Bob Dylan - Boots of Spanish Leather (1964)

Lyrically, the song below is rumored to have been inspired by the separation of Bob Dylan and his girlfriend of the time, Suze Rotolo. In June 1962, Rotolo left New York and traveled to Perugia, Italy with her mother to study art for six months at the University of Perugia. Besides the song below, the separation of the two is also said to have inspired the songs “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright,” “One Too Many Mornings,” and “Tomorrow Is a Long Time.”

Later in 1962, Dylan traveled to England to fulfill contractual obligations. Once his obligations had been completed, Dylan traveled to Italy, hoping to find Rotolo. Unfortunately, she had already returned to New York- to the apartment they shared together- around the same time that Dylan had left New York bound for England. It was in Italy, alone, where Dylan wrote the song below.

And although Dylan and Rotolo would be reunited in 1963, fate was not kind to their union. In 1963, Rotolo became pregnant, but had an abortion. Between this, Dylan’s affair with Joan Baez, and Dylan not getting along with Rotolo’s family (whom she was quite close with), the couple ended their relationship. The breakup resulted in Dylan’s bitter song “Ballad in Plain D.”

Musically, the song below borrows its melody from English folk singer Martin Carthy's arrangement of the traditional ballad “Scarborough Fair.” Lyrically, it tells a tale loosely inspired by the events above, in which a woman is leaving her lover; and, in an effort to cheer him up, offers to purchase him a gift from where she’s going. Her lover responds by telling her that all he’d like is for her to return to him. But, as time goes on, she informs him that she may not return. And, presumably becoming bitter, he asks her for the expensive “Spanish boots of Spanish leather.”

The first six verses of the song alternate between the dialogue of the man and the woman, beginning with the woman leaving. The last alternating verse (the sixth), as well as the seventh, eighth, and ninth verses, are all from the man who has been left.



Bob Dylan - Boots of Spanish Leather (1964)

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Lyrics:

Oh, I’m sailing away, my own true love
I’m sailing away in the morning
Is there something I can send you from across the sea
From the place that I’ll be landing?

No, there’s nothing you can send me, my own true love
There’s nothing I’m wishing to be owning
Just carry yourself back to me unspoiled
From across that lonesome ocean

Oh, but I just thought you might want something fine
Made of silver or of golden
Either from the mountains of Madrid
Or from the coast of Barcelona

But if I had the stars of the darkest night
And the diamonds from the deepest ocean
I’d forsake them all for your sweet kiss
For that’s all I’m wishing to be owning

That I might be gone a long, old time
And it’s only that I’m asking
Is there something I can send you to remember me by?
To make your time more easy passing

Oh, how can- how can you ask me again?
It only brings me sorrow
The same thing I would want today
I would want again tomorrow

Oh, I got a letter on a lonesome day
It was from her ship a’sailing
Saying, “I don’t know when I’ll be coming back again”
“It depends on how I’m feeling”

If you, my love, must think that a’way
I’m sure your mind is roaming
I’m sure your thoughts are not with me
But with the country to where you’re going

So take heed- take heed of the western winds
Take heed of the stormy weather
And yes, there’s something you can send back to me
Spanish boots of Spanish leather

Carolyn Hester - I'll Fly Away (1961)

Carolyn Hester was born on January 28th, 1937. In high school, she sang “The Kerry Dance” in a play and impressed her physical education teacher, who then introduced her to the female folk singer Susan Reed. Enthralled with folk music, she taught herself to play guitar and moved to New York in 1955 at the age of eighteen. She recorded her first album, Scarlet Ribbons, in 1957 for Coral Records and became associated with the first wave of the “folk revival” movement that included Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Tom Paxton, and many others. In 1961, she had the opportunity to join a folk trio which already included Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey, but she declined. The pair eventually chose Mary Travers and the now-trio became the popular Peter, Paul, & Mary. When it came to solo female folk artists, Hester and Joan Baez were at the top. Although Baez may have had the more successful career, Hester has claimed that she and Joan never had a personal nor professional rivalry. According to her, they didn’t even know one another all that well. Although the reign of her popularity began to slow down as early as the mid-sixties, Carolyn Hester never stopped working. Even in recent years, Hester has been continuing to perform with her daughters, Amy and Karla Blume. Her most recent album, We Dream Forever, was released in 2010.

