Bob Dylan Said This Song Belongs to a ‘Serial Killer’
Bob Dylan is an excellent songwriter whose intimate and introspective lyrics managed to capture the hearts and minds of his audience. His ability to relate to any demographic allows him to translate other people’s lyrics and discern their true meaning. He said one song he enjoys covering has a troubling psychological truth, as he believes it could belong to a “serial killer.”
Bob Dylan said ‘You Don’t Know Me’ sounds like it’s a song about a ‘serial killer’
In Bob Dylan’s book The Philosophy of Modern Song, the American folk singer discusses the works of many other artists. One song he discussed is “You Don’t Know Me”, written by Eddie Arnold and Cindy Walker. Dylan started his discussion of the song by analyzing the track’s main character and the lyrics.
“You’re not good at chewing the fat, and you don’t want anyone putting words in your mouth, so you don’t say anything. You can’t go any further in the conversation. You’re deadlocked with nothing to add,” Dylan states. “You’ve got a great yearning and a hunger: a mad crush on someone. But she doesn’t know you. She thinks she knows you well, but she’s wrong. She’s always gotten the wrong impression. How could she know you? How could she know your wild dreams, your fantasies, nightmares, and innermost thoughts? All the things you forbid her to know? It’s just not possible.”
He then says the lyrics sound like they could be recorded by a “serial killer” as it’s written in formal language, and the main character has an unhealthy obsession with the woman in the song. He also compared it to another creepy song: Sting’s “Every Breath You Take”.
“A serial killer would sing this song. The lyrics kind of point toward that,” he writes. “Serial killers have a strangely formal sense of language and might refer to sex as the art of making love. Sting could have written this instead of ‘Every Breath You Take’. He’s watching her with another lucky guy. Not knowing where this happens makes you think that this could totally be happening inside the guy’s head. At least until he picks up that knife. Then it’s the cold, hard facts of life.”
What is ‘You Don’t Know Me’ about?
Arnold and Walker wrote “You Don’t Know Me” in 195, and Arnold released it in 1956. Arnold introduced the story to Walker, and Walker turned it into a classic song. The song isn’t actually about a serial killer, but Bob Dylan might not be far off. It’s about a man who loves a woman but is inexperienced with romance. Due to his shyness, he never tells this woman how much he loves her, and she eventually falls for another man.
It’s certainly a track that could be about a stalker if given a more sinister tone. It’s more about longing for a lover and the regret one may feel when they don’t express their feelings. Dylan isn’t the only artist who admired this song as it was covered by many other singers, including Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Bette Midler, Michael McDonald, Willie Nelson, and Kenny Rogers. The most successful version of this song was released by Ray Charles in 1962.
