Bob Dylan: Never-Ending Covers (Cover By Cover)

In August/early September of 1989, Dylan takes 4 stabs at another of what I would consider the "crown jewels" of 20th century popular music - Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come".

"The Harder They Come"
NET Premiere - 8/19/89 in Springfield

One of Jimmy's version (there is an alternate version available from the "The Harder They Come" film soundtrack:


Besides being a favorite of mine, this song was also a favorite of Keith Richards and Jerry Garcia, both of whom covered it.

Keith: Keith Richards- Harder They Come »

Jerry: Jerry Garcia Band - The Harder They Come 1989 »

In Dylan's cover in Springfield, there is only a tinge of reggae. The backing bears some resemblance, oddly enough, to the '89 NET version of "Joey" (no link available, unfortunately).

Lastly, for anyone unfamiliar with Jimmy Cliff, let me recommend:

 

It's kinda funny. Usually, folks give songs a reggae spin (Dylan at the Budokan being the most relevant example, but of course also reggae artists in general!), but instead Bob manages to do almost the opposite. It still works though. I mean, it's a hell of a song, and it might take a bit of work to really screw it up anyway, but here they have no need to worry.

 

Yup - very true. Leave it to Bob to be a contrarian. I find Dylan's vocal on the Springfield version to be very powerful - he's fully committed, and yeah, it's just a great great song.

 

"More and More"
NET Premiere: 8/26/89 - Houston

Dylan has an interesting history with this country hit, written by Merle Kilgore and popularized by Webb Pierce. A Dylan performance of this song has been officially released, although in extremely limited quantity. A Dylan performance (with some assistance from Rick Von Schmidt) appears on the 1964 Copyright Extension Collection, released at the tail end of 2014.

Dylan performed the song twice on the NET. The first was in 1989 in Houston (no link available, unfortunately). In my review I referred to it as "the highlight of the night". Nine years later, Dylan and Van Morrison co-headlined 5 nights at "The Theater" at Madison Square Garden, alternating in the opening/closing slots. Van opened on 1-18-98, and Bob came out and joined him for "More and More" (the date on the YouTube clip below is incorrect). Watch the clip below if for no other reason than to see Dylan at his happiest. (Another show I was lucky enough to attend.)



Webb Pierce's version: Webb Pierce - More and more (Merle Kilgore, Webb Pierce) »

 

In late August/early September of 1989, Dylan went through a stretch of opening shows with instrumentals. Three of these are apparently the improvised handiwork of Dylan and/or his band ("B-Thang", "E-Thang" and "G-Thang" ... plus the version of "E-Thang" that doesn't quite sound like the others, which some have dubbed "A-Thang" and I boringly called "Instrumental"). I'm classifying these as originals, so I needn't (and don't want to) go into great depth about them.

Two of the instrumentals, however, are covers.

"El Paso"
NET Premiere - 8/29/89 - Las Cruces, New Mexico

Las Cruces is about 50 miles north of El Paso, so on this rare occasion the show opens AND closes with a short instrumental version of the Marty Robbins classic, further popularized by The Grateful Dead's many performances (as if it weren't already popular enough).



Grateful Dead - El Paso - 04/27/77 - Capitol Theatre (OFFICIAL) »

 

NET Premiere - 9/3/89 - Berkeley

After my first listen to the tape of this show way back when, I identified the instrumental opener as the Barry Mason song "A Man Without Love", popularized by Engelbert Humperdink (and I wasn't alone):

lonely is a man without love Engelbert Humperdinck »

But when the cue sheet for the show popped up, I was proven wrong.



The song in question - "L'Air De La Louisiane" is by the brilliant Jesse Winchester.

 

I can't bypass this opportunity to promote Jesse Winchester, particularly this song, which never fails to give me goosebumps.

 

It's a bit off topic (as a self-confessed shameless JW promoter, I doubt you'll mind), but this Jesse Winchester performance always kills me:

Sham-A-Ling-Dong-Ding - Jesse Winchester on Elvis Costello's "Spectacle" »

 

I almost picked that performance to use here, seeing as it rendered Elvis speechless. "Brand New Tennessee Waltz" just hits a special spot for me, particularly "I've a sadness too sad to be true".

