"Wadn't me. Ah got beaten. As often as Ah could."
He left out one, who did not leave a beaten man.
Noticed that, didja? Yes, he did. And as always with Dylan sometimes the things he doesn't say are as significant as the ones he does. A lot of very bright people got caught up in the vacuous "change" promise because they are optimists, dreamers, idealists...idiots. Maybe a little of all of those. The best of the lot will be the first to reconsider.
"Flew too close to the sun." An interesting metaphor.
"Wadn't me. Ah got beaten. As often as Ah could."