Bob Dylan

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by Andy Gill


  For most fans, however, the truly revealing lines came in the second middle-eight section, where Dylan claimed he wasn’t “runnin’ any race”—as clear an admission as any that he had ceased to be concerned about the things which used to exercise his imagination, and was now settled into a simpler lifestyle. As if in corroboration, the tricky syntactical gift which had once served to machine-gun elaborate, evocative phrases into cramped spaces in songs like ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ was now being used simply to list pie-fillings: “Blueberry, apple, cherry, pumpkin and plum.” To many, this seemed a poor exchange—particularly since, at the end of the song, we are none the wiser as to Dylan’s preferred flavors.

  TONIGHT I’LL BE STAYING HERE WITH YOU

  Another of Dylan’s personal favorites from the album, ‘Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You’ has a grace and apparent sincerity which is largely denied to the rest of Nashville Skyline. It is one of the few tracks on the album on which he sounds completely at ease with the country-music mode, and where it doesn’t sound like he’s merely running through genre exercises or pastiches.

  Riding a groove whose rolling piano and flowing pedal steel guitar were punctuated by some terse country picking (probably by Charlie Daniels), Dylan’s lyric found him—after years of songs in which trains offered the enticing prospect of freedom or a ticket to the future—turning his back on departure and deliberately missing his train in order to stay with his beloved. For Dylan, such a denial of his instinctive wanderlust is surely the greatest possible tribute that he can pay to the woman whose love keeps him here.

  In the penultimate verse, a random act of kindness—offering his seat if there’s “a poor boy on the street” who might want it—drew an analogy with Dylan’s own situation. After almost a decade as the involuntary spokesman for a generation, he has decided he doesn’t want to travel that line any more, and if there’s any young singer who wants to take up that mantle, well, they are more than welcome to all the hassle that goes with it.

  A succession of putative “new Dylans” appeared over the next few years, the best of whom—Loudon Wainwright, Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen—eventually developed personalities of their own. But as the scene which he had revolutionized several times over in the Sixties continued, through the rise of country-rock, to respond to his pioneering work, Dylan remained an elusive, enigmatic figure, perennially out of step with changing musical fashions, a soul alone.

  Dylan would go on to record worse albums than Nashville Skyline, and a handful which could rank alongside the best of his Sixties work, but he would never again define the zeitgeist the way he did in that decade. Nor, for that matter, would anybody else.

  BOB DYLAN 1960S DISCOGRAPHY

  All compositions by Bob Dylan, except where noted.

  ALBUMS

  BOB DYLAN

  RECORDED: NOVEMBER 1961

  RELEASED: MARCH 1962

  You’re No Good (Jesse Fuller)/Talkin’ New York/In My Time Of Dyin’ (trad. arr. Dylan)/Man Of Constant Sorrow (trad. arr. Dylan)/Fixin’ To Die (Bukka White)/Pretty Peggy-O (trad. arr. Dylan)/Highway 51 (Curtis Jones)/Gospel Plow (trad. arr. Dylan)/Baby, Let Me Follow You Down (Rev. Gary Davis)/House Of The Risin’ Sun (trad. arr. Van Ronk)/Freight Train Blues(Roy Acuff)/Song To Woody/See That My Grave Is Kept Clean (Blind Lemon Jefferson)

  THE FREEWHEELIN’ BOB DYLAN

  RECORDED: JULY 1962–APRIL 1963

  RELEASED: MAY 1963

  Blowin’ In The Wind/Girl From The North Country/Masters Of War/Down The Highway/Bob Dylan’s Blues/A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall/Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right/Bob Dylan’s Dream/Oxford Town/Talking World War III Blues/Corrina, Corrina (trad. arr. Dylan)/Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance (Henry Thomas)/I Shall Be Free

  THE TIMES THEY ARE A-CHANGIN’

  RECORDED: AUGUST–OCTOBER 1963

  RELEASED: JANUARY 1964

  The Times They Are A-Changin’/Ballad Of Hollis Brown/With God On Our Side/One Too Many Mornings/North Country Blues/Only A Pawn In Their Game/Boots Of Spanish Leather/When The Ship Comes In/The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll/Restless Farewell