In 1961, Hester was getting ready to record her third album, later to be titled Carolyn Hester (on the Columbia label), and started accumulating musicians. From her first album, she brought the same guitarist, Bruce Langhorne. She also brought a noted bassist, Bill Lee, whose son Spike Lee would later become a famous filmmaker. Finally, Hester gave the harp position to an up and coming talent she had met, Bob Dylan. You’d think she’d have given Dylan the role of harmonica, but that spot was reserved for the person who had played harmonica for her on her first album, her father.

The song heard below is a hymn written in 1929 by Albert E. Brumley. Often heard at funerals, it is one of the most recorded gospel songs in history and was created with inspiration from a non-religious ballad. The version heard below was the opening track on Hester’s Carolyn Hester (Columbia) album, which featured 100% traditional songs such as this one. The harmonica on this track was played by Bob Dylan who during the sessions met John Hammond, the man who would eventually sign him to Columbia Records, starting his ascent to super-stardom. For indirectly arranging this meeting, Carolyn Hester has always received a lot of credit for bringing Dylan into the national spotlight.



Carolyn Hester - I'll Fly Away (1961)

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Lyrics:

One bright morning when this world is over
I'll fly away
To that land on God’s celestial shore
I'll fly away
Fly Away

Oh, Lordy, I’ll fly away in the morning
I'll fly away
When I die, Hallelujah, by and by
I'll fly away
Fly away

Just one more weary day and then
I’ll fly away
To that land where joy’s will never end
I’ll fly away
Fly away

Oh, Lordy, I’ll fly away in the morning
I'll fly away
When I die, Hallelujah, by and by
I'll fly away
Fly away

One bright morning when my time is nigh
I'll fly away
Like a bird, o’er these prison walls, I’ll fly
I'll fly away
Fly Away

Oh, Lordy, I’ll fly away in the morning
I'll fly away
When I die, Hallelujah, by and by
I'll fly away
Fly away

Oh, Lordy, I’ll fly away in the morning
I'll fly away
When I die, Hallelujah, by and by
I'll fly away
Fly away

Bob Dylan - Percy's Song (1963)

Bob Dylan’s first album, appropriately titled Bob Dylan, was comprised mostly of traditional folk tunes or tunes written by other folk artists. There were only two songs that were penned by Dylan himself (“Talkin’ New York” and “Song to Woody”). Dylan’s second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, featured nineteen tracks, most of which were written by him, with three borrowing heavily from other artists (“Corrina, Corrina,” “Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance,” and “I Shall Be Free”). Containing many political and some humorous songs, the popularity of the album began Dylan’s legacy as the “spokesman of a generation” as he shot to international stardom. By the time of Dylan’s third album, The Times They Are a-Changin’, he was recording one hundred percent of his own material. Attempting to reach the same success as Freewheelin’, which featured “Blowin’ in the Wind” and other lasting compositions, Dylan laced a-Changin’ with classics such as the eponymous “The Times They Are a-Changin’,” “With God On Our Side,” “Only a Pawn in Their Game,” and more. The album reached number twenty in the United States and number four in the United Kingdom.

With ten tracks being chosen for the release of the album, there was quite a bit of material that had to be set aside. Three days after recording the final track of the song, Dylan performed a concert at Carnegie Hall that featured eight tracks from his soon-to-be-released album, as well as numerous songs that didn’t make the album’s final cut. Heard below is a song written by Dylan in 1963, omitted from the final cut of The Times They Are a-Changin’ and not officially released until the 1985 album Biograph. Although not officially released until 1985, the song was available via bootleg in a very rough version which was full of scratches, clicks, pops, and warps. This version is clean.

