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Mississippi
A study on mortality

Mississippi Facts

The song was originally recorded to Time Out Of Mind (1998), but was ultimately left off the album. Before that a demo was made in Fall 1996. Bob Dylan offered the song to Sheryl Crow who recorded it for her The Globe Sessions album, released in 1998.

Crow’s version reworked the song’s melody, phrasing, and arrangement and has been described contrastingly as "remarkable" and as "forgettable, head-bopping pop".

Sheryl Crow's arrangement was later taken over by the group, the Dixie Chicks who made it a country rock song, and a good one too. Though very different from any of Bob Dylan's recordings, both versions are worth listening to.

After the song was finally recorded to the album Love And Theft (2001) two alternate versions were released on the bootleg double album Tell Tale signs: Rare And Unreleased 1989-2006 (2008). The version on disc 1 is somewhat slow and bluesy. I like that version a lot though I like the album version best of them all.

Also listen to a live version on YouTube (the sound not being exactly perfect).

The song is divided in three sections each consisting of four verses, two A-pieces, a B-piece and a concluding A-piece containing the song's chorus:

  "Only one thing I did wrong / Stayed in Mississippi a day too long."

The songs on Love And Theft are said to be concentrated around Dylan's love to the American South, and as the album title implies Dylan has 'borrowed' from many sources. Prominent among the sources to the song Mississippi is the author Henry Rollins from whom he has quoted quite a few lines.

According to Tony Attwood from the 'Untold Dylan' webpage Bob Dylan has allegedly been inspired to the chorus lines from an old prison song called Rosie sung by the inmates in Parchman, a disreputable state penitentiary in the state of Mississippi.

A Matter Of Mortality

In an interview in Rolling Stone (2001) about the preceding album Time Out Of Mind (1998) Bob Dylan declares:

  "People say the record deals with mortality - my mortality for some reason! [Laughs] Well, it doesn't deal with my mortality. It maybe just deals with mortality in general. It's one thing that we all have in common, isn't it? But I didn't see any one critic say: It deals with my mortality" - you know, his own. As if he's immune in some kind of way - like whoever's writing about the record has got eternal life and the singer doesn't. I found this condescending attitude toward that record revealed in the press quite frequently, but, you know, nothing you can do about that."
Well, this song from the album Love And Theft, certainly deals with mortality. The manifesto of the whole song is expressed in the first verse. It's about what happens to your mind when you face the fact that you're actually going to die.
 

1.1
Every step of the way we walk the line
Your days are numbered, so are mine
Time is pilin’ up, we struggle and we scrape
We’re all boxed in, nowhere to escape

Somebody might say, "Well, we're all going to die; it's no big news. We see it happen every day. I have good friends; I even have wife and kids ... and a good job too. I lead a normal life without thinking about death very much."

Yes, of course you do, and you're doing the right thing. We've all got a life to live whether we understand what the whole business is about or not. But sometimes in a dark hour you may come to think and the world stops turning, and the thought of mortality leaves you in a limbo. It's like you're caught in a moment ... any moment ... and time freezes.

"We're all boxed in, nowhere to escape" is the name of the game, and there's nothing anybody can do about it. It's enough to make you depressed and unable to act. It's painful:

 

1.3
...
Sky full of fire, pain pourin’ down
Nothing you can sell me, I’ll see you around

Seeing that you were born, having lived a life, having even participated in bringing new life to the world, and then you die away from it all ... It's absurd and it generates a feeling of being alienated:
 

2.2
Walkin' through the leaves, falling from the trees
Feelin' like a stranger nobody sees
So many things that we never will undo
I know you’re sorry, I’m sorry too

The narrator is further elaborating the feeling of despair; everything looks barren and you are utterly alone. And don't get it wrong: It has nothing to do with the common notion of loneliness, being single maybe and without friends. It's so much worse. There is an iron curtain between you and everybody else, even people you are strongly connected to. We all live in a world of our own, disconnected from everybody else's world. Your existence is yours and yours alone ... and we all die alone.

