text:
Main The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence
The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence
Derek Barker
Encyclopedic and exhaustive, this guide to the more than 500 songs Bob Dylan has covered, in concert or on record, details the history of each song and offers an explanation of how he came to perform them. His masterful interpretations range from the more obvious blues, country, folk, and gospel recordings to contemporary writers such as Warren Zevon and John Hiatt. In addition to the listing of these covered songs, this compendium also includes a lengthy section detailing all of the remaining tracks that Dylan has written for others, but which remain unrecorded by the man himself.
Publisher: Chrome Dreams
Pages: 496 / 513
The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia
dylan2310
album1013
bob dylan676
blues674
see appendix398
folk323
sessions304
bootleg284
concert248
among collectors245
woody guthrie209
recordings187
bootleg cd172
lyrics172
studios165
performances148
fragment143
dylan played125
basement118
bromberg112
ballad109
minneapolis106
circulation among105
willie101
tapes101
johnny cash97
self portrait96
minnesota94
dylan performed94
rendition93
circulate among92
circulation among collectors92
album sessions86
recording studios82
circulate among collectors81
arr80
mississippi79
hank77
davis77
david bromberg74
vocal74
sung73
ballads69
Talking about Laughter: And Other Studies in Greek Comedy
Alan H. Sommerstein
Intimacy in Crisis
Jane Ridley
He Didn't Write
The Songs He Didn't Write
Bob Dylan Under The Influence
by Derek Barker
A CHROME DREAMS PUBLICATIO
In association with ISIS Magazine
First Edition published in 2008
Published by Chrome Dreams
PO Box 230, ew Malden, Surrey, KT3 6YY. UK
books@chromedreams.co.uk
WWW.CHROMEDREAMS.CO.UK
ISB 9781842404249
Copyright © Derek Barker 2008
Publishing Editor: Rob Johnstone
Layout Design: Tracy Barker
Cover Design: Sylwia Grzeszczuk
o part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any
information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from
the publishers.
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
Printed and bound in Great Britain by William Clowes Ltd, Beccles, Suffolk
THAKS AD ACKOWLEDGMETS
This book is the result of twenty-three years of writing about Bob Dylan and as such it would
be impossible to thank all those who have contributed help and information throughout those
years. I would, however, like to make special reference to –
Tracy Barker (for all her hard work with sourcing illustrations, masterminding the layout
and for simply putting up with me), Toby Richards-Carpenter (for his many suggestions and
for steering me back on course when I was drifting too far from shore), Paul Comley (for his
eagle eye), Antonio J. Iriarte (for checking appendix 1 for factual errors and finding some),
Ian Woodward (for his friendship and for all the information he has given to me over the
years, some of which must have found its way into this book), to everyone at Chrome Dreams
(my publisher), especially my editor and friend Rob Johnstone, Richard Ruck (for final
proofing), Sylwia Grzeszczuk (for the cover design) and to Jeff Rosen at Bob Dylan's office
for his help and understanding across the years.
Glen Dundas (for his "Tangled" series of books which helped me to untangle things).
Michael Gray (especially for information about the David Bromberg recording sessions).
Manfred Helfert (for his "Roots Of Bob Dylan" website www.bobdylanroots.com).
Stefan Wirz (for his comprehensive website www.wirz.de).
Olof Björner (for his detailed files at www.bjorner.com).
The Grateful Dead Family Discography (for a wonderful source of information about
traditional songs www.deaddisc.com).
Sid Griffin (Million Dollar Bash: Bob Dylan, The Band, and the Basement Tapes).
Oliver Trager (Keys to the Rain).
Renowned authority on the life and works of Bob Dylan, Derek Barker founded the
international Bob Dylan magazine ISIS in September 1985 and has edited this highly
respected journal uninterruptedly for the past twenty-thee years. The magazine now has
subscribers in thirty-two countries.
Derek has contributed regularly to BBC Radio programmes about Bob Dylan and has been
featured on the BBC World Service, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio Northern Ireland, BBC Radio
Scotland as well as numerous local radio stations. He also appeared on the BBC 2 television
program The Culture Show and Channel 4s Breakfast News talking about Dylan. Derek has
had his writings published in journals in England, the USA and Japan.
Several books by Derek have been published, the first of which, a collection of writings and
interviews from ISIS Magazine, "ISIS: A Bob Dylan Anthology" (Helter Skelter Publishing,
2001) received universal rave reviews. It sold out a hardback edition, two paperback printings
and a 2004 revised edition. The second collection of writings from ISIS, "Bob Dylan
Anthology 2 - 20 Years of ISIS" (Chrome Dreams, 2005) remains in print. Derek is due to
have a Japanese language book about Bob Dylan published in 2008.
Derek has also appeared in numerous documentary films and his status as an expert on all
things Dylan is such that he regularly advises premier auction house Christie's (both in
London and New York) on the authenticity of items of Dylan memorabilia.
By the late 1980s, a forty-something Dylan badly needed to re-connect with his vision,
and in the summer of 1987 he made the radical, some would even say unwise, decision to
team-up with the psychedelic Godfathers of jam, the Grateful Dead. The live album from
the tour was a train wreck. However, according to Dylan, his liaison with Jerry Garcia and
the Grateful Dead saved his career!
In his memoir "Chronicles Volume One", Dylan writes that his creativity was at an alltime low and that part way through rehearsals with the the Dead he walked out of the studio
on Front Street in San Rafael: "I wasn't planning on going back" Dylan said, "I started up
the street–maybe four or five or six blocks went by and I heard the sound of a jazz combo
playing up ahead ... I looked in and saw that the musicians were playing at the opposite end
of the room. It was raining and there were a few people inside ... It looked like the last stop
on the train to nowhere ... something was calling me to come in ... I got within four feet of
the stage and just stood there against the bar, ordered a gin and tonic and faced the singer".
Dylan goes on to describe him as "an older man" wearing "a mohair suit, flat cap with a
little brim and shiny necktie". He describes the drummer's Stetson hat and says that the rest
of the band was neatly dressed. Apparently, the singer reminded him of Billy Eckstine, a
honey-dripper from the 1940s. Dylan even remembered some of the songs – 'Time On My
Hands' and 'Gloomy Sunday'. "All of a sudden, I understood something faster than I ever
did before" says Dylan. "I could feel how he worked at getting his power, what he was
doing to get at it. I knew where the power was coming from and it wasn't his voice ... I used
to do this thing ... It was a long time ago and it had been automatic ... This technique was
so elemental, so simple and I'd forgotten ... Returning to the Dead's rehearsal hall as if
nothing had happened, I picked it up where I'd left off, couldn't wait to get started ... I
played these shows with the Dead and never had to think twice about it. Maybe they just
dropped something in my drink, I can't say, but anything they wanted to do was fine with
me. I had that old jazz singer to thank".
It matters not that the events described by Bob Dylan in "Chronicles" never actually
happened, or if they did, then certainly not as he portrayed them. The bar and restaurant in
question, Pier 15 on the San Rafael Canal – where a member of the Grateful Dead camp
found Dylan – never had live music, and there was not even a jukebox.
There is another story regarding a different epiphany, which supposedly happened a few
months later on October 5, 1987 while Dylan was onstage at Piazza Grande in Locarno,
Switzerland. When and where he found his inspiration is immaterial, what matters is, that
he had reconnected with the past and could now clearly see the future.
Bob Dylan had begun listening to music as a child and by his early teens he had immersed
himself in everything from rural blues to R&B and from country to rock'n'roll. These lifeaffirming sounds first reached young Bobby in his isolated Hibbing home via the knobs and
dials of his radio set. When he began playing in bands in the 1950s, rock'n'roll was his
thing, Little Richard was his idol and live covers of 'Jenny, Jenny', 'Ready Teddy' and
'Lawdy, Miss Clawdy' were the order of the day. When he arrived in Minneapolis,
essentially to attend college, he quickly traded his electric guitar for a Martin acoustic and
set about learning to play every traditional, blues and Woody Guthrie number he could
unearth. This material would become the cornerstone of live gigs during his apprenticeship
around the folk clubs of New York's Greenwich Village, and it was from these songs that
some of his own greatest compositions would be born.
The traditional 'Lord Randal' became 'A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall', 'Scarborough Fair'
was transformed into 'Girl From The orth Country' and 'ottamun Town' was moulded
into the epic 'Masters Of War'. Countless folk ballads were used by Dylan as templates for
his own songs. The idea for 'John Brown', the tale of a young man returning home from
war, so disfigured that his own parents could not recognize him, was almost certainly lifted
by Dylan from 'Johnny I Hardly Knew You'. Even ancient folk characters like the gypsy
Davey would turn up brandishing a blowtorch in Dylan's mid-sixties stream-ofconsciousness songs.
After the drug-fuelled rollercoaster ride that was the early-mid 1960s, Dylan desperately
needed to take stock. He did this in his personal life by going back-to-basics in the relaxed
setting of upstate Woodstock with his wife, children and dog. When this strategy worked
in his private life, he simply applied the same approach to his music.
After time away from both the recording studio and the concert stage, Bob Dylan was
ready to make music again. The basement of an unremarkable, if rather garish pink-painted
ranch house midway between Woodstock and West Saugerties provided the setting, while
American roots music provided the material. The time spent in the now legendary basement
of Big Pink, in the shadow of Overlook Mountain, was probably the most creative period
of Dylan's entire career, and the time he invested in recording scores of "covers" enabled
him to rediscover how to write songs. Nine months after falling from his 650 single-carb
Triumph motorcycle, on July 29, 1966, Bob Dylan was back in business.
Apart from his debut LP, which contained only two original compositions, Dylan's first
extensive collection of recorded cover songs came with the release, in 1970, of the double
album "Self Portrait". The press greeted the album with almost universal derision. "What
is this shit!" was the opening line to Greil Marcus' lengthy Rolling Stone review. "I once
said I'd buy an album of Dylan breathing hard. But I'd never said I'd buy an album of
Dylan breathing softly", added Marcus.
Dylan would later claim in a succession of interviews that he had deliberately put out a
substandard record in order to get people off his back and to shake off the "spokesman of
a generation" tag. In spite of all his efforts, and in the face of the negative press reception,
the album quickly went gold in the United States and topped the album chart in the United
Kingdom. It seems that the album's popularity has not diminished with time. A readers
poll, commissioned in 2000 by ISIS Magazine placed "Self Portrait" at number twenty in
a listing of forty-two Dylan albums ahead of "Shot Of Love", "Saved", "Empire
Burlesque", "ashville Skyline", "ew Morning" and "Good As I Been To You".
If Greil Marcus and the rest of the press-pack thought things couldn't get any worse, then
they were sadly mistaken, because the outtakes from "Self Portrait" would soon be
released to the world in the shape of the "imaginatively" titled album "Dylan". This shoddy
hotchpotch of leftovers, remnants from the "Self Portrait" and "ew Morning" recording
sessions, was intentionally put out by Columbia in 1973 as a below par reprisal product to
get even, or at least to fire a warning shot across Dylan's bow, after his defection to David
Geffen's Asylum Records label. Dylan would soon return to the Columbia Records fold
with what many consider his best ever album "Blood On The Tracks".
Just as Dylan had gone back-to-basics with his Big Pink recording sessions, he now did the
same with his concerts. The concept of the 1975/'76 Rolling Thunder Revue tours was to
get away from the recent trend of highly organized stadia concerts with the back-to-basics
approach of a travelling show. This tour evoked memories of the old-time 19th century
American medicine shows and the fabled gypsy bands of old Europe. These two "revue"
tours were the perfect vehicle for traditional songs like 'Wild Mountain Thyme', 'The Water
Is Wide', 'Railroad Boy', 'Dink's Song' and pseudo traditional numbers like 'Dark As a
Dungeon' and 'Deportees'. The idea of constantly rearranging and reinventing his own
songs was now beginning to develop, and from this time on Dylan would make little or no
attempt to replicate the music on his records, but instead would "cover" his own songs.
