Jan 14: Bob Dylan – The Second Recording Session for “Bringing It All Back Home” in 1965


bob dylan bringing it all back home

….Bringing It All Back Home, that was like a break through point, it’s the kind of music I’ve been striving to make and I believe that in time people will see that. It’s hard to explain it, it’s that indefinable thing..
~Bob Dylan (Paul Gambaccini Interview, Jun. 1981)

The first session didn’t result in any master versions… but on the second session Dylan nailed 5 masters: Love Minus Zero/No Limit, Subterranean Homesick Blues, Outlaw Blues, She Belongs To Me & Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream

Some background from wikipedia:

Bringing It All Back Home is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released in March 1965 by Columbia Records. The album is divided into an electric and an acoustic side. On side one of the original LP, Dylan is backed by an electric rock and roll band—a move that further alienated him from some of his former peers in the folk song community. Likewise, on the acoustic second side of the album, he distanced himself from the protest songs with which he had become closely identified (such as “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall”), as his lyrics continued their trend towards the abstract and personal.

The album reached No. 6 on Billboard’s Pop Albums chart, the first of Dylan’s LPs to break into the US top 10. It also topped the UK charts later that Spring. The lead-off track, “Subterranean Homesick Blues”, became Dylan’s first single to chart in the US, peaking at #39.

bd 1965_11

 

..Dylan and Wilson held another session at Studio B the following day, this time with a full, electric band. Guitarists Al Gorgoni, Kenny Rankin, and Bruce Langhorne were recruited, as were pianist Paul Griffin, bassists Joseph Macho, Jr. and William E. Lee, and drummer Bobby Gregg. The day’s work focused on eight songs, all of which had been attempted the previous day. According to Langhorne, there was no rehearsal, “we just did first takes and I remember that, for what it was, it was amazingly intuitive and successful.” Few takes were required of each song, and after three-and-a-half hours of recording (lasting from 2:30 pm to 6:00 pm), master takes of “Love Minus Zero/No Limit,” “Subterranean Homesick Blues,” “Outlaw Blues,” “She Belongs To Me,” and “Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream” were all recorded and selected for the final album.

Sometime after dinner, Dylan reportedly continued recording with a different set of musicians, including John Hammond, Jr. and John Sebastian (only Langhorne returned from earlier that day). They recorded six songs, but the results were deemed unsatisfactory and ultimately rejected.

My thoughts, my personal needs have always been expressed through my songs; you can feel them there even in ‘Mr Tambourine Man’. When I write a song, when I make a record, I don’t think about whether it’ll sell millions of copies. I only think about making it, the musical end-product, the sound, and the rhythmic effect of the words.
~Bob Dylan (to Sandra Jones, June 1981)

BD - BIABH
Dylan & Bruce Langhorne

Studio A
Columbia Recording Studios
New York City, New York
January 14, 1965
2:30-6:00 and 7:00-10:00 pm.

Produced by Tom Wilson.
Engineers: Hallie and Catero.

Songs:

  1. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
  2. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
    First released on Bringing It all Back Home, 22 March 1965.
    “Love Minus Zero” seems to be one of those songs he is still proud he wrote. Ultra-keen to perform it live, he has made it an acoustic evergreenfrom this point forward, ..
    ~Clinton Heylin (Revolution in the Air)

  3. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
  4. Subterranean Homesick Blues
  5. Subterranean Homesick Blues
  6. Subterranean Homesick Blues
    First released on Bringing It all Back Home, 22 March 1965.
    ..90% of the power of the recording is in the phenomenal energy & intelligence of Dylan’s vocal performance
    ~Paul Williams (BD Performing Artist 1960-73)

    Subterranean Homesick Blues can be heard as a brilliant earaly example of rap music
    ~Paul Williams (BD Performing Artist 1960-73)

  • Outlaw Blues
  • Outlaw Blues
  • Outlaw Blues
  • Outlaw Blues
    First released on Bringing It all Back Home, 22 March 1965.
    On September 20, 2007, Dylan played this song live in concert for the first time during a show in Nashville. He was joined onstage for the performance by Jack White of The White Stripes.
    -Wikipedia

    Spotify:
  • She Belongs To Me
  • She Belongs To Me
    First released on Bringing It all Back Home, 22 March 1965.
    It was one of the first anti-love songs and one of Dylan’s first of many songs that describe a “witchy woman”. The song may be about fellow folk singer Joan Baez or experimental artist Nico.
    ~Wikipedia
    Spotify:

    In a 2005 reader’s poll reported in Mojo, She Belongs to Me was listed as the #98 all time Bob Dylan song, and a similar poll of artists ranked the song #53. In 2002, Uncut listed it as the #14 all time Bob Dylan song.
    ~Wikipedia
  • Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream (intro included on BIABH)
  • Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream
    First released on Bringing It all Back Home, 22 March 1965.
    Why did you laugh at the start of Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream on your LP?
    I don’t remember… Well, wait a bit… Yeah… somebody entered the studio disguised, looking like my mother. Yes, that was it. I just started laughing.
    ~Bob Dylan (Press Conference, April 1966)

    Spotify:
  • On The Road Again
  • On The Road Again
  • On The Road Again
  • On The Road Again
  • Love Minus Zero/No Limit
  • I’ll Keep It With Mine
  • It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
  • Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream
  • She Belongs To Me
  • Subterranean Homesick Blues

 

BD - BIABH2

Personnel:

1-18

  • Bob Dylan (guitar, harmonica, vocal)
  • Al Gorgoni (guitar)
  • Kenneth Rankin (guitar)
  • Bruce Langhorne (guitar)
  • Joseph Macho Jr. (bass)
  • William E. Lee (bass)
  • Bobby Gregg (drums)
  • Paul Griffin (piano)

19-24

  • Bob Dylan (guitar, harmonica, vocal)
  • John Hammond Jr. (guitar)
  • Bruce Langhorne (guitar)
  • John Sebastian (bass)
  • John Boone (bass)

Related articles @ Alldylan:

References:

-Egil

8 thoughts on “Jan 14: Bob Dylan – The Second Recording Session for “Bringing It All Back Home” in 1965”

  1. It’s possible – even likely – that the takes of Outlaw Blues were the first time Dylan played an electric guitar in the studio with the tapes rolling. CBS had just bought Fender Musical Instruments and had shipped a selection of guitars and amplifiers to the NYC studio for people like Dylan to use.

Comments are closed.