"Joey" Was Bob Dylan's tender tribute to someone you'd never expect him to love or admire: Mafia hood Joe Gallo, a member of the Colombo crime family, known to many as "Crazy Joe."

Why would Dylan admire a thief and killer like Joe Gallo? Partly, it's because Gallo spent a lot of time living in Greenwich Village, Dylan's old stomping ground. Gallo liked hanging around with celebrities (Jerry Orbach of "Law & Order" became a very close friend of his).

Gallo was a truly evil individual, but he had a funny, charming side. Dylan and a lot of other celebs in Greenwich Village took a liking to him.

Another thing that made Gallo admirable in Dylan's eyes: whereas MOST Mafiosi were virulently racist and hated blacks, Joe Gallo got along very well with black men, and worked very closely with black gangsters and drug dealers like Nicky Barnes. That made Gallo seem almost... progressive!

Another point in Gallo's favor, as far as Dylan was concerned: he was not a stereotypically dumb mobster. During his time in prison, he read extensively, and could discuss great literature and philosophy intelligently.

In spite of that, Gallo was a cold-blooded killer who started a gang war. He had crime boss Joe Colombo shot (Colombo was paralyzed for years before finally dying) by one of his black gangster friends. Colombo's friends retaliated by having Joe rubbed out at an Italian restaurant.

EVen though Joe Gallo definitely got what he deserved, Dylan felt sorry for him, and hoped Gallo's killers would get what was coming to them.