On his 1978 world tour, Dylan went for an altogether more big-band sound which saw
traditional numbers give way to blues covers like 'Love Her With a Feeling', 'She's Love
Crazy' and 'I'm Ready'.
The 1980 "Musical Retrospective" tour found Dylan playing gospel-type numbers like
Dallas Holm's 'Rise Again', Dick Holler's 'Abraham, Martin And John' and the traditional
tale of 'Mary From The Wild Moor'. Other covers such as Jim Krueger's 'We Just
Disagree' and Dr. Hook's 'A Couple More Years' were also in evidence.
In the mid-1980s the temporary loss of his muse forced Dylan to record other artists' songs,
but due to poor choices of material the ploy failed and the resultant albums, "Knocked Out
Loaded" and "Down In The Groove", were a definite nadir in Dylan's recorded output.
By the end of the 1980s Bob Dylan was desperately in need of a direction home and as
stated previously, the unlikely providers of that inspiration were the kings of improvisation
the Grateful Dead. Dylan's short time in the company of the Dead, a band steeped in
traditional music, prompted a process in which he began to reacquaint himself with the
murky and mysterious musics of the great American past, and in doing so, he also began
to reacquaint himself with his own songs.
In the early '90s Dylan released a pair of cover albums, "Good As I Been To You" and the
aptly titled "World Gone Wrong". The choice of material was outstanding and these two
records (along with "Oh Mercy") were the absolute highpoint of his recorded output
between May 1985 and 1997's "Time Out Of Mind". In retrospect, one wonders if Dylan
could even have made "Time Out Of Mind" and the albums that followed ("Love And
Theft" and "Modern Times") without first revisiting songs like 'Delia', 'Broke Down
Engine' and 'Stack-a-Lee'.
Heavily populated with traditional and country blues songs, "Good As I Been To You" and
"World Gone Wrong" were the culmination of a return to the roots music that had been
reflected in Dylan's concert performances over the previous four years. During this period,
when Dylan's live performances of his own songs were often experimental – some might
even say he treated some of them with irreverence – his renditions of traditional numbers
and songs by other artists (Ry Cooder's 'Across The Borderline' immediately comes to
mind) were exemplary. In fact, for a lengthy period (1988 to the end of 2002), Dylan's
"cover" performances, both traditional and contemporary, completely underpinned and reinvigorated his live shows. Even when the regularity of these cover songs fell away (2003
- 2008), their occasional inclusion, 'Samson And Delilah' and 'Pancho & Lefty' at the 2004
Bonnaroo Music Festival, 'Folsom Prison Blues' and 'A-11' in Reno 2005, and 'Blue
Monday' at Brixton 2005, always seemed to lift these gigs.
Dylan's treatment of other people's songs is fascinating. In many instances he has sung
these songs word-perfect, taken great care over his diction, and stayed faithful to the
originals ('The Lakes Of Pontchartrain'). There are other instances, however, when he has
radically rearranged covers to make them his own (an electric 'Barbara Allen'!). Yet on
almost every occasion, faithful or rearranged, the care and attention lavished on these cover
songs has been extraordinary.
During the most recent years of the so called "Never Ending Tour", Dylan has concentrated
almost exclusively on his own material, but the songs that first reached young Bobby
Zimmerman through the radio set in his isolated North Country home, have remained a part
of his fabric, and fifty years later Bob Dylan is playing those songs on his own hour-long
XM, Satellite Radio show. If we did not know this already, then Bob Dylan's Theme Time
Radio Hour shows have confirmed just how deep his knowledge of music, especially of
the "old songs", is.
In 2008 the man from Minnesota seems comfortable in his own skin, possibly more than
at any other time in his long career. Nevertheless, Bob Dylan thrives on change and his
current concerts will eventually take another change in direction. What this change will be,
no one yet knows, but like so many times before it will probably involve another injection
of "The Songs He Didn't Write".
otes on how to use this book
Before beginning work on this project, one of my first and possibly most difficult decisions
was choosing the criteria for inclusion in the book. I could have included everything; a
four-year-old Robert Zimmerman singing 'Some Sunday Morning' for his Grandmother,
or that day's encore, Johnny Mercer's 1940s radio favourite 'Accentuate The Positive'. I
could have included Bob Dylan singing 'Happy Birthday' to band members – he has done
that in concert on many occasions – or maybe a hotel room jam. The February 1986 jam
with Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks comes to mind. I decided, however, that these types of
items were not worthy of inclusion. Also omitted are Dylan's studio appearances as a guest
musician on other artists' albums; the so-called "sideman" sessions. Sound-checks, studio
warm-ups, and what are obviously non-serious attempts at recording are also absent. These
subjective choices were not always straightforward, but as the self-appointed referee, my
decision is final.
It would have been easier to simply include everything. I felt, however, that the inclusion
of frivolous items would only serve to dilute the worth of the book. Therefore, when you
read in this book that Bob Dylan played 'Dolly Dagger' in Perth on March 18, 1992, you
will know that this was a serious attempt at covering the Jimi Hendrix song.
What is included? – all of the songs which Dylan has covered on record, plus an extremely
comprehensive listing of the songs performed during his early informal coffeehouse
appearances and private party sessions, through the many Basement Tapes songs and on
to the proliferation of live covers which Dylan has included in many of his concert
performances of the past twenty years.
I have no doubt that this work contains some omissions and errors. Anyone who says they
can write the definitive book on this subject is either a liar or a fool. This book is complete
up to the October 2008 release of the Columbia Records rarities box-set "Tell Tale Signs".
The Main Text: This book contains five hundred and fifty songs which Bob Dylan has
covered either on record or in concert. Each entry catalogues when and where the song was
performed, the year of the tour and, in most cases, the date and venue of the first and last
(most recent) performance. Also included is the background to the song, from whom Dylan
might have learned it, and in most cases a short biography of the artist in question. In many
instances the text also directs the reader to an entry, or entries, in appendix one and two.
Appendix One: The intention of this appendix is to take many of the songs contained in
the main text out of alphabetical isolation and to place them in the historical and
chronological settings in which they were performed or recorded. This enables the reader
to view the entire setlist or album session, to see which songs came before or after the
song in question, to see if the song was an isolated cover or, if in the case of Dylan's early
performances, it was part of an entire set of cover songs. Perhaps the song in question is
an isolated Woody Guthrie number, or maybe it is grouped together with other Woody
Guthrie numbers. We can see clearly that Dylan's only known performance of, say 'Talking
Hugh Brown' took place in Hugh Brown's Minneapolis apartment and that the song was
grouped together with several of Woody Guthrie's "Talking" songs. The eighty
chronological sessions within this appendix also allows the reader to view the development
of Dylan's own song-writing and hopefully turns this book into more than just an
encyclopaedia.
Appendix Two: This appendix provides the reader with a basic, but useful guide, as to
which of the many available CD bootlegs contain the songs discussed in this book. This
list has been kept concise so as to gather together the maximum number of songs over the
minimum number of discs.
Appendix Three: A collection of notes about significant people, places and artefacts
frequently referred to the main text of this book can be found in a short section near the
back of the book.
Derek Barker, October 2008
Photo: Duncan Hume
Bob Dylan 2008
1913 Massacre
1913 Massacre (Woody Guthrie)
Bob Dylan probably performed this Guthrie song a number of times during the early 1960s,
but the only recording that has found its way into collectors' hands is from the New York
Carnegie Chapter Hall concert. This event took place on November 4, 1961. For further
information see Appendix 1:14. This recording can be found on a number of bootleg CDs
including "Acoustic Troubadour", "Hard Times In YC" and "His Gotham Ingress". See
Appendix 2 for further details.
Woody Guthrie wrote '1913 Massacre' after reading about the tragic event in Mother
Bloor's autobiography "We Are Many" (1940). A labour organizer from the East Coast,
Ella Reeve Bloor was an eyewitness to the events at Italian Hall on Christmas Eve, 1913.
On that fateful day, the striking miners of Calumet, Michigan, their wives and children,
about five hundred people in all, were gathered on the second floor of Italian Hall for a
Christmas party which was sponsored by the Western Federation of Miners. Shortly after
the festivities began, someone yelled "Fire!" and in the ensuing chaos seventy-four people
were crushed and suffocated to death on the
stairway. Fifty-nine of the dead were children.
There was no fire.
There are conflicting stories about what
actually happened that Christmas Eve, and it
has never been established who cried "fire!"
and why. The popular theory is that the shout
was made by the anti-union company
management to disrupt the party. One story
regarding the incident states that the doors at
the bottom of the stairway opened inward and
that when the fleeing hoard reached the
bottom they were simply pressed up against
the doors which prevented them from
opening. However, this theory appears to have
emerged many years later (circa 1952) and
photographs taken at the time suggest the
doors in fact opened outward. In addition,
neither the coroner's inquest nor the contemporary newspaper reports made any reference
to the doors being a contributing factor. The version of events that was prevalent at the
time, and which found its way into Woody Guthrie's song, was that thugs working for the
company had plotted the whole affair and that they were holding the doors shut from
outside.
The song has been covered by several artists including Jack Elliot, Alex Campbell and
Woody's son Arlo Guthrie. Guthrie's recording is available on the albums "Struggle" and
"Hard Travelin'".
Most Bob Dylan enthusiasts will, I'm sure, already know much of the Woody Guthrie
story. However, it would be remiss of me if I did not provide a brief résumé of the great
man's life here. Guthrie was, after all, the biggest single influence on Bob Dylan's early
career and life. Dylan wrote in his book "Chronicles Volume One":
"The Songs of Woody Guthrie ruled my universe" … "The first song I'd wind up writing
of any substantial importance was written for Woody Guthrie".
Slightly built, with a shock of curly hair, Woody Guthrie was bright and intuitive, a keen
observer and one of life's true originals. Woodrow Wilson Guthrie was born in Okemah,
Oklahoma on July 14, 1912 to Nora Belle Sherman and Charles Edward Guthrie. His
parents named him after Woodrow Wilson, who was elected to the presidency that year.
Charles Guthrie was a land speculator who at one time owned thirty plots of land in
Okfuskee County. He was involved in politics and was a Democratic candidate for office
in the County. During his early life in Oklahoma, Woody Guthrie experienced a series of
tragic personal losses, the effects of which would haunt him for the rest of his life. First,
his older sister Clara died in a coal oil fire when Woody was only seven. His father was
severely burned in a later fire and although the circumstances of these tragedies remain
unclear, they may have been the result of actions by Guthrie's mother who, unknown to the
family at the time, was probably suffering from the rare degenerative neurological disease,
Huntington's chorea. She was eventually committed to the Oklahoma Hospital for the
Insane, where she later died. Huntington's is a genetic disease which would eventually
result in the death of Woody Guthrie.
Woody developed an enduring love of rambling and when, in 1931, Okemal's boomtown
went bust, Woody left Texas and ended up in Pampa. It was there he married Mary Jennings
and together they had three children. As a result of the dust storms which hit the Great
Plains in 1935 Woody, like many others, headed out on Route 66 looking for work to
support his family, who remained behind in Pampa. His travels eventually took him to
California where he got a job on KFVD radio playing a mix of traditional music and some
of his own compositions. Woody's show was extremely successful, but wanderlust won the
day and his next stop was New York City. He arrived in New York in 1940 and was
immediately embraced by the city's folk music community.