You may regret stupid things you have done, but you can't undo them. With the words of the Danish philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard:

 

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards."
There you are! These are the conditions that have been assigned to us, sorry or not.
 

2.3
Some people will offer you their hand and some won't
Last night I knew you, tonight I don’t
I need somethin’ strong to distract my mind
I'm gonna look at you ’til my eyes go blind

In an unpredictable and capricious world you need 'distraction' from the unbearable situation.

The last line is a beautiful statement to give away, a statement that goes to the heart and bear witness of a great poet. But who is the narrator looking at? At the first sight you may think he talks about a beloved woman, but I rather think a religious approach is in play here. A comforting belief in some high spirit attributed with many names, one of which is God. Who else but God shines with a light so bright that you are blinded? So, turning to your Maker is what you need to save you from despair, to set you free to live the life you've been given. That the narrator calls facing God a 'distraction' must be described as an understatement.

That there's room for hope is offered in verse 3.3:
 

3.3
My clothes are wet, tight on my skin
Not as tight as the corner that I painted myself in
I know that fortune is waitin’ to be kind
So give me your hand and say you’ll be mine

In four lines the narrator is summing up the whole schism. On one hand 'We're all boxed in, nowhere to escape'; on the other hand there's hope ... but what is he hoping for?

Wrong question! You should rather ask who he is proposing to? It's not that I'm obsessed by the idea that those lines should be interpreted religiously. It's just that I can't see what else is going on.
One thing seems clear to me, though: It has nothing to do with the notion of an afterlife. Rather is it a trustful belief that Providence will lead you through life and eventually take your hand into the unavoidable Death.

Mississippi For Never

Like so many Bob Dylan songs Mississippi can be compared to an impressionistic painting. Looking closely you see dots of different colors, but from a distance they form a reckognizable image. So what we see at first is the general picture of the conditions and challenges of existence, and the dots are the narrator's thoughts about the mystery of existence and how to cope with it, going in many directions.

One all important element is the notion of Mississippi. First of all we must understand that Mississippi should not be thought of as an actual geographical location. It's rather a mental 'place' - a concept. I can't help thinking of 'places' like Highway 61 and Desolation Row from back in the 60s that also symbolized a state of mind rather than something you can locate in the material world.

Running from way up north where Bob Dylan was born and raised and on its way south through cities like Memphis, St Louis and New Orleans, the river Mississippi symbolizes on one hand Dylan's love to the American South and its music. Cities in which Bob Dylan has his musical roots.

But then again Mississippi is presented as something you should not have engaged yourself in:
 

2.4
Well I got here followin' the southern star
I crossed that river just to be where you are
Only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

So if we let Mississippi represent love of life, the last line advices us not to fall too much in love with life. Not to engage too much in worldly matters. Not to let yourself be engulfed in the turmoil of 'the city':
 

1.2
City’s just a jungle; more games to play
Trapped in the heart of it, tryin' to get away
I was raised in the country, I been workin’ in the town
I been in trouble ever since I set my suitcase down

The feeling of being stuck is further elaborated here. The narrator is setting the simple life in the countryside up against all that goes on in 'the city'. The 'country' represents the unreflected, innocent life, whereas 'the city' is the place where you are busy with all sorts of things and you don't have time to think. The narrator feels trapped by what goes on in the city, and he regrets to have settled there.

But then there is Rosie. Let Rosie be the ideal woman as Tony Attwood claims. He says:
 

"Plus we have Rosie, a name that was often used as a generalised name of the ideal woman, just as in France there is Marianne, the symbol of the Republic. Dylan is singing of the idealised world versus the real world.

(Interestingly Dylan did once clarify this in an interview, when speaking of mortality, and said that the song dealt with mortality in general – meaning that Rosie is the symbol of love, not an actual woman)."
 