  ANOTHER SIDE OF BOB DYLAN

  RECORDED: JUNE 1964

  RELEASED: AUGUST 1964

  All I Really Want To Do/Black Crow Blues/Spanish Harlem Incident/ Chimes Of Freedom/ I Shall Be Free No.10/To Ramona/ Motorpsycho Nitemare/My Back Pages/I Don’t Believe You/ Ballad In Plain D/It Ain’t Me Babe

  BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME

  RECORDED: JANUARY 1965

  RELEASED: MARCH 1965

  Subterranean Homesick Blues/She Belongs To Me/Maggie’s Farm/Love Minus Zero—No Limit/Outlaw Blues/On The Road Again/Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream/Mr Tambourine Man/Gates Of Eden/ It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)/ It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue

  HIGHWAY 61 REVISITED

  RECORDED: JUNE–AUGUST 1965

  RELEASED: SEPTEMBER 1965

  Like A Rolling Stone/Tombstone Blues/It TakesA Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry/From A Buick 6/Ballad Of A Thin Man/Queen Jane Approximately/Highway 61 Revisited/Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues/Desolation Row

  BLONDE ON BLONDE

  RECORDED: JANUARY–MARCH 1966

  RELEASED: MAY 1966

  Rainy Day Women #12 & 35/Pledging My Time/Visions Of Johanna/One Of Us Must Know (Sooner Or Later)/I Want You/Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again/Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat/Just Like A Woman/Most Likely You Go Your Way And I’ll Go Mine/Temporary Like Achilles/Absolutely Sweet Marie/4th Time Around/Obviously 5 Believers/Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands

  THE BASEMENT TAPES

  RECORDED: JUNE–OCTOBER 1967

  RELEASED: JULY 1975

  Odds And Ends/Orange Juice Blues (Blues For Breakfast) (Richard Manuel)/Million Dollar Bash/Yazoo Street Scandal (Robbie Robertson)/ Goin’ To Acapulco/ Katie’s Been Gone (Robbie Robertson/Richard Manuel)/Lo And Behold!/Bessie Smith (Rick Danko/Robbie Robertson)/Clothes Line Saga/ Apple Suckling Tree/Please, Mrs. Henry/Tears Of Rage (Bob Dylan/Richard Manuel)/Too Much Of Nothing/Yea! Heavy And A Bottle Of Bread/Ain’t No More Cane (trad. arr. the Band)/Crash On The Levee (Down In The Flood)/Ruben Remus (Robbie Robertson/Richard Manuel)/Tiny Montgomery/You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere/Don’t Ya Tell Henry/Nothing Was Delivered/Open The Door, Homer/Long Distance Operator/This Wheel’s On Fire (Bob Dylan/Rick Danko)

  JOHN WESLEY HARDING

  RECORDED: OCTOBER–NOVEMBER 1967

  RELEASED: JANUARY 1968

  John Wesley Harding/As I Went Out One Morning/I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine/All Along The Watchtower/The Ballad Of Frankie Lee And Judas Priest/Drifter’s Escape/Dear Landlord/I Am A Lonesome Hobo/I Pity The Poor Immigrant/The Wicked Messenger/ Down Along The Cove/I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight

  NASHVILLE SKYLINE

  RECORDED: FEBRUARY 1969;

  RELEASED: MAY 1969

  Girl From The North Country/ Nashville Skyline Rag/To Be Alone With You/I Threw It All Away/Peggy Day/Lay Lady Lay/One More Night/Tell Me That It Isn’t True/Country Pie/Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You

  SINGLES

  Mixed Up Confusion/Corrina, Corrina (March 1962)

  The Times They Are A-Changin’/Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance (March 1965)

  Subterranean Homesick Blues/She Belongs To Me (April 1965)

  Maggie’s Farm/On The Road Again (June 1965)

  Like A Rolling Stone/Gates Of Eden (August 1965)

  Positively 4th Street/From A Buick 6 (October 1965)

  Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?/Highway 61 Revisited (January 1966)

  One Of Us Must Know (Sooner Or Later)/Queen Jane Approximately (April 1966)

  Rainy Day Women #12 & 35/Pledging My Time (April 1966)

  I Want You/Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues (live) (July 1966)

  Just Like A Woman/Obviously 5 Believers (September 1966)

  Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat/Most Likely You Go Your Way And I’ll Go Mine (May 1967)

  If You Gotta Go, Go Now/To Ramona (July 1967
)

  I Threw It All Away/Drifter’s Escape (May 1969)

  Lay Lady Lay/Peggy Day (August 1969)

  Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You/Country Pie (December 1969)

  INDEX

  Italic page references refer to photographs.