Guthrie now made his first real recordings, several hours of conversation and songs for
Alan Lomax and the Library of Congress. He also recorded an album, "Dust Bowl
Ballads", for the New Jersey label, Victor Records, and began hosting a weekly radio show
entitled "Pipe Smoking Time".
At this time Woody was also involved with a radio programme called "Back Where I Come
From". The fifteen-minute CBS radio programme aired three nights a week at 10:30 pm.,
and ran from September 1940 to January 1941. The show was written by Alan Lomax who
came up with the idea that each programme should be devoted to a theme such as trains or
marriage, etc. Who would have thought that almost seventy years later, Bob Dylan would
be the host of a similar themed radio show, "Theme Time Radio Hour With Your Host Bob
Dylan"? For further information about "Theme Time Radio Hour" see the Appendix 3 at
the back of this book.
Guthrie now had enough money to bring his wife and children to New York, where they
rented a comfortable apartment in uptown Manhattan. For the first time in decades, Woody
was not living in poverty. He joined the Almanac Singers, whose other members were Pete
Seeger, Lee Hays, and Millard Lampell. In 1942 Guthrie became romantically involved
with a dancer named Marjorie Mazia. The couple married in 1945 and had four children:
Cathy (who tragically died in yet another house fire), Arlo, Joady, and Nora Lee. At the
time, Guthrie was serving in the U.S. Merchant Marines but due to his involvement with
Communism he was drafted into the US Army.
By the end of the 1940s, Woody's behaviour had become extremely erratic and by the early
1950s, his health had deteriorated to the point where he was committed for short periods
to various New York hospitals. Doctors were unable to pinpoint his problem, although
alcoholism and schizophrenia were suggested as probable causes of his violent outbursts.
In July 1952 Woody was admitted to Brooklyn State Hospital for further tests but doctors
remained baffled as to exactly what the problem was. One doctor wrote: "This is one of
those cases which stubbornly defies classification". However, on September 3, 1952 he
was finally diagnosed as suffering from Huntington's Disease, the same genetic disorder
from which his mother is believed to have died. Guthrie's ever worsening condition put a
massive strain on his marriage and he and Marjorie eventually separated. Woody married
again and he and his new wife, Anneke Van Kirk Marshall, had a child together. However,
the strain of being married to a partner with Huntington's eventually proved too much and
this relationship also ended in divorce. Even before the divorce, Guthrie's second wife
Marjorie re-entered his life and would continue to care for Woody until his eventual death.
Signs of his illness came and went but on May 28, 1956 Guthrie was arrested whilst
wandering aimlessly around in New Jersey and was involuntarily committed to Greystone
Park Psychiatric Hospital in New Jersey where he remained until 1961. His condition
worsened to the point where he could not play the guitar, type, or even hold a pen. Marjorie
had Woody moved back to Brooklyn State Hospital and in his final days he received rather
more sensitive care in Creedmoor State Hospital in Queens. By this point Guthrie could
only communicate by pointing to cards which read "Yes" or "No". Finally, after almost two
decades of suffering, Woody Guthrie died on October 3, 1967. His ashes were cast into the
waters off Coney Island.
20-20 Vision
Woody Guthrie's death went some way to helping raise awareness of the disease and led
Marjorie to found the Committee to Combat Huntington's Disease – later the Huntington's
Disease Society of America. None of Woody Guthrie's three remaining children with
Marjorie have developed symptoms of Huntington's, but two of the three children he had
with his first wife, Mary, were diagnosed with the disease. Both died at 41 years of age.
In his lifetime Woody Guthrie published two novels, created numerous works of art and
wrote many poems and prose pieces and almost 3,000 song lyrics. Bob Dylan first heard
Woody Guthrie in 1959. He was introduced to Guthrie's music by Flo Castner, an aspiring
actress that he'd met at the Bastille, a coffee house in St. Paul, Minnesota. Dylan knew of
Woody Guthrie through his recordings with Cisco Houston and Sonny Terry, but he'd
never heard Guthrie perform alone. Castner suggested they should visit her brother's home
because he had some solo Guthrie records in his collection.
Dylan wrote with great passion about this first encounter with solo Guthrie in "Chronicles
Volume One": "[Flo Castner's brother had a] set of about twelve double side 78 records,
I put one on the turntable and when the needle dropped, I was stunned–didn't know if I was
stoned or straight". "All these songs made my head spin. It made me want to gasp. It was
like the land parted … I couldn't believe it … He was so poetic and tough and rhythmic.
There was so much intensity … He was like no other singer I ever heard, neither were his
songs". "He would throw in the sound of the last letter of a word whenever he felt like it
and it would come like a punch … His repertoire [was] really beyond category. [His songs]
had the infinite sweep of humanity in them ... For me it was an epiphany … I listened all
afternoon … I could sing all of these songs, every single one of them and they were what
I wanted to sing. It was like I had been in the dark and someone had turned on the main
switch of a lightning conductor".
Around the time of this "epiphany" Dylan was given a hardback copy of Guthrie's
autobiography "Bound For Glory" and his recently discovered love for Woody Guthrie's
music quickly developed into an obsession and a lifestyle.
It is just possible that Bob Dylan's recent decision to host a themed radio show and to
write his own autobiography, "Chronicles Volume One", were stimulated by the memories
of Wood Guthrie's radio show and autobiography? Perhaps part of Dylan's thought process
was that he too would like to leave a similar legacy for young musicians in the future. In
any event, there is no doubting the fact that Woody Guthrie was Bob Dylan's first hero.
20-20 Vision (Milton Estes / Joe Allison)
Bob Dylan has only performed this song once, in concert on October 25, 1991, at the City
Coliseum in Austin, Texas. The excellent performance, which is spoilt by a rather unruly
US audience, may have been a tribute to the song's co-author, Texan Joe Allison. This
recording can be found on several bootleg CDs, including "Golden Vanity" and the
"Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 1988-2000", where it is erroneously filed
under "trad., arranged Dylan".
32-20 Blues
Dylan played Jimmy Martin's truly excellent 1954 recording of this song on show fifteen
in Series One of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The theme of this show was
"King of Bluegrass", Jimmy Martin, began his career in
1949 as lead vocalist for Bill Monroe's Bluegrass
Boys. Martin's high voice mixed with Monroe's
tenor came to be known as the "high lonesome".
Martin split from Monroe in 1954 and worked
briefly with the Osborne Brothers until he
formed his own full-time band, The Sunny
Mountain Boys.
Jimmy Martin's 1954 recording of '20-20
Vision'– a song about lost love (for RCA) featured
the Osborne brothers and the distinctive, driving
fiddle of Red Taylor. Martin recorded the song again in
1964 (for Columbia). Both of these recordings are currently
available on the Bear Family Records' Jimmy Martin five-CD box-set.
32-20 Blues (Robert Johnson)
She got a thirty-eight special, but I believe it's most too light,
I got a 32-20, got to make the caps alright.
Dylan recorded this song in May 1993 at the "World Gone Wrong" album sessions. See
Appendix 1:77 for further details about this recording session. The song was released in
October 2008 on the rarities compilation album "The Bootleg Series Vol. 8: Bob Dylan:
Tell Tale Signs: Rare And Unreleased 1989-2006" (2008).
Johnson's '32-20 Blues' – a song about settling an argument with your woman by cutting
her in two with your gun! (Dylan sings, "Got to shoot my pistol, got to shoot my Gatling
gun") – was greatly influenced by Skip James' 1931 song '22-20 Blues' and the evidence
of this can be found in Johnson's lyrics. In the first two verses of his song Johnson changes
James' "Wisconsin" lyric to "Hot Springs" (Arkansas). However, in the third and final
verse Johnson forgets the words and sings James' original "Wisconsin" lyric.
As an aside, it is said that one of the reasons the brass-bodied National Style 'O' resonator
guitar was popular among juke-joint and nightclub performers was because the body was
capable of stopping a bullet from a 32-20, which was a popular revolver in the 1930s.
Robert Johnson's life is not well documented and the many myths that have surrounded him
over the years have muddied the waters even further. Johnson was born in Hazlehurst,
Mississippi sometime around May 8, 1911. He was the eleventh child of Julia Major
Dodds, who had previously borne ten children to husband Charles Dodds. Robert was born
out of wedlock, and he did not take the Dodds family name. When Robert learned about
his real father, a field-worker named Noah Johnson, he began calling himself Robert
Johnson.
Robert travelled with his mother who had been forced to work as an itinerant field-worker,
picking cotton. It is not known for certain if Johnson attended school. Some accounts say
that he could neither read nor write, while others tell of his strikingly beautiful handwriting.
He learned the guitar in his teens and numbered among his tutors such esteemed blues
figures as Charley Patton and Son House. During the Depression years of the early 1930s,
Johnson set out to earn a living as a musician.
Legend states that Robert Johnson took his guitar to the crossroads at midnight near
Dockery's plantation where he was met by a large black man – the Devil – who took the
guitar and tuned it so that Johnson could play absolutely anything he wanted. The price
however, was Johnson's soul. Mentions of either the Devil or other supernatural happenings
are plentiful in Johnson's limited output.
There are varied accounts regarding the events which led to Johnson's death but all agree
that a woman and a jealous partner were involved. The story goes that at a dance Johnson
was offered an open bottle of whiskey, which his friend and fellow blues legend, Sonny
Boy Williamson, knocked out of his hand, informing him that he should never drink from
an offered bottle that had already been opened. However, Johnson was offered a second
open bottle which he accepted and drank from. The whiskey was laced with strychnine.
Johnson lived for three days before he eventually died on August 16, 1938 at a country
crossroads near Greenwood, Mississippi. He was just twenty-seven years of age.
Even in death Robert Johnson remains
a mystery and the exact location of his
grave remains a source of ongoing
controversy. Three different markers
have been erected at supposed burial
sites outside of Greenwood. Research
in the 1980s strongly suggested that
Johnson was buried in the graveyard
of the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist
Church near Morgan City, Mississippi. The grave was unmarked and in
1990 a monument, partly paid for by
Columbia Records, was placed at this
location. More recent research,
Marker at Little Zion Missionary Baptist Church however, points to a gravesite under a
large pecan tree in the cemetery of the Little Zion Church, north of Greenwood. Sony
Music has paid for a marker to be placed at this site. The last word is probably best left to
Martin Scorsese who summed Johnson up with the words: "The thing about Robert
Johnson was that he only existed on his records. He was pure legend".
The whole of Robert Johnson's recorded output was cut in
three days' worth of sessions in November 1936 and a
further two days in June 1937. In his lifetime the
Vocalion label released twenty-two sides of Johnson's
work on eleven 78rpm singles. One further single was
released shortly after his death in 1938. In 1990
Columbia released a two-CD set entitled "The
Complete Recordings". The set contained all fortyone takes of his twenty-nine known songs; five more
than were originally issued on Vocalion. Since that time,
however, one further recording has been discovered, an
alternate take of 'Traveling Riverside Blues'. This brings the
number of known Johnson recordings to forty-two.
Bob Dylan said of Robert Johnson in "Chronicles Volume One":
"Hammond said I should listen to [Robert Johnson's "King Of The Delta Blues"]. He
showed me the artwork … I stared at the illustration. Whoever the singer was in the picture,
he already had me possessed…
When Johnson started singing, he seemed like a guy who could have sprung from the head
of Zeus in full armour. I immediately differentiated between him and anyone else I had ever
heard.
