Bob Dylan's Unreleased Songs
Folk Music Icon still has 1960s classic Songs unavailable on CD
Sep 17, 2008
One of the defining acts of popular music for more than four decades, Bob Dylan maintains one of the most extensive songbooks in Western music. The most highly bootlegged artist in history, his backlog can perhaps only be matched by 2pac in the 1990s. Bob Dylan, in the early 1960s at his songwriting zenith, was writing originals or singing standards daily, and many of them remain unreleased. Among the following, all 10 can be found through internet file sharing or through unofficial Bob Dylan bootlegs.
Dusty Old FairgroundsThis Bob Dylan unreleased composition was first performed on 12 April 1963 at the famous New York Town Hall Concert. A rolling song with a carnival feel, the song is a fast-paced acoustic exercise, describing exactly what the title indicates it might.
Wade in the Water
Recorded in May 1961 at a friend’s hotel room, and known as a part of the Minnesota Tapes, Bob Dylan’s "Wade in the Water" is a slow blues unique to Dylan at the time. Featuring fierce vocals and a prominent slide guitar, the song is a traditional composition.
Poor Lazarus
This unreleased song finds Dylan in top 1963-form with a slow acoustic ballad. Another traditional recording from the Minnesota Tapes, "Poor Lazarus" is a biblical epic with a haunting chorus: “Go an’ get me Lazarus/Dead or alive, dead or alive.”
Rocks and gravel
Recorded in October 1962 at the Gaslight in New York, “Rocks and Gravel” is Bob Dylan’s most famous composition from his renowned Gaslight Tapes. Another traditional ballad, the song is a rambler’s blues.
The Death of Emmett Till
Bob Dylan proved his topical prowess in 1962 with this Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan outtake. Recorded as a Witmark demo, this song protests the killing of a black child and the subsequent release of his killers.
I’d Hate to Be You (On That Dreadful Day)
Another Bob Dylan composition, this song was recorded in 1963, also as a Witmark demo. It is playful with an acoustic guitar, and features a sarcastic Bob Dylan lyric set, including the lines: “Well, your clock is gonna stop at St. Peter’s gate/You’re gonna ask him what time it is/He’s gonna say, ‘It’s too late.’”
A Long Time A-Growing
This song, an unreleased Irish traditional ballad, was originally popularized by the Clancy Brothers. Sung by Bob Dylan in November 1961, it was a part of the first set of Minnesota Tapes, and features Dylan in a sweetly singing mood with an acoustic guitar.
Milk Cow Calf’s Blues
Recorded on 25 April 1962, this Bob Dylan outtake is also from the Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan sessions, and is a Robert Johnson original. It was done by Dylan together with other covers “Wichita Blues” and “That’s All Right Mama.”
Lonesome Whistle Blues
Originally written and recorded by Hank Williams, who had a large impact on Bob Dylan’s career, “Lonesome Whistle Blues” was recorded as a near-replica of the original in 1963. It features a country-twanged vocal by Dylan and an easy acoustic guitar.
Train A-Travelin’
First recorded in May 1962 for a Broadside radio show, “Train A-Travelin” was an unreleased song written by Bob Dylan. An obvious homage to hero Woody Guthrie, the song was sung by Dylan at the March on Washington on 23 August 1963.
These songs, though not commercially available on official release, can be found by the resourceful Bob Dylan fan. Whether through networks like Limewire, or on one of many very widely circulated bootlegs available through trading like the Minnesota Tapes, the Bob Dylan backlog is among the easiest in music to find.
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