I think Tony Attwood has a meaningful point here. The narrator is object to all kinds of comments and criticism and none of it really bothers him. All that's important, all he wants to listen to, are words of love:
 

2.1
Well, the devil’s in the alley, mule’s in the stall
Say anything you wanna, I have heard it all
I was thinkin’ 'bout the things that Rosie said
I was dreaming I was sleepin' in Rosie’s bed

Falling in love is as much a part of life as is death. Producing descendants is the way we secure our immortality ... as a species. Let it be a compensation for our dying away on the personal level. Or if we want to stick to the religious approach we may quote St Paul:
 

"So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

Also, the poet has at an earlier stage put it in these simple words:
 
  "Love is all there is, it makes the world go round."

A Walk Through Mississippi

Let's take it from the top to catch all titbits and loose ends.
 

1.1
Every step of the way we walk the line
Your days are numbered, so are mine
Time is pilin’ up, we struggle and we scrape
We’re all boxed in, nowhere to escape

These catchy words sum up the entire set of lyrics. They take you immediately on board.
 

1.2
City’s just a jungle; more games to play
Trapped in the heart of it, tryin' to get away
I was raised in the country, I been workin’ in the town
I been in trouble ever since I set my suitcase down

Some have interpreted this verse as a somewhat social protest: but honestly, it doesn't really fit into the general concept, does it? What's important is not that modern city life is destructive or anything like that. The problem is rather that the narrator has engaged himself in the pulsing life of the city, eventually being trapped in it.

 

1.3
Got nothin' for you, I had nothin' before
Don’t even have anything for myself anymore
Sky full of fire, pain pourin’ down
Nothing you can sell me, I’ll see you around

Being a poet, being a famous storyteller, people expect wise words from the narrator. But he has nothing to give, being stripped of illusions as he is. He's tried it all and he can neither give nor can he receive.

The whole thing reminds me of a few lines from the song I And I, from the album Infidels (1983):
 

"Someone else is speakin' with my mouth, but I'm listening only to my heart.
I've made shoes for everyone, even you, while I still go barefoot."

 

1.4
All my powers of expression and thoughts so sublime
Could never do you justice in reason or rhyme
Only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

The ambiguity that goes through this set of lyrics is perfectly exposed in this verse. "All my powers of expression and thoughts so sublime / Could never do you justice in reason or rhyme" might indicate a positive attitude towards Mississippi. But then again, the narrator is troubled about having stayed in Mississippi too long, so something must be wrong with it. Is it that something is holding him back against his will? I don't think so. It's more like not being able to part from somebody (or something, or somewhere) you love. Like you shouldn't love your endeavors in life too much.

So obviously it is an open question whether it is Mississippi at all the narrator is addressing in the first part of this verse. While he, in line two, talks to somebody in second person, none the less he ends up talking about Mississippi in third person.

Consequently we need find out who the narrator is addressing in the first two lines to ensure the coherence of the entire set of lyrics. If we take verse 2.4 in consideration, and to a certain extent also verse 3.4, there may be some sort of evidence that he's addressing God.

I think it's notable - and a bit funny - that the narrator mentions his own abilities with words. He admits though that his skills are inadequate when it comes to describing God.

 

2.1
Well, the devil’s in the alley, mule’s in the stall
Say anything you wanna, I have heard it all
I was thinkin’ 'bout the things that Rosie said
I was dreaming I was sleepin' in Rosie’s bed

As mentioned above Rosie may represent the ideal woman and/or worldly love. While the narrator is subject to all sorts of comments and criticism, all he wants to hear is words of love. But Rosie seems to be unreal; she's a dream.
 

2.2
Walkin' through the leaves, falling from the trees
Feelin' like a stranger nobody sees
So many things that we never will undo
I know you’re sorry, I’m sorry too

Regret is inevitable. There will in anybody's life span always be occurrences you wish you could undo, but you can't. Let's repeat the wise words of Soren Kierkegaard:
  "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards."
 

2.3
Some people will offer you their hand and some won’t
Last night I knew you, tonight I don’t
I need somethin’ strong to distract my mind
I’m gonna look at you ’til my eyes go blind

Nothing will last forever; some things don't even last a day. You can't rely on the world to remain constant. Only God is forever, unlimited.
 

