Dylan records two 35-minute TV programs for the BBC, which had outbid Granada for a Dylan TV special, only to then have a delay brought on by Dylan’s illness. During the rehearsals for the show, he tries an acoustic “Maggie’s Farm,” but decides not to attempt it for the shows. The BBC film one of the songs at rehearsal, “Mr. Tambourine Man,” but the footage is later destroyed. The two programs feature 12 songs, including three not featured in the then-current repertoire: “Ballad of Hollis Brown,” “One Too Many Mornings,” and “Boots of Spanish Leather.” Except for these three songs, the shows concentrate on newer material, featuring only “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll” and “It Ain’t Me, Babe” from the first four albums.
~Clinton Heylin (Bob Dylan: A Life in Stolen Moments Day by Day 1941-1995)
..recording two half-hour TV shows for the BBC on June I; the twelve acoustic performances survive on audio but not videotape. The performances are fairly routine, uninspired, with the exception of “One Too Many Mornings” which is fresh and passionate. Dylan must have really felt a thousand miles behind by this point.
In hindsight, the BBC-TV filming was the last stand of Bob Dylan, folk star. When he arrived back in the States the Byrds’ version of “Mr. Tambourine Man” was at the top of the charts.
~Paul Williams (Bob Dylan Performing Artist I: The Early Years 1960-1973)
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