 

That one's a doozy.

But when the tear rolls down Neko Case's cheek? Good lord.... EC's show was always great, but even if it wasn't, that single moment justified it existence.

 

Someone (hint, hint) could do a terrific thread on "Spectacle".

 

There is some fun material to draw upon (the full unaired set lists, for one thing) , but it seems I sometimes promise to start threads but never get around to it. Sometimes goaded on by you, as it turns out...

Also, aside from extras included on DVDs/blu-rays, I haven't actually heard those complete performances. But still. You've given me something to think about.

Now back to the NET...

 

Yes, the combination of Van and Dylan always seems to bring a smile or two to both their faces.

 

"When First Unto This Country"
NET Premiere - Norfolk, 11-7-89

Norfolk '89 has the distinction of being the first NET show for which a complete audience tape did not circulate (at least not as of 2000 when I wrote my review). Thankfully, the incomplete tape did manage to capture one of only two Dylan performances of "When First Unto This Country" (the other being in Budapest on 6-12-91). In Norfolk it was an electric performance, in Budapest it was acoustic.

This is a traditional that sounds Irish to my ears. I was content with that information in 2000, but with YouTube and a much deeper Internet in 2016, I've done some poking around over the past couple of days.

Like many a traditional, the oldest recorded version stems from a Lomax field recording, made by the Gant Family.



More information on the interesting story of The Gant Family: ACE - The Gant Family »

It appears that The New Lost City Ramblers (New Lost City Ramblers - When First Unto This Country ») and Joan Baez (When First Unto This Country A Stranger I Came ») both learned the song from the Lomax recording. Case solved, except ...

Dylan sings a variation of the lyrics that doesn't match The Gant Family version, or TNLCR's or Joan's ... or anyone else's that I could find.


When First Unto This Country
Trad.
As played by Bob Dylan June 12, 1991 (Budapest)
Tabbed by Eyolf Østrem

G D C G
When first unto this country a stranger I came
C D C G
I courted a fair maid, Nancy was her name
G D C G
I courted her for love, her love I didn't obtain
C D C G
Do you think I've any reason or right to complain


I rode to see my Nancy, I rode both day and night
I rode to see my Nancy, my own heart's true delight
I rode to see my Nancy, I rode both night and day
Till I spied a fine grey horse, belonged to captain Grey


But the sheriff's men they followed there, they overtaken me
Then they carted me away to the penitentiary
They beat me and they banged me, and they fed me on dry beans
'Til I wished to my own soul that I'd never been a thief.

They opened up the door and then they threw me in
They shaved off my hair and they cleared off my chin.
With my hands all in my pockets and my cap set on so bold
My coat of many colors Like Jacob's of old.

When first unto this country a stranger I came
I courted a fair maid, Nancy was her name

About a year after Dylan's Norfolk performance, Jerry Garcia added the song to his live repertoire. (When First Unto This Country - Jerry Garcia & David Grisman - Warfield Theater, SF 2-2-1991 set1-03 ») Once again, the lyrics don't match up with Dylan's performance. It's always possible Bob created his own variation, but my gut feeling is that Dylan came across a version of the song that escaped my search.

 

Another interesting bit:

Phil Ochs took "When First Unto This Country" and gave it a bit of a "With God on Our Side" spin:

 

a great thread...thank you

 

"Dark as a Dungeon"
NET Premiere - 11/8/89 - Durham, NC

Unless I've missed one, "Dark as a Dungeon" wraps up the covers for 1989. Written by Merle Travis, who also recorded it, and covered by Johnny Cash, among others. Dylan performed the song about a dozen times on the '75 Rolling Thunder tour in duet with Joan Baez. The Durham performance marks Dylan's first return to the song since "The Night of the Hurricane" at MSG in 1975.

Merle Travis: Merle Travis - Dark as a Dungeon (solo guitar, 1951) »

While Dylan may have been familiar with any number of performances, the '75 versions stick fairly closely to Joan's early performance (from 1958 when she was but 17!), so I would tend to give that one the nod as the influential version.



