Ryan Adams - Blood On The Tracks (2022)

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Dylan by Adams

Many artists have covered Bob Dylan songs, some have even released a Dylan song before Dylan himself (the Byrds with “Mr Tambourine Man”), some have recorded albums gathering their favorite Dylan songs, like Bryan Ferry (“Dylanesque”, 2007), ex-Steve Miller Band Ben Sidran (“Dylan Different, 2009), Texas guitarist Denny Freeman (“Diggin' On Dylan”, 2012) or the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (“Dirt Does Dylan”, 2022), but none had covered an entire Dylan album, especially not the cult “Blood on the Tracks” (BotT). The only ones who gave it a try (a few did) are rather obscure musicians as the numerous videos I compiled for this page prove.

Ryan Adams

Ryan Adams dared, and the result is brilliant. I confess that if I knew him by name, I had never listened to any of his work. I didn't even know he was admiring Dylan so much nor that BotT was his “favorite album of all time”. By the way, when Dylan recorded BotT, in September 1974, Adams was not born yet. He was a few weeks later, on November 5, 1974.

God knows that despite its apparent simplicity, BotT must not be easy to revisit without inevitably falling in mere low quality imitation, or worse, in pure slaughter. It takes balls to dare tackle such a monument. And not just one or two songs, but the whole ten. Adams' attempt result is an outstanding work. Honestly, it's the first time I'm not cruelly disappointed by a cover of Dylan, all the more a whole album, and particularly this one !

One of the reasons why he won his bold bet is that, at least musically, he's an intelligent man. He remained himself as a musician, not even trying to sing with the inimitable Dylan's voice, keeping his natural vocal texture and making it totally credible. He gave “his” vision of the album with “his” arrangements, not hesitating to use modern techno-sonic devices. For example the outro on “You're A Big Girl Now” could be a Tangerine Dream-like piece of electro music, or the long “acid” guitar parts at the end of “Shelter From The Storm” and “Buckets Of Rain” remind the late 1960s-early 1970s period of the Grateful Dead (with whom Dylan actually toured and recorded the live album “Dylan & The Dead”, 1988).

His own producer, on his own label, alone with his instruments and his digital paraphernalia, the multi-instrumentalist Adams was totally free to do and re-do what he wanted to do as he felt it. Mixing the crystal tone of acoustic guitars (except on the greasy blues version of “Meet Me In The Morning”) with prominent keyboards, largely using reverb effects, giving to most of the songs a rocking beat through rhythm boxes and pre-recorded bass lines, he created a rich sonic lacework to shelter (from the storm) Dylan's poetry.

All along the album, his deep respect and admiration for Dylan's words are obvious, and in spite of all the instrumental liberty he took, he never betrays the sorrowful spirit of the Dylan originals. If you compare both album song by song, you'll realize that this is a true achievement ! ■

THE ORIGINAL
► Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks (playlist) : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKcNyMBw818&list=OLAK5uy_lvz0faaZfaiCiyx9wWnvEl84d__8vIUT8

► The Poetry : https://www.bobdylan.com/albums/blood-tracks/ (click on each track to see the words)

► The live tracks
■ “Tangled Up In Blue”
→ The Rolling Thunder Revue tour, 1976 : https://youtu.be/YwSZvHqf9qM
→ England, 1995 : https://youtu.be/jHqV01NSa74
→ Minneapolis, MN, 1998 : https://youtu.be/aZddRbEF-v4
→ Birmingham, England. 2000 : https://youtu.be/aoULACY8OQA
→ With Mark Knopfler, Brooklyn, NYC, 2012 : https://youtu.be/4gCSQhImtbo
→ Oslo, Norway, 2015 : https://youtu.be/ZzyeRu16kFE

■ “Simple Twist of Fate”
→ Bonn, Germany, 2012 : https://youtu.be/l0KQHoa216c
→ Gran Rex, Paris, France, 2012 : https://youtu.be/emn3TXqeHY0
→ Las Vegas, October 13, 2016, the very day of the announcement he had won the 2016 Nobel Prize for Literature : https://youtu.be/c8PD3TfB7As

■ “You're A Big Girl Now”
→ Dunkerque, France, 1992 : https://youtu.be/zhM2ftysvPY
→ Madison Square Gardens, NYC, 1998 : https://youtu.be/-20hoILiMNQ
→ Harbor Yard, Bridgeport, CT, 2007 : https://youtu.be/HaREedXE7G4

The Rolling Thunder Revue tour, 1976

■ “Idiot Wind”
→ The Rolling Thunder Revue tour, 1976 : https://youtu.be/w8DylAtPF0I
→ Toronto, 1992 : https://youtu.be/GD7PX_WVFHc
→ Berkeley, CA, 1992 : https://youtu.be/Pr_-gKAUsjg
→ Hamilton, Ontario, 1992 : https://youtu.be/zvgZUiAYWzY

■ “If You See Her, Say Hello”
→ Palace Theater, New Haven, CT, 1994 : https://youtu.be/Y-qn6sGqnic
→ Paris, 1994 : https://youtu.be/fr5fiY2UEuI
→ Brixton Academy, London, England, 1995 : https://youtu.be/J6db0gGzxyI
→ London, 2002 : https://youtu.be/omb4IalFqF0

