Controversy over composition
Dylan claims "With God on Our Side" is an entirely original composition, however, its melody is essentially identical to "The Patriot Game," a song with lyrics written by Dominic Behan and a melody borrowed from the traditional Irish folk song "The Merry Month of May". Behan called Dylan a plagiarist and a thief, but Dylan never responded to Behan's claims.
In the introduction to the song at the Newport Folk Festival in 1963, Dylan has the following to say, "Yeah. You know, Jean Redpath sang a song here awhile ago which I heard Liam Clancy sing about two years ago and I was listening to her sing it and I thought that I never, uh, I thought I wrote this song called 'With God on Your Side'. And it must have somewhere stayed in the back of my mind hearing Liam Clancy singing 'The Patriot Game'."
Dylan was familiar with "The Patriot Game", having first been introduced to the song by Scottish folksinger Nigel Denver.[2] Scottish writer and folksinger Jim McLean said he remembers Dylan asking him in late 1962: "'What does it mean, 'Patriot Game'?'...I explained – probably lectured him – about Dr. Johnson, who's one of Dominic's favorite writers, and that's where Dominic picked up [the] saying: 'Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.'"
With God on Our Side
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| "With God on Our Side" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Song by Bob Dylan from the album The Times They Are a-Changin' | |||
| Released | January 13, 1964 | ||
| Recorded | August 7, 1963 | ||
| Genre | Folk | ||
| Length | 7:08 | ||
| Label | Columbia | ||
| Writer | Bob Dylan | ||
| Producer | Tom Wilson | ||
| The Times They Are a-Changin' track listing | |||
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- For the book by Michael Weinstein, see With God on Our Side: One Man's War Against an Evangelical Coup in America's Military.
"With God on Our Side" is a song by Bob Dylan, released as the third track on his 1964 album The Times They Are A-Changin'. Dylan first performed the song during his debut at The Town Hall in New York City on April 12, 1963. Dylan is known to sing the song only rarely in concert.
Controversy over composition
Dylan claims "With God on Our Side" is an entirely original composition, however, its melody is essentially identical to "The Patriot Game," a song with lyrics written by Dominic Behan and a melody borrowed from the traditional Irish folk song "The Merry Month of May". Behan called Dylan a plagiarist and a thief, but Dylan never responded to Behan's claims.
In the introduction to the song at the Newport Folk Festival in 1963, Dylan has the following to say, "Yeah. You know, Jean Redpath sang a song here awhile ago which I heard Liam Clancy sing about two years ago and I was listening to her sing it and I thought that I never, uh, I thought I wrote this song called 'With God on Your Side'. And it must have somewhere stayed in the back of my mind hearing Liam Clancy singing 'The Patriot Game'."
Dylan was familiar with "The Patriot Game", having first been introduced to the song by Scottish folksinger Nigel Denver.[2] Scottish writer and folksinger Jim McLean said he remembers Dylan asking him in late 1962: "'What does it mean, 'Patriot Game'?'...I explained – probably lectured him – about Dr. Johnson, who's one of Dominic's favorite writers, and that's where Dominic picked up [the] saying: 'Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel.'"[citation needed]