Johnson's voice and guitar were ringing the room and I was mixed up in it … [His] words
made my nerves quiver like piano wires … I copied Johnson's words down on scraps of
paper so I could more closely examine the lyrics and patterns, the construction of his oldstyle lines and the free association that he used, the sparkling allegories [and] big-ass truths
… John Hammond had told me that he thought Johnson had read Walt Whitman. Maybe
he did, but it doesn't clear up anything.
I probably used about five or six of Robert Johnson's blues song forms, too, unconsciously,
but more on the lyrical imagery side of things. If I hadn't heard the Robert Johnson record
when I did, there probably would have been hundreds of lines of mine that would have been
shut down-that I wouldn't have felt free enough or upraised enough to write. Robert
Johnson's code of language was like nothing I'd heard before or since".
900 Miles (Traditional)
I am walkin' down this track,
I've got tears in my eyes,
I'm tryin' to read a letter from my home,
An' if this train runs me right,
I'll be home tomorrow night,
'Cause I'm nine hundred miles from my home.
Dylan played this song in 1960 at the St. Paul Minnesota
apartment of Karen Wallace. The session tape, which
features twenty-seven songs, remains the property of
Karen Moynihan, née Wallace. For further information
about this session see Appendix 1:3. This recording
can be found on the bootleg CD "I Was So Much
Younger Then". Whilst this is the only known early
recording of this song by Dylan, it is extremely likely
that he performed this song regularly during 1960 and
possibly into 1961. This song was also recorded by
Dylan in the basement of Big Pink in the summer of 1967.
See Appendix 1:60 for further information.
Although '900 Miles' is most often associated with Woody Guthrie, it is in fact a traditional
song. Cisco Houston also performed the song both solo and with Woody Guthrie.
A-11 (Hank Cochran)
I don't know you from Adam,
But if you're gonna play the jukebox,
Please don't play A-Eleven.
Bob Dylan performed this Hank Cochran song five times in eight days during March 2005.
The first performance of the song was on March 11, 2005 in Portland, Oregon, at the
University Of Portland. The last time this song was played on this tour was on March 18,
2005 in Reno, Nevada, at the Reno Hilton. The reason for Dylan's sudden yet fleeting
inclusion of this song in his sets at this time remains a mystery to me.
Nashville songwriter Hank Cochran wrote many country hits including 'I Fall to Pieces'
for Patsy Cline. His bar-room weepy, 'A-11', was a hit for Buck Owens who included the
song on his 1964 album "Together Again/My Heart Skips A Beat" (Capitol ST-2135).
Johnny Paycheck also scored a minor hit with 'A-11' in 1965. Along with Eddie Cochran,
Hank was once one half of the teenage duo, The Cochran Brothers. The two Cochrans
were, however, unrelated.
Abner Young (Unknown)
This puzzling song is performed by a young Bob Dylan in the apartment of Karen Wallace,
St. Paul, Minnesota, in 1960. A fragmentary tape, which was put together as a "sampler"
of this performance circulates among collectors. For further information see Appendix 1:3.
Dylan does not appear to have played this song again and its origin is something of a
mystery. This recording can be found in very poor quality on the bootleg CD "I Was So
Much Younger Then".
Abraham, Martin & John
Abraham, Martin & John (Dick Holler)
'Abraham, Martin & John' was written by Dick Holler in 1968 and first recorded by Dion
that same year. The song pays homage to the memories of icons of social change, Abraham
Lincoln, Martin Luther King, John and (Robert) F. Kennedy. The song was a response to
the assassinations of King and Robert F. Kennedy in April and
June 1968 respectively. Dylan regularly performed
'Abraham, Martin & John' as a duet with his backing
singer Clydie King during his concert performances
of 1980 and 1981.
The song, which is notable as being the only
single to have reached the Top Forty, five times
with five different artists, was instrumental in
reviving Dion's flagging career. Singer and
songwriter Dick Holler has written a number of
hit singles over the years including the slightly less
poignant 'Snoopy vs. The Red Baron', which was
co-written with Phil Gernhard.
Accidentally Like a Martyr (Warren Zevon)
A few weeks after Warren Zevon announced that he was terminally ill with cancer, Dylan
began his 2002 Fall tour in the USA. At the opening concert in Seattle, Washington
(October 4), Dylan surprised his audience by playing a song that left many people guessing.
The song, 'Accidentally Like a Martyr', a Warren Zevon number, was a tribute to its writer.
Six songs later Dylan played another of Zevon's songs, 'Boom, Boom Mancini', and before
the concert ended, he paid a further tribute by performing a third Zevon song, the utterly
gorgeous 'Mutineer'. Although this was the only performance of 'Boom, Boom Mancini',
'Accidentally Like a Martyr'and 'Mutineer' were both played frequently on the remainder
of the tour and a further Zevon song, 'Lawyers, Guns And Money', was also added to the
sets. For Dylan to perform four covers as tributes to Zevon was an astonishing and
unprecedented homage to an extraordinary yet criminally under-appreciated talent.
It should be noted however, that Warren Zevon was not the only contemporary artist to be
covered by Dylan on his 2002 Fall tour. In fact, this leg of the "Never Ending Tour"
illustrates quite graphically just how important cover songs have been to the NET. On this
leg of the tour, Dylan shocked everyone by throwing into the mix not just the Warren
Zevon numbers, but also songs like Neil Young's 'Old Man' and the Rolling Stones 'Brown
Sugar', to name but two. Anyone wishing to track down recordings from this tour could
do worse than to start with the concert from Red Bluff, California on October 7, 2002.
This is a great show and is available in stunning audio quality.
Dylan knew Zevon well and had played on his 1987 album "Sentimental Hygiene"–
contributing harmonica to a track entitled 'The Factory'. Zevon's illness, mesothelioma,
was a form of cancer associated with exposure to asbestos, so it was ironic that the track
contained the line "kicking asbestos in the factory".
Zevon had a lifelong phobia of doctors and seldom received medical assessments or
treatments for illnesses. In 2002, after a long period of untreated illness and pain, he was
encouraged by his dentist to see a physician. When he did so, Zevon was diagnosed with
the inoperable cancer. Although he was only given months to live he survived to see the
birth of twin grandsons in June 2003 and the release of his album "The Wind" (August,
2003). When the diagnosis became public, Zevon told the media that he just hoped to live
long enough to see the next James Bond movie, "Die Another Day", a goal he also
accomplished.
Warren Zevon died on September 7, 2003,
aged fifty-six, at his home in Los Angeles,
California. "The Wind" was certified gold
in December 2003 and Zevon received five
posthumous Grammy nominations.
A longstanding friendship between Bob
Dylan's son Jakob and Warren Zevon's son
Jordan ensured that Jakob, along with his
band The Wallflowers, recorded a version
of 'Lawyers, Guns And Money' for the
Artemis Records tribute album to Warren
Zevon, "Enjoy Every Sandwich" (Artemis Records RCD17304, 2004). Bob Dylan's
contribution was a live performance from his 2002 US Fall tour. The song, 'Mutineer', is
from his concert in Red Bluff, California (October 7, 2002) and not an audience recording
from Australia as stated in the CD booklet.
'Accidentally Like a Martyr' is released on Warren Zevon's truly excellent 1978 gold award
album "Excitable Boy" (Asylum 118).
Acne (Eric Von Schmidt)
Dylan shared vocal duties with Ramblin' Jack Elliott on this doo-wop satire of teenage
angst in which the song's narrator is rejected by his senior prom date. The song was
recorded live at the Riverside Church, New York on July 29, 1961 for the WRVR radio
programme, Saturday Of Folk Music. The broadcast took place the same day. The song was
not officially released until 2000 when it was included on the soundtrack album "The
Ballad Of Ramblin' Jack".
The song was captured on tape for a second time in March 1962 when Dylan performed it
at the New York apartment of Cynthia Gooding. This recording is available on the bootleg
CD "I Was So Much Younger Then". For further information about these two performances
see Appendix 1:9 and 1:20.
Across The Borderline
Across The Borderline (Ry Cooder / John Hiat / Jim Dickinson)
This song was played regularly throughout Bob Dylan's 1986 tour with Tom Petty and the
Heartbreakers. It then made sporadic appearances in Dylan's live shows from 1988 until
1998 with an especially splendid performance occurring at the Guitar Legends festival in
Seville, Spain (October 17, 1991). Bob Dylan's performance from Montreux (July 9, 1990)
can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 19882000". This is a gorgeous squeezebox driven rendition which benefits from a wonderful
Dylan vocal that is perfectly complemented by Ry Cooder's accordion player, Flaco
Jimenez.
This song, which is very reminiscent of Woody Guthrie's 'Deportee' (including the use of
Spanish in the lyrics), tells the story of someone who has crossed the border, assumedly
from Mexico to the United States, only to find that the streets of the "promised land" are
not paved with gold.
The song was first released on Ry Cooder's 1978 album "Get Rhythm". Bob Dylan played
Freddy Fender's and Ry Cooder's 1982 recording of 'Across The Borderline' on show
forty-four of Season One of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The show in
question was themed "Texas".
Adelita (Traditional)
This traditional Mexican song was first attempted by Dylan during the "Planet Waves"
session at The Village Recorder Studios in Santa Monica on November 10, 1973. However,
this recording does not circulate among collectors. The song was again performed by
Dylan, Dylan's son-in-law Peter Himmelman, and Harry Dean Stanton at Chabad
Television Studios, Los Angeles on September 24, 1989 and broadcast live on the Chabad
Telethon programme L'Chaim To Life! See entry for 'Hava eigeilah' for further details.
Ain't o More Cane On The Brazos (Traditional)
Over the years many traditional songs have been credited to whoever claimed authorship
of them and thus 'Ain't o More Cane' or 'Ain't o More Cane On The Brazos' is
sometimes credited to Lead Belly, Ernest Williams and on a number of occasions to James
'Iron Head' Baker. The simple truth is nobody really knows who wrote this song and as
such it should be considered traditional. Dylan himself has followed in this tradition by
claiming authorship of songs such as 'Rollin' And Tumblin'' (from his "Modern Times"
album) and has been somewhat criticised for doing so.
Several versions of the song were collected by John and Alan Lomax during their 1930s
field trips for the Library of Congress. One recording made in 1933 and performed by the
aforementioned Ernest Williams and James 'Iron Head' Baker was included on the
compilation "Afro-American Spirituals, Work Songs, And Ballads" (Archive of Folk Songs
Alabama Getaway
AFS L3). This compilation album, along with five others, was released in 1942 on thirty
78 rpm records. This release, which was the third in the series, is available on the Rounder
label as a remastered compact disc (Rounder CD 1510, 1998).
It is possible that Dylan was turned on to the
song by listening to Odetta's 1959 recording
released on her album "My Eyes Have Seen"
(Vanguard VRS 9059). Interestingly, this
Odetta album contains two other songs,
'Motherless Children' and 'Saro Jane'
(Appendix 1:3), which were also performed by
Dylan in the early 1960s.
In his autobiography "Chronicles Volume
One" Dylan writes about how he first
discovered Odetta:
"I found a local record store in the heart of
Dinkytown [1959 or early 1960]. What I was looking for were folk music records and the
first one I saw was Odetta on the Tradition label [Odetta's first two albums were on
Tradition]. I went into a listening booth to hear it. Odetta was great. I'd never heard of her
until then ... I learned almost every song off the record right then and there, even borrowing
the hammering-on style".
