Among the great finds on Bob Dylan’s first Bootleg series were two tracks recorded for 1983’s Infidels but inexplicably left off.
Mark Knopfler produced Infidels but had to go on tour before the final mixing and sequencing, leaving that to Dylan himself. Dylan decided to omit the tracks ‘Foot of Pride’ and ‘Blind Willie McTell.’
I didn’t think it was right to have a Random Sunday without a Random Saturday, so here’s a little treasure that popped into my Facebook feed this morning.
Jimmy Fallon is an exceptional impressionist, especially (and maybe exclusively?) when it comes to musicians. His Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Jim Morrison and David Bowie are all priceless.
Today begins my countdown of the 20 best songs of 2015, or rather the 20 songs that encapsulate the last year in music for me.
This list is always controversial for one reason or another — usually because I leave off a radio hit or two that my regular readers expect. That will likely happen again this year, though I will say I have more hit singles represented on this list than I have in any year since I started ranking.
My pick for #20, however, did not receive much radio play. Shocker!
‘The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll’ is a traditional protest song typical of Bob Dylan’s first few albums. This one appears on The Times They Are A-Changin’, Dylan’s most socially and politically charged record, which he released when he was just 22.
The song chronicles the true story of racist tobacco farm heir William Zantzinger (Dylan changed the spelling) who assaulted a 51-year-old black maid with a cane, after which she died. Zantzinger was charged with first-degree murder but ended up serving only six months. This was in early 1963.
This performance by Bob Dylan of his classic protest song ‘Masters of War’ took place at Brandies University in 1963. The concert took place just weeks before the release of Dylan’s second album, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, before he became a star.
These tapes were unearthed decades later during some house cleaning by the son of Rolling Stone co-founder Ralph J. Gleason.
Meet Me In Montauk 