I'm Not There

Bob Dylan

About I'm Not There

I'm Not There is a 2007 musical drama film directed by Todd Haynes and co-written with Oren Moverman. It is an unconventional biopic inspired by the life and music of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Six actors depict different facets of Dylan's public personas: Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger (his final film to be released during his lifetime), and Ben Whishaw. A caption at the start of the film declares it to be "inspired by the music and the many lives of Bob Dylan"; this is the only mention of Dylan in the film apart from song credits, and his only appearance in it is concert footage from 1966 shown during the film's final moments. The film tells its story using non-traditional narrative techniques, intercutting the storylines of seven different Dylan-inspired characters. The title of the film is taken from the 1967 Dylan Basement Tape recording of "I'm Not There", a song that had not been officially released until it appeared on the film's soundtrack album. The film received a generally favorable response, and appeared on several top ten films lists for 2007, topping the lists for The Village Voice, Entertainment Weekly, Salon and The Boston Globe. Particular praise went to Cate Blanchett for her performance, culminating in a Volpi Cup for Best Actress from the Venice Film Festival, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress, along with an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress nomination. 


Year:
1996
79 
#2

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Thing's all right and she's all too tight
In my neighborhood she cries both day and night
I know it because I was there
It's a milestone but she's down on her luck
And she's daily salooning about to make her hard earned buck
I was there

I believe where she'd stop him if she wants time to care
I believe that she'd look upon beside him to care
And I'd go by the Lord and when she's on my way
But I don't belong there

No, I don't belong to her, I don't belong to anybody
She's my Christ forsaken angel but she don't hear me cry
She's a lone hearted mystic and she can't carry on
When I'm there she's alright but then she's not when I'm gone

Heaven knows that the answer, she's don't calling no one
She's the way, her sailing beauty for she's mine for the one
And I lost her hesitating by temptation lest it runs
But she don't holler me but I'm not there, I'm gone

Now I'll cry tonight like I cried the night before
And I'm released on the heights in but I'll dream about the door
It's alone, she's forsaken by her fate, worse to tell
"It don't have approximation", she smiled, "Fare thee well"

Now when I?ll teach that lady I was born to love her
But she knows that the kingdom waits so high above her
And I run but I race but it's not too fast or slow
But I don't perceive her, I'm not there, I'm gone

Well, it's all about confusion and I cry for her
Well, I don't need anybody now beside me to tell
And it?s all affirmation I receive but it?s not
She's adorned by the beauty but she don't like the spot and she won't

Yes, she's gone like the rainbow that shined yesterday
But now she's home beside me and I'd like her here to stay
She's a lone forsaken beauty and it's don't trust anyone
I wish I was beside her but I'm not there, I'm gone

Well, it's too hard to stay here and I don't want to leave
It?s so bad but amusing when she's hard, too hard to leave
It?s a load, it?s a crime the way she haunt me around
But she told, ?won't you hate me?? but [Incomprehensible]

Yes, I believe that it?s rightful, oh, I believe it in my mind
I been told like I said when I before carry on the grind
And she's on yet she told her like I said, ?Carry on?
I wish I was there to help her but I'm not there, I'm gone

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Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan ( /ˈdɪlən/; born Robert Allen Zimmerman; May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, poet and artist. He has been an influential figure in popular music and culture for more than five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly reluctant figurehead of social unrest. A number of Dylan's early songs, such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin'", became anthems for the US civil rights and anti-war movements. Leaving his initial base in the culture of folk music behind, Dylan's six-minute single "Like a Rolling Stone" has been described as radically altering the parameters of popular music in … more »

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Written by: BOB DYLAN

Lyrics © BOB DYLAN MUSIC CO

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind


12 facts about this song

Creation Period
"I'm Not There" was recorded in 1967 by Bob Dylan alongside the group The Band during what is known as the Basement Tapes sessions.
Release Details
The song didn't see an official release until nearly 40 years later, in 2007, when it was included on the soundtrack for the film "I'm Not There," which was loosely based on Dylan's life.
Title Trivia
Interestingly, the song itself never has the title "I'm Not There" in its lyrics. This makes picking out the title a bit tricky and unique.
Lyrics Mystery
The song remains one of Dylan's most mysterious as the lyrics seem to be a series of unrelated verses and phrases.
Singer's Favorite
Dylan reportedly listed "I'm Not There" as one of his favorite songs from the Basement Tapes period.
Bootleg Versions
Prior to its official release, the song had been bootlegged and circulated among Dylan fans for years, attesting to the enduring interest in Dylan's unreleased work.
Song Interpretation
Some critics and fans interpret the song as being about Dylan's own tenuous relationship with fame and his public persona.
Cover Versions
Various artists, including Sonic Youth and Curtiss A, have covered "I'm Not There," revealing the song's influence across different musical genres.
Film Connection
In the 2007 film "I'm Not There," six different actors played variations of Dylan, echoing the fractured and elusive nature of the song.
Original Recording
The original recording of the song is incomplete and breaks off abruptly. This adds another layer of mystery to the song.
Record Auction
In 2014, the only known acetate of "I’m Not There" was sold at auction for nearly $30,000.
Folk Influence
The song's powerful, atmospheric sound is considered to have been influenced by traditional folk music, and a reflection of Bob Dylan's evolution as an artist.

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