By November 1974 Dylan had cut a test pressing of “Blood On The Tracks” based on his 4 recording sessions in New York (in September), and Columbia was aiming for a pre-christmas release.
Our earlier posts on the “New York Sessions”:
- Blood On The Tracks – First recording session, 16 September 1974
- Blood On The Tracks, Second Recording Session, 17 September 1974
- Blood On The Tracks, 4th Recording Session, 19 September 1974
But after “sleeping on it” & getting advice from his brother David Zimmerman, he decided to re-record several songs @ Minneapolis’ Sound 80 Studios.
Unfortunately, one of the people Dylan had played his test pressing to, his younger brother David, told him that it would never sell, presumably based on the sheer starkness of the sound, rather than the nakedness of his brother’s soul, and convinced him to rerecord half a dozen of the songs in Minneapolis, with a set of local musicians that he would assemble at a studio he knew well, Sound 8o, making himself producer..
~Clinton Heylin (Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited)
Sound 80 Studio
Minneapolis, Minnesota
27 December 1974
Produced by David Zimmerman
Musicians:
- Bob Dylan (vocal, guitar & harmonica)
- Kevin Odegard (guitar)
- Peter Ostroushko (mandolin)
- Billy Peterson (bass)
- Gregg Inhofer (keyboards)
- Bill Berg (drums)
–
- Idiot Wind (rehearsal)
- Idiot Wind
- Idiot Wind
- Idiot Wind
- Idiot Wind
First released on Blood On The Tracks, January 17, 1975
- You’re A Big Girl Now
- You’re A Big Girl Now
First released on Blood On The Tracks, January 17, 1975
Overdubs:
- Bob Dylan: Hammond B-3 organ & vocal punch-ins – Idiot Wind
- Bob Dylan: Guitar – You’re A Big Girl Now
–
Check out:
- Bob Dylan recording sessions
- Alldylan @ Facebook
– - A Simple Twist of Fate: Bob Dylan and the Making of Blood on the Tracks (Andy Gill and Kevin Odegard)
-Egil
I meant WOULD NOT HAVE MEDDLED 😉
I would not agree that it was unfortunate completely. The brilliant ‘stark’ atmosphere of the intended record was a bit of a throw back to old Dylan, though, in spite of most songs being in the same key, it worked and I would have loved it. Yet I would say that the second versions of Idiot Wind, Tangled up in Blue and Lily Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts are all superior and add a new flavor, in the mean time making the album more varied. That said, I wished he would have meddled with the original You’re a Big Girl Now, cause the first one is just plain genius, where the second one is a bit overwrought.
Thanks for a great comment Hans.
I prefer the NY versions of Idiot Wind & Big Girl.
..but their all GREAT.
-Egil