Bob Dylan was a very young man when he adopted his daughter Maria, who was a toddler, but he was mature enough to be a good father to her, always. Anyone who has ever spent time with a small child knows that they can get you out of a bad mood with just a smile and "paint the daytime black" with a tantrum, or by getting into an awkward situation. The song "She Belongs to Me" should really speak to those currently being amused and confused by some little person.
Young children are a group of artists, and if they lock you out and lose the key it's not done with any real malice, it may just be a performance art piece.
Anyway, Bob wrote this song inspired by Sara's daughter, Maria, shortly after he met her. He felt she would always be his daughter, even if the legal adoption they were talking about didn't go through. A sense of belonging is very important to a little girl, and he was able to give her that gift. He was able to legally adopt her later that year. Maria was just three years old.
She Belongs To Me (1965)
She's got everything she needs,
She's an artist, she don't look back.
She's got everything she needs,
She's an artist, she don't look back.
She can take the dark out of the nighttime
And paint the daytime black.
You will start out standing
Proud to steal her anything she sees.
You will start out standing
Proud to steal her anything she sees.
But you will wind up peeking through a keyhole
Down upon your knees.
She never stumbles,
She's got no place to fall.
She never stumbles,
She's got no place to fall.
She's nobody's child,
The Law can't touch her at all.
She wears an Egyptian ring
That sparkles before she speaks.
She wears an Egyptian ring
That sparkles before she speaks.
She's a hypnotist collector,
You are a walking antique.
Bow down to her on Sunday,
Salute her when her birthday comes.
Bow down to her on Sunday,
Salute her when her birthday comes.
For Halloween give her a trumpet
And for Christmas, buy her a drum.
Photo: Bob with drum.Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.
--Picasso
PS: Typeface designer draws dylan with garamond typeface--watch it happen here:
http://www.ni9e.com/typo/typo_dylan.html