The Brazos River flows 1,280 miles from its source, Blackwater Draw, through Texas to
its mouth at the Gulf of Mexico. En route the Brazos passed several prison farms where
black inmates were sent to work on chain gangs chopping sugar-cane and cotton. The work
required that the prisoners stand in several inches of muddy water in dense, snake-infested
stands of cane. The area around the water was thick with mosquitoes and the summer heat
was so intense that prisoners would keel over from sunstroke. The lyric "Go down old
Hannah, don'cha rise no more" is the workers' plea to the sun – known as old Hannah by
black workers – to set and not to rise again. These chain gangs continued to exist into the
1960s and could be seen from the main highways passing west of Houston.
Dylan performed this song at Gerdes Folk City, September 1961 (see Appendix 1:12), the
Gaslight Café, October 1962 (see Appendix 1:31), and at the Lone Star Café, February 16,
The performance from Gerdes Folk City is not in circulation among collectors. The
performances from the Gaslight and Lone Star do circulate among collectors and the
Gaslight recording can be found on the bootleg CD "I Was So Much Younger Then".
Alabama Getaway (Garcia / Hunter)
Written by Robert Hunter and the late Jerry Garcia and released as a single by the Grateful
Dead, 'Alabama Getaway' was adopted by Dylan into his live act soon after Garcia's
Alberta #1
passing on August 9, 1995. The song, which was not a particular favourite among Dylan
fans, remained a constant feature in Dylan's sets until 1999 and was last played live in the
summer of 2003. The Grateful Dead's recording was released on their album "Go To
Heaven" (1980). Bob Dylan's performance from Philadelphia PA (December 16, 1995)
can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 19882000". These 1995 renditions, which featured the song as the regulation first encore at
most shows, were rather frantic guitar hero affairs. The sleeve to the "Genuine ET Covers
Collection" gives the time as seven minutes. In reality it's only 5.44 but perhaps it felt like
seven!
Alberta #1 (Traditional, arranged Bob Dylan)
The Song 'Alberta #1', also known as 'Alberta, Let Your Hair Hang Low', was released
by Dylan on his album "Self Portrait". The writing credits on "Self Portrait" assert Dylan
as the composer of the song, but the "Self Portrait" songbook is more accurate in stating
"Arranged by Bob Dylan". Regardless, Dylan's office copyrighted the song to Big Sky
Music in 1970 but, tellingly, the lyrics do not appear in the official lyrics book "Bob Dylan
Lyrics 1962 – 2001". For further information see Appendix 1:67.
The exact origins of this song are unknown. Some scholars are of the opinion that it
originated in Barrelhouses of New Orleans, while others believe it to be a prison work
song, even though neither the original song nor Dylan's version appear to have any
connection to prisons. This view of the song probably came about because of the song's
distant connection to the traditional 'Long Time Man Feel Bad', which Dylan performed
in the early 1960s.
'Long Time Man Feel Bad' contains the lyrics "Can't get no letters, Can't even roam" and
"If they'd just let me go home", which are probably the sentiments of an inmate. The song
is associated with 'Alberta' mainly because of the tune, but also the lyric "Alberta let your
hair grow long, Let it grow on down 'till it reaches the ground".
Alberta # 2 (Traditional, arranged Bob Dylan)
Dylan's performance of this song differs from that of 'Alberta #1'. For information about
the traditional song 'Alberta', see entry for 'Alberta #1'. For further information regarding
the recording session, see Appendix 1:67. This song was released by Dylan on his album
"Self Portrait".
All I Have To Do Is Dream (Boudleaux Bryant)
Dylan made this strong recording, complete with its dominant bass line, at the first "ew
Morning" album session on May 1, 1970. See Appendix 1:68 for details about this session.
The version performed here is the song written by Boudleaux Bryant and made famous by
the Everly Brothers and should not to be confused with the instrumental number that Dylan
recorded during the Basement sessions.
Bob Dylan played the Everly Brothers recording of 'All I Have To Do Is Dream' on show
nine of Season Two of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The theme of this show
was "Dreams".
All My Tomorrows (Sammy Cahn / Jimmy van Heusen)
Written by Tin Pan Alley mainstay Sammy Cahn in collaboration with Jimmy van Heusen,
this song was made famous by Frank Sinatra in the film "Hole In The Head" (1959) and
later released by Sinatra on his album "All The Way" (1961). Dylan performed this song
(in part) at Pine Knob Music Theater, Clarkston, Michigan on June 30, 1986, while on tour
backed by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.
After the song Dylan said: "Alright, alright. I want to tell you right now why we did that
song. There's a very special person around tonight. And it's her birthday today; she wanted
to hear that song". Answers on a post card please.
(The) All-American Boy (Bill Parsons / Orville Lunsford)
Less of a cover and more of a re-write of the Bobby Bare song. '(The) All-American Boy'
was originally a satire about Presley's relationship with his manager Col. Tom Parker. This
adaptation of the song appears to be Dylan venting his anger toward his manager, Albert
Grossman, with whom relations were at an all-time low. Dylan informed interviewer
Michael Iachetta: "Songs are in my head like they always are. And they're not going to get
written down until some things are evened up. Not until some people come forth and make
up for some of the things that happened".
Dylan recorded this song – on twelve-string guitar – in 1967 with the Hawks in the
basement of Big Pink (Appendix 1:60). This arrangement of the song was copyrighted to
Bob Dylan in 1973.
Alligator Man (Jimmy 'C' Newman / Floyd Chance)
Dylan recorded a song entitled 'Alligator Man' during the June 1, 1970 "ew Morning"
sessions (Appendix 1:69). The song was shortlisted for inclusion on the Columbia-released
"Dylan" album (1973), but it failed to make the final cut. This song does not circulate
among collectors and the author is not identified on the Columbia recording sheets. The
likelihood is, however, that the song in question is the Jimmy Newman 1961 country hit.
After scoring with several hits on the Country Chart, Jimmy 'C' Newman (the 'C' is not
his middle name; it actually stands for Cajun), was hired as a regular performer on the now
famous Louisiana Hayride. Newman soon became a member of the Grand Ole Opry and
went on to forge a career that includes thirty-three Top 100 country hits.
And It Stoned Me
'Alligator Man' (Sun 122) reached number Twenty-Two on the Country Chart and has
since been covered by, amongst others, Alex Chilton, the Greenbriar Boys, the Nitty Gritty
Dirt Band, the Meteors, Greg Kihn, and Stoneground.
And It Stoned Me (Van Morrison)
Bob Dylan joined Van Morrison for his performance of 'And It Stoned Me' after the two
men had spent time together while in Greece. Morrison was in Athens for the filming of a
BBC TV special documentary about him. The performance involved four songs, 'Crazy
Love', 'And It Stoned Me', 'Foreign Window' and 'One Irish Rover'. These songs were
filmed by the BBC on June 27, 1989 at Philopappos (Hill of the Muses), in Athens, Greece.
The performances of 'Crazy Love', 'Foreign Window' and 'One Irish Rover' were included
in the "Arena: One Irish Rover" documentary broadcast on BBC 2 television (UK) on
March 16, 1991.
Dylan performed the song again on July 6, 1989 in the Baldwin Memorial Pavilion,
Rochester Hills, Michigan. The original recording was the lead-off track on Morrison's
excellent 1970 album "Moondance". Bob Dylan's performance from Rochester Hills, MI
(July 6, 1989), which features strong vocals, can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine
ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 1988-2000".
Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground (Willie Nelson)
Dylan's performance of this Willie Nelson song, an outtake
from the "Infidels" album sessions, was released in
1983 as the B-side to Dylan's single 'Union
Sundown'. The song was originally released in
1980 by Nelson on the "Honeysuckle Rose"
soundtrack album.
The correct title of this song is 'Angel Flying
Too Close To The Ground'. Angel should be in
the singular and not the plural as printed on
sleeves and labels of Dylan's CBS releases in the
UK. Also, some CBS singles released in the UK
and in continental Europe wrongly credited Bob
Dylan as the songwriter.
Annie's Going To Sing Her Song (Tom Paxton)
This song was recorded by Dylan on March 4, 1970 at the "Self Portrait" album sessions.
The song was not included on the album and it does not circulate among collectors. See
Appendix 1:66 for further information.
Paxton first released 'Annie's Going To Sing Her Song' on his Elektra album "Tom Paxton
6" (EKS-74066, 1970). The album charted in the US in the Spring of 1970 so the song
would have been completely contemporary with Dylan's recording.
Annie's Song (John Denver)
This song was recorded by Bob Dylan during the aborted "Good As I Been To You" album
sessions which took place at Acme Recording Studios, Chicago in June 1992 with David
Bromberg producing. This recording is not in circulation among collectors.
Until quite recently, we only had details of twelve of the songs attempted at these sessions.
Information outlining a further eighteen of the circa thirty songs recorded at Acme emerged
in Michael Gray's "The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia" in 2006 some fourteen years after the
sessions took place. See Appendix 1:75 for further information about this session.
In his Bob Dylan encyclopaedia, Gray cringes at the thought of Dylan recording this John
Denver song. Little is known about the Acme sessions and most of the songs have not
circulated among collectors. It is possible, therefore, that this recording isn't 'Annie's Song'
but rather 'Annie's Going To Sing Her Song', which Dylan had previously recorded at the
"Self Portrait" album sessions on March 4, 1970.
See entry for 'Annie's Going To Sing Her Song'.
Answer Me, My Love (Rauch / Winkler / Sigman)
This song was originally written with German lyrics, under the title 'Mutterlein', by
Gerhard Winkler and Fred Rauch. English lyrics were added by Carl Sigman in 1953. The
song was a Top Ten hit for Nat King Cole in 1954. Dylan performed this rather nice ballad
eight times in concert in 1991, including an especially fine performance aided and abetted
by Richard Thompson at the Guitar Legends festival in Seville, Spain (October 17, 1991).
Bob Dylan's performance from Evanston, IL (November 4, 1991) can be found on the
bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 1988-2000".
Any Way You Want Me (That's How I Will Be) (Schroeder / Owens)
The only known performance of this song came about when Dylan recorded the number
for an intended tribute to Elvis Presley. The recording session took place at Sony's New
York studios on September 30, 1994. There were several takes of the song but the album
remains unreleased. A tape of the recording does however circulate among collectors. It
also appeared in 2008 on the bootleg CD "GBS 4 – Fourth Time Around".
Written by Aaron Schroeder and Cliff Owens, Elvis Presley originally recorded 'Any Way
You Want Me (That's How I Will Be)' at RCA Studios, New York on July 2, 1956. This
session was the first to include the Jordanaires. The song, which was released as the B-side
to 'Love Me Tender', enjoyed a ten-week stay on the Billboard Pop Chart, peaking at
Number Twenty-Seven.
Around And Around (Berry)
Dylan pulled out a surprise performance of this Chuck Berry number at the Leysin Rock
Festival in Leysin, Switzerland on July 10, 1992. He also joined "the Dead" on stage when
they played the song on August 2, 2003 at the Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois. 'Around
And Around' was originally released by Berry in March 1958 as the B-side to 'Johnny B.
Goode' (Chess 1691). The song has been covered by many artists including the Rolling
Stones, The Animals, David Bowie, and the Grateful Dead.
Arthur McBride (Traditional)
Also known as 'Arthur McBride And The Sergeant', this Irish folk song was first collected
around 1840 in Limerick. In the song, the narrator and his cousin, Arthur McBride, were
taking "a stroll down by the seaside" when they were approached by two British military
recruiters (a sergeant and corporal) and a "little wee drummer". The earliest versions of this
song name the recruiters as Sergeant Harper and Corporal Cramp. In Dylan's version,
which was probably copied from an adaptation by Paul Brady (released on the album
"Andy Irvine And Paul Brady", Mulligan, LUN 007, 1976), the soldiers are Sergeant
Napper and Corporal Vamp. Also like Brady's adaptation, which Dylan follows closely, the
episode takes place on Christmas morning.
