Situations have ended sad,
Relationships have all been bad.
Mine've been like Verlaine's and Rimbaud.
But there's no way I can compare
All those scenes to this affair,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.
Relationships have all been bad.
Mine've been like Verlaine's and Rimbaud.
But there's no way I can compare
All those scenes to this affair,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.
From "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go," by Bob Dylan
I don't know how many times I've listened to the verse above and shrugged off the fact I didn't know who Rimbaud or Verlaine was. Finally, I kicked my curiosity kicked my laziness in the butt for a sec and I looked up what I now consider one of the most inspiring love stories of all-time.
Arthur Rimbaud was a late 19th century poet prodigy who was encouraged by a friend to send his poems to Paul Verlaine. Verlaine, intrigued by the poems, invited Rimbaud to come and visit his family and sent along a one-way ticket to Paris(Verlaine had a 17 year old wife and infant son).
Rimbaud, a lad of 17, stayed briefly with Verlaine and his wife. Shortly after, Verlaine and Rimbaud started their torrid affair-moving to London and living in poverty spiked by frequent absinthe and hashish use.
Verlaine moved out a year later, but after a month without Rimbaud, he wired the boy asking to meet him in Brussels. The reunion was rocky as Verlaine continued to drink, the two argued and the reunion ended when Verlaine shot at Rimbaud twice;
attempted murder. However, after he accompanied Verlaine to the train station with his mother and they both witnessed Verlaine acting major league crazy, Rimbaud went to the police. Rimbaud eventually complained to the police about Verlaine, and Verlaine was sentenced to two years in prison.
Rimbaud and Verlaine met a couple of years later, but by then Rimbaud had stopped writing poetry (he was said to be an incredible poet) and Verlaine had converted to Catholicism.
Paraphrased from Wiki
After reading about Verlaine and Rimbaud, I made a promise to myself to look up any other "obscure" Dylan references. Knowing about Verlaine and Rimbaud? Totally adds nuance and dimension to "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go."
