Brian Bergeron

I was itching to get out yesterday so I saw Todd Haynes’ new movie “I’m Not There” about the many lives of Bob Dylan. For those who are not familiar with the movie, it follows 6 narravites of characters that are supposed to represent different personalities of Bob Dylan. As a whole, the movie was really interesting. It was beautifully done, and though I wasn’t continually captivated (I wish it was a bit shorter), it left an overall positive impression on me.

It got me thinking a lot too about Bob Dylan’s significance in his times. I had a conversation earlier that day with my friend Jim about why Dylan was as successful as he was and we concluded that it was because he sang of the times…That’s not a big revelation but what is troubling is that I don’t think there is anyone quite like that today. There are no shortage of bands that are writing songs against the war in Iraq or complaining about something but I don’t feel like there is any group that is a representation of our times.

I would be interested in trying to fill that void but I’m not a political person. The songs that I write are usually the relationships between two people or between one person and himself but I’m not a big picture/big theory kind of guy. I’m not terribly into philosophy or deeper things of that nature but I know that to be the songwriter that I want to grow into I’ll have to learn to write about bigger things but I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to get there. I guess the resolution that I want to do something better is how I’m going to start.

The other aspect of the movie that struck me has to do with a conversation that I think that I had with Max a couple weeks ago…I can’t remember if it was with Max but I guess it doesn’t matter…I had it. We thought it was kind of a drag that many brilliant artists and people regarded as celebrity led and continue to lead very self-destructive lifestyles. Bob Dylan was no exception. Two of his characters in the movie were unsavory people, with drug addictions and one was a poor family man. It makes for great cinema but it is nothing that I want. There is almost this understanding, however, that one has to live some sort of tragic life to be a true artist. And that’s bull… But anyways, not that I’m going to start doing drugs and shunning my loved ones, I just wanted to at least reflect and address upon that.

I’m going to work on some songs. I’ve had a pretty good week with songwriting. Then I’m back at Faneuil Hall tonight in the rotunda so my fingers are crossed that it’ll go well there.