Dave Matthews Band:All Along The Watchtower
From LyricWiki
This song is performed by Dave Matthews Band and appears on the album Live At Red Rocks 8.15.95 (1997).
- This song is a cover of "All Along The Watchtower" by Bob Dylan.
Said the joker to the thief
Too much confusion
I can't get no relief
Business men, they drink my wine
Plow men dig my Earth
None of them along the line
Know what any of it's worth
No reason to get excited
The thief he kindly spoke
There are many here among us
Who feel that life is but a joke
But you and I we've been through all that
And this is not our fate
So let us not talk falsely now
The hour is getting late
All along the watchtower
Princes kept their view
while all the women, all the women, all the women, came and went
Barefoot servants too
Outside in the cold distance
A wild cat did growl
Two riders were approaching
And the wind began to howl
yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
The money safe
The thief he take
The money safe
The thief he take
No reason to get excited
[edit] Song Info
Dave Matthews Band has played the song since the band’s inception in the early 1990s. Their rendition of the song maintains Dylan’s three chord structure and key signature but differs in style. Vocalist and guitarist, Dave Matthews, typically begins the song slowly with just vocals and acoustic guitar. The band members come in after the line “the hour is getting late” and the song tempo and intensity picks up. This is then followed by extended solos taken by the band members culminating with the line that the band chooses to highlight, “No reason to get excited.” The song is often chosen to feature a guest performer since it is a well known rock standard. "Watchtower", as it is often referred to by fans, is a concert staple, often performed as a concert closer or encore. Performances of the song, including those played and sung solo by Matthews or with guitarist Tim Reynolds, have totaled more than 500 to date. The group has released the song on more than a half-dozen live albums but has never released a studio recording of the song. Both Pat McGee and Howie Day have performed the song in the style of Dave Matthews.