The song itself is based on the melody of the song “The Wind and the Rain,” which had been taught to Dylan by his friend, the folksinger Paul Clayton. The lyrics, written by Dylan, tell the story of a man who approaches a judge on behalf of his friend in Joliet Prison having recently been convicted of manslaughter. If you’re not a big fan of Bob Dylan, there’s a cover of this song performed by Fairport Convention which I highly recommend. That version appeared on their third album, Unhalfbricking.



Bob Dylan - Percy's Song (1963)

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Lyrics:

Bad news, bad news
Came to me where I sleep
Turn, turn, turn again
Sayin’, “One of your friends”
“Is in trouble deep”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

Tell me the trouble
Tell once to my ear
Turn, turn, turn again
Joliet Prison
And ninety-nine years
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

Oh, what is the charge
Of how this came to be?
Turn, turn, turn again
Manslaughter
In the highest of degrees
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

I sat down and wrote
The best words I could write
Turn, turn, turn again
Explaining to the judge
I’d be there on Wednesday night
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

Without a reply
I left by the moon
Turn, turn, turn again
And was in his chambers
By the next afternoon
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

“Could you tell me the facts?”
I said without fear
Turn, turn, turn again
“That a friend of mine”
“Would get ninety-nine years”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

A crash on the highway
Flew a car into a field
Turn, turn, turn again
There was four persons killed
And he was at the wheel
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

But I know him as good
As I’m knowin’ myself
Turn, turn, turn again
And he wouldn’t harm a life
That belonged to someone else
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

The judge spoke
Out of the side of his mouth
Turn, turn, turn again
Sayin’, “The witness who saw”
“He left little doubt”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

“That may be true”
“He’s got a sentence to serve”
Turn, turn, turn again
“But ninety-nine years”
“He just don’t deserve”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

“Too late, too late”
“For his case, it is sealed”
Turn, turn, turn again
“His sentence is passed”
“And it cannot be repealed”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

“But he ain’t no criminal”
“And his crime it is none”
Turn, turn, turn again
“What happened to him”
“Could happen to anyone”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

At that the judge jerked forward
And his face it did freeze
Turn, turn, turn again
Sayin’, “Could you kindly leave
My office now, please?”
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

The room was funny
And I stood up so slow
Turn, turn, turn again
With no other choice
Except but for to go
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

I walked down the hallway
And I heard his door slam
Turn, turn, turn again
I walked down the courthouse stairs
And I did not understand
Turn, turn to the rain
And the wind

I played my guitar
Through the night to the day
Turn, turn, turn again
And the only tune
My guitar could play
Was, “Oh the Cruel Rain
And the Wind”

Syd Barrett - Bob Dylan Blues (1970)

Born in 1946, this man was the original frontman for the legendary group Pink Floyd. Not only did he start the group in 1965, but he was also the group’s primary songwriter, lead vocalist, and lead guitarist for their first few years. Pink Floyd’s early sound was psychedelic primarily because of his imagination. Sadly, years of drug use aided his mental health to deteriorate and he left the group in April 1968. After a couple solo albums, he decided to leave the public eye permanently and put himself in a self-imposed seclusion. Pink Floyd, without him, would go on to enormous success and recorded several tributes to him, most notably their 1975 album Wish You Were Here. On July 7th, 2006, after more than thirty years of seclusion, he fell victim to his pancreatic cancer and died in his home in Cambridge.

In 1964, Bob Dylan released “My Back Pages,” which mocked his own early political image. (You can hear The Byrds’ cover version of the song here.) But before Dylan was able to mock himself, Barrett had beaten him to the punch with this song. Written in 1963 after Barrett had seen Dylan in concert, this song both gently lampoons Dylan’s early political persona as well as pays an honoring tribute to him. Coming out of David Gilmour’s personal collection for the album The Best of Syd Barrett: Wouldn't You Miss Me? released in 2001, it was originally recorded in 1970.



