Recently, I’ve been spending time going through dusty boxes and transferring to my hard drive demo and rehearsal tapes of my old bands. Such was the lack of acclaim and clamour for more – strangely reminiscent of the actual times themselves – I decided now would be as good a time as any to upload my own version of one of my favourite Bob Dylan songs, recorded live and mixed today. That’s what Sundays are for, right?
I didn’t always like Bob Dylan. In fact, I hated Dylan for years, mostly because my Dad liked him, that and his terrible, whiny voice and repetitive, boring chords. So naturally enough, the first Dylan song I ever got into was Masters Of War – a finer example of dear old Bob’s whiny repetition it’s hard to find! But the words – and later I began to learn to appreciate the voice and the music, too – are filled with such meaningful venom, as appropriate then as they are now:
And I hope that you die
And your death’ll come soon
I will follow your casket
In the pale afternoon
And I’ll watch while you’re lowered
Down to your deathbed
And I’ll stand o’er your grave
‘Til I’m sure that you’re dead
It was probably not until 1999 that I first heard Shelter From The Storm and the “Blood On The Tracks” album. That’s the time I remember trying to figure out how to play it. I heard it on FlashForward the other night and with the weather we’ve been having lately it reminded me of a storm I encountered in August. It’s a while since I played it – or played anything for that matter – and my finger tips were raw by the end of it.
I didn’t realise back then that it’s an open tuning, so my version is a little different from the original and slower. And my voice is obviously nothing in comparison to Dylan’s, which I hear now very differently. But I enjoy playing it and this is probably the best I’ve sung it!
