Who is Bob Dylan hitting out at on ‘Dear Landlord’?
What sort of maze did Bob Dylan construct with his unique lyricism? No stone was left unturned, as Dylan showed people the complex nature of songs and the extent of what could be achieved with a few chords and the 26 letters of the alphabet. His songs are still studied today as people ponder potential meanings and scratch their heads at how such profound lyricism managed to escape his mind.
It’s no coincidence that Bob Dylan is the only musician who has ever won a Nobel Prize for literature. He has a way with words that even the longest novels fall short. Both his contemporaries and fans respect him, pouring over his words for extended periods.
Leonard Cohen, who was often compared to Dylan, never shied away from praising the artist. Given their similarities, it’s not inconceivable that the two of them could end up pitted against one another, but when Cohen was asked what he thought about Dylan’s Nobel Prize, he said it was “like pinning a medal on Mount Everest for being the highest mountain.”
A great example of Dylan’s layered ability as a writer is his song ‘Dear Landlord’. It wasn’t unusual for Dylan to write songs that spoke of sadness, politics, wealth inequality, and societal injustices. Subsequently, a song about a landlord and his tenant struggling to pay rent seemed right up his street.
His political and honest writing was a huge inspiration for many people. Famously, Bruce Springsteen credited Bob Dylan for showing him how powerful and honest music could be. “I was very influenced by Dylan. I always say he’s the father of my country,” admitted Springsteen. “He initially provided me with a picture of a country that I recognised. One that feels real, feels like the truth.”
The disparity between landlord and tenant is prevalent worldwide; however, it is especially an issue in New York, the city Bob Dylan called home at the time. It makes sense that he would write a song on this issue in a way that shows true empathy and melodic ability.
Who is Bob Dylan hitting out at on ‘Dear Landlord’?
That being said, because this is a Bob Dylan, it’s also not inconceivable that there is more to the track than just the surface-level story. Sure, a lot of people say that in the song, Bob Dylan is hitting out at a faceless landlord who is a representation of the group as a whole, but others think the real motive behind the song is a lot more personal than that.
Many seem to think that, in the song, Bob Dylan is lashing out at his manager at the time, Albert Grossman. The two of them were going through a famous dispute, as Bob Dylan felt like Grossman was ripping him off. There are a number of moments in the album John Wesley Harding where Dylan could be lashing out at Grossman; however, ‘Dear Landlord’ seems like the most obvious.
Dylan himself admitted years later that while the track wasn’t directly written about Grossman, he understands where the links are made. He said the track “wasn’t all the way for Al Grossman. Only later, when people pointed it out to me that the song might have been written for Al Grossman, I thought, well, maybe it could’ve been.”
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