Bob Dylan in We Are the World - Revisited

 Last year I jokingly posted this video.

A friend recommended "The Greatest Night in Pop," a documentary about the making of "We Are the World" and I have a theory about what's going on.

Quincy Jones was the producer for the song and when all the stars are assembled in their choir formation, he instructs them, if the song goes outside your range, don't make an attempt, don't sing a harmony, just stop singing. The idea is, there are so many voices, no one will miss any particular one so don't force it.

I don't think I can get inside Bob Dylan's head and predict what he thinks but it's possible that he thought, "There isn't a single note in this song in my range so I'm just gonna sit out."

Late Night - Looking Back at Bob Dylan's Performance

 Dave recalls Bob Dylan coming on the show to perform "Like a Rolling Stone."

And here is the performance itself.

Dave's explanation that maybe Dylan was upset to have such a grand setup doesn't make sense to me but I don't claim to know what Bob Dylan is thinking in any way. My own interpretation is that this is what Bob Dylan usually does.

Popcorn in Bed - Silver Linings Playbook

 

"Oh my gosh, if the Eagles lose everyone is gonna be in deep depression."

Cassie's ability to distill my entire life and community down to one simple sentence is unbelievably impressive.

I love this movie. It's so well made that it actually succeeds in making me care about a dance competition, it's just that amazing.

And an additional note... I had forgotten that it features Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan doing "The Girl from the North Country." Here's that song.

Dylan and Cash got together to record a few songs in a very rough, informal session. Very shambolic and haphazard. I have a bootleg (can't find it online anywhere, maybe it was a Napster hoax) where "they" do "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" and Cash does all the singing because Dylan doesn't know the words. It ends with Cash saying, "What's one you know, Bob?"

Bob Dylan in We Are The World...

 

Tonight Show - Bob Dylan

I don't know how The Tonight Show can get a guest like 60s era Bob Dylan, but somehow they do. All I know is he's covering a song that I've never heard before and also that he's gone electric... so I guess we should boo him... and it's time for Levon to go work on an oil rig or something.

[Original Link Broken]

Buddy Lembeck Meets Woodie Guthrie

Long lost footage of Bob Dylan singing an unreleased song was recently restored and premiered on Late Night. Interesting, historical stuff.

[Original Video Link Broken]

Apparently song was considered lost because someone spilled blood on the track.