It was after hearing the Clancy Brothers sing “Brennan on the Moor” that Dylan had the idea for “Rambling, Gambling Willie”: “I’d never heard those kind of songs before… all the legendary people they used to sing about—Brennan on the Moor or Roddy Macaulay,” Dylan told film director Derek Bailey in 1984. “I would think of Brennan on the Moor the same way as I would think of Jesse James or something. You know, I wrote some of my own songs to some of the melodies that I heard them do…”25 Liam Clancy clearly remembers the day when Dylan stopped him to play what he had just written based on “Brennan on the Moor”: “I remember meeting him one morning on the street… Right there in the street, he starts singing this song that went on for about nine or ten verses. I remember saying to him, ‘You got a fantastic talent, a fantastic imagery, if you could squeeze it all in together and make the songs a bit shorter.’ And I said, ‘For God’s sake, what is a seventeen-year-old Jewish kid from the Midwest trying to sound like a seventy-year-old black man from the South?’”26
In January 1962 Bob Dylan recorded a demo of “Rambling, Gambling Willie” for Duchess Music Corporation, an affiliate of Leeds Music. Then, three months later, he planned a new version for his second album under the artistic direction of John Hammond. The song was recorded during the first session of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. “Rambling, Gambling Willie” required four takes. The interpretation is good, particularly the harmonica parts, and we can see that he thought he had a strong addition to his new album. The song primarily uses two chords; the melody is close to the Clancy Brothers’ version, but Bob has enough talent to make it a work of his own. Even if “Rambling, Gambling Willie” is on the first pressing of Freewheelin’, it is replaced on the official album by “Bob Dylan’s Dream.”
Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues
Bob Dylan / 3:45
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: April 25, 1962 / Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991 (CD 1) / Release Date: March 26, 1991
FOR DYLANOLOGISTS
Surprised by Bob Dylan’s responsiveness and his potential, Noel Stookey told Albert Grossman that Dylan was a songwriter to discover. A few months later, Grossman became his manager.
Bob Dylan wrote “Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues” on June 20, 1961. The day before, Noel Stookey, a regular at the Gaslight Cafe, read an amazing article in the New York Herald Tribune describing a Father’s Day trip on a picnic excursion boat called the Hudson Belle, chartered to sail up the Hudson River to Bear Mountain. The excursion had ended in panic. The overcrowded boat could not carry the weight of the people, due to the selling of hundreds of counterfeit tickets, and began to sink. Stookey, who became the future “Paul” of the trio Peter, Paul and Mary, showed the article to Dylan. The next day Dylan turned up at Gaslight “with a nine-verse satire,” to Stookey’s surprise.25 “Dylan was not at that point known as a songwriter, which made the composition all the more surprising.”27 Terri Thal, first wife of folksinger Dave Van Ronk, recalls, “[Bob] was beginning to think about and talk about people who were being trod upon. Not in any class way, but just that he hated people who were taking people… that’s what came through in ‘Talkin’ Bear Mountain.’”2
This is a talking blues song, and a tribute to the master of the style, Woody Guthrie. Dylan, who regularly used the repertoire of his mentor for inspiration, innovates in this tune by writing a topical song, with its roots in the folk tradition but its content based on a current event.
On April 25, 1962, Bob Dylan recorded “Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues” in a country-and-western style. It was composed of nine couplets and three chords, and he hoped that the song would be one of the strongest titles on his new LP. But of the nine songs worked that day, none was used for the official album. “Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues” probably lacked conviction; Dylan seemed to run out of steam during the interpretation. He, however, created another talking blues, “Talkin’ World War III Blues,” which appears on his second LP The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. “Talkin’ World War III Blues” has the same tone, the same chords, and virtually the same rhythm. Three takes of “Talkin’ Bear Mountain” were recorded. The third was chosen for The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991.
Sally Gal
Bob Dylan / 2:37
Musicians: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica; William E. Lee (?): bass / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: April 24, 1962 Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volume 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack (CD 1) / Release Date: August 30, 2005
FOR DYLANOLOGISTS
Dylan recorded a first version of “Sally Gal” on December 22, 1961, on the Minnesota Hotel Tape.
Dylan’s “Sally Gal” was inspired by Woody Guthrie’s “Sally Don’t You Grieve.” Bob denies any plagiarism, although the resemblance seems obvious. The young singer seemed to like this song. He performed it willingly in the clubs of Greenwich Village, mostly to capture the public’s attention by the playful rhythm that emerges from the tonic exchange between guitar and harmonica.
Three takes of “Sally Gal” were recorded during the first session of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, April 24, 1962, and two more the next day. Two exceptions make this song different from the others. First, it is the only time that Dylan begins a song with a long chorus on harmonica. Second, it is one of the few songs where he is accompanied only by a bass player, probably William E. Lee. Despite these peculiarities, “Sally Gal” is not outstanding and was excluded from the final track listing. The Bootleg Series Volume 7 includes the first take recorded on April 24.
