Analysis Of Bob Dylan And Clint Black And Masters Of War

Over the years, musicians have composed songs exploring political matters that serve as anthems to the cause. Artists such as Bob Dylan and Clint Black have utilised their influence in the music industry to speak out against war and violence, with songs such as “Masters of War” by Dylan and “Iraq and I Roll” by Black, which both take on polarising perspectives on wars and acts of violence, the Cold War and Iraq War, respectively. Without explicitly stating their respective opinions, both songs use musical techniques to highlight their points of view. Their differing stances on war are manifested through bias, dissimilar styles of music and the different references expressed through imagery in both songs.

It is evident from the selection of

The chord progression and melody in ‘Masters of War’ stay the same throughout the entire song, perhaps done intentionally to inculcate the ideas into our minds without the use of convoluted rhythms to distract from the messages. Additionally, the continuous use of ‘you that’ takes a forceful tone, using the repetition to give the song a sense of urgency. On the contrary, to complement the relatively relaxed nature of ‘Iraq and I Roll’, Black employs a light and catchy chord progression to propel the easy-going essence of the song, whilst still retaining the same anti-Iraq nature. Although Black describes Iraq as the ‘devil’ and is undoubtedly in favour of the USA, his lyrics are arguably less contentious; the laid-back nature of the song draws less attention to itself than Dylan’s malicious lines, like ‘I hope that you die and that your death will come soon’. As is evident when comparing Dylan’s and Black’s styles of music, the tone complements the attitude of the artist and atmosphere of the

Dylan’s anti-war bias, simply repetitive tone, religious allusions and aggressive description add to our understanding of his overall perspective, whilst Black’s partisan bias, catchy chord progression and direct allusions strengthen our comprehension of his viewpoint. Analysing these war anthems provides us with a better understanding of the influence of music and how popular political songs may subtly express a perspective without doing so explicitly. Songs that explore political issues do not necessarily have to be openly hostile to be effective, though it is important for one to be able to recognise the true motives of an artist’s lyrical manipulation, tone and musical