"As I Went Out One Morning" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
, released as the second song on his 1967 album ''
John Wesley Harding''.
Lyrical interpretation and reception
"As I Went Out One Morning" is a narrative song about a man who offers a hand to a woman in chains, but realizes that she wants more than he is offering, and that "she meant to do
imharm." A character identified as
Tom Paine then appears, "command
her to yield," and apologizes to the narrator for the woman's actions.
''Tom Paine'' as a figure may represent common sense or civil liberties, which the historical Tom Paine championed. However, it is also likely that this song references the prestigious Tom Paine Award that Dylan received in 1963 from the
National Emergency Civil Liberties Committee. Dylan delivered an acceptance speech and was booed and rushed from the stage when he claimed to have empathy for some of
Lee Harvey Oswald
Lee Harvey Oswald (October 18, 1939 – November 24, 1963) was a U.S. Marine veteran who assassinated John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, on November 22, 1963.
Oswald was placed in juvenile detention at the age of 12 fo ...
's feelings. This was followed by a letter from the ECLC and then a poem/letter from Dylan explaining his speech.
In their book ''Bob Dylan All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track'', authors Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon praise Dylan's vocal performance for "expressing a new maturity" not found in his earlier recordings and note that it is also "one of the first times he sings with vibrato".
The song bears a resemblance to, and is perhaps influenced by, the
W. H. Auden poem ''As I Walked Out One Evening'', including sharing the same
iambic meter and
quatrain
A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines.
Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India, Ancient Gree ...
form. The first line also bears resemblance to the folk song ''Lolly Tudum'', which begins "as I went out one morning to breathe the pleasant air", popularized in the New York folk scene by the Seeger Family.
Live performance
Dylan has only performed the song live once, in 1974.
References
External links
As I Went Out One Morning lyric at BobDylan.com
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1967 songs
Bob Dylan songs
Songs written by Bob Dylan
Song recordings produced by Bob Johnston