Quit Your Low Down Ways
Bob Dylan / 2:40
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: July 9, 1962 Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991 (CD 1) / Release Date: March 26, 1991
“Quit Your Low Down Ways” reflects the strong influence of the pioneers of the Delta blues and country music on the young songwriter from the Midwest. The song draws its verses from various sources. The primary source of inspiration is “Milk Cow Blues,” recorded by Sleepy John Estes in 1930 and then by Kokomo Arnold four years later. The lines from the refrain “Well, if you can’t quit your sinnin’ / Please quit your low down ways” are taken directly from the Kokomo Arnold version. And the refrain “You’re gonna need my help someday” is lifted from others, both text and melody. Even the title of the song comes from “Baby, Quit Your Low Down Ways,” recorded by Blind Boy Fuller in 1939. Bob knew the blues right down to his fingertips.
With riffs played in open tuning and sung in a gravelly voice, this version would not have been out of place on his debut album. “Quit Your Low Down Ways” was recorded in just one take on July 9, but was not selected for Bob Dylan’s second opus. Peter, Paul and Mary, however, recorded a very successful version of it for their third 1963 LP In the Wind, and the Hollies distinguished themselves with an excellent rendition in 1969 (Hollies Sing Dylan).
MISSED RENDEZVOUS
Blind Boy Fuller, a pioneer of the Piedmont blues (blues from the East Coast) almost crossed paths with John Hammond. In December 1938, Fuller was unable to participate in the concert “From Spirituals to Swing” organized by Hammond at Carnegie Hall in New York City. The concert was held to introduce white audiences to a vast range of American black music, which was then entirely unknown. He died three years later. Ironically, his last album was released by Columbia after his death.
Walls Of Red Wing
Bob Dylan / 5:05
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, Ne
w York: April 24, 1963 / Producer: Tom Wilson / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991 (CD 1) / Release Date: March 26, 1991
Was the inspiration for this song the Minnesota Correctional Facility, named Red Wing, in Dylan’s native state? Possibly. The tune is about inmates between twelve and seventeen years old. “Oh, the age of the inmates / I remember quite freely: / No younger than twelve / No older ’n seventeen.” For the purpose of the song, Dylan exaggerated his account of these young people locked up like criminals in what looked like a grim gothic fortress with cast-iron doors and walls topped with barbed wire.
Dylan started the recording sessions of his second album about three months after returning from England with renewed inspiration. He had become familiar with old British and Irish ballads by singers such as Martin Carthy and Nigel Davenport. The source of the melody for “Walls of Red Wing” is an old Scottish ballad, “The Road and the Miles to Dundee.” Joan Baez recorded Dylan’s song for her album Any Day Now (1968), as did Ramblin’ Jack Elliott for Friends of Mine (1998). “Walls of Red Wing” was performed for the first time at Town Hall in New York City on April 12, 1963.
Dylan cannot find his voice on “Walls of Red Wing”; under the aegis of his new producer, he lacks conviction, and his interpretation is unconvincing. Note that the chorus has a curious melodic resemblance to his future song “With God on Our Side” on his LP The Times They Are A-Changin’. He recorded the song on April 24 at the last recording session for his second album; it took three takes, the last being the best. This song was not selected for the album.
Baby, I’m In The Mood For You
Bob Dylan / 2:57
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: July 9, 1962 / Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: Biograph (CD 3) / Release Date: November 7, 1985
FOR DYLANOLOGISTS
“Blind Boy Grunt” was the pseudonym chosen by Bob Dylan for the recording of “Let Me Die in My Footsteps” (page 74) on the compilation Broadside Ballads, Vol. 1. Note that for this record, the lead vocal was sung by the folk singer Happy Traum, with Bob Dylan harmonizing on the chorus and providing guitar accompaniment.
This song sounds like Bob Dylan’s tribute to the bluesman Jesse Fuller, whose “You’re No Good” he had already covered on his first album, and whose “San Francisco Bay Blues” he had performed live. Dylan delivers a rather exalted interpretation of “Baby, I’m in the Mood for You.” Strumming his guitar, he only pauses in his vocal delivery to play an electric harmonica. He seemed to believe in this song when he recorded it on July 9 at the beginning of the session. However, of the four takes, including a false start, none of them was selected for the album The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. The third take remained in the Columbia studios archive until the exciting retrospective of Bob Dylan’s career, Biograph, in 1985.
Worried Blues
Traditional / Arrangement Bob Dylan / 2:39
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: July 9, 1962 / Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991 (CD 1) / Release Date: March 26, 1991
There are so many recordings of this song—from Leadbelly to Buddy Guy, Skip James, Lightnin’ Hopkins, and Frank Hutchison—it is difficult to know exactly which version Dylan used and adapted for “Worried Blues.” Nevertheless, the interpretation of this song shows the very significant progress he has made since recording his first album.
