Jimi Hendrix took this Bob Dylan tune and turned it into his own monumentally panoramically spaghetti westernly classic. Brian Jones on the vibraslap at the end of each opening bar, makes me think of Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef calmly sizing each other up in some dusty lawless town. I never knew Brian Jones played on this, what a bittersweet discovery. Wow, Dave Mason too? Argghhh, can't believe I didn't know this...well, glad to know it now.
The story unfolds....the joker speaks to the thief about his troubles. The blues. Life is a drag. He finishes his words at 0:52 and Jimi cranks out a nice solo in solidarity. At 1:09, the thief 'kindly' speaks. He can sympathize and says there are 'many here among us who feel that life is but a joke.' But he says, let's not talk about this tonight, it's getting late.
1:43 - so the joker and thief wander off into the night, Jimi blazing a trail for them to follow. At 2:00 they fall asleep and are swept off into some sort of dream land (my favorite part). At 2:17 they wake from their slumber and realize they aren't quite sure where they are. A wah wah chaos of tumbleweeds and dust encircles them as they attempt to get their situation in order. 2:33 - back on some trail, with a growing sense of urgency.
2:50 - The joker and the thief have traveled over distance and time, and now out of nowhere they approach a fortress of princes, damsels, servants, possibly various other court attendants, who may have been aware of them for awhile, observing them from the watchtower. But they are not there yet. They must deal with growling wildcats and howling winds. I've always preferred a happy ending - they finally make it to the castle and are welcomed with hearty meals and bowls of mead.
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