2.4
Well I got here followin' the southern star
I crossed that river just to be where you are
Only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

As the album Love And Theft is said to pay tribute to the American South and its music it will be a reasonable conclusion that the narrator has made a journey - at least a mental one - to the South he loves. But the talk of crossing a river has an underlying symbolic meaning. It's not only about moving to the other shore; it's a quantum leap from one state of mind to another.

The narrator speaks to somebody. It is close by to assume that it's the same 'you' he refers to in verses 1.4 and the previous verse, verse 2.3. If so, this 'staying in Mississippi' is what's keeping the narrator away from the mercy of God.

 

3.1
Well my ship’s been split to splinters and it’s sinkin' fast
I’m drownin’ in the poison, got no future, got no past
But my heart is not weary, it’s light and it’s free
I’ve got nothin’ but affection for all those who’ve sailed with me

In the midst of despair the narrator feels light hearted, and he's able to feel affection for his loved ones. It's tempting here to draw the 'God's mercy' card again.

Considering myself being someone who has been awed by Bob Dylan's lyrics through the years, I almost feel he's talking directly to me and like minded. But again, maybe he's talking to somebody else. You never know what's going on in a poet's mind.

 

3.2
Everybody movin’ if they ain’t already there
Everybody got to move somewhere
Stick with me baby, stick with me anyhow
Things should start to get interestin' right about now

Well, it's obviously about moving, not standing still. Always feeling the necessity and the drive to move on to new horizons. 'Stick with me baby' sounds like an invitation to all of us to join the narrator on his journey.

In the last line Bob Dylan lets his narrator quote from a poem of Henry Rollins. The poem is, roughly spoken, about moving on, being ready for change. Maybe even make each day or each minute a new start. Doing so, always expecting the unexpected, is what makes life - with the narrator's own word - 'interesting'.

 

3.3
My clothes are wet, tight on my skin
Not as tight as the corner that I painted myself in
I know that fortune is waitin’ to be kind
So give me your hand and say you’ll be mine

The narrator trustfully puts his life in the hands of God. There's only good fortune ahead.
 

3.4
Well, the emptiness is endless, cold as the clay
You can always come back, but you can’t come back all the way
Only one thing I did wrong
Stayed in Mississippi a day too long

Verses 1.4 and 2.4 allegedly explain how the narrator approaches God followed by regret that he has become absorbed by his love of whatever he's hanging on to.

In verse 3.4, however, the tone is darker. The narrator only sees emptiness and looking back, there is only a past that cannot be altered. Again the narrator quotes Henry Rollins in the second line.

"You can always come back, but you can't come back all the way", the narrator says. And why should you? You've grown wiser in the meantime, and the past can never be same as it was. You will unevitably see the past with new eyes.

Leaving Mississippi

To prevent any misunderstandings regarding religiousity I need to add a few words. I have chosen to interpret some elements religiously while some might have chosen to look at them as worldly love to a woman. I am convinced that the religious interpretation makes a lot more sense in terms of the coherence of the entire set of lyrics.

But don't get it wrong. The religious approach has nothing to do with Bob Dylan's well known attraction to the 'reborn christians' in the 1980s. Now there's no preaching or evangelism or gospel or Bible talk, it's just God and His mercy. Just knowing that he's there can free you from the existential schism described above. It's a strong belief that doesn't try to sell any theology, that doesn't need shrines or altars.

There are several versions of the song in circulation. To take Bob Dylan's own recordings there are already four.

First there is the album version from the Love And Theft album. Furthermore we have two versions from the double bootleg album Tell Tale Signs (2008), the first song on disc 1 as well as disc 2. There's even a third version if you purcahse the de luxe edition of the album. The disc 1 version is a beautiful slow and quiet bluesy version.

Two cover versions by Cheryl Crow and Dixie Chicks are worth listening to. I should like to hear the demo version Bob Dylan originally gave to Cheryl Crow but it cannot be found.

On YouTube you can find at least four live performances with the man himself. I'm no big fan of any of these performances but you can find them all here:

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