I'll take a little breather before we kick off 1990 with the monster that is Toad's Place. Hopefully some more folks can chime in with opinions or information regarding the covers of 1988 and 1989.

 

Can anyone imagine the covers that Dylan sang either alone or with "company" while relaxing on tour or` at home, off tour? The stuff documented in concert was likely only the tip of the iceberg.

 

While Ray is taking a breather, I wanted to re-visit the song "Pancho and Lefty", not Bob's performance but rather Willie and Merle's. So here are 7 reasons to love this performance by Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard of “Pancho and Lefty”.

-1- Check out the very cool guitar intro played by Merle at the beginning!
-2- Pay attention to Willie’s eyes!
-3- When Merle first starts singing “They only let him slip away, out of kindness, I suppose.” at 2:20, he pretty much sounds like The Voice Of God!
-4- Check out Willie’s guitar solo!
-5- I love it when Willie and Merle trade these lines.

Merle: Pancho needs your prayers, it's true
Willie: But save a few for Lefty, too.

-6- Check out the lovely melisma Merle sings on the word “prayers”. Is he the Country Sinatra?
-7- At the song’s conclusion, about 4:00, check out the looks and smiles exchanged by Willie and Merle. These two guys love each other!

There is no question that Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard both belong on the Country Music Mount Rushmore!

 

I can't disagree with the points you make - terrific performance of a terrific song (though the Bob & Willie performance is right up there with it, IMO).

This song could easily have a thread all to itself.

Here's Townes talking about it:



Interesting that Townes suggests that Pancho is hung ("only let him hang around" being a bit of dark humor) in the original lyric. Almost the covers I've come across (Willie/Waylon, Willie/Bob, Emmy Lou Harris, Hoyt Axton) change the line to the oddly ambiguous "Only let him slip away" (which is odd since Pancho obviously DIDN'T slip away, he "met his match" - unless this is more dark humor - since hanging is done with a SLIPknot). This raises the possibility that the federales weren't responsible for Pancho's death - but if not, them, who? Pancho Villa, who the song may or not be about, was NOT killed by federales but apparently by political rivals. In Steve Earle's much later cover, by the way, he utilized the original lyric.

In part, this song is great (IMO) because Lefty is dishonest because he likely led his friend into capture for money, the federales are dishonest because their boasts of "(We) could have had him any day" are obviously untrue, or they wouldn't have had to pay Lefty off to effect Pancho's capture, and the narrator seems not particularly trustworthy either (He feels that Lefty "only did what he had to do" but doesn't come right out and attribute blame to him for Pancho's death). The singular honest character? Pancho - the bandit (similar to "Pretty Boy Floyd") - because he wears his immorality like a badge ("outside his pants, for all the honest world to feel"), he doesn't double deal or lie - he is up front about his thievery.

 

Thanks Ray. I'd not seen that!

-- David

 

1990 starts with the January 12th 4 set, 50 song "public rehearsal" marathon at Toad's Place in New Haven.

Before we dive into the covers from Toad's, some context.

In August of 1989 I went out to my mailbox and found a package from a tape trading friend of mine - inside was a single cassette with the label "RISING SUN - GREAT!" The tape had some generational loss and even had a whine running through it that apparently was some crude attempt at copy protection. But under the hiss and whine there was no doubt what it was - a brand new album of Dylan originals! At some point the title became "Oh Mercy", and when the album came out officially on September 18th it was just like the pre-release tape, minus the hiss and whine. Dylan was on a brief breather between touring legs when the album came out, and we all wondered how many, if any, of the "Oh Mercy" songs would be played live. Thankfully, for me, he opened the fall leg with 4 nights at the Beacon Theater in New York, starting October 10th. I went to all 4 (and finished out my week with 3 Grateful Dead shows at the Meadowlands Arena - 7 shows in 7 days in the best musical week of my life). 10-10-89 was my 5 star "concert of the year" choice, and remains my favorite among the 50 or so Dylan concerts I attended. He did 3 "Oh Mercy" songs that night, and checked off 3 more that fall. So there were 4 to go.

