Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Ballad of a thin blog

This would be a good time to share your ballad with the rest of the world. There's something about March and ballads. Well, except for Bob Dylan's "Ballad of a Thin Man," which was recorded on Aug. 2, 1965 for his Highway 61 Revisted album.

People are still trying to figure out what Dylan was singing about on that track. We at the Sanctuary hold the album in high esteem, and we certainly don't lose sleep over the lyrics to "Thin Man." On the contrary, we've been known to fall asleep with our Koss headphones listening to ...

You walk into the room
With your pencil in your hand
You see somebody naked
And you say "Who is that man?"
You try so hard
But you don't understand
Just what you'll say
When you get home


It's definitely one of the great songs with "ballad" in the title. The other ones that come to mind all hit the big time in March of their respective years. March 16, to be exact -- information you just can't find anywhere but in the mind-expanding halls of the Sanctuary. Brace yourself for some chilling facts:

With silver wings upon his chest, Barry Sadler and "Ballad of the Green Beret" were America's best on this day in 1966.

Three years prior, Flatt & Scruggs struck crude -- oil that is, black gold, Texas tea -- when "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" reached No. 1 on the country chart.

And on this day in 1955 Bill Hayes became king of the wild frontier with "The Ballad of Davy Crockett."

Spooky. All we can do is reference lyrics to "Ballad of a Thin Man" and leave you to your own devices:

Because something is happening here
But you don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?

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