Rolling Stone Magazine has published a list of their top 70 Bob Dylan songs (and a few variant versions, mostly live versions, or bootleg versions with The Band in their Woodstock hoedown days) in the print edition called The 70 Greatest Dylan Songs – online has different lists, and their top ten Dylan songs. Of course I had to make an iTunes playlist for these songs, and am listening to it now.
Is Like A Rolling Stone my favorite Dylan song? No, probably not, but if I haven’t heard it in a while, I can appreciate it for the revolutionary track it is…
The next issue of Rolling Stone – on stands and in the digital archive on May 13th – celebrates Bob Dylan’s 70th birthday (happening on May 24th) by ranking his 70 greatest songs. Bono, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jim James and many other artists discuss their favorite Dylan tracks. “Every songwriter after him carries his baggage,” Bono writes. “This lowly Irish bard would proudly carry his baggage. Any day.”
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Selected in Playlist: 70 Dylan 93 songs, 7:35:24.839935302734 total time, 716.9 MB |
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| # | Title | Album | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Like A Rolling Stone |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
2 |
A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall |
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1963 |
|
3 |
Tangled Up In Blue |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
4 |
Just Like A Woman |
Blonde On Blonde [2010 Mono version] |
1966 |
|
5 |
All Along The Watchtower |
John Wesley Harding (2010 Mono Version) |
1967 |
|
6 |
I Shall Be Released |
The Bootleg Series |
1967 |
|
8 |
I Shall Be Released |
The Basement Tapes |
1987 |
|
9 |
It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding) |
Bringing It All Back Home (2010 Mono Version) |
1965 |
|
10 |
Mr. Tambourine Man |
Bringing It All Back Home (2010 Mono Version) |
1965 |
|
12 |
Visions Of Johanna (Take Eight) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 2) |
1965 |
|
13 |
Visions Of Johanna |
Blonde On Blonde [2010 Mono version] |
1966 |
|
14 |
It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue |
Bringing It All Back Home (2010 Mono Version) |
1965 |
|
15 |
It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue (Alternate Take) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 1) |
1965 |
|
16 |
It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue |
Live 1966 |
1966 |
|
18 |
Subterranean Homesick Blues |
Bringing It All Back Home (2010 Mono Version) |
1965 |
|
19 |
Desolation Row |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
20 |
Highway ‘61 Revisited |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
21 |
Simple Twist Of Fate |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
22 |
Positively 4th Street |
Biograph |
1965 |
|
25 |
This Wheel’s On Fire |
The Basement Tapes |
1975 |
|
26 |
Ballad Of A Thin Man |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
27 |
Blind Willie McTell |
The Bootleg Series |
1991 |
|
28 |
Blowin’ In The Wind |
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1963 |
|
29 |
Mississippi |
Love And Theft |
2001 |
|
30 |
Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right |
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1963 |
|
31 |
Forever Young |
Planet Waves |
1974 |
|
32 |
Forever Young (Continued) |
Planet Waves |
1974 |
|
33 |
Lay Lady Lay |
Best Of |
1994 |
|
34 |
Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door |
Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid |
1973 |
|
35 |
Masters Of War |
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1963 |
|
36 |
Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands |
Blonde On Blonde (2010 Mono Version) |
1966 |
|
37 |
The Times They Are A-Changin’ |
The Times They Are A Changin’ (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
38 |
You Ain’t Going Nowhere #1 |
Genuine Basement Tapes (Volume 4) |
1967 |
|
40 |
You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere |
Essential Bob Dylan |
2000 |
|
41 |
Girl From The North Country |
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1963 |
|
42 |
Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window? (single version) |
A Musical History |
1965 |
|
43 |
Chimes Of Freedom |
Another Side Of Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
45 |
Idiot Wind (Unreleased Version) |
The Bootleg Series |
1974 |
|
46 |
Idiot Wind |
Hard Rain |
1976 |
|
47 |
Isis |
Biograph |
1975 |
|
48 |
Isis |
Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue (Bootleg Series Vol. 5) |
1975 |
|
49 |
Isis |
Desire |
1976 |
|
50 |
The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll |
The Times They Are A Changin’ (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
51 |
Maggie’s Farm |
Bringing It All Back Home (2010 Mono Version) |
1965 |
|
52 |
Maggie’s Farm (Newport Folk Festival) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 2) |
1965 |
|
53 |
My Back Pages |
Another Side Of Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
54 |
Hurricane |
Desire |
1976 |
|
55 |
With God On Our Side |
The Times They Are A Changin’ (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
56 |
I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine |
John Wesley Harding (2010 Mono Version) |
