By Tony Attwood
Tombstone Blues struck me as one of those songs I was not going to have much luck with in looking for really interesting and different versions of the song. The fast beat of the original tends to mitigate against anyone doing anything else with the piece – or at least that is how it generally seems to me. But I was as ever, wrong…
Tim O’Brien keeps the speed up, but changes the key instrument to a banjo, and adds a second chord to the verse. Then in comes an accomplished violin, and then the chorus has vocal harmonies – and all that before the thrilling instrumental break between the verses.
It’s great fun, and even the double bass player gets into the swing of doing something very different. By the end I’m thinking this is how it ought to be performed.
Tim O’Brien
The illustration of Dylan hanging from the clock for the second cover is arresting, and Winston Apple’s version gives us a bit of bounce and fun – plus enough variation from the original for it all to seem worthy of a mention.
The original version of the picture (here), as you may well know, is Harold Lloyd from the movie Safety Last
Richie Havens
As Jochen pointed out on this site a couple of years ago in the final episode of his 13 part series on the song, “The best-known cover is probably the one by Richie Havens, on the soundtrack of the Dylan film I’m Not There (2007), and rightly so. (There are links to all the episodes of Jochen’s investigation at the end of the article noted above). But even more moving and exciting is the snippet (one minute and seven seconds) in the film itself.
Watkins Family
So is there anywhere else to go? Well yes, the Watkins Family Hour. (I’m not familiar with the band, hence I can only offer a link to their own site.) But I would say I do hope you have time to listen all the way through. They really do keep the essence of the song but add their re-interpretation of the song which is really worth hearing.
Dicte & Hempler
Again I am a bit stuck for information on the band, but I do like this version as it strips the song down, and carefully rebuilds it with limited resources. An excellent re-imagining in my view on what is really a very simple piece of music. It’s over six minutes long, but held my attention to the end.
https://youtu.be/CcOeTnnwqy8
I’ve really enjoyed finding that collection of versions – hope you found something in there which was enjoyable for you. Just as I hope you listened to that last version right up to the last couple of seconds.
Here’s the rest of this series of reviews of Dylan covers in the “Cover a Day” series. Over 150 of them, so not enough to keep you going all year, but still, quite a few.
- The song with numbers in the title.
- Ain’t Talkin
- All I really want to do
- Angelina
- Apple Suckling and Are you Ready.
- As I went out one morning
- Ballad for a Friend
- Ballad in Plain D
- Ballad of a thin man
- Frankie Lee and Judas Priest
- The ballad of Hollis Brown
- Beyond here lies nothing
- Blind Willie McTell
- Black Crow Blues (more fun than you might recall)
- An unexpected cover of “Black Diamond Bay”
- Blowin in the wind as never before
- Bob Dylan’s Dream
- BoB Dylan’s 115th Dream revisited
- Boots of Spanish leather
- Born in Time
- Buckets of Rain
- Can you please crawl out your window
- Can’t wait
- Changing of the Guard
- Chimes of Freedom
- Country Pie
- Crash on the Levee
- Dark Eyes
- Dear Landlord
- Desolation Row as never ever before (twice)
- Dignity.
- Dirge
- Don’t fall apart on me tonight.
- Don’t think twice
- Down along the cove
- Drifter’s Escape
- Duquesne Whistle
- Farewell Angelina
- Foot of Pride and Forever Young
- Fourth Time Around
- From a Buick 6
- Gates of Eden
- Gotta Serve Somebody
- Hard Rain’s a-gonna Fall.
- Heart of Mine
- High Water
- Highway 61
- Hurricane
- I am a lonesome hobo
- I believe in you
- I contain multitudes
- I don’t believe you.
- I love you too much
- I pity the poor immigrant.
- I shall be released
- I threw it all away
- I want you
- I was young when I left home
- I’ll remember you
- Idiot Wind and More idiot wind
- If not for you, and a rant against prosody
- If you Gotta Go, please go and do something different
- If you see her say hello
- Dylan cover a day: I’ll be your baby tonight
- I’m not there.
- In the Summertime, Is your love and an amazing Isis
- It ain’t me babe
- It takes a lot to laugh
- It’s all over now Baby Blue
- It’s all right ma
- Just Like a Woman
- Knocking on Heaven’s Door
- Lay down your weary tune
- Lay Lady Lay
- Lenny Bruce
- That brand new leopard skin pill box hat
- Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts
- License to kill
- Like a Rolling Stone
- Love is just a four letter word
- Love Sick
- Maggies Farm!
- Make you feel my love; a performance that made me cry.
- Mama you’ve been on my mind
- Man in a long black coat.
- Masters of War
- Meet me in the morning
- Million Miles. Listen, and marvel.
- Mississippi. Listen, and marvel (again)
- Most likely you go your way
- Most of the time and a rhythmic thing
- Motorpsycho Nitemare
- Mozambique
- Mr Tambourine Man
- My back pages, with a real treat at the end
- New Morning
- New Pony. Listen where and when appropriate
- Nobody Cept You
- North Country Blues
- No time to think
- Obviously Five Believers
- Oh Sister
- On the road again
- One more cup of coffee
- (Sooner or later) one of us must know
- One too many mornings
- Only a hobo
- Only a pawn in their game
- Outlaw Blues – prepare to be amazed
- Oxford Town
- Peggy Day and Pledging my time
- Please Mrs Henry
- Political world
- Positively 4th Street
- Precious Angel
- Property of Jesus
- Queen Jane Approximately
- Quinn the Eskimo as it should be performed.
- Quit your lowdown ways
- Rainy Day Women as never before
- Restless Farewell. Exquisite arrangements, unbelievable power
- Ring them bells in many different ways
- Romance in Durango, covered and re-written
- Sad Eyed Lady of Lowlands, like you won’t believe
- Sara
- Senor
- A series of Dreams; no one gets it (except Dylan)
- Seven Days
- She Belongs to Me
- Shelter from the Storm
- Sign on the window
- Silvio
- Simple twist of fate
- Slow Train
- Someday Baby
- Spanish Harlem Incident
- Standing in the Doorway
- Stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
- Subterranean Homesick Blues
- Sweetheart Like You
- Tangled up in Blue
- Tears of Rage
- Temporary Like Achilles. Left in the cold, but there’s still something…
- The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar
- The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
- The Man in Me
- Times they are a-changin’
- The Wicked Messenger
- Things have changed
- This Wheel’s on Fire
- Thunder on the mountain
- Till I fell in love with you in the north of Norway
- Time Passes Slowly – just sit down and close your eyes
- To be alone with you
- To Ramona: unexpectedly yes!