(Polydor)
Bob Dylan turns 69 years old on May 24.
They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If that case, Dylan has been flattered plenty over the last half-century.
Over the next week or so, I'll be posting cover versions of Bob Dylan songs from a variety of artists working in different genres.
We'll start with Jimi Hendrix. His version of "All Along The Watchtower" is often considered not only the best Dylan cover, but possibly the greatest cover version of any song ever. This is Dylan's most performed live number. In 1974, when Dylan started doing the song in concert, it was based on Hendrix's arrangement. He has sung this song in concert over 1900 times, about 150 more than "Like A Rolling Stone".
Atlanta Pop Festival, 1970
"I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way. Funny though, his way of doing it and my way of doing it weren't that dissimilar, I mean the meaning of the song doesn't change like when some artists do other artists' songs. Strange though how when I sing it I always feel like it's a tribute to him in some kind of way. He did a lot of my other songs too from that period... "Drifter's Escape", "Like a Rolling Stone", "Crawl Out Your Window", some others I don't remember. He would have done "Masters of War" exactly the way I do it now." Bob Dylan, "Biograph" liner notes, 1985.
As Dylan mentioned, Hendrix covered other songs of his as well. Here's "Like A Rolling Stone" from his legendary 1967 performance at the Monterey Pop Festival:
Here's a BBC recording from October 17, 1967, of "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?", broadcast November 13 on Alexis Korner's Rhythm and Blues program:
More cover versions coming !
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