The soldiers attempt to recruit the narrator and Arthur McBride into the military by
extolling the many virtues of serving the King of England. However, when the two men
decline the offer, stating that they would be sent to France "Where [they] would be shot
without warning", the situation turns ugly and a fight ensues. However, before the soldiers
can draw their blades, the two Irishman are able to use their trusty shillelaghs and the
King's men are quickly dispatched. As for the poor wee drummer, after using his drum as
a football, McBride and his cousin throw the drum, "In the tide for to rock and roll". So,
there you have it, the first "rock'n'roll" drummer; a mere 157 years before the genre was
invented!
Although Dylan probably derived his version of 'Arthur McBride' from Brady, or Brady
and Irvine, he had previously used a part of the melody of the song in his 1964 composition
'Ballad In Plain D', which means that he had knowledge of the song from some
considerable time before Brady's recording. 'Arthur McBride' appears on the Bob Dylan
album "Good As I Been To You" (Columbia, 472710 2, 1992). This is a lovely rendition
marred only by some slightly indistinct diction. For further information see Appendix 1:76.
For information about Paul Brady, see entry for 'Mary And The Solider'.
Baby Ain't That Fine
Baby Ain't That Fine (Dallas Frazier)
Dallas Frazier's songwriting career caught fire in 1966-'67
when three of his songs, 'There Goes My Everything',
'Ain't Had o Lovin'', and 'I'm a People' became
huge hits for Jack Greene, Connie Smith and George
Jones respectively. After these successes Frazier
decided to take a stab at performing his own songs,
releasing his album "Elvira" (Capitol ST-2552,
1966). The album contained the song 'Baby Ain't
That Fine', which became a Top Twenty Country
hit for the duo, Melba Montgomery and Gene
Pitney. This single was in the Country Chart the year
before Dylan began his "Basement sessions". The song
forms part of the recordings that Dylan made while he
was living in the town of Woodstock in upper New York State,
which later became known as the Basement Tapes (1967). This recording sounds a little
more primitive than the main body of Basement Tapes songs, and was possibly recorded
in the "Red Room" in Dylan's Hi Lo Ha Woodstock home before the musicians relocated
to the basement at Big Pink. The position of this song on the tapes / bootleg CDs also
seems to indicate this. Many of the very early "Basement sessions" feature Dylan playing
a twelve-string guitar and this cut, which is missing the first couple of seconds, is no
exception.
Baby, Let Me Follow You Down (Traditional, arranged Eric Von Schmidt)
Recorded by Bob Dylan in November 1961 and released on his debut album, 'Baby, Let
Me Follow You Down' is a traditional song for which Reverend Gary Davis has claimed
authorship. The song was popularized in the late 1950s by blues guitarist Eric Von Schmidt
from whom Dylan learned the number. Von Schmidt describes the evolution of the song
in his book "Baby, Let Me Follow You Down" in which he explains that he learned the song
from Geno Foreman who in turn had taken it from a 78 record entitled 'Mama, Let Me
Lay It On You' released by Blind Boy Fuller in 1936. The song was adapted and the title
changed to 'Baby, Let Me Follow You Down' in the late 1950s and by the early '60s it had
become a featured song in the many coffee houses of Greenwich Village. However, the
Baby Please Don't Go
song dates even further back than Blind Boy Fuller's 1936 recording. Walter Coleman
recorded a version of 'Mama, Let Me Lay It On You' a few months before Fuller
popularized it and the great Memphis Minnie was certainly performing the song in the
early 1930s.
Dylan played this song frequently in the early
1960s (see Appendix 1:15, 1:16, 1:18 & 1:30)
and even made a demo of it for his music
publisher, Witmark. A rocking electric version
of the song was a regular feature in Dylan's
infamous 1966 "Judas" concerts and the song
appeared again when Dylan included it in the
Winterland Palace, San Francisco concert as
part of his short set for The Band's farewell
concert, which was later released as "The Last
Waltz". Interestingly, the song is erroneously
credited on this release to Rev Gary Davis.
After a lengthy rest, 'Baby, Let Me Follow You
Down' reappeared on June 9, 1988, when the
song was played during the mid-point acoustic
segment of Dylan's set at Cal Expo in
Sacramento, CA. The last outings so far for the
song were in September 1989 when it was
again played during the acoustic spot at three
shows on Dylan's fall tour of the United States.
One of these performances (Berkeley CA, September 3, 1989) is included on the bootleg
CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 1988-2000".
The song also appears on the official live CD from Dylan's 1966 world tour, "The Bootleg
Series Vol. 4: Bob Dylan Live 1966", and on the excellent Dylan box-set collection
"Biograph" (1985).
Baby Please Don't Go (Traditional, adapted Big Joe Williams)
Dylan performed this song early in his career and one of those performances is available
on a privately circulated recording know as the Minnesota Hotel Tape. The recording was
in fact made by Tony Glover at the Minneapolis home of Bonnie Beecher. Dylan recorded
the song for his second album, "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" but it failed to make the final
cut. This recording does however, circulate among collectors. See Appendix 1:18, 1:19 &
1:22 for further details of performances.
The song, which is probably derived from the traditional 'Another Man Done Gone', is a
classic and extensively covered blues. Authorship has been claimed by several blues
musicians but Big Joe Williams was the first artist to record the song and most subsequent
versions are taken from Williams' recording. Dylan's version almost certainly comes from
Big Joe Williams, from whom he probably learned the song firsthand.
Baby, What Do You Want Me To Do?
Baby, What Do You Want Me To Do? (Jimmy Reed)
This Jimmy Reed blues probably should not qualify for inclusion here as it was performed
only as part of a rehearsal for the Farm Aid fund-raising event. However, it is possible that
this song was being seriously considered for the performance proper. The rehearsal, which
was held at Soundstage 41 in Universal Studios, Los Angeles, took place on September 19,
Back Door Blues (Traditional)
This Dylan performance, which circulates among
collectors on the "Banjo Tape" (Appendix 1:41), was
recorded in the basement of Gerdes Folk City in
January or early February 1963. The song, which is
also known as 'Who You Really Are', is partly taken
from Lead Belly's 'Living The Blues', aka
'Grasshopper In My Pillow'. The song is most
closely associated with Casey Bill Weldon and
Kokomo Arnold.
This performance is a great example of Dylan's
guitar technique and his unquestionable ability on the
instrument. This is also an interesting and unusual
performance in that it features Dylan playing a
twelve-string. (See Appendix 1:41 for further
details).
Backwater Blues (Traditional)
Also known as 'It Rained Five Days', this song, often associated with Big Joe Williams and
the great Bessie Smith, was performed by Dylan during his early days in the Greenwich
Village folk clubs, and a recording of the song, made at Carnegie Chapter Hall on
November 4, 1961, survives and circulates among collectors (see Appendix 1:14). Dylan
introduces this extremely intense performance as being a song that Lead Belly used to do.
Bob Dylan played Lonnie Johnson's 1927 recording of 'Backwater Blues' on show twentythree of Season One of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The theme of this show
was "Water".
The song is one of many that chronicle the frequent and perilous risings of the Mississippi
River. The Great Flood of 1927 inspired a plethora of folk and blues songs by the likes of
Bessie Smith ('Backwater Blues'), Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie ('When The
Levee Breaks'), Lonnie Johnson ('Broken Levee Blues') and Charlie Patton ('High Water
Everywhere'), to name but a few.
Ball And Biscuit
Dylan appears to be equally gripped by this tragic event, which has inspired some of his
own songs; 'Down In The Flood (Crash On The Levee)' (written in 1967 and released on
"The Basement Tapes" in 1975); his homage to Charley Patton, 'High Water (For Charley
Patton)' (released on "Love And Theft", 2001), and even more recently, 'The Levee's
Gonna Break' (released on "Modern Times", 2006).
In his introduction to the Carnegie Chapter Hall performance Dylan says: "Here's a song
just about everybody knows. Lead Belly used to sing this". This one-off performance can
be found on several bootleg CDs including "Acoustic Troubadour", "Hard Times In ew
York City" and "His Gotham Ingress".
Ball And Biscuit (Jack White)
This White Stripes' number was performed by Dylan, with the song's writer, Jack White,
as an encore on Dylan's spring tour of 2004 (State Theater, Detroit, Michigan, March 17,
2004). The song can be found on The White Stripes album, "Elephant" (2003).
Ballad Of Ira Hayes (Peter LaFarge)
Dylan's recording of this Pete LaFarge song, which features Bob on piano, appears on the
Columbia released album "Dylan" (1973). See Appendix 1:69 for further details.
Ira Hayes was a full-blood Pima Indian who, along with five other members of the Marine
Corps, raised the United States flag on Mount Suribachi on the Japanese island of Iwo
Jima (1945). Tragically, Hayes, who after
World War ll suffered from acute alcoholism,
died in a cotton-field on the Pima reservation
on a night in January 1955. Hayes had lain
all night on the cold ground and his death
was attributed to exposure.
Ira Hayes
The song's writer, Pete LaFarge, was also a
Native American. According to anecdotal
sources, LaFarge was a descendent of Rhode
Island's nearly extinct Narragansett Indian
Tribe but was raised by the Hopi-Tewa
people on a reservation near Santa Fe, New
Mexico. LaFarge told Sing Out! magazine
that the Pima people are "cousins" of the
Hopi-Tewa and that Cisco Houston had
"worked [him] terribly on this [song]". It
seems that Houston contributed a line to the
song but did not want his name to be
included in the song's credits. Although
Banks Of The Royal Canal (The Auld Triangle)
Dylan has never performed this song live, he did rehearse it with the Grateful Dead in
The Peter LaFarge version was released on his album "Peter LaFarge, Ira Hayes And
Other Ballads" (1962).
Banks Of The Royal Canal (The Auld Triangle) (Brendan Behan)
See entry for 'Royal Canal'.
Barbara Allen (Traditional)
In Charlotte town, not far from here,
There was a fair maid dwellin',
Had a name was known both far and near,
An' her name was Barb'ry Allen.
'Barbara Allen', also variously known as 'The Ballad Of Barbara Allen', 'Barb'ry Allen',
'Barbara Ellen', etc., is a traditional folk song of which there are numerous versions. The
song, which probably originated in Britain or Ireland, has been classified as "Child Ballad"
#84. The song has been collected throughout Europe and extensively researched in the
United States by Alan Lomax. For further reading see "The Folk Songs Of North America"
(Doubleday, 1960).
The story is a simple one. In Scarlet Town, a young man named Sweet William lies dying
and calls for Barbara Allen. He asks for her love but she feels he had once slighted her and
refuses. Later, when she hears "the death bell knelling", she is smitten by remorse and asks
her father to dig a grave for her. This done, she "will die for him tomorrow", and be buried
next to him in the old churchyard where a red rose later blossoms from his heart, and a briar
from hers. "They grew, they grew so awfully high / until they can grow no higher / and then
they tied a lovers knot / the red rose and the briar".
Dylan, who actually pronounces the name Barb'ry Allen (this is common in many of the
traditional versions), performed this song in the Greenwich Village folk clubs during the
early 1960s. One rendition, performed at the Gaslight Café in October 1962, was captured
on tape and is in circulation among collectors. Dylan revisited this song in 1981 when he
surprised British audiences with an electric rendition. 'Barbara Allen' returned to Dylan's
live sets again in 1988 and would continue to appear sporadically (fifty-seven times) until
1991. In these later readings Dylan tends to deliver the song as an edgy drama rather than
the tender ballad of old. These later performances can be found on numerous bootleg CDs
including "Golden Vanity" and the "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 19882000".
