--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Old New York City is a friendly old town…" description: "\"Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington Heights to Harlem on down There's a-mighty many people all millin' all around They'll kick you..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg" --- # Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington… ![“Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington Heights to Harlem on down There's a-mighty many people all millin' all around They'll kick you when you're up and knock you when you're down It's hard times in the city Livin' down in New York town” quote by Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg) > “Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington Heights to Harlem on down There's a-mighty many people all millin' all around They'll kick you when you're up and knock you when you're down It's hard times in the city Livin' down in New York town” [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The city is a bustling, chaotic place where people face both support and hardship, reflecting the dual nature of urban life. **In simple terms:** City life is lively but harsh. Key Takeaway Navigate its challenges with resilience. Themes urban life community hardship resilience contrasts Mood reflective gritty realistic Type observational sociological When to use this quote - finding a - daily commuting - dealing with adversity - building support networks Key Concepts social dynamics survival inequality Questions to Reflect On - How do you find balance between community support and personal struggle? - What does “kick you when you’re up” mean to you? A Different Perspective The quote romanticizes hardship without acknowledging systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Hard time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-time/) [Hard times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-times/) [Harlem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/harlem/) [Kicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kicks/) [New york](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york/) [New york city](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-york-city/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Done laid around, done stayed around This old town too long And it seems like I've got to travel on](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/done-laid-around-done-stayed-around-this-old-town-too-long-and-it/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [There are so many things I'd like to do. I'd really like to be in a period piece that takes place in old New…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-slate/there-are-so-many-things-i-d-like-to-do-i-d-really-like-to-be-in-a/) [Jenny Slate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-slate/) > [I'm going to show you the real New York - witty, smart, and international - like any metropolis. Tell me this: where in Europe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/i-m-going-to-show-you-the-real-new-york-witty-smart-and-international/) [Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/) > [If there ever was an aviary overstocked with jays it is that Yaptown-on-the-Hudson, call New York. Cosmopolitan they call it, you bet. So's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/o-henry/if-there-ever-was-an-aviary-overstocked-with-jays-it-is-that-yaptown/) [O. Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/o-henry/) > [New York is the only real city-city.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/truman-capote/new-york-is-the-only-real-city-city/) [Truman Capote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/truman-capote/) > [“Gentrification had stopped dead several doors west of my spot overlooking Avenue B. You could actually see the line. That side of the line;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-ellis/gentrification-had-stopped-dead-several-doors-west-of-my-spot/) [Warren Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-ellis/) > [In New York you've got to have all the luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/in-new-york-you-ve-got-to-have-all-the-luck/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [“Like a car that's old enough to be old but not old enough to be a classic, it would be years before people would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-martin-beckner/like-a-car-that-s-old-enough-to-be-old-but-not-old-enough-to-be-a/) [K. Martin Beckner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-martin-beckner/) > [We want Old Town Square to be a focal point for fun in Bandera, a place where locals can hold their special events and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-reed/we-want-old-town-square-to-be-a-focal-point-for-fun-in-bandera-a/) [Jerry Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-reed/) > ['Old Town Road' came after a period of feeling like I was out of options. I was living with my sister. She was pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-nas-x/old-town-road-came-after-a-period-of-feeling-like-i-was-out-of/) [Lil Nas X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-nas-x/) > ['Old Town Road''s the peak of me doing whatever I want to do with music. I was like, 'This one is special,' and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-nas-x/old-town-road-s-the-peak-of-me-doing-whatever-i-want-to-do-with-music/) [Lil Nas X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-nas-x/) > [People come in because they like 'Old Town Road.' They'll find out that I'm just not going to stick to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-nas-x/people-come-in-because-they-like-old-town-road-they-ll-find-out-that/) [Lil Nas X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-nas-x/) > [I like being able to walk into an old town and find good local food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sienna-miller/i-like-being-able-to-walk-into-an-old-town-and-find-good-local-food/) [Sienna Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sienna-miller/) > [In a conservative old town, say something new and be prepared for the stones!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/in-a-conservative-old-town-say-something-new-and-be-prepared-for-the/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [In Zagreb, the Old Town really could be Prague. You go two hours to the coast to Opatija, and you really could be in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-watkins/in-zagreb-the-old-town-really-could-be-prague-you-go-two-hours-to-the/) [James Watkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-watkins/) ## More by Bob Dylan > [The hollow horn plays wasted words, proves to warn that he not busy being born is busy dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/the-hollow-horn-plays-wasted-words-proves-to-warn-that-he-not-busy/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Don't forget to support your public library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/don-t-forget-to-support-your-public-library/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [You don't count the dead, when god's on your side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/you-don-t-count-the-dead-when-god-s-on-your-side/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [She makes love just like a woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/she-makes-love-just-like-a-woman/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Silvio, I gotta go, find out something only dead men know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/silvio-i-gotta-go-find-out-something-only-dead-men-know/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [I don't really have a retirement plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-don-t-really-have-a-retirement-plan/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Just a reminder, if you tell anyone about what happened with Jonah last night, I'll destroy all of my writing and never play music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/just-a-reminder-if-you-tell-anyone-about-what-happened-with-jonah/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Little red wagon, little red bike, I ain’t no monkey but I know what I like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/little-red-wagon-little-red-bike-i-ain-t-no-monkey-but-i-know-what-i/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Twenty years of schooling and they put you on the day shift - look out out kid, they keep it all hid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/twenty-years-of-schooling-and-they-put-you-on-the-day-shift-look-out/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [The drunken politician leaps upon the street where mothers weep, and the saviors who are fast asleep, they wait for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/the-drunken-politician-leaps-upon-the-street-where-mothers-weep-and/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Your eyes are like two jewels in the sky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/your-eyes-are-like-two-jewels-in-the-sky/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [I gotta friend who spends his life, stabbing my picture with a bowie knife. Dreams of strangling me with a scarf, when my name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-gotta-friend-who-spends-his-life-stabbing-my-picture-with-a-bowie/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [She speaks with a stutter and she and she walks with a hop. I don't know why I love her, but I just can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/she-speaks-with-a-stutter-and-she-and-she-walks-with-a-hop-i-don-t/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [The man in the coon skin cap in the pig pen wants eleven dollar bills, you've only got ten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/the-man-in-the-coon-skin-cap-in-the-pig-pen-wants-eleven-dollar-bills/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Don't put my faith in nobody, not even a scientist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/don-t-put-my-faith-in-nobody-not-even-a-scientist/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) [Explore all 1,018 Bob Dylan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) ## More Cities quotes > [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Cities are 2% of the earth's crust, but they are 50% of the world's population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlo-ratti/cities-are-2-of-the-earth-s-crust-but-they-are-50-of-the-world-s/) [Carlo Ratti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlo-ratti/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/) James Cross Giblin > [Nice is a city of ghosts and specters, but I hope not to become one of them right away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-modiano/nice-is-a-city-of-ghosts-and-specters-but-i-hope-not-to-become-one-of/) [Patrick Modiano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-modiano/) > [I know of not one Republican candidate that would not appear publicly with Mitt Romney and I know many Democrats that don't even want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-sessions/i-know-of-not-one-republican-candidate-that-would-not-appear-publicly/) [Pete Sessions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-sessions/) > [ Just between you and me, shouldn’t the World Bank be encouraging MORE migration of the dirty industries to the LDCs \[Less Developed Countries\]?... I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-summers/just-between-you-and-me-shouldn-t-the-world-bank-be-encouraging-more/) [Lawrence Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-summers/) > [We will neglect our cities to our peril, for in neglecting them we neglect the nation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-will-neglect-our-cities-to-our-peril-for-in-neglecting-them-we/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [I didn't know the city at all, but I was so happy to be in New York I cried. I was so excited.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-didn-t-know-the-city-at-all-but-i-was-so-happy-to-be-in-new-york-i/) [Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/) > [Outside of Paris, there is no hope for the cultured.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/outside-of-paris-there-is-no-hope-for-the-cultured/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [Dawn's faint breath breathes with your mouth at the ends of empty streets. Gray light your eyes, sweet drops of dawn on dark hills.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesare-pavese/dawn-s-faint-breath-breathes-with-your-mouth-at-the-ends-of-empty/) [Cesare Pavese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesare-pavese/) > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [“We have grace of strength to work, to clear our cities of any dirt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/we-have-grace-of-strength-to-work-to-clear-our-cities-of-any-dirt/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I was too tired to think. I merely felt the town as a unique unreality. What was it? I knew -- the moon's picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-too-tired-to-think-i-merely-felt-the-town-as-a-unique-unreality/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 7,153 Cities quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington Heights to Harlem on down There's a-mighty many people all millin' all around They'll kick you when you're up and knock you when you're down It's hard times in the city Livin' down in New York town", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bob Dylan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town-from-washington-heights-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cities" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town-from-washington-heights-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/cfe/bob-dylan-168_cities_old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town_1233885.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Old New York City is a friendly old town From Washington Heights to Harlem on down There's a-mighty many…” — Bob Dylan", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bob Dylan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Old New York City is a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town-from-washington-heights-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/old-new-york-city-is-a-friendly-old-town-from-washington-heights-to/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```