Syd Barrett - Bob Dylan Blues (1970)

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Lyrics:

Got the Bob Dylan blues
And the Bob Dylan shoes
And my clothes and my hair's in a mess
But, you know, I just couldn't care less

Gonna write me a song
'bout what's right and what's wrong
Got God and my girl and all that
Quiet while I make like a cat

‘cause I'm a poet, don’t’cha know it?
And the wind? You can blow it
‘cause I'm Mr. Dylan, the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

Roam from town to town
Guess I get people down
But I don't care too much about that
‘cause my gut and my wallet are fat

Make a whole lot of dough
But I deserve it, though
I got soul and a good heart of gold
So I'll sing about war in the Cold

‘cause I'm a poet, don’t’cha know it?
And the wind? You can blow it
‘cause I'm Mr. Dylan, the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

Well I sings about dreams
And I rhymes it with seams
‘cause it seems that my dream always means
That I can prophesy all kinds of things

Well the guy that digs me
Should try hard to see
That he buys all my discs in a hat
And when I'm in town, go see that

‘cause I'm a poet, don’t’cha know it?
And the wind? You can blow it
‘cause I'm Mr. Dylan, the king
And I'm free as a bird on the wing

The Traveling Wilburys - Handle with Care (1988)

Looking to create a B-side for his upcoming solo release, “This Is Love,” George Harrison got together with Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty to work on some ideas. Needing a place to record, they went to the home of Bob Dylan, who had a home recording studio nearby where they all happened to be. That session resulted in such a good track (heard below), that Harrison suggested they form a supergroup and release an entire album. All of them agreed and what resulted was the greatest commercial supergroup of the decade.

The title of this song came about when Harrison saw a box that had been lying around in Dylan’s garage. It was used as the first track on their first album, Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1, and was the most success Dylan, Lynne, and Orbison had seen in years. Sadly, it was also the last release in Orbison’s lifetime, as it came out less than two months prior to his passing.



The Traveling Wilburys - Handle with Care (1988)

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Lyrics:

Been beat up and battered around
Been sent up and I've been shot down
You're the best thing that I've ever found
Handle me with care

Reputations changeable
Situations tolerable
But baby, you're adorable
Handle me with care

I'm so tired of being lonely
I still have some love to give
Won't you show me that you really care?

Everybody's got somebody to lean on
Put your body next to mine and dream on

I've been fobbed off and I've been fooled
I've been robbed and ridiculed
In daycare centers and night schools
Handle me with care

Been stuck in airports, terrorized
Sent to meetings, hypnotized
Overexposed, commercialized
Handle me with care

I'm so tired of being lonely
I still have some love to give
Won't you show me that you really care?

Everybody got somebody to lean on
Put your body next to mine and dream on

I've been uptight and made a mess
But I'll clean it up myself, I guess
Oh, the sweet smell of success
Handle me with care

Bob Dylan - Masters of War (1963)

One of the most influential figures in the history of popular music, this reluctant “voice of a generation” started by writing folk music centered on US civil rights and anti-war themes. His music has evolved numerous times over the past fifty years and has incorporated folk, rock, blues, country, gospel, and much more. He was a large influence on The Beatles, specifically John Lennon, and later helped create the supergroup, The Traveling Wilburys, with George Harrison. This is an artist who cannot be summed up in the space provided here.

This song comes from 1963, a time before he electrified his music and was still writing folk songs for social change. The music is based on the English folk song "Nottamun Town". Though not as popular as “Blowin’ in the Wind” or “The Times They Are A-Changin’,” this song, in a darker sense, fits to the same lyrical theme. Of the lyrics, he said he had never written about hoping anyone dead before, but he felt he “couldn’t help it with this one.”

[Note: this probably isn't the type of song you can play as “background music” and be entertained. Its strong point is its message/lyrics and is suggested to be listened to as if hearing a speech. Enjoy!]



