All Along The Watchtower / Breathe
by Joe Locke
Gloria Krolak
Gloria Krolak
You may find it difficult to breathe when you listen to this. Your eyes will tear and your heart will burst.
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"I was sitting at the piano not long ago, toying with Bob Dylan's 'All Along The Watchtower' when I began singing a new set of lyrics as if I were taking dictation. I don't know how or why this happened, but it caused me to re-examine Dylan's words, this time through the lens of the racial justice movement. Though I realize it was probably not his intention, Dylan's 1967 song somehow spoke to what our country is experiencing today.
I could hear how this new version of the song would sound, and imagined the visual narrative which could accompany it. With the help of Raul Midòn, KJ Denhert, Clarence Penn, Simone Pittau, Tim Holley and Lorin Cohen, I was able to document what I was hearing. And by collaborating with the artful and expert Nadja von Massow, was able to realize the visual component of the song, with its references to the 1921 Greenwood Massacre (the 100th anniversary of which is this coming year) and a flipbook style acknowledgement of fifty leaders who moved the movement forward, each in their own way.
video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AepQX3qspY
Frederick Douglass' exhortation at the end of the video indicts present-day America for the stasis it has been in since he wrote those words. We need to listen to them and take action."
– Joe Locke (joelocke.com)
I could hear how this new version of the song would sound, and imagined the visual narrative which could accompany it. With the help of Raul Midòn, KJ Denhert, Clarence Penn, Simone Pittau, Tim Holley and Lorin Cohen, I was able to document what I was hearing. And by collaborating with the artful and expert Nadja von Massow, was able to realize the visual component of the song, with its references to the 1921 Greenwood Massacre (the 100th anniversary of which is this coming year) and a flipbook style acknowledgement of fifty leaders who moved the movement forward, each in their own way.
video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=8AepQX3qspY
Frederick Douglass' exhortation at the end of the video indicts present-day America for the stasis it has been in since he wrote those words. We need to listen to them and take action."
– Joe Locke (joelocke.com)
lyrics
I can't breathe cuz the weight of your history is weighing down on me.
I can't breathe cuz I've been choking on the lies that you all passed down.
I can't breathe cuz I've been counting all the motherfucking ways you've wronged me.
I can't breathe ~ my hands are cuffed and my body's on the ground.
I can't breathe.
All Along The Watchtower
There must be some kind of way out of here, said the joker to the thief
There's just too much confusion - I can't get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine. Plowmen dig my earth.
None were level - on the line. Nobody offered his word.
No reason to get excited, the thief he kindly spoke.
There are many here among who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we've been through that. And this is not our faith.
So let's stop talking falsely now, cuz the hour is getting late.
All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants too.
Outside in the cold distance a wildcat did growl
Two riders were approaching and the wind began to howl.
I can't breathe cuz I've been choking on the lies that you all passed down.
I can't breathe cuz I've been counting all the motherfucking ways you've wronged me.
I can't breathe ~ my hands are cuffed and my body's on the ground.
I can't breathe.
All Along The Watchtower
There must be some kind of way out of here, said the joker to the thief
There's just too much confusion - I can't get no relief.
Businessmen, they drink my wine. Plowmen dig my earth.
None were level - on the line. Nobody offered his word.
No reason to get excited, the thief he kindly spoke.
There are many here among who feel that life is but a joke.
But you and I, we've been through that. And this is not our faith.
So let's stop talking falsely now, cuz the hour is getting late.
All along the watchtower, princes kept the view
While all the women came and went, barefoot servants too.
Outside in the cold distance a wildcat did growl
Two riders were approaching and the wind began to howl.
credits
released June 18, 2021
music & lyrics by Bob Dylan
additional lyrics by Joe Locke
feat. Raul Midón, KJ Denhert, Clarence Penn, Simone Pittau, Timothy Holley, Lorin Cohen
music & lyrics by Bob Dylan
additional lyrics by Joe Locke
feat. Raul Midón, KJ Denhert, Clarence Penn, Simone Pittau, Timothy Holley, Lorin Cohen
license
all rights reserved
tags
about
Joe Locke New York, New York
Joe Locke is widely considered to be one of the major voices of the vibraphone, a soloist of stunning physical power + broad emotional range as composer + band leader. He has won numerous awards + polls, incl. multiple JJA Mallet Player of the Year awards. He is an active educator, appointed International Vibraphone Consultant by the RAM, London w/ the title of Honorary Associate of the Academy. ... more
discography
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Feb 2023 -
Feb 2023 -
Nov 2022 -
Jul 2021
contact / help
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