Diamonds and Rust: Joan Baez and her Relationship with Bob Dylan

Love is the driving force that gives us the extra energy to help and sacrifice for our beloved ones. It is the only feeling that makes sense of the craziest decisions, of selflessness and generosity beyond any rational restraints; love is the the fuel for unstinted creativity.  Yet, love can be bitter and sweet. When you feel your lover takes your sacrifice for granted and no longer makes the effort, when passion is followed by indifference, and bliss by disdain, when you have an on-and-off relationship that seems to be stuck in a dead end street, then "diamonds" become "rust", the metaphor that Joan Baez found to describe her relationship with Bob Dylan after a sudden phone call ten years after their break-up.

"Diamonds and Rust" is a haunting song, one of the best songs ever written, it is a moving song, full of winter sun and chilly shade, but the melody and the words unveil the serenity, the maturity and the power that Joan Baez felt when she revisited her youthful relationship with Bob Dylan. Here you can watch a video without subtitles of "Diamonds and Rust", next you can find a lesson-plan for B2 students with listening and speaking tasks and the answer key (and the same document in PDF). Some interesting words to be found in the song are: damned, a ghost, robin egg blue, lousy, a booth, the midwest, a cufflink, rust, to burst, to stray, the Madonna, on the half-shell, unharmed, a crummy [hotel], to mingle.

If you want some background information about the song, you can check out the post "Stella: 'Diamonds and Rust' by Joan Baez" written by Elaine Irvine on the NPR affiliated radio station KRUI-FM, from Iowa University, which is suitable for C1 students. On BBC Sounds you will also find an excellent radio documentary about the song, Soul Music: Diamonds and Rust, which has no script and can be recommended for C2 students. Finally, the most ardent fans of Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, can read "Diamonds & Rust, Joan & Bob, 1960's - 1980's", a thorough musical and personal biography published in the Pop History Dig, which is recommended for Experts, that is, for students beyond C2 level.

Below you can watch another video of the song with English subtitles and pictures of their relationship:

Humour: Amber Marie, Foil Arms & Hog, and Big Train

Today, you can find a selection of 3 sketches of British and American comedy that will definetly cheer you up. 

The first one is produced by a Tik Tok influencer Amber Marie, who works as a dance teacher in a school and has published this very funny video "If teachers acted as students..." on Instagram (#teachergram) and on Tik Tok. The vocabulary is not difficult, so it is recommended for B2 students and above, who can pick up words like: a presentation, the book bag, an essay, [it's not my] fault, to take [a test], you guys, just give me a minute! If you want more stories, you can also check Amber Marie You Tube Channel.

History can be a very controversial subject, as the comedians of Foil Arms & Hog will show you on How Different Countries Teach History, which is recommended for B2 students and above,where the following words can be found: savages, to get on with [something], to welcome [someone], a birthplace [of democracy], to set out [for India], Scots, [the weather was] shit, gold, natural resources.

Finally, you can watch the old BBC Comedy show Big Train and the sketch "Do you Speak English?", which is also easy and can be recommended for B2 students, who will find words like: [a car] to break down, to waste [on somebody], sorry [about that].