As I searched for songs from Dylan performances to celebrated his 80th birthday this month, my most delightful find was his rendition of Stephen Foster's, "Hard Times," written in 1854. Bob performed this one at Willie Nelson's 60th birthday television special. He is accompanied by John Jackson (guitar), Tony Garnier (bass), Bucky Baxter (accordion) & Marty Stuart (mandolin).
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| Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, and Tom Petty at Farm Aid, 1995 |
During the month of May, I've been celebrating Bob Dylan's 80th Birthday (May 24) by featuring videos of Bob as he is accompanied by another artist in a duet. If you missed any, or want to hear one again, here is the list:
With God on Our Side (with Joan Baez)
Crossroads (with Eric Clapton)
One Irish Rover (with Van Morrison)
The Times They Are a-Changin' (with a fan from the audience)
The Sound of Silence (with Paul Simon)
Abraham, Martin, and John (with Clydie King)
Pancho and Lefty (with Willie Nelson)
One Too Many Mornings (with Johnny Cash)
Knockin' On Heaven's Door (with Tom Petty)
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| NATIONAL ARCHIVES/HULTON ARCHIVES/GETTY IMAGES |
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We're celebrating Bob Dylan's 80th birthday this month by highlighting a few duets. This one was the final number in the Hard to Handle concert film. Bob Dylan was backed by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers during their Australian tour in 1986.
*Author's note: The poem featured this week, though in the traditional format of a haiku, is actually a senryu. Senryu tend to be about human traits and foibles while haiku are centered upon nature and have a seasonal reference.
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Image Choir singing, stock photo
A great song from Bob Dylan's Nashville recording sessions. Dylan's "One Too Many Mornings" is a natural for Johnny Cash in this duet by two American songwriting icons.
Patti Smith joins Bob Dylan in a 1995 concert to perform "Dark Eyes." Years later, Patti Smith would go to Stockholm in 2016 to accept Dylan's Nobel Prize for him.
Continuing our feature of duets during Bob Dylan's birthday month
Bob Dylan
& Willie Nelson perform "Pancho
And Lefty" (recorded April 28,1993 for Willie Nelson's birthday television
special, The Big Six-0). The song,
written by country music artist Townes Van Zandt, tells the story of a Mexican
bandit named Pancho and a more enigmatic character, Lefty. The lyrics tell of
Pancho's death, implying that he was betrayed by his associate Lefty who was
paid off by the Mexican federales.
This month I'm featuring some Dylan duets to celebrate Bob Dylan's 80th birthday month. This one is unusual in that an audience member was able to walk up on stage in The Netherlands and join Bob in singing "The Times They Are a-Changin'."
Continuing our feature of duets during Bob Dylan's birthday month
"Bob Dylan and Van Morrison Sing Together in Athens, on Historic Hill Overlooking the Acropolis"
*The inspiration for this poem came from an online article telling about how Bob Dylan keeps welding supplies at his home in Malibu where he creates iron gates from scrap pieces of metal. Some of his welding work has been on display at London’s Halcyon Gallery.This month, as we look toward Bob Dylan's 80th birthday, I am looking at some of his duets. This one is from the 1963 Newport Folk Festival with Joan Baez joining Bob singing "With God on Our Side."
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It was in 1991 that Bob Dylan was given the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammys. Jack Nicholson gives a spot-on introduction followed by a video retrospective and then a performance by the man himself.
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