V.A. Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan Volume Nineteen

This thirty-TWO volume series features artists covering Bob Dylan songs. All of the tracks are recordings of independent origin (ROIO) and hence officially unreleased.

A folky volume built around Joan Baez's sweet cover of the old Dylan rarity, "Farewell, Angelina". As for the other artist here many are the kind of old school acoustic acts I grew up on, people like Arlo Guthrie, Ramblin' Jack Elliot and Mary Travers.

01 Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues – Gordon Lightfoot (1965, The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Burbank, CA)
02 The Times They Are a-Changin’ – Judy Collins (Jan 16, 1965, Sanders Theater Benefit Concert, Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA)
03 Things Have Changed – Bob Walkenhorst (May 18, 2005, Molloy’s Irish Pub, Kansas City, MO)
04 All Along the Watchtower – John Mellencamp (Jul 25, 1984, Agora Ballroom, Cleveland, OH)
05 Don’t Think Twice – Ramblin’ Jack Elliott (Apr 21, 1998, Bottom Line, New York, NY)
06 Senor (Tales of Yankee Power) – Jeffrey Foucault (Nov 10, 2005, Sunset Tavern, Seattle, WA)
07 Visions of Johanna – Chris Smither (Jan 30, 2007, The Furs, Lage Vuursche, The Netherlands)
08 Girl From the North Country – Roy Harper (Feb 5, 2007, Anti-Knock, Tokyo, Japan)
09 If Not For You – Steve Dawson and Diane Christiansen (of Dolly Varden) (Aug 23, 2006, 311 S. Wacker, Chicago, IL)
10 Love Minus Zero – Al Stewart (Jul 18, 1999, Conejo Community park, Thousand Oaks, CA)
11 Nashville Skyline Rag – John Hartford and Norman Blake (Nov 9, 1971, WABN Radio, Cincinnati, OH)
12 Only a Hobo – Seldom Scene (Apr 26, 1992, Watson Stage, Wilkesboro, NC)
13 Country Pie – Dave Swarbick, Simon Nicol, Richard Thompson, Dave Pegg and Geoff Muldaur (Sep 27th 1982, Lone Star Cafe, New York)
14 I’ll Keep it With Mine – Fairport Convention (1968, Dutch TV, Amsterdam, Holland)
15 I Shall Be Released – Mama Cass, Mary Travers, Joni Mitchell (Jun 27, 1969, Johnny Cash Show, Nashville, TN)
16 John Brown – Staples Singers (Apr 19, 1968, Fillmore Auditorium, San Francisco, CA)
17 When the Ship Comes in – Arlo Guthrie (Sep 20, 2002, Lowe’s Theatre, Worcester, MA)
18 With God on Our Side – Lovemongers (Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart) (Feb 23, 1991, Paramount Theater, Seattle, WA)
19 Farewell Angelina – Joan Baez (Jul 14, 1989, Montreux Jazz Festival, Le Casino, Montreux, Switzerland)


Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan Volume Nineteen link is in the comments

Speaking of comments, if you'd like the series to continue* please don't forget to leave some words about these volumes.

* I do believe your words here have helped inspire Jeff to begin compiling the series again - keep it up!

Thanks to Jeffs98119 for compiling these and to obatik for the images.

• For V.'s 1-18 of Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan go here
  

• For slugline's impressive spreadsheet of the whole series go here

• For stewART's excellent alternate cover art go here

V.A. Metrojets Volume One

Here's some vintage late seventies, early eighties mod-punk-power-pop-new-wave wussiness from the two-volume bootleg series. Metrojets (Red Rubber Ball RRB CD 001, Spain, 2001?).