  4th Time Around 150

  Absolutely Sweet Marie 148-9

  All Along The Watchtower 185, 189

  All I Really Want To Do 73-6

  Another Side of Bob Dylan 68-85

  Apple Suckling Tree 165-6

  As I Went Out One Morning 182

  Baez, Joan 5, 8, 26, 39, 47-9, 58, 64, 71, 81, 83, 88, 92-3, 95-6, 98, 106, 110, 115, 121-2, 139, 141, 152, 156

  The Ballad of Frankie Lee And Judas Priest 184, 187

  Ballad of Hollis Brown 55-6

  Ballad In Plain D 51, 58, 71, 82-4

  Ballad Of A Thin Man 120-21, 132, 189

  The Band 82, 128-9, 131, 134, 137-8, 150, 158, 160, 164-5, 168, 175, 178-80, 185

  The Basement Tapes 154-175

  The Beatles 71, 88, 110, 113, 150, 156, 179

  Biograph 27, 64, 107, 118, 201-2

  Black Crow Blues 74

  Blonde on Blonde 130-53

  Bloomfield, Mike 88, 116-23

  Blowin’ In The Wind 26-30

  Bob Dylan 6-19

  Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream 100-1

  Bob Dylan’s Blues 34-5

  Bob Dylan’s Dream 40

  Boots Of Spanish Leather 62-3

  Bringing It All Back Home 86-107

  Broadside 24, 29, 33, 43, 45, 50, 197

  Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window? 128-9

  Chimes Of Freedom 76-7

  Clothes Line Saga 164

  Corrina, Corrina 27, 40, 44

  Country Pie 203

  Crash On The Levee 169

  Danko, Rick 129, 168-9, 174

  Dear Landlord 188-89

  Desolation Row 89

  Don’t Look Back 98, 106

  Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right 38-9

  Don’t Ya Tell Henry 170-71

  Down Along The Cove 192

  Down The Highway 33-4

  Drake, Pete 178, 192, 196, 200

  Drifter’s Escape 188

  Eat The Document 177

  Elliott, Ramblin’ Jack 9, 19-20, 72, 77, 101

  The Freewheelin’

  Bob Dylan 20-45 From A Buick 6 120

  Gates of Eden103-5

  Ginsberg, Allen 90, 92, 95, 99, 111, 126, 139

  Girl From the North Country 31-2, 63

  Goin’ To Acapulco 162

  Gregg, Bobby 91, 95, 120, 129, 140

  Griffin, Paul 91, 116-17, 124, 129, 141

  Grossman, Albert 22, 25, 27, 31, 48-9, 66, 70, 91, 95, 98, 112, 130, 135, 146, 156, 179, 185, 187-89

