PHOTO ESSAY

Rebel Yells

A protest music mixtape

By Matthew McKinnon

August 12, 2005

Masters of War, Bob Dylan

(The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, 1963)

Dylan, Woody Guthrie’s anointed heir as spokesman of the working class, was all of 22 years old in 1963. He was already building his case as the West’s best lyricist of the 20th century. Masters of War, from his flawless Freewheelin’ album, was easily among the Vietnam war’s most potent protest songs. In eight verses, Dylan sought to dismantle the U.S. military machine. “How much do I know / To talk out of turn? / You might say that I’m young / You might say I’m unlearned / But there’s one thing I know / Though I’m younger than you / Even Jesus would never / Forgive what you do.”

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