True (Fans (USA), 1980, from 3.7")
I've Got A Heart (Realists (UK), 1978, from only 7")
When You Walk Away (Stumblebunny (USA), 1979, from only LP (While You Were Out)
I'm Sorry (Straight Eight (UK), 1979, from one of several 7"s)
Tonight Tonight (Speedometers (UK), 1979, from only LP (Day In The Lights)
Rich Girl (Bo & The Generals (UK), 1980, from only 7"
(Baby) It's You (Boys (USA), 1979, from 4.7")
In & Out Of Love (Sponsors (USA), 1982, from only LP (s/t)
On The Beach (Da Biz (UK), 1980, from only 7")
Boys In Love (Brian Copsey & The Commotions (UK), 1981, from 1 of 2 7"s)
Hot For You (Blades (IRE), 1980, from 1.7")
Stolen Love (Advertising (UK), from only LP (Jingles)
Five Hours Till Tonight (Vye (UK), 1980, from only 7")
My Flamingo (Subterraneans (UK), 1980, from only 7")


Metrojets Volume One link is in the comments

Speaking of comments, is this enough la-la's for you?

Joe Strummer & Bob Dylan

To me, Bob Dylan and The Clash's Joe Strummer are inextricably linked. On the personal level, it's because Dylan's Greatest Hits and The Clash's London Calling became sanctuaries for me during the worst year of my life. Specifically, it was those words, those lunatic, manic words of Strummer and Dylan's that provided refuge, as I copied verse-after-verse out into my notebook, while the fear and loneliness swirled around me.

The personal aside, there is a great deal that connects these two titans. Certainly, Strummer and Dylan both shared the same record label, both used Woody Guthrie homages to cover up their middle-class roots in their earliest years, both mixed pop and politics to great effect, both went to hell in the eighties and had an upswing at the dawn of the 21st century, both loved using those "flashing chains of images" in their lyrics and, to different degrees, both bore the Voice of a Generation burden. Perhaps most significantly, they were always great admirers of each others' work. To wit:

* Strummer appeared on a BBC feature on Dylan's 60th birthday (alongside Stevie Wonder!) where he can be heard singing Dylan's praises not to mention performing "Blowin' in the Wind" and "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues".


* According to Strummer biographer Chris Salewicz, Columbia press officer Ellie Smith gave Dylan a copy of The Clash's self-titled album when he was in England in 1978, which Bob loved.

* The Clash covered Dylan's "The Man in Me" (likely spurred by the reggae arrangement by Britain's Matumbi that bassist Paul Simonon had installed in the band's rehearsal space jukebox.)

* Dylan partially covered "London Calling" on his show at the Brixton Academy in November of 2005.


* In his great comeback single, "Coma Girl", Strummer name-checked one of Dylan's finest creations, "Desolation Row".

* Strummer played Dylan's "Corina, Corina" on his globe-trotting radio show done for BBC World Services back on February 2nd 2000)


* As payback Dylan played "This is Radio Clash", "Tommy Gun", "Train in Vain", "The Right Profile" and The 101'ers "Keys to Your Heart" on his show, Theme Time Radio Hour.


* According to Salewicz, once again, Dylan gave Strummer a tape of a song that that Bob wanted Joe to record but that Joe never took the tape out of the drawer. As this incident occurred around the time of Dylan's pitiful Down in the Groove, (on which Clashman Paul Simonon played bass alongside Sex Pistol's guitarist Steve Jones on the track, "Sally Sue Brown") Strummer's neglect may be forgivable.


* According to Clash biographer Pat Gilbert, the band did two cover songs to warm up for the London Calling recording session, one instrumental from Dylan's soundtrack to Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid and a version of Vince Taylor's "Brand New Cadillac" so good that madman producer Guy Stevens (who's bathroom contained two pictures: one of Dylan and one of Hitler!) ran in yelling, "It's a take!" (Years later that same soundtrack would be Strummer's model for his own work scoring Alex Cox's film, Walker.)

* Dylan brought his entire family, about forty people all in all, to see The Clash play in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1979 (turning Jakob into a life-long fan as this video will demonstrate:)

* Strummer's final tour was called "Bringing It All Back Home", a Dylan album title he'd already borrowed for the song "Global-A-Go-Go" ("Everywhere, everywhere Bob's bringing it all back home").

* (And it's hard to forget that the combination of Strummer and Dylan, not to mention Chuck D., remains the gold standard for articles on complaint-rock.)


As two of rock n' roll's great men of words, Strummer and Dylan have much in common and much separating them but for those of us who strain to catch every verse, there remains a wealth of connections between them.

