Photo by Charles Steiner ©1966. Many thanks to this legendary photographer for graciously allowing me to use his photo for the cover art. Find his work at www.charliesteiner.com/.
Here is one of the many gems in Dylan's treasure trove of unreleased, unfinished, unpolished, but nonetheless immaculate creations. There's something about this recording that makes me feel like I'm melting.
Some background: During the infamous 1966 European Tour, in which Dylan traveled with The Hawks (later becoming The Band), guitarist Robbie Robertson would usually jam with Dylan in various hotel rooms in between concerts, helping him work out half-baked compositions. Luckily, legendary filmmaker DA Pennebaker managed to capture some of these moments. This piece was recorded at the North British Station Hotel (now the Millennium Hotel) in Glasgow, Scotland, along with three other works in progress; follow the link below to listen to the full session. In my opinion, however, this one is the best of the lot.
I believe the words to this song were improvised on the spot, with perhaps some kind of general blueprint of the vibe. This would make sense, as the words are certainly not up to par with circa 1966 Dylan. It's funny to me, though, that even ad-libbed Dylan lyrics trump that of most of his contemporaries. In that sense, this recording is a testament to Dylan's creative brilliance and efficient songwriting ability.
This is an edit of the original recording (which you can hear below). On the source tape, Dylan and Robertson pause many times to work out the chord progression. I edited these pauses out to create a more complete, polished track. I also upgraded the sound using professional studio software. Hope you enjoy the final product.
If you'd like to hear more of this session:
Full Glasgow Sessions: • Bob Dylan Jamming With...
Music Video For "What Kind of Friend Is This": • Bob Dylan - What Kind ...
Peace & Love,
~SP