Gotta Serve Somebody
Bob Dylan
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You may be an ambassador to England or France You may like to gamble, you might like to dance You may be the heavyweight champion of the world You may be a socialite with a long string of pearls But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes Indeed you're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You might be a rock 'n' roll addict prancing on the stage You might have drugs at your command, women in a cage You may be a business man or some high-degree thief They may call you doctor or they may call you chief But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a state trooper, you might be a young Turk You may be the head of some big TV network You may be rich or poor, you may be blind or lame You may be living in another country under another name But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes you are You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a construction worker working on a home You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome You might own guns and you might even own tanks You might be somebody's landlord, you might even own banks But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side You may be workin' in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair You may be somebody's mistress, may be somebody's heir But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody Might like to wear cotton, might like to wear silk Might like to drink whiskey, might like to drink milk You might like to eat caviar, you might like to eat bread You may be sleeping on the floor, sleeping in a king-sized bed But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes Indeed you're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody You may call me Terry, you may call me Timmy You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy You may call me R.J., you may call me Ray You may call me anything but no matter what you say Still, you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody
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Written by: Bob Dylan
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
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11 facts about this song
Genre Classification"Gotta Serve Somebody" is a song by Bob Dylan from his 1979 studio album "Slow Train Coming". The song is classified under the genre rock and gospel.
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Grammy Recognition"Gotta Serve Somebody" won Dylan the Best Male Rock Vocal Performance award at the 22nd Annual Grammy Awards in 1980. It was Dylan's first Grammy.
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Chart PerformanceThe song reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States and also hit number 15 on the UK Singles Chart, attesting to its international popularity.
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Conversion ConnectionThe song is specifically related to Dylan's conversion to Christianity. The song's lyrics revolve around the concept that everyone has to serve someone, whether it be the Lord or the Devil.
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Popular CoversSeveral artists have covered "Gotta Serve Somebody," including gospel singer Shirley Caesar, rock icon Etta James, and pop megastar Miley Cyrus.
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Album Success"Slow Train Coming," the album "Gotta Serve Somebody" originates from, was one of Dylan's most successful records, going platinum in the U.S. and gold in the UK.
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Religious ControversyUpon its release, the song and the album created a controversy and faced a backlash among some of Dylan's fanbase due to their overt religious themes.
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Dylan's OpinionDylan himself has mixed feelings about this song. In some interviews, he has criticized his own writing, calling the songs from that album "didactic" and saying they "don't hold up".
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Live PerformancesThe song "Gotta Serve Somebody" has been performed live by Dylan over 400 times since its release.
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Song LengthThe original album version of the song is quite long, clocking in at approximately 5 minutes and 22 seconds.
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Music VideoA rare official music video was made for the song featuring Dylan performing the song with his band.
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Citation
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"Gotta Serve Somebody Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 21 May 2024. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/1329652/Bob+Dylan/Gotta+Serve+Somebody>.
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