Behind a mans brain shows that it was not out of his own hate that he shot but hate that belongs to someone else Only a pawn means that he is only a small piece of a very large scheme While Dylan was not a activist this particular song Captures the spirit of that period and contributed to the argument for improving conditions for Blacks in the U.S. Has conditions improved enough for Blacks and people of color in the U.S., no. His epitaph plain: He ain’t got no name I knew them, but had somehow forgotten the impact. send your comment. I doubt those numbers are right and up to date, but it gives an indication of the way Dylan remembers different songs. And I find that on this album one I actually really do want to hear, despite knowing it inside out, is this song. Indeed my pal Drew (a doctor of philosophy, and expert in urban street crime in 19th century London) and I regularly spend hours arguing about the power of society vis a vis the decisions of the individual. Capo 2 Common Riff: C/B/A G . Most southern civil war soldiers were too poor to own slaves. "Only a Pawn in Their Game" is a song written by Bob Dylan about the assassination of civil rights activist Medgar Evers in Jackson, Mississippi, on June 12, 1963. A finger fired the trigger to his name. But when the shadowy sun sets on the one That fired the gun You'll see by his grave On the stone that remains Carved next to his name His epitaph plain: Only a pawn in their game. He’ll see by his grave Your Comment. Untold Dylan: “I’ll let you be in my dream if I can be in yours”. It never loses its power for me. Carved next to his name How else do you think they got a bunch of serfs to fight for the large plantation economic model? From the poverty shacks, he looks from the cracks to the tracks Indeed the issue of returning heroes is one that was of huge significance in England after the first world war, as much as in the US. You emphasise, over-play, make the point. We imagine in our societies that the individual should be our focus – we put individuals on trial, but do not accept the argument of the influence of society as a force in determining behaviour. Of the songs on Times the official web site has him playing Hollis Brown 211 times in concert, Spanish Leather 299, North Country Blues 2, One too many mornings 40, Only a pawn 9, Restless Farewell 2, Hattie Carroll 296, When the Ship comes in 3, With God on our side 30 times. He's only a pawn in their game." When the judge was sentenced to 18 months imprisonment, Byron De La Beckwith’s son was in the courtroom. Another Dylan song experimenting with the 6/8 rhythm format that is at the heart of this album, but this time endlessly changing and meandering around that format in a way that refers back to Down the Highway – the only other song I can recall where he does this – although that is just a preliminary to what Dylan does here. When Evers returned home, he was prevented from voting in elections, and vowed then to work for change. The song was said to be one of the first that suggested that the poor white man or woman was as victimized by discrimination as the poor black. Paroles sur le site officiel de Bob Dylan, https://fr.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Only_a_Pawn_in_Their_Game&oldid=168568599, Chanson contre le racisme et la xénophobie, licence Creative Commons attribution, partage dans les mêmes conditions, comment citer les auteurs et mentionner la licence. As always, my apologies if I have misunderstood any of this history – while beyond any doubt these were massive landmarks in the history of the US, they had no impact on the UK, where I live, and so I am very much reporting from without not within. Your email address will not be published. Medgar Evers worked with NAACP organizing voter-registration and the boycott of companies that practised discrimination and achieved something of a reputation. It is, as we used to say, “the system”, although these days I guess I’d say, the economy, the politics, the social structure and our psychology, and that’s only the start of the list. You’re better than them, you been born with white skin,” they explain. Doesn’t speak too well about the intelligence or independent thought of poor white men in the South, now does it? Dylan Obscuranti: the final track, and anyone fancy designing a cover? On June 12, 1963, Medgar Evers was shot in back, outside his house. You’re better than them, you been born with white skin,” they explain. He gained the endorsement of prominent blacks, including James Brown, as well as a national union endorsement from the AFL/CIO. The poor whites antagonism towards blacks was cultivated at least back to the civil war and likely far earlier. Lyrics to Only A Pawn In Their Game; Bob Dylan Artistfacts; Your name as you would like it displayed. These laws were thrown out with the Civil Rights Act in 1965. But it ain’t him to blame He was buried a week later at the Arlington National Cemetery, receiving full military honours and Byron De La Beckwith, of the Ku Klux Klan, was arrested for Evers’ murder. Like a dog on a chain A South politician preaches to the poor white man, “You got more than the blacks, don’t complain. He, like James Meredith, applied for a place in a segregated University of Mississippi to study law. In Britain my forefathers voted in the most left wing government we have ever had and threw out Churchill and the rest who had led the government’s war. So I do believe in “their game” although it doesn’t get much of an airing. ’Bout the shape that he’s in These laws were designed to terrorize Black communities, keep Blacks from voting, committed them to horrendous working conditions in mines factories, sharecropping, and other horrendous work conditions without hope of advancement. Une balle venue de l'arrière d'un buisson a fauché (1) Medgar Evers. “Only a Pawn in Their game” is another of Dylan’s songs that spoke to oppressed people. Should he have written a piece which said, A South politician preaches to the poor white man, But of course I say “A”, because they don’t all follow the segregationist plan. This link is included in The Bob Dylan Project at: http://thebobdylanproject.com/Song/id/477/Only-a-Pawn-in-Their-Game (Additional Information). As the book NIXON AND KISSINGER shows in great detail, Nixon was mostly concerned with foreign policy, to the detriment of domestic policy. Seymour M. Hersh . OK I am teasing, but political poetry doesn’t work like that. The NAACP campaigned to desegregate the school and you can read my understanding of these events in the review of Oxford Town. Nixon and Thatcher still won elections in the US and UK and then won them again, and the right wing fought back. From the start by the rule Evers was a member of the NAACP and part of the civil rights movement. As the civil rights movement is occurring during this time, It is about the discrimination of not only black people, but poor whites as well at the time. Which is perhaps why I find today, in 2015, Only a Pawn is a song I do want to come back to. The characters in the sagas were gods, invincible, heroic. Only a Pawn in Their Game (February 1980) First published in Socialist Review, 1980 : 2, 17 February–15 March 1980, p. . Un activiste tel que Medgar Evers représente un danger pour les tenants du statu quo, qui n’ont même pas à se salir les mains puisque l’idée du crime germe dans un esprit totalement imbibé de leur rhétorique clivante. A hand set the spark Behind the man's brain But he can't be blamed He's only a pawn in their game . Two eyes took the aim I hope De La Beckwith’s epitaph reads “only a pawn in their game”. 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