Barefootin'
Barefootin' (Robert Parker)
This song was recorded at Sunset Sound Studios in Hollywood, California, in May 1987
during the "Down In The Groove" album sessions. This recording was not released on the
final album and does not circulate among collectors (see Appendix 1:80).
This track is often mislabelled by Dylan discographers. 'Barefootin' b/w 'Let's Go Baby
(Where the Action Is)' (Nola 721) reached Number Two on the R&B Chart and Number
Seven on The Pop Chart in the summer of 1966 for the song's author Robert Parker.
Ironically, 'Barefootin', which was recorded in 1965, remained unreleased for a year
because of Nola records' disinterest in the song.
Be Careful Of Stones That You Throw (Bonnie Dodd)
A tongue can accuse or carry bad news,
The seeds of destruction it will sow,
So unless you have made no mistakes in your life,
Be careful of stones that you throw.
This song forms part of the recordings that Dylan made while he was living in the town of
Woodstock in upper New York State and which later became known as the Basement Tapes
(1967). This recording sounds a little more primitive than the main body of Basement
Tapes songs and was possibly recorded in the "Red Room" in Dylan's Hi Lo Ha Woodstock
home before the musicians relocated to the basement at Big Pink. The position of this song
on the tapes / bootleg CDs also seems to indicate this. Many of the very early "Basement
sessions" feature Dylan playing a twelve-string guitar and this cut is no exception. See
Appendix 1:69 for further details.
Bob Dylan played The Staple Singers' 1964 recording of 'Be Careful Of Stones That You
Throw' on show five of Season Two of his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The
theme of this show was "Classic Rock". I think there must be a pun here somewhere.
The song was written by Bonnie Dodd and originally
released without success by Little Jimmy Dickens
(1949). 'Stones' was then picked up by music
publisher Fred Rose who persuaded Hank
Williams Sr. to cover the song under his Luke
The Drifter persona (1952). In 1963 Dion
propelled the song to Number Thirty-One on the
Billboard Chart and six years later Hank
Williams Jr. made it to Number Thirty-Seven
with the song. That same year, 1969, 'Be Careful
Of Stones That You Throw' was released on the
album "Luke The Drifter JR Volume 2".
Belle Isle (Traditional, arranged Bob Dylan)
This song was released on the "Self Portrait" album where it is erroneously credited to Bob
Dylan. 'Belle Isle' is more likely an Irish folk song that eventually migrated to Canada by
way of who knows where. Dylan scholar Michael Gray wrote at length about the origins
of this song in a two-part article "Back to Belle Isle" published in the now defunct Dylan
fanzine "The Telegraph" (issues 29 & 31). How and where Dylan learned the song is hotly
disputed but an almost identical version to the one recorded by Dylan had previously
appeared in Sing Out! magazine. See Appendix 1:65 for further details.
Bells Of Rhymney (Idris Davies / Pete Seeger)
This song was recorded in 1967 with the Hawks in the basement of Big Pink. A fragment
of an earlier performance also exists (see Appendix 1:17 & 1:60 for further details). The
words were written as a poem by Idris Davies, a coal miner in Rhymney, which is situated
near Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. The poem, which was written in a style similar to the
nursery rhyme 'Oranges And Lemons', was about the 1926 British General Strike, during
which the young poet vowed to educate himself and leave behind his life of toil as a miner.
The poem was put to music by Pete Seeger in 1957.
In a BBC Radio 4 interview Seeger said: "I ran across a book by Dylan Thomas with a
chapter called Welsh Poetry in the English language, and there were the words to 'The
Bells of Rhymney'".
Dylan has problems with the pronunciation of some of the Welsh place names in the song,
especially Rhymney, which should be pronounced Rum-ney. The Byrds had the same
pronunciation problems when they recorded their heavenly version, which was released on
their debut album "Mr Tambourine Man" (June 1965). Dylan also slips up on several other
lyrics, including singing "the bad bells of Rhymney" instead of "the sad bells of Rhymney",
which alters the meaning of the song somewhat.
Belshazzar (Johnny Cash)
This interesting song, with its strong vocal
performance, was recorded by Dylan and the
Hawks in 1967 in the basement of Big Pink.
(See Appendix 1:60 for further details).
Written by Johnny Cash, the song refers to the
controversial, supposed King of Babylon,
Belshazzar, who appears in the Book of
Daniel. Daniel 5:1-4 describes "Belshazzar's
Feast" in which the sacred vessels of
Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, brought to
Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, were profaned
by the company. Some scholars dispute that Belshazzar ever existed or, if he did, that he
was a King.
I quote Johnny Cash from the book "Man In Black" (Zondervan): "It was fitting that our
first public appearance was a performance in a church in North Memphis … I sang three
or four gospel songs, then introduced one I had written myself called 'Belshazzar'. The
response to my songs that night made me feel a door had opened…"
The song can be found on the "Original Sun Sound Of Johnny Cash" (1965).
Big Boss Man (Luther Dixon and Al Smith)
Written by Luther Dixon and Al Smith in 1960, Jimmy Reed took this popular blues to
Number Thirteen on the R&B Chart in 1961. Bob Dylan performed this song on August
6, 2003 when he sat in with the Grateful Dead during their set at the Germain Theater in
Columbus, Ohio.
Big River (Johnny Cash)
This is another Johnny Cash composition recorded by Dylan in 1967 with the Hawks in the
basement of Big Pink. Two takes exist from this session. The first take is however only fifty
seconds in length. The second take, which runs for two minutes forty-two seconds, is halted
at Dylan's request (see Appendix 1:60 for further details). Dylan also recorded this song
on February 18, 1969 during one of the recording sessions for the "ashville Skyline"
album (see Appendix 1:61 for further information). Johnny Cash was present throughout
this session, and the songs, many of which come from Cash's repertoire, were all performed
as duets. This recording was never released but it does circulate among collectors.
Dylan performed 'Big River' as an encore on August 7,
1988 at the County Bowl in Santa Barbara, California.
The song appeared again on November 8, 1999 in
Baltimore, Maryland and on March 16, 2000 in
Santa Cruz, California. He performed the song
twice more when he sat in with the Grateful Dead
during their summer sets in Atlanta, Georgia and
Somerset, Wisconsin. Johnny Cash's recording
can be found on "Original Sun Sound Of Johnny
Cash" (1965).
Bob Dylan's bouncy performances from Santa Barbara,
CA (August 7, 1988) and Santa Cruz, CA (March 16, 2000)
can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 19882000".
Dylan's recording of this Joni Mitchell song appears on the Columbia-released album
"Dylan" (1973). This rather lacklustre rendition of Mitchell's song was clearly never
intended (by Dylan) for release (see Appendix 1:72 for further details).
Dylan's rendition is faithful to Mitchell's original until the final verse when he changes the
lyrics to:
Late last night I heard my screen-door slam,
A big yellow bulldozer took away the house and the land.
Don't it always go to show,
You'll never know what you got till it's gone?
They paved paradise, they put up a parking lot.
According to Mitchell, the lyric, "They paved paradise and put up a parking lot", came to
her after first seeing a stunning view of the Pacific Ocean from a Hawaii hotel window
which, when she went out onto the balcony was ruined by a huge and ugly concrete car park
below. The original was released on Mitchell's album "Ladies Of The Canyon" (1970).
Black Cross (Joseph S. Newman)
'Black Cross', aka 'Hezikiah Jones', was written in 1948 by Joseph S. Newman and
published as part of a collection of poems entitled "It Could Be Verse". The poem was
recorded by Richard "Lord" Buckley – who is often erroneously credited with writing the
piece – live at the Ivar Theatre, Los Angeles in 1959. It was originally released on his
album "Way Out Humor" (World Pacific, 1959), which was re-released as "Lord Buckley
In Concert" (Demon Verbals, 1985).
Bob Dylan was influenced greatly by the Lord and a copy of "The Best Of Lord Buckley"
can be seen on the mantelpiece on the front cover of Dylan's "Bringing It All Back Home"
album. Dylan performed the piece regularly in the early 1960s but only three recordings
are known to have survived. These renditions, which Dylan makes his own through his
inimitable talking blues style delivery, are available on the "Minnesota Hotel Tape"
(recorded in the Minneapolis home of Bonnie Beecher on December 22, 1961), the
Carnegie Chapter Hall tape (November 4, 1961), and the "Second Gaslight Tape" (recorded
in the Gaslight Café in October 1962). (See Appendix 1:14, 1:18 & 1:31 for further details).
Dylan wrote in his memoir "Chronicles Volume One": "…Buckley had a magical way of
speaking. Everybody, including me, was influenced by him in one way or another".
Black Jack Davey (Traditional)
Black Jack Davey come a-riden' on back,
A-whistlin' loud and merry,
Black Muddy River
Made the woods around him ring,
Charmed the heart of a lady.
Much covered under countless titles, including 'The Raggle Taggle Gipsies' and 'The
Gypsy Davy', this British ballad, written in about 1720, tells the tale of a rogue, often a
gypsy, who tries, successfully, to charm the daughter of a squire. When the squire returns
home and discovers what has happened he rides off in search of her. The final encounter
has the daughter refusing to return home, saying "What care I for your fine feather sheets".
In other versions the lady is married, and her lord comes home to find his lady "gone with
the Black Jack Davey". He saddles his fastest horse to follow her. He finds his lady and
bids her to return home, asking, "would you forsake your husband and child?", to which
she replies that she will not return, preferring the cold ground and the gypsy's company to
her lord's wealth and fine bed.
Dylan would have known this song from Woody Guthrie's early version ('Gypsy Davy')
released on the album "Woody Guthrie, The Early Years" (Tradition FS-204) and his early
1960s performances of the song are almost certainly borrowed from Guthrie. However,
between first hearing the song and its recording by Dylan in 1992, there is no doubting that
he had come across and collected a number of other versions of the song, including Mike
Seeger's 1988 adaptation released on the album "Fresh Oldtime String Band". Dylan's
recording follows this version closely.
Dylan probably borrowed his 'Boots Of Spanish Leather' theme from the song 'Gypsy
Davy' and the same gypsy wreaks havoc with a blowtorch in Dylan's 'Tombstone Blues',
which suggests that even during Dylan's 1960s drug fuelled stream of consciousness
explosion of words he was still occasionally drawing on traditional motifs.
Bob Dylan's recorded version appears on his 1992 album "Good As I Been To You" (see
Appendix 1:76 for further details). Dylan performed the song regularly in concert during
1993. For Dylan's 1961 performance of 'Gypsy Davy', see Appendix 1:6. Also see entry
for 'Gypsy Davy'.
Black Muddy River (Robert Hunter / Jerry Garcia)
Written for the Grateful Dead by lyricist Robert Hunter with help from the late Jerry Garcia,
'Black Muddy River' was performed by Dylan at three of his 1992 shows. The song made
its first appearance in Melbourne, Australia on April 6, 1992. It popped up twice more on
April 30 (Eugene, USA) and May 17 (Los Angeles, USA).
It would be an understatement to say Dylan's Melbourne performance was loose. Apart
from the refrain, the lyrics – which are a little difficult to decipher – bore little resemblance
to the original Hunter composition. This off-the-wall rendition is, nevertheless, a really
fascinating performance. Bob Dylan's rendition from Melbourne (April 6, 1992) can be
found on the bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers Collection 1988-2000".
