Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan - The songs he didn't write

Bob Dylan: Two live versions of Merle Haggard’s “Sing Me Back Home” (audio & video)

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Merle Haggard passed away on his birthday, yesterday.

Check out: R.I.P. Merle Haggard

Sing me back home with a song I used to hear
Make my old memories come alive
Take me away and turn back the years
Sing Me Back Home before I die

Bob Dylan has only covered 2 Merle Haggard songs; Sing Me Back Home & Branded Man.

Branded Man was recorded at Sunset Sound Studios in Hollywood, California, in March /April 1987 during the “Down In The Groove” album sessions. This recording was not
released on the final album and does not circulate among collectors, he’s nevere performed it live.. yet.

Sing Me Back Home was played live the first time at the 2004
Bonnaroo Music Festival on June 11, 2004. And it was played 9 times in 2005.

Here are two of them:

Bonnaroo Music Festival
Manchester, Tennessee
11 June 2004

  • Bob Dylan (vocal & piano)
  • Stu Kimball (guitar)
  • Larry Campbell (guitar, mandolin, pedal steel guitar & electric slide guitar)
  • Tony Garnier (bass)
  • George Recile (drums & percussion)

Audio:

–

Paramount Theatre
Seattle, Washington
7 March 2005

  • Bob Dylan (vocal & piano)
  • Stu Kimball (guitar)
  • Denny Freeman (guitar)
  • Donnie Herron (violin, mandolin, pedal steel guitar)
  • Elana Fremerman (violin)
  • Tony Garnier (bass)
  • George Recile (drums & percussion)

Audio:

–

Video (missing first 90s)

–

Lyrics

he warden led a prisoner down the hallway to his doom
I stood up to say good-bye like all the rest
And I heard him tell the warden just before he reached my cell
‘Let my guitar playing friend do my request.’ (Let him…)

Sing me back home with a song I used to hear
Make my old memories come alive
Take me away and turn back the years
Sing Me Back Home before I die

I recall last Sunday morning a choir from ‘cross the street
Came to sing a few old gospel songs
And I heard him tell the singers ‘There’s a song my mama sang.
Can I hear once before we move along?’

Sing me back home, the song my mama sang
Make my old memories come alive
Take me away and turn back the years
Sing Me Back Home before I die

Sing Me Back Home before I die

 

Check out:

-Egil

4 thoughts on “Bob Dylan: Two live versions of Merle Haggard’s “Sing Me Back Home” (audio & video)”

  2. Thanks for digging those up. I’ve always loved that song from Bonnaroo.

  3. Tone of Merle Haggard (quite hard to duplicate ) surprised how well Bob emulates Merle’s tone of voice both times he sings Merle ‘s ” Sing me back home “. They both have very unique singing voices , that are generally difficult for anyone else to copy ! R.I.P
    Loved Merle’s voice ⛪️

    1. Kieth Richards of the Rolling Stones, who admired Haggard’s work years before they met, has a version on You Tube that I listened to for the first time today. Quite amazing!

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