Let us know your thoughts on this Dylan-Strummer connection - it's what the 'comments' are for!!

Joe Strummer: Permanent Records Outtakes

FOR OUR PLAY LIST OF TEN GREAT WILDERNESS-ERA JOE STRUMMER TUNES, PLEASE COME VISIT THE BIG TAKEOVER!

Another pleasant surprise from Joe Strummer's well-named Wilderness Years are these early sessions with Latino Rockabilly War that were released as part the soundtrack for the Keanu Reeves film, Permanent Record in 1988. While at the time, these songs seemed only marginally more exciting than the follow-up, Earthquake Weather, wiser ears can now enjoy their rough n' ready sound.



Permanent Records Outtakes link is in the comments

Speaking of comments, tell us what you think of the Latino Rockabilly War era of Strummer's career.

MRML's Biggest Hits of 2010!

Don't forget to nominate your favourite MRML post of the year in the comment section!

We like comments...


As I have said, alongside the number of comments and the sheer total of hits per day, downloads are on the surest ways of tracking what MRML readers want to hear. I'd love to track how much music I'd encourage readers to buy but without great co-operation from Soundscan this will have to our final measure of success:

(Click on the hyperlinks links to see all MRML posts on that particular topic!)

1. The D.I.Y. series: This legendary but damningly out-of-print series hinted that this would be MRML' s best year yet - 500,000 hits now. (For those number crunchers it's NYC at 1,112 d/l's , Anarchy I at 808 and Come Out and Play at 607 with the others being in the 500's.)

2. The Graham Parker series
I embarked on this series, strictly out of love for the man's work, not knowing that GP himself (we think) would drop by, that MRML would have a hand in financing the GP documentary and that these entries would so dominate the top of our list. (For those keeping track that's 853 d/l's for Live at Marble Arch, 782 for GP & co.'s Beatles tribute, 629 for Live at the Test, 584 for Live at Rockpalast, 573 for King Biscuit Flower Hour, 503 for That's When You Know and a few others that are still climbing the charts.)

3. The Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan series #1 sits at 766, #2 at 646 and #4 at 552 and these numbers are gonna grow in the new year.

4. Devo Hardcore
#1 is at 722 and #2 is at 523

5. Social Distortion: Lost Tracks
A great series overall, this particular volume netted 650 d/l's.

6. The Powerpearls series
#1, as is often the case, tops out at 610 while the rest also did well.

7. Bruce Springsteen: How Nebraska was Born
With three posts in a row on Nebraska this one came out the most popular with 608 d/l.'s (though our own compilation Nobody Sings Dylan Like The Boss post ratcheted up a respectable 507!)

8. Talking Heads: Berkley '79
I remain surprised that this particular boot got so high (604 dl's!) but am delighted nonetheless.

9. V.A. Big Beat Beach Party
Another surprise entry here as this is a garage/surf-rock (and it's an incomplete rip to boot!) but it hit 565 d/l's.

10. Split Enz: Luton Tapes
503 d/l's for this lost joy.

As for comments, Springsteen takes first and second (How Nebraska was Born with 59 comments, Alone in Colt's Neck with 49) Powerpearls # 1 got 39 comments, Split Enz got 35, Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan #1 registered 30 comments, Springsteen took the middle with Nebraska Live and Nobody Sings Dylan Like the Boss getting 29 responses) The Police BBC Sessions (which mysteriously disappeared from Mediafire) and Billy Bragg's Mermaid Avenue Demos also garnered 29 apiece and let us not forget the 28 comments for our Chumbawamba live post.

A lot of our series generated great commentary, though perhaps more spread out, like the Fastbacks, Patti Smith, Big Country, Dr. Frank and Joe Strummer ones but of course I'm proud of all those wordy ones.

Now it's your turn, what was the best MRML post of the year by your reckoning?

The proprietor of this blog appreciates feedback, possibly due to his rampaging ego but even more so due to the fact that feedback inspires better posts! So if you wanna tell me what posts got you to appreciate something new or old I'd love to hear it, if not thanks for reading this far and have a great 2011!!