"All the Tired Horses" is a song written by Bob Dylan, released on his 1970 double album Self Portrait.
The song is the first track on the album. It is most notable for its absence of Dylan's singing. It consists of a small choir of female voices (Hilda Harris, Albertine Robinson, and Maeretha Stewart)[1] repeating the same two lines
All the tired horses in the sun
How'm I s'posed to get any ridin' done? Hmm.
to the same melody for 3 minutes and 14 seconds, with varying instrumental accompaniment. In the key of C major, this song consists musically of the chord structure I-vi-iii-V, repeated throughout.
Meaning: This has been taken as metaphor for simple tiredness, a psychological fatigue stemming from the wild ride of stardom and its attending distractions over his recent past years, or even a fatigue of the spirit itself, as interfering with his songwriting.
Some have noted the near-homophonic relationship of "ridin'" and "writin'".
Statistics
Place: 14 out of 40 Avg (all users): 5.8519 Avg (commenters): 9.5000 Avg (participants): 6.3684 Avg (non-participants): 5.5714 Views since voting: 775 Views during voting: 111 Votes: 54 Comments: 2 Favorites: 0
Challenging choice to try and depict this simplest, most surreal of his songs. It's a tune and one line of lyrics that will never leave even my addled memory, and this thoughtful montage is an aptly fitting accompaniment that I think will linger as well.
Add photograph to your favorites
Add photographer to your favorites
Photographer found comment helpful.