Bob Dylan – Our Prodigal Son

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Bob Dylan – Our Prodigal Son from our ‘Les Paul’s’ (The Paul’s) album Scared of America – Volume Three
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the song lyrics came to me as I suddenly realized that Dylan will soon be 80 and I had last seen him perform at Hyde Park in London a couple of years ago on the same bill as Neil Young and I thought he looked frail and it made me realize that he will be sorely missed when he passes on! Some people have criticized me for daring to think about the possibility that Dylan won’t be with us some time in the future but that is life, sadly we are all born to die!
The song title Our Prodigal Son is of course from the Bible (Luke 15), a book Dylan himself has heavily drawn from during his career.

The song starts by mentioning twins, or duality, Dylan is ‘Dylan the artist’ when he has to be. as he has said, and is Robert as many say he likes to be called, the family man. The Biblical parable is about 2 brothers and “Prodigal” means being wastefully extravagant. In this story the man’s son recklessly and wastefully spends his inheritance. In fact after he has been given his inheritance by his father he goes off and wastes it all but his father (God) welcomes him back into the fold with open arms.
In the context of this famous parable, the prodigal son has also come to mean someone who is spiritually lost and someone who has returned after an absence. One of the main precepts running through the Bible is that God wants us to repent, and if you know or have watched the documentary, Eat The Document, the last scene features a tired and perhaps high Dylan in the back of a limousine in 66 saying to the camera, saying to us, ‘I’m sorry for all that I’ve done and I hope to remedy it soon’! After this Dylan would withdraw from the public gaze for some years.
Anyway, that’s something that the song is about that I also tried to capture Dylan’s career journey from then to now – Paul Robert Thomas.
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Watch the video promo of Bob Dylan – Our Prodigal Son (radio mix) HERE .
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Available to download on Amazon HERE on Spotify HERE on iTunes HERE on Apple Music HERE and now on Bandcamp HERE.
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You can read the bob-dylan.org.uk article on our song by Tony Attwood HERE.
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One of the 1st persons to hear Our Prodigal Son, Denise Konkal who runs the Bob Dylan International Facebook group wrote after hearing the song, ‘This song is epic and I do not use that term lightly! It captures Bob Dylan’s heritage and life’s spiritual and temporal journey, while brilliantly using his own songs as reference!
Your voice Paul (Odiase), is so amazing with its deep raspy resonance! The music is exciting and reminds me of a swift ,free flowing, winding river. It is highly engaging and arresting at times! Like Bob’s songs, it is like a biographical movie, and being a visual thinker as I am I could see so many scenes play out in milliseconds like when you dream something big in a tiny space of time! Bravo! 🌹
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Bob Dylan – Our Prodigal Son lyrics
Robert and Bobby were the best of twins
They were in the game till the end to win
One sometimes a Christian, the other tangled up as a Jew
They both loved Rock, Folk and old time Blues

They tried to hide their roots and their past
Said they’d joined a circus to get away fast
But they couldn’t hide from where they came
From up in the midwest iron ore range

You might think they’re two, but they’re one
Both rolled up as the Prodigal Son

After the crash when they’d gotten clean
They seemed tranquil and no longer mean
They hid from the rat race turning wheel
And no longer asked ‘How does it feel’?

They wanted you to star in a show
You said ‘Not me, no, no, no’
You’d done it all, you’d nothing to prove
You didn’t dig that hippy groove

Said you were sorry for all that you’d done
There wasn’t any need, Prodigal Son

The years went by and you stayed away
You’d pop up here and there sometimes to play
He went over to the Promised Land
To give his teen son a helping hand

They said you were finished, said you were done
You knew you had to keep on keeping on
Like the wild rover looking for divine love
You said you put all your faith in Him above

When that phase was over and was done
You returned to us, our Prodigal Son

You’ve lived fast and without remorse
Driven on by a rumbling force
Money came and money it went
Can it compensate for your torment?

You seen so many friends pass on
They were here yesterday, now they’re gone
You say ‘We’re only passing through’
Well that’s the Prodigal Son’s point of view

I can’t say that you were ever wrong
You were far ahead, the Prodigal Son

When you’re finally gone, I’ll be sad
You were like the father I never had
To taught me to just believe my eyes
You said this world is a whirlpool of lies

When you’re knocking on heaven’s door
The lions of Judah will all roar
We’ll be sad and lonesome when you’re gone
Then you’ll return to your home, our Prodigal Son

I’ll remember you when you’re gone
And flown up towards the Sun
All that remains will be your song
I was proud to know you, our Prodigal Son

Music composed and performed by Paul Odiase BMI No. 1252265 (Switzerland)
Song lyrics by Paul Robert Thomas PRS No. 497904008 (London)
PRS Tunecode 457684GR
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Visit Our Prodigal Son Merchandising Store HERE!

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