Bob Dylan - Masters of War (1963)

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Lyrics:

Come you masters of war
You that build the big guns
You that build the death planes
You that build all the bombs
You that hide behind walls
You that hide behind desks
I just want you to know
I can see through your masks

You that never done nothin’
But build to destroy
You play with my world
Like it’s your little toy
You put a gun in my hand
And you hide from my eyes
And you turn and run farther
When the fast bullets fly

Like Judas of old
You lie and deceive
A world war can be won
You want me to believe
But I see through your eyes
And I see through your brain
Like I see through the water
That runs down my drain

You fasten all the triggers
For the others to fire
And then you set back and watch
While the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
While the young people’s blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud

You’ve thrown the worst fear
That can ever be hurled
Fear to bring children
Into the world
For threatening my baby
Unborn and unnamed
You ain’t worth the blood
That runs in your veins

How much do I know
To talk out of turn?
You might say that I’m young
You might say I’m unlearned
But there’s one thing I know
Though I’m younger than you
That even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do

Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good?
Will it buy you forgiveness?
Do you think that it could?
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul

And I hope that you die
And your death will come soon
I’ll follow your casket
On the pale afternoon
And I’ll watch while you’re lowered
Down to your deathbed
And I’ll stand over your grave
’Til I’m sure that you’re dead

The Turtles - It Ain't Me Babe (1965)

Originally a surf-rock group called The Crossfires, this band was one of the most celebrated bands of the 1960s. When they made their shift into folk music to fit in with the increasing trend, they intentionally misspelled their name “The Tyrtles” to fit in with others who misspelled their names such as The Beatles and The Byrds. It didn't last very long. Their largest success came with their 1967 hit “Happy Together,” reaching number one and knocking "Penny Lane" off the top spot.

This song, their first hit, was written in 1964 by Bob Dylan. It was rumored that the lyrics “no, no, no it ain’t me babe” was a direct parody referencing The Beatles’ “She Loves You” (“She loves you, yea, yea, yea”).



The Turtles - It Ain't Me Babe (1965)

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Lyrics:

Go away from my window
Leave at your own chosen speed
I'm not the one you want, babe
I'm not the one you need

You say you're lookin' for someone
Who's never weak but always strong
To protect you and defend you
Whether you are right or wrong
Someone to open each and every door

But it ain't me babe
Ah, no, no, no it ain't me babe
Well, it ain't me you're lookin' for babe

Go lightly from the ledge, babe
Go lightly on the ground
I'm not the one you want, babe
I'll only lead you down

You say you're lookin' for someone
Who'll promise never to part
Someone to close his eyes to you
Someone to close his heart
Someone who will die for you and more

But it ain't me babe
Ah, no, no, no it ain't me babe
Well, it ain't me you're lookin' for babe

No it ain't me you're lookin' for, babe
I said ah no, no, no, it ain't me babe
I said ah no, no, no, it ain't me babe…

The Byrds - My Back Pages (1967)

One of the most influential bands of the 1960s, they were able to merge folk rock with the sounds of the British Invasion. A combination of their incredible harmony singing and their unique jangly guitar made them one of the top bands from 1965 to 1966. They were also responsible for directly influencing The Beatles during their (arguably) best album, Rubber Soul. You can particularly hear the influence in the song “If I Needed Someone,” where the guitar riff is almost exactly the same as their “The Bells of Rhymney.”

This song, originally written and performed by Bob Dylan, tells of how Dylan was rejecting his earlier political idealism and was now going in a new direction. The Byrds version, released in 1967, would be the last Top 40 hit for them in the US.



The Byrds - My Back Pages (1967)

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Lyrics:

Crimson flames tied through my ears
Rollin' high and mighty trapped
Countless fire and flaming road
Using ideas as my maps
"We'll meet on edges, soon," said I
Proud 'neath heated brow
Ah, but I was so much older then
I'm younger than that now

Half-wracked prejudice leaped forth
"Rip down all hate," I screamed
Lies that life is black and white
Spoke from my skull, I dreamed
Romantic flanks of musketeers
Foundationed deep, somehow
Ah, but I was so much older then
I'm younger than that now

In a soldier's stance, I aimed my hand
At the mongrel dogs who teach
Fearing not I'd become my enemy
In the instant that I preached
Sisters led by confusion boats
Mutiny from stern to bow
Ah, but I was so much older then
I'm younger than that now

Ah, but I was so much older then
I'm younger than that now

My guard stood hard when abstract threats
Too noble to neglect
Deceived me into thinking
I had something to protect
Good and bad, I defined these terms
Quite clear, no doubt, somehow
Ah, but I was so much older then
I'm younger than that now