Blessed Be The ame
Blessed Be The ame (Unknown)
Dylan performed a song entitled 'Blessed Is The ame' during his gospel shows of late
1979 and early 1980s. A total of forty-three performances exist. The song is often listed as
"traditional" or as being composed by William H. Clark, Ralph E. Hudson and William J.
Kirkpatrick. However, the song performed by Dylan at these concerts does not correspond
with the Clark, Hudson, Kirkpatrick hymn or any traditional offering that I have come
across. Nor for that matter, does it bear any resemblance to the Mississippi John Hurt
recording from 1929 of that name, which is often credited as being Dylan's source.
This gospel number may therefore be a Dylan original. It was certainly copyrighted by
Bob Dylan's music publishing company, Special Rider Music, on November 13, 1979.
Blood In My Eyes (Lonnie Chatmon)
Dylan released this song on his 1993 album "World Gone Wrong" (see Appendix 1:77 for
further details). In the booklet notes to the CD, Dylan informs us that the song was "done
by the Mississippi Sheiks, a little known de facto group whom in their former glory must've
been something to behold".
The Mississippi Sheiks were a popular guitar and fiddle group of the 1930s and, although
various line-ups existed, they consisted mainly of the Chatmon family who came from
Bolton, Mississippi and were well known throughout the Mississippi Delta. The combo
took their name from the Rudolph Valentino movie "The Sheik" and the group's name is
actually pronounced Mississippi "Shakes". Dylan performed 'Blood In My Eyes' during the
first sets of his November 16 and 17, 1993 Supper Club shows. These performances
circulate among collectors.
Blue Bonnet Girl (Glenn Spencer)
This song, originally recorded by Roy Rogers
and the Sons of the Pioneers, was performed
beautifully by Dylan in 2000 at the IU
Auditorium in Bloomington, Indiana. The
song, originally written by Glen Spencer for
the Pioneers (of whom his brother Tim was a
member), is currently available on their album
"Tumbling Tumbleweeds" (1997). The
Bluebonnet is the State flower of Texas (a State
closely associated with Sons of the Pioneers),
but it is also the name of the traditional Scottish
Tam o'Shanter hat. Due to the lack of chemical
dyes, the original Tam o'Shanter was made
only in blue.
Although not listed on the sleeve or in the booklet, the Indiana University performance
(November 1, 2000) can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine ever Ending Tour Covers
Collection 1988-2000". It appears as track twenty-one on disc eight. (To make matters
even more confusing, 'Blue Bonnet Girl' is erroneously listed as appearing on disc six
(track eighteen). This performance, also supposedly from Indiana, is listed as being from
January 11, 2000, which is clearly not possible because Dylan was not touring at this time).
Blue Monday (Bartholomew)
'Blue Monday' was written by Dave Bartholomew in 1954. The song was originally
released that same year by Smiley Lewis (Imperial 5268). It was popularized in 1956 by
Fats Domino (Imperial 5417).
Bob Dylan played 'Blue Monday' as a one-off performance at the Brixton Academy,
London, England on November 23, 2005. He also played Smiley Lewis' 1954 original
recording of the song on show three of Season Two of his
"Theme Time Radio Hour" programme. The theme of
this show was "Days of the Week".
Dylan's performance of 'Blue Monday', which
came in the midst of an amazing five-night
residency in Brixton, was quite special. During
this set of shows he gave his audience covers of
'Rumble', 'London Calling' and 'Waiting For
You'. His performance of 'Blue Monday', which
stayed surprisingly faithful to the Fats' original, was
a big tribute to the big man who had recently lost his
home and almost his life in Hurricane Katrina.
Blue Moon (Richard Rodgers / Lorenz Hart)
'Blue Moon' was first captured on tape by Bobby Zimmerman's (Dylan) teenage friend,
John Bucklen. The six-song tape, extracts of which were featured in the BBC television
documentary "Highway 61 Revisited" (see Appendix 1:2), contains songs and dialogue
between Zimmerman and Bucklen about the music which they are playing. This
performance can be found on the bootleg CD "I Was So Much Younger Then".
'Blue Moon' was released by Dylan on the "Self Portrait" album (1970). The song was
also worked up during an informal jam session, with Tom Petty, Benmont Tench and Stevie
Nicks, which took place in the Park Royal Hotel, Wellington, New Zealand on February
Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart were under contract to MGM when they were
commissioned to write a song for "Hollywood Party". The song was not recorded and
MGM Song #225 'Prayer (Oh Lord, Make Me a Movie Star)' was registered for copyright
as an unpublished work on July 10, 1933.
The tune was given new lyrics by Hart and was to be used as the title song of the MGM
film "Manhattan Melodrama" (1934). However, the song, now entitled 'It's Just That Kind
Of Play', was cut from the film before its release. MGM then asked for another number for
the film and Rodgers, who was still taken with the melody, asked Hart to write a third lyric
and the song became 'The Bad In Every Man'. A fourth set of lyrics came about when
Jack Robbins, head of the MGM's publishing company, asked Hart if he would write a
more commercial set of lyrics. The result was 'Blue Moon'.
The song has been covered many times and the list of artists who have recorded it reads
like a who's who of the era. Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Frankie Laine, Tony Bennett and
Mel Tormé all released the song, although the Mel Tormé version was the only one to make
it onto the Billboard Chart.
Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie released the best known Jazz covers
and of course Elvis Presley covered the song as only Elvis could. The song's biggest
success arrived in 1961 when the Marcels' version (Pye 7N 25073), reached the top spot
on the US Chart. Legendary DJ, Murray The K. promoted the record as an "exclusive"
and reportedly played the song twenty-six times during his four-hour radio show. The
record went on to sell a million copies.
(See Appendix 1:2 & 1:64 for further details).
Blue Moon Of Kentucky (Bill Monroe)
Dylan performed this song during his 1999 joint US tour with Paul Simon. The song was
performed twenty-one times, the first being at Fillmore Auditorium, Denver, Colorado
(June 5, 1999), and the last to date being at the Blockbuster Pavilion, Charlotte, North
Carolina (September 5, 1999). All performances are shared vocals with Paul Simon.
Bob Dylan played Bill Monroe's 1947 recording of 'Blue
Moon Of Kentucky' on show thirty-two of his "Theme
Time Radio Hour" programme.
Kentucky-born William "Bill" Smith Monroe
wrote 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky' in 1946 but did
not record the song himself for several years. The
song has undergone many adaptations since its
original release. A young Elvis Presley chose to
perform 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky' when he
auditioned for the Grand Ole Opry in 1954 and his
"irreverent" supercharged version was released on
the B-side of his debut single, 'That's All Right Mama'
(July 1954). At Monroe's urging, Ralph and Carter Stanley recorded a country cover of the
song in 1954, shortly after Elvis Presley's single was released. Presley later apologized to
Monroe for changing his arrangement, which Monroe had written and recorded in 3/4
waltz time. In 1989, the General Assembly chose 'Blue Moon Of Kentucky' as the official
bluegrass song of the State of Kentucky.
Blue Suede Shoes (Carl Perkins)
Bob Dylan performed this Carl Perkins classic during a "double header" tour of the USA
with Van Morrison. The song was played as a duet with Morrison, during Morrison's set,
and the pair were backed by Van Morrison's tour band. Dylan's contribution is, however,
minimal. There were two performances: January 21, 1998, in Madison Square Garden,
New York, and January 24, at the Fleet Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Dylan's
performance from New York (January 21, 1998) can be found on the bootleg CD "Genuine
In late 1955, a desperately poor Carl Perkins wrote the song 'Blue Suede Shoes',
supposedly after overhearing a boy wearing blue suedes caution his date not to step on
them. Bill Haley's song 'Watcha Gonna Do', which begins with the same opening phrase
and has a very similar melody and arrangement to Perkins' song, was a probable influence.
The record was a massive success for Perkins, reaching Number One on the US Country
Music Chart, Number Two on the Pop Chart and Number Three on the R&B Chart and was
the first Sun record to sell a million copies. Ironically, although Elvis Presley's cover only
made it to Number Twenty on the Pop Chart, it's his version that most people now
remember best.
Bob Dylan kicked off show forty-two of Season One of his "Theme Time Radio Hour"
programme with one of the most famous pairs of shoes in rock'n'roll– Carl Perkins'
original 1956 recording of 'Blue Suede Shoes'. The theme of this show was, you guessed
it, "Shoes".
Blue Yodel o. 1 (T for Texas) (Jimmie Rodgers)
Dylan recorded this song on February 18, 1969 during one of the recording sessions for the
"ashville Skyline" album (see Appendix 1:61 for further information). Johnny Cash was
present throughout this session and the songs, many of which come from Cash's repertoire,
are all performed as duets. This recording was not released but it does circulate among
collectors.
As stated in my introduction to this book, songs used to warm up the band or general studio
doodles are not included in this encyclopaedia. However, it seems quite evident that most
of the songs at this session were being considered for release, perhaps not as part of
"ashville Skyline", but as some future product. A feasibility study, but in studio time!
Blue Yodel o. 1 (T for Texas)
Bob Dylan played Bob Downen's recording of 'Blue Yodel o. 1' on show forty-four on
his "Theme Time Radio Hour" programme.
'Blue Yodel o. 1 (T for Texas)' was a national phenomenon in the United States. The song
was a Jimmie Rodgers original composition which drew heavily on traditional blues while
showcasing Rodgers' distinctive guitar style and the bonechilling yodel that would become his trademark.
Rodgers' lyrics, which portrayed hard times, both
with work and women, were to become recurring
themes in no less than thirteen 'Blue Yodel'
songs.
Dylan first heard Jimmie Rodgers as a teenager
at home in Hibbing, Minnesota. He regularly
played Rodgers' old 78s when he visited his
then girlfriend, Echo Star Helstrom. Helstrom's
father owned a large record collection that
contained a fair amount of Rodgers' material. "I
used to sit there mesmerised", Dylan wrote in his
book "Chronicles Volume One".
Warmly referred to by many as the "Father of Country Music", Jimmie Rodgers was the
first figure to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. The youngest of three
sons, Jimmie Rodgers was born on September 8, 1897 in Meridian, Mississippi.
Rodgers' love for entertaining began at a young age and the allure of the road was soon
irresistible to him. By the age of thirteen, he had embarked on travelling shows, only to be
brought home by his father who found him his first job working on the railroad as a
waterboy, which was where he learned about the blues from black workers on his crew.
At the age of twenty-four, he contracted tuberculosis and was forced to quit his job.
Ironically, his illness gave him the chance to get back to his first love, music. In a career
that lasted just six years, Rodgers' recorded one hundred and eleven sides for the Victor
label. Among the most important of these recordings were his series of 'Blue Yodels', in
which he drew from Appalachian ballads, rural blues, black spirituals, and white popular
Rodgers made his final recordings, which included his last single 'Fifteen Years Ago
Today', on May 24, 1933. Jimmie Rodgers died two days later from tuberculosis. He was
thirty-five years old.
In 1997, Bob Dylan released a tribute album to Jimmie Rodgers. The album, "The Songs
Of Jimmie Rodgers: A Tribute", was the first release on Dylan's own record label, Egyptian
Records. In the liner notes to the album Dylan wrote: "Jimmie Rodgers of course is one of
the guiding lights of the 20th century whose way with song has always been an inspiration
Blue Yodel o. 5
to those of us who have followed the path. … he was a performer of force without
precedent with a sound as mystical as it was dynamic. His voice gives hope to the
vanquished and humility to the mighty".
Blue Yodel o. 5 (Jimmie Rodgers)
Dylan recorded this song on February 18, 1969 during one

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