once knew a woman who looked like you
She wanted a whole man, not just a half
She used to call me sweet daddy when I was only a child
You kind of remind me of her when you laugh
In order to deal in this game, got to make the queen disappear
It's done with a flick of the wrist
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know a woman like you should be at home
That's where you belong
Taking care for somebody nice
Who don't know how to do you wrong
Just how much abuse will you be able to take?
Well, there's no way to tell by that first kiss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
You know you can make a name for yourself
You can hear them tires squeal
You could be known as the most beautiful woman
Who ever crawled across cut glass to make a deal.
You know, news of you has come down the line
Even before ya came in the door
They say in your father's house, there's many a mansions
Each one of them got a fireproof floor
Snap out of it baby, people are jealous of you
They smile to your face, but behind your back they hiss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
Got to be an important person to be in here, honey
Got to have done some evil deed
Got to have your own harem when you come in the door
Got to play your harp until your lips bleed.
They say that patriotism is the last refuge
To which a scoundrel clings
Steal a little and they throw you in jail
Steal a lot and they make you king
There's only one step down from here, baby
It's called the land of permanent bliss
What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?
Lyrics submitted by caitsith01
Sweetheart Like You Lyrics as written by Bob Dylan
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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I love this song and believe it's one of Dylan's most profound songs. Coming from his deep Biblical understanding, it's an allegory about the church as the Bride of Christ: "They say in your father's house, there's many mansions Each one of them got a fireproof floor". This comes from Jesus' promise in John 14:2. The protagonist is like Pilgrim's Progress' Mr Worldly-wiseman which is why he's using the corny pick-up line on the Bride. His boss is Satan, of whom "They say that vanity got the best of him" (he fell because of pride - Ezekiel 28:17) "But he sure left here in style" (he fell like lightning - Luke 10:18) As for "I once knew a woman who looked like you", Mr WWM is talking about Israel who was also a Bride before the church but who was seduced from the Way: "In order to deal in this game, got to make the queen disappear" from her King. I hope the church is listening to Dylan's warning...
I tend to agree. The context of the times was the emergence of the Moral Majority in helping to get Regan elected. I think the song is more specifically about the Church in politics. <br /> <br /> "Got to have your own harem when you come in the door<br /> Got to play your harp (harmonica) until your lips bleed.<br /> They say that patriotism is the last refuge<br /> To which a scoundrel clings<br /> Steal a little and they throw you in jail<br /> Steal a lot and they make you king"<br /> <br /> What is the Bride of Christ doing in the smokey back rooms of politics?<br />
my take is that it's about jesus when he, according to the new testament, descended into hell to free the captives there. he's in the form of a woman, but to really argue that dylan is singing to a woman just because he says he's singing to a woman somewhat misses the point of dylan being dylan. anyway, the people trapped in hell (actually, sheol or hades, since those are the old testament concepts) are wondering what in the hell (pun intended) jesus is doing down there. the boss who went north is satan who, per peter, goes out to venture to and fro upon the earth. 'vanity got the best of him' - obvious reference to satan. to 'be in here' you got to have 'done some evil deed' ... thus the abode of all these people who are questioning why jesus is there. of course, he's there to lead everyone free from satan's grip. it's actually a very straightforward, easy to understand song... :)
Its about a young woman who hes hasn't seen for years and she obviously came from some kind of money (her father- ) and shes been trapped in a small town (A dump like this) and has made some mistakes. Sounds like shes got a bit of a past. And it seems shes hanging around waiting on a man who treats who badly, yet she stays with him. And Bob Dylan is urging her in the song that shes better than that and the town shes stayed in.
after thinking about it a long time I have decided I think it is about his daughter and their divorce. “The boss” is his ex wife but he disguises it as a man, “the devil”. the daughter comes to visit him, perhaps from an abusive relationship and he is singing the song to her. he has many mansions from being rich and famous and she is free to stay any one of them in order not to have to deal with the “hell” of the ex wife who is bossy and greedy and wanted it all “a whole man not just a half” instead of just half in the divorce. or to escape the hell of the daughter’s current abusive relationship if there is one. one would think his ex’s greed and vanity would get the best of her but she ended up making out like a bandit. perhaps as a child the daughter had crawled across cut glass in order to try to save her parents’ marriage somehow. the line about patriotism are just fatherly advice about what to expect in society and what his mind is preoccupied with.