  Guthrie, Woody 11, 13-19, 28, 34, 49, 55, 66, 70, 79, 90, 92, 117, 177, 197-8

  Hammond, John 8-13, 21, 23, 25, 27, 43, 52, 81, 197

  A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall 35-6

  The Hawks 89, 131-4, 155, 157-8, 166, 172

  Helm, Levon 131-2, 166, 171-2

  Hendrix, Jimi 179, 186-7

  Hester, Carolyn 8-10, 186-7

  Hibbing 12, 31, 41, 60, 66, 107

  Highway 61 Revisited 108-129

  Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance 45

  House Of The Rising Sun 12, 15, 30, 88, 127

  I Am A Lonesome Hobo 190

  I Don’t Believe You 81

  I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine 184

  I Pity The Poor Immigrant 190

  I Shall Be Free 45

  I Shall Be Free No. 10 77

  I Threw It All Away 199

  I Want You 142

  I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight 193

  Isle Of Wight Festival 197, 201

  It Ain’t Me Babe 85, 95

  It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry 119

  It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue 107-8

  It’s Alright, Ma 106-7

  John Wesley Harding 176-93

  Jones, Brian 121, 142

  Just Like A Woman 146-7, 153

  Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues 124

  Kapralik, David 10-13, 20, 25

  Kennedy, President John F. 5, 32-7, 42, 46-7, 51, 55, 61, 69, 71, 88

  Kooper, Al 89, 111, 113, 116-17, 119-126, 129, 131-37, 140-1, 145, 148, 150, 153

  Kramer, Daniel 27, 88, 91-2, 97

  Lay Lady Lay 201

  Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat 144-5

  Like A Rolling Stone 115-118

  Lo And Behold! 162-3

  The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll 64-5

  Long Distance Operator 174-5

  Love Minus Zero/No Limit 98

  Lowndes, Sara 98-99, 109, 115, 120, 140, 152-53, 178, 192-94, 200

  McCoy, Charlie 126, 132-3, 137, 140, 148, 150-3, 178, 196

  Madhouse on Castle Street 30-2, 87

  Maggie’s Farm 98-9

  Manuel, Richard 161, 166-9, 172-5

  Masters Of War 32-3

  Million Dollar Bash 161-2

  Mixed up Confusion 26-7

  Monterey Folk Festival 26, 47

  Most Likely You Go Your Way And I’ll Go Mine 148

  Motorpsycho Nitemare 79

  Mr Tambourine Man 70, 72, 74, 77, 83, 85, 90-91, 101-3

  My Back Pages 80

  Nashville Skyline 194-204

  Nashville Skyline Rag 198

  Neuwirth, Bob 71, 95, 97, 109-111, 113, 115, 121, 127

  Newport Folk Festival 8, 9, 39, 48, 58, 97-8, 102, 111, 122

  North Country Blues 59

  Nothing Was Delivered 173

  Obviously 5 Believers 150-1

  Ochs, Phil 62, 65, 81, 113, 127, 128, 136

  Odds And Ends 160-1

  On The Road Again 100

  One More Night 202-3

  One Of Us Must Know (Sooner Or Later) 140-1

  One Too Many Mornings 58-9

  Only A Pawn In Their Game 61-2

  Open The Door, Homer 173-4

  Outlaw Blues 99-100

  Oxford Town 21, 41-3

  Peggy Day 200-1

  Peter, Paul & Mary 13, 25, 30, 38, 92. 157, 160

  Please, Mrs. Henry 166-7

  Pledging My Time 138

  Positively 4th Street 126-9

  Queen Jane Approximately 122

  Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 135-8

  Restless Farewell 65-6

  Robertson, Robbie 129, 131-3, 137-8, 140-1, 145, 151, 156-61, 165-6, 170, 172-4, 177-8

  Rotolo, Suze 111, 12, 20, 31, 33, 38, 58, 62, 74, 81-3, 85

  Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands 151-2

  Seeger, Pete 8, 17, 18, 23, 29-30, 54, 92, 97-8, 111, 117

  She Belongs To Me 95-6

  Song to Woody 15–16

  Spanish Harlem Incident 76

  Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again 143-4

  Subterranean Homesick Blues 92-3

  Talkin’ New York 13

  Talkin’ World War III Blues 43

  Tears Of Rage 167-8

  Tell Me That It Isn’t True 203

  Temporary Like Achilles 148-9

  The Times They Are A-Changin’ 53-5

  The Times They Are A Changin’ 46-67

  Tiny Montgomery 170

  To Be Alone With You 199-200

  To Ramona 79-80

  Tombstone Blues 117-8

  Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You 204

  Too Much Of Nothing 169-70

  Van Ronk, Dave 7, 9, 12, 14-15, 31, 35, 38-9, 41, 59, 81, 89, 127, 137

  Visions Of Johanna 138-9

  This Wheel’s On Fire 175

  When The Ship Comes In 63-4

  The Wicked Messenger 192

  Wilson, Tom 25, 53, 73, 78, 80, 89, 91, 101, 111, 116-17

  With God On Our Side 56-7

  Yea! Heavy And A Bottle Of Bread 169

  You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere 171

  Zimmerman, Abe an Beatty 60

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