Expressive Timing in Bob Dylan's ‘With God on Our Side’

Abstract

ABSTRACTTo analyse the metre of popular song is an act of performance analysis. Without reference to a score, analysts must rely on recordings to determine metre, grouping, and timing fluctuations. When these fluctuations and groupings change (within a performance or between performances) a fixed representation of a song's metre is challenged.In this study, I explore how Dylan's early, folk‐influenced ‘singer‐songwriter’ music challenges traditional approaches to performance analysis through an investigation of expressive timing in his song ‘With God on Our Side’ (1964). The studio recording, from The Times They Are A‐Changin’, defies a fixed metre: timing fluctuations make it difficult to choose a tactus and tactus groupings will be inconsistent, switching between triple and quadruple hypermetre. Live performances between 1963 and 1965 often also feature unpredictable grouping structures.I begin this study with a brief contextualisation of the song within the early 1960s folk revival. Secondly, I investigate the inadequacies of published sheet music and guitar tablature as referential scores for a study of metre in popular songs. I then explore hypermetric structures of ‘With God on Our Side’ in live performances in the early‐to‐mid 1960s. Finally, I analyze the metric details of the opening phrases of the Times studio recording. These analyses demonstrate how changing metric structure expresses both lyrical meaning and the freedoms of Dylan's early 1960s performance practice. These findings, in their renegotiation of the roles of performance analysis (composer, performer, analyst and score), demonstrate how critical attention should be paid to expressive timing in flexibly timed popular music.