I have heard that this song is about the Statue of Liberty, and looking closely at the lyrics I think this is entirely plausible. By extension, then, the themes in this song are about democracy and freedom and the dream of the American republic.
A few bits to support this:
"By the way that's a cute hat/and that smile's so hard to resist" - i.e. the crown on the statue plus her peaceful smile.
"What's a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?" - what's Liberty doing in the US, which Dylan saw at the time as a place of decay and greed? This song is from the album 'Infidels', in which he sings about the decline of the union, the threat of nuclear war (or gun violence?) and other such themes.
"Just how much abuse will you be able to take?" - how much corruption and decay can the democratic dream take before it succumbs and fades away?
"You can be known as the most beautiful woman/who ever crawled across cut glass to make a deal" - democracy/liberty can really achieve something wonderful by fighting through all the troubles and enemies of true freedom, or at least its a possibility.
"news of you has come down the line" - i.e. people around the world have long sought to implement the dream of an egalitarian society.
"people are jealous of you/they smile to your face but behind your back they hiss" - there are a lot of people who would like to get rid of the inconvenience of freedom and democracy if they could, but they pretend they like it even while they work against it.
"Steal a little and they throw you in jail/Steal a lot and they make you king" - typifies Dylan's attitude to US politics in this era.
Anyway, just my thoughts. Of course, there's clearly a second theme about the protagonist meeting a woman in a bar or similar and falling for her while he thinks about the 'queen' he 'made disappear.'
Great song, from a highly underrated album.
You're about 99% right. On one level it's about Lady Liberty, the spirit that the statue represents. The statue is like a snapshot of that spirit frozen in time. The song describes the descent into "the land of permanent bliss," you can almost taste the sarcasm as he spits out those words describing post modern America where Liberty is abused by decadence & religious zealots.<br /> On another level, applying Jungian analysis, she's the female component of the male psyche, the "Anima" who, like Beatriz in Dante's Inferno, is the guide that symbolically leads the soul out of the Inferno through purgatory and, ultimately, to Heaven.<br /> You were 100% correct when you said "Great song, from a highly underrated album."
well actualy i know what its about! it about jesus. believe it or not. if you remember when dylan came out with his album saved, he was criticized. personally i didn't like the saved album. bob dylan had a huge conversion into the christian religion and came out with that album. after that he decided to hide his meanings in his songs. one of his lines says "you know news of you has come down the line, even before you came in the door" the birth of jesus was fortold before he was born. so this is very relevant. another example would be when Dylan says " how much abuse will you be able to take? Well theres no way to tell by that first kiss" this represents the kiss of judas and jesus's coming crucifiction. He also says " in your fathers house there's many mansions" this is a direct quote from jesus. the sweetheart is jesus. When Dylan says "whats a sweetheart like you doing in a dump like this?" he's asking why would somthing so pure and perfect as jesus come into the world. Or "dump" so there ya go. if you look at allot of his songs from a biblical standpoint. you will see what he is talking about. if you have any questions you can contact me at Masonvv2@hotmail.com
But the whole line reads "they say in your fathers house there's many mansions, each one of them got a fire-proof floor", which suggests a his/her 'father' is Satan. The Christian Church, perhaps? (Is that the real 'beast' of Revelations? Quite possibly; I doubt Jesus would approve of most of what is being said and done in His name).
Both views are correct. Dylan often writes about more than one thing and the meaning you take from the song will most likely be the one that you associate with most personally. The view that the song is about liberty/freedom and the corruption in american politics is correct, equally, the sweetheart probably does represent Jesus. For Dylan there isn't a distance between religion and politics, for Dylan the highest poltical authority is the highest authority, God. it is this authority that sent us Christ, and it is this authority that gave us the morality that we based our democracy and freedoms upon. without the sweetheart like you that some how comes to a place like this, we wouldn't have anything let alone democracy. (placed, as the song is, next to Jokerman, which is overtly religious, it is clear that this dual meaning is intended.)
i think this song is about hell. the girl he is singing about has just gone to hell from heavan.
"Got to be an important person to be in here, honey Got to have done some evil deed Got to have your own harem when you come in the door Got to play your harp until your lips bleed." --you have to do something bad in order to go to hell.
"They say in your father's house, there's many mansions Each one of them got a fireproof floor" --hevan is known to have 'mansions' that can resist alot.
case closed, peacee. "
^My Mom told me that. :]