His finger-picking style is subtle and dynamic and, according to the British musicologist John Way, may owe something to the American blues and folk musician, singer, and songwriter Elizabeth Cotten. A similar finger-picking style is used for “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right,” which he more or less abandoned after July 9, 1964. Bob recorded two takes of “Worried Blues.” Neither was selected for his second Columbia LP, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. The second of the two takes came out in 1991 for The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3.
FOR DYLANOLOGISTS
In “Worried Blues,” Bob Dylan sings, “I’m going where the climate suits my clothes.” These lines appear almost exactly (“Going where the weather suits my clothes”) in “Everybody’s Talkin’” by Fred Neil in 1966, recorded three years later with great success by Harry Nilsson. Fred Neil was one of the first musicians to hire Bob Dylan for his debut (as harmonica player). As for “Everybody’s Talkin’,” the song was chosen for the soundtrack of Midnight Cowboy in 1969, for the simple reason that Dylan’s “Lay, Lady, Lay” was not finished in time. Coincidence?
Talkin’ Hava Negellah Blues
Bob Dylan / 0:52
Musician: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica / Recording Studio: Columbia Recording Studios / Studio A, New York: April 25, 1962 / Producer: John Hammond / Sound Engineers: George Knuerr and Pete Dauria / Set Box: The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3: Rare & Unreleased, 1961–1991 (CD 1) / Release Date: March 26, 1991
Bob Dylan seems to have included “Talkin’ Hava Negellah Blues” in his repertoire beginning in the fall of 1961, as the three-column review by Robert Shelton in the New York Times on September 29, 1961 (“20-Year-Old Singer Is Bright New Face at Gerde’s Club”) confirms. In his review, the music critic praised the performance of the young songwriter at Gerde’s Folk City the night before. “Like a vaudeville actor on the rural circuit, he offers a variety of droll musical monologues… ‘Talkin’ Hava Negellah’ burlesques the folk-music craze and the singer himself.”25
Apart from the title, the song has little in common with “Hava Nagila,” the traditional Jewish folk song. Dylan is having fun, and his “talking blues”—which is not, properly speaking, a talking blues at all—is a very nice diversion, but was excluded from his second opus. “Talkin’ Hava Negellah Blues” was the third song recorded on April 25, in just one take.
The Times
They Are
A-changin’
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
THE OUTTAKES
Seven Curses
Farewell
Bob Dylan’s New Orleans Rag
Walls Of Red Wing
Eternal Circle
Paths Of Victory
Hero Blues
Moonshiner
Only A Hobo
Percy’s Song
Key To The Highway
That’s All Right, Mama
Lay Down Your Weary Tune
Suze (The Cough Song)
DATE OF RELEASE
United States: January 13, 1964
on Columbia Records
(REFERENCE CL2105/CS8905)
The Times They Are A-Changin’,
A Work in Black Ink
Protest Poetry
Barely four months passed from the last recording session of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan to the first session of The Times They Are A-Changin’. On this album, which was the first one to be entirely produced by Tom Wilson, Dylan chose to record only original songs. The opening piece set a serious and prophetic tone. And contrary to his first two records, there was no comic relief that could lighten up the bleak atmosphere of the work. Surely, throughout the sessions, the songwriter’s inspiration was overflowing. Scribbling in black ink or anxiously typing on his typewriter, he carved out poems that right from the first lines shocked the mind and quickened the conscience. The title song was in itself a complete symbol. This hymn not only targeted baby boomers but listeners of all ages, from every class of socie
ty, and let them hear that it was up to them to create a new world on the ashes of the old. “Come gather ’round people, wherever you roam / And admit that the waters around you have grown,” he sang in the first verse. This call for a new world was also echoed in another key song of the work, “When the Ship Comes In,” which remains one of his most poetic anthems against the status quo.
Other songs were created as a response to injustice in American society (“Ballad of Hollis Brown,” “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll,” “Only a Pawn in their Game,” and “North Country Blues”), and were inspired by various incidents. Carried by the epic inspiration of biblical narratives, the aesthetics of the French symbolists, and the counterculture of the Beat generation writers, The Times They Are A-Changin’ was an album of protest poetry. “With God on Our Side” was another great example of this: Dylan questioned the history that was taught in school and brainwashed those who wanted to fight in the name of God. There were two more personal songs inspired by his recent breakup with Suze Rotolo (“One Too Many Mornings” and “Boots of Spanish Leather”) that stood out from the rest. At the end of the record there was a song that promised new horizons, “Restless Farewell.”
Although Dylan denied this later on, he recorded a work of protest songs in which he imposed his own worldview. That propelled him, much to his own chagrin, to the rank of a new oracle, a visionary.
Released on January 13, 1964, The Times They Are A-Changin’ reached twentieth place on the Billboard charts in 1964 and went gold by 1994. In the United Kingdom, it was number 4 in the 1965 ratings. Maybe Bob Dylan’s vision of the world was often dark, but this was because he was lucid when looking at the world. At the time when his third album appeared on the market, America and the whole world was still reeling from the assassination of John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963.
Bob Dylan All the Songs Page 10
