Key developments
New Key West reading links Dylan to Joker
Jochen Markhorst's "Key West Part 23," published on 2026-05-18 at bob-dylan.org.uk, reads Dylan's "I play both sides against the middle" through the Joker in The Dark Knight. The piece also connects the song's opening to John Lennon's "A Day in the Life" and Dylan's own "Roll on John," framing "Key West" as an outsider narrative moving through a twilight, afterlife-like space.
Why it matters
It adds a fresh interpretive frame around Dylan's late-period lyric writing and the song's web of cultural allusions.
Sources & driving stories
BOB-DYLAN · Jochen Markhorst
bob-dylan coverageAnalysis identifies songs behind final request
The article argues that the "your last request" playlist points to "Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss," "I Don't Love Nobody," and "A Kiss to Build a Dream On." Markhorst ties the first to the New Lost City Ramblers, the second to Elizabeth Cotten and Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour references, and the third to Louis Armstrong's 1951 signature recording.
Why it matters
These identifications sharpen the case that Dylan is drawing on deep folk and jazz memory rather than using generic song titles.
Sources & driving stories
BOB-DYLAN · Jochen Markhorst
bob-dylan coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Theme Time Radio Hour resurfaces
The article uses Dylan's 2009 "Sugar and Candy" episode to support the Elizabeth Cotten connection behind "I Don't Love Nobody."
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
Is "A Kiss to Build a Dream On" the intended source?
The identification of "gimme a kiss" rests on a plausible but unconfirmed reading, so the exact song reference remains open.
OPEN QUESTION
How direct are the Lennon echoes in "Key West"?
The article finds strong parallels to "A Day in the Life" and "Roll on John," but it is still unclear whether those are deliberate quotations or interpretive echoes.