■ “Shelter from the Storm”
→ Fort Collins, Colorado, 1976  : https://youtu.be/12rUOLtbQDk
→ With Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. London, 1987 : https://youtu.be/0MXPF3EDlpo
→ Massachusetts, 1992 : https://youtu.be/7iMmzAcuiDg

► Bob Dylan's More Blood, More Tracks: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 14 (playlist) : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLx252NeXW5_pou3aVbr_GKYHHzZ52hTAf

► Audio - Less Blood, Less Tracks Vol. 1 (A Response To Bootleg Series Vol. 14), live performances of BotT songs (sources mentioned below video) : https://youtu.be/YzY9HbAgB0Q


► Documentary-interview of Minnesota musician Paul Metsa and some of the musicians who played on BotT, 2018 :
→ #1 : https://youtu.be/1logo5L25ts
→ #2 : https://youtu.be/H5E5OAG-4_8
→ #3 : https://youtu.be/YXqKSFqWUVk

THE COVERS...
... by famous artists or anonymous amateurs, inspired or not really… Interesting to compare to Ryan Adams' album.

Tomek Dyniak

→ Those who dared the full album
► Audio - “Even More Blood On The Tracks”, a track by track re-recording of Bob Dylan's album by the British Columbia group The MinchMins, 2020 : https://youtu.be/q08xGNE5FsI
► The rather classic Mary Lee's Corvette band live cover of the whole album, 2002 : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mhVtPZ4zOed9hij98zv8cClSIyupclTz0
► The full album cover by Tomek Dyniak from Poland, 2021 : https://youtu.be/B00g1e02TRE
► And that of Almost Blue/ScruffySinger, 2020 : https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_BgPhLurorxI-GB_PbCzabmp5eWQ2Bgw

KT Tunstall

→ Those who did just a few songs
► “Tangled Up In Blue”
→ KT Tunstall, Barbizon Theater, London, 2005 : https://youtu.be/M-sdCTq_2Yk?list=RDM-sdCTq_2Yk
→ Nonprofit organization Guitars For Vets, St. Louis Park, MN, 2009  : https://youtu.be/WjDh2jlZ2Yk

Bryan Ferry

► “Simple Twist Of Fate”
→ Jerry Garcia Band, Capitol Theatre, Passaic, NJ, 1980 : https://youtu.be/-CVziimn4vU
→ KT Tunstall, Barbizon Theater, London, 2005 : https://youtu.be/UOidLIoVNgc
→ Sean Costello, The Living Room, NYC, 2006 : https://youtu.be/7q2k3ZFgmV4
→ Bryan Ferry, 2010 : https://youtu.be/IsXxRlGwu7U

Jerry Garcia

→ Jerry Garcia Band, 2011 : https://youtu.be/dxEsBAPleRY
→ Sarah Jarosz, Eugene, OR, 2012 : https://youtu.be/BEJlfcYpMcM
→ Diana Krall, Greek Theater, Los Angeles, 2013 : https://youtu.be/TnuhpWRsdW0
→ Charlie Daniels Band, SiriusXM, 2014 : https://youtu.be/NmT6EQWBWtw
→ By amateur Brahim Hikmi, 2015 : https://youtu.be/x8Xtz31t6PU
→ Margot Cotten, 2019 : https://youtu.be/MaXJs3RHljI
→ Billy Strings, New Orleans, 2022 : https://youtu.be/7PyR0aiQV8c

Margot Cotten

► “You're A Big Girl Now”
→ Margot Cotten, 2019 : https://youtu.be/wVU3oBMeTZI
→ Anton & the Colts, Bristol, UK, 2019 : https://youtu.be/D7LQTaLqyKk
→ Lauren Barth & Jesse Aycock, Joplin, MO, 2017 : https://youtu.be/Nh-6yruOTCk

Lucinda Williams

► “Idiot Wind”
→ Kevin Magoon, 2009 : https://youtu.be/y6sBdD7VuoM
→ Lucinda Williams, 2021 : https://youtu.be/HvZBikmnKbg
→ Jesse White, 2018 : https://youtu.be/C0IS0Nkfacw
→ Mark Rankin, 2015 : https://youtu.be/1mfOVTRptew

► “You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go”
→ Miley Cyrus & Johnzo West, 2012 : https://youtu.be/1nGZW8JUo80

Jimmy LaFave

→ Emily Cavanagh, 2017 : https://youtu.be/HgFkRTduoO4
→ My Bubba, Pickathon, 2017 : https://youtu.be/Y6cCy8qmoWs
→ Jimmy LaFave, Austin, TX, 2017 : https://youtu.be/zxtPrfuMYZI
→ Caroline Cotter, Riverwalk Cafe, Nashua, NH, 2018 : https://youtu.be/q9ACUqpFJ0I
→ Shawn Colvin, World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, 2019 : https://youtu.be/tNsFgYnRDRs
→ George-Clements, 2020 : https://youtu.be/3iKI9r6-fFQ