1967 |
|
57 |
I’ll Keep It With Mine |
Biograph |
1965 |
|
58 |
I Threw It All Away |
Nashville Skyline |
1969 |
|
59 |
Gotta Serve Somebody |
Slow Train Coming |
1979 |
|
60 |
Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again |
Blonde On Blonde [2010 Mono version] |
1966 |
|
61 |
It Ain’t Me Babe |
Another Side Of Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
62 |
Spanish Harlem Incident |
Another Side Of Bob Dylan |
1964 |
|
63 |
Sara |
Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue (Bootleg Series Vol. 5) |
1975 |
|
64 |
Sara |
Desire |
1976 |
|
65 |
Up To Me |
Biograph |
1985 |
|
66 |
Not Dark Yet |
Time Out Of Mind |
1997 |
|
67 |
Things Have Changed |
The Very Best of Bob Dylan |
2007 |
|
69 |
Tears of Rage #3 |
The Genuine Basement Tapes Vol.2 |
1970 |
|
70 |
Tears Of Rage |
The Basement Tapes |
1975 |
|
71 |
When I Paint My Masterpiece |
A Musical History |
1971 |
|
72 |
4th Time Around |
Blonde On Blonde (2010 Mono Version) |
1966 |
|
73 |
If Not For You |
New Morning |
1970 |
|
74 |
You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
75 |
Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
76 |
Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues (Take 5) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 2) |
1965 |
|
77 |
Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues (Live 5/14/66, The Odeon, Liverpool) |
A Musical History |
1966 |
|
78 |
Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues |
Live 1966 |
1966 |
|
79 |
Percy’s Song |
Biograph |
1963 |
|
80 |
Million Dollar Bash #1 |
The Genuine Basement Tapes Vol. 3 |
1968 |
|
81 |
Million Dollar Bash |
The Basement Tapes |
1975 |
|
82 |
Buckets Of Rain |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
83 |
Buckets of Rain |
Hard Rain |
1975 |
|
84 |
I’m Not There |
Genuine Bootleg Series Vol 2 |
1967 |
|
85 |
It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
86 |
It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry (Take 9) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 2) |
1965 |
|
87 |
Queen Jane Approximately |
Highway 61 Revisited [2010 mono version] |
1965 |
|
88 |
If You See Her, Say Hello |
The Bootleg Series |
1964 |
|
89 |
If You See Her, Say Hello |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
90 |
Abandoned Love |
Biograph |
1975 |
|
91 |
Tough Mama |
Planet Waves |
1974 |
|
92 |
Shelter From The Storm |
Blood On The Tracks |
1975 |
|
93 |
Shelter From The Storm |
Hard Rain |
1976 |
|
94 |
Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat |
Blonde On Blonde [2010 Mono version] |
1966 |
|
95 |
Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat (Take 1) |
Bootleg Series, Vol. 7 No Direction Home (Disc 2) |
1966 |
|
96 |
Every Grain Of Sand |
Shot Of Love |
1981 |
|
97 |
One Too Many Mornings |
The Times They Are A Changin’ (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
|
98 |
One Too Many Mornings |
Live 1966 |
1966 |
|
99 |
One More Cup Of Coffe (Valley Bellow) |
Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue (Bootleg Series Vol. 5) |
1975 |
|
100 |
One More Cup Of Coffee |
Desire |
1976 |
|
101 |
To Ramona |
Another Side Of Bob Dylan (2010 Mono Version) |
1964 |
If you come over to my house, I’ll let you listen to the MP3s. Or even better, pick up the box set called The Original Mono Recordings.
Wow. Amazing list. Good work, Seth. I was glad to see you included Lay Lady Lay. It’s one of my favorites, even though the critics always seem to turn away from it. I’m thinking about doing a list of my own favorite Dylan songs as covered by others. Maybe this weekend.
In the print edition (and not online as far as I could tell), Lenny Kravitz writes a paragraph or two about Lay, Lady, Lay, saying it was the first Dylan song he ever heard, and that he was surprised to hear a second Dylan song, with Dylan’s normal voice.
Nice list! One song not on RS’s list: ‘Rainy Day Women No. 12 & 35’ AKA ‘Everybody Must Get Stoned.’ How can that not be on his Top 70 list? The song was banned by the BBC and many American radio stations, yet in the UK it went to No. 7 & 2 in the US. After ‘Like A Rolling Stone,’ ‘Everybody Must Get Stoned’ is Dylan’s biggest hit ever. It’s got to be one the biggest hit, drug songs ever. Dylan laid himself on the line ahead of his time once again. He was out in front openly blowing the lid off what the world was doing in the backroom in 1966. Dylan on RDW in 1966: “It’s another sort of a North Mexican kind of a thing, uh, very protesty. Very, very protesty. And, uh, one of the protestiest of all things I ever protested against in my protest years…” BONUS: Check Dylan & The Band’s rollicking version on ‘Before The Flood.’ Don’t forget: 12×35=420.
I had (have?) ambitions to add a list of my own favorite Dylan songs – there are several that didn’t make RS’s list, including Rainy Day Women.
For some reason, had never heard the 12×35=420 before, that’s pretty funny actually.
How about “The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar?” That album may have sucked but that song is a bluesy gem.
Or how about “Rollin’ and Tumblin'” on Modern Times? Or anything from Modern Times?
I can see this guy is a folk fan and not a blues fan.
No “Love Sick”?
There are just so many songs to choose from, how do you limit to only 70? I wouldn’t have all of these songs on my list, but I’d have most of them.
Changing of the Guard?