Shortly before New Year's, word comes out that Dylan will play 2 warm-up dates in the US (State College, Pa. and Princeton, NJ) before heading to South America for his first 2 dates there ever, followed by a lengthy run in Europe. He would not be back to the USA until June. At the time he was still working around G.E. Smith's "Saturday Night Live" obligations. As I described in another post, Princeton sold out in the blink of an eye, forcing me to get tickets for Penn State, resulting in a much longer trip. But heck, it was a chance to maybe get one of those four remaining "Oh Mercy" songs, and who knew what else we'd get? Not to mention the Dylan withdrawal I'd have to suffer until the summer. My Penn State/State College tickets were already in hand when the added gig at Toad's Place was announced. New Haven was sure closer than State College, the venue was smaller ... but I only made a half-hearted (and failed) effort to score Toad's tickets. When I got home from work Friday night (January 12) I had non-buyer's regret, and decided to drive to New Haven and see if I could somehow get in. But it started to pour, and there were thunderstorms all over the East Coast ... so I contented myself with the knowledge that I'd see him in 2 days anyway, and stayed home.

Of course when the news broke of what had gone down at Toad's (courtesy of the online service "Prodigy" where I was part of an emerging Dylan community) I figuratively kicked myself for not braving the storm, and paying any price for a ticket. But who knew? Who knew he'd play 4 sets, 50 songs (well, 50 performances - he did play a few songs twice, and "Political World" THREE times!) Who knew he'd play 3 of the 4 remaining unplayed "Oh Mercy" songs? (He played the 10th, "Shooting Star", at his first gig back in the US in June.) Who knew he'd do FIFTEEN(!) NET premieres in one night??? Who knew he'd do a brand new unrecorded song ("Wiggle Wiggle Wiggle" to us tape traders, until Bob opted for a bit of brevity on the official release)?

Here's a Rolling Stone review of the Toad's gig: Bringing It All Back Home: Dylan Thrills With Exhaustive Show ». I can't say I care for the bashing of OTHER Dylan shows of this era (the reviewer seems upset that Bob refused to engage in "Hello Des Moines!" type stage banter on the NET), and I'm not sure if the reporter attended the gig or heard the tapes ... but it's worth a read.

OK, let's get started. The show started with a cover which was an NET premiere and career one-off.

Written and recorded by Joe South, but when The King is involved it is always possible that Bob might be covering HIS cover.



Elvis version: Elvis Presley - Walk A Mile In My Shoes (special edit) »

Listening to the song today, I wonder if Bob considered the possible influence that "Positively 4th Street" might have had on its composition.

I wish that for just one time
You could stand inside my shoes
And just for that one moment
I could be you

Yes, I wish that for just one time
You could stand inside my shoes
You’d know what a drag it is
To see you

 

"Trouble No More"
NET Premiere - 1-12-90 - Toad's Place

In the 4th slot in Set 1, we get another career one-off live performance. While this one is a look back to Dylan's blues influences, it is also a look ahead.

Performance by Muddy Waters:



Even if you've never heard "Trouble No More" before, does it sound familiar? It should - it helped to "inspire" Dylan to "write" "Someday Baby", although Sleepy John Estes' "Someday Baby Blues" provides an even more direct route to the source.

iPod Ad : Bob Dylan - Someday Baby »

'Someday Baby Blues' SLEEPY JOHN ESTES & HAMMIE NIXON (1935) Blues Guitar Legend »

 

This isn't very technical but I think that the whole band on the Dylan version plays "in the pocket" making this one of my all-time favorite Dylan songs. I love the contrast with the Duane Allman/ Fillmore East version. Hard to believe it's essentially the same song.

 

"Been All Around This World"
NET Premiere - 1-12-90, Toad's Place

Five songs into Set 1 and we already have 3 NET premieres, all covers. The live premieres of "Political World" and "Where Teardrops Fall" followed immediately, by the way.

Here's a blog entry that contains more information than you'll ever need about "Been All Around This World" aka "Hang Me, Oh Hang Me" aka "Blue Ridge Mountain Song".

The Journey of "Hang Me, Oh Hang Me" From the Scaffold to the Screen »

Unlike "Walk a Mile in My Shoes" and "Trouble No More", this one sticks around in the rotation for a while.