Freddie King

► “Meet Me In The Morning”
→ Audio - Freddie King, 1975 : https://youtu.be/0ItEpECxI0o
→ Peter McConnel, 2012 : https://youtu.be/m7AD04kjVhs
→ Amy Helm & Friends, Mountain Jam Festival, 2013 : https://youtu.be/rg5QCcX-GEI
→ AJ Lee & Blue Summit, Kate Wolf Music Festival, 2018 : https://youtu.be/U9b1XCWM-rU
→ Lukas Nelson & Promise Of The Real, 2021 : https://youtu.be/RY_ikde28oU
→ John Primer, Sainte-Tulle, France, 2021 : https://youtu.be/ZCCEIE32uak
→ Lucinda Williams, 2022 : https://youtu.be/9VddGz52T6U

Stanley Maxwell band

► “Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts”
→ Martin Devaney, Minneapolis, 2004 : https://youtu.be/O9hTVAjdrbE
→ Stanley Maxwell and guests, The Main Pub, Manchester, CT, 2013 (sound sync problem) : https://youtu.be/gvIWR8xA63A
→ Shawn Freeman, 2013 : https://youtu.be/9j9HLEwezt0
→ Robyn Hitchcock, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, 2017 : https://youtu.be/0-usf7J0T4M
→ John Witherspoon, 2020 : https://youtu.be/OCXwJk2JWsE

Anton & The Colts

→ Anton & The Colts, 2020 : https://youtu.be/7877VJtjccI
→ Reading ! Josh Murphy , 2020 (“I decided to cover the entirety of Bob Dylan's album "Blood on the Tracks". I also decided to read the lyrics to this song instead of perform it”) : https://youtu.be/LTQkS6juIz0
Murphy's covers of the other tracks of BotT are on his page : https://www.youtube.com/@joshmurphy5994/videos
→ JT Steam, ukulele cover, 2022 : https://youtu.be/0j-T336Zdvk

Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell

► “If You See Her, Say Hello”
→ Audio - Jeff Buckley, Bearsville Studio, 1993 : https://youtu.be/I4Osr2qt6mc
→ Jason Herr, 2009 : https://youtu.be/Cv12aX0Yrkg
→ Shane Mead, 2021 : https://youtu.be/cPlFprWtWFI
→ “hubcapsc”, 2021 : https://youtu.be/RJz2Yde6UpM
→ Nordic Analog, 2021 : https://youtu.be/_go3Rtimsc8
→ Jules Pellatt, 2021 :https://youtu.be/a3eqZAletg8
→ Mark Boronkay, 2022 : https://youtu.be/RrA63-XpJao

Barcelona: anonymous busker from Sardinia

► “Shelter from the Storm”
→ Rodney Crowell & Emmylou Harris, 2006 : https://youtu.be/z8N6lrDiKuI
→ Ben O'Neill, 2014 : https://youtu.be/BAXAveJUUjE
→ Jeremy Loops, 2014 : https://youtu.be/8EJojIEP70I
→ Tribute Band "Dylan On The Rocks", 2014 : https://youtu.be/OkGMXVxwGoU
→ Anonymous artist from Sardinia (Italy), Barcelona, Spain, 2015 : https://youtu.be/rBE82nVh06Y
→ Claire Anne Taylor, 2015 : https://youtu.be/hQcSLfEWM74
→ Larry Wilkins, 2016 : https://youtu.be/_fxwEdgdqHM
→ Anthony Arya and Lindsey Wall, Santa Cruz, CA, 2020 : https://youtu.be/xvC70Ol8CXI
→ Alex Hamel, 2020 : https://youtu.be/bY_6cFDJhzo

Chris Wilson busking in Dublin

→ Holly Wood, 2020 : https://youtu.be/vyJ6IJkk6mU
→ Scott Law, 2020 : https://youtu.be/0Xv9jiGutTw
→ The Belle Curves, 2020 : https://youtu.be/RVo71tvuz4Q
→ Chris Wilson busking in Dublin, Ireland, 2021 : https://youtu.be/GS8kpi759Kg

John Mayer

→ David Cooke birthday present for Dylan 80th birthday, 2021 : https://youtu.be/8bBvdMJzBCs
→ Manfred Dalton, 2022 : https://youtu.be/iyyVny1J9Lc

► “Buckets of Rain”
→ John Mayer, Budokan, Tokyo, 2019 : https://youtu.be/4JaPS0OLPVA
→ David Brothers, 2014 : https://youtu.be/QNDym7RpGpc

Marcus King

→ Derek McLoughlin, 2023 : https://youtu.be/sfDMzeP_5Js

■ This “Blood on the Tracks” has nothing to do with Dylan, it's a song by the fatty baby face guitar-slinger Marcus King (2022) :
→ electric : https://youtu.be/uGcIV1XAik0
→ acoustic : https://youtu.be/-Cr4L-IOQnY
→ live : https://youtu.be/8p4ZP5MIsaY

Soon 82. Hats off Mr Dylan !