Searching For A Gem: News

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"By popular demand", the latest Bob Dylan Rarity News notified to me. If you have any news not shown that will interest site visitors, please contact me here. Please make sure the subject of your message includes the word  "Dylan"- this will ensure it's not put in the trash by my Spam filter. This is absolutely vital - incoming Spam is up to 13,300 messages per day, and I'm sure some of your valuable messages have been missed! Please retry if your message was rejected or if you haven't received a reply.

Bob Dylan to perform at the White House! Thanks to Paul S. Levine for news that Bob is one of the artists scheduled to perform at the White House, Washington, DC, on 10 Feb 2010 in a concert entitled "In Performance at the White House: A Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement". The concert will be streamed live at www.whitehouse.gov from 17:15 ET and televised in the USA on 11 Feb 2010 on public broadcasting stations at 20:00 ET. There will also be a one-hour special from the concert available to be screened nationwide throughout February from 11 Feb 2010 which can also be watched online on www.npr.org/music.

Contacting Bob Dylan

This is a fan site with no connection to Bob and you can't contact him through me! I used to have a postal address that I thought was correct, but I have since been informed by someone who wrote to that address that their mail was returned. I have never had an email address. I can only suggest you contact Bob's publisher Simon & Schuster, or use the contact address at bobdylan.com . I also have no means of helping anyone who wants Bob Dylan's autograph!

For much wider news coverage of interest to Bob Dylan fans, see Karl Erik's amazing "Expecting Rain" site . It's always up-to-date thanks to his astounding dedication!

News and Updates are now two separate pages - for Updates (including all site structure changes), see here.

Revised: 01 February, 2010

24 Jan 2010: Thanks to Fred Muller for news that Fred Bals is also seeking financial assististance to write a book on Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour "Night Time in the Big City: Stories From Bob Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour", for more information see or .

24 Jan 2010: Thanks to Arie de Reus for news that sound engineer Micajah Ryan is writing a book to be called "Working with Dylan, my Memories of Recording Two Albums". Micajah Ryan worked with Bob and producer Debbie Gold on Good As I Been To You and World Gone Wrong in 1992-93. For details on how you can support this project, see

14 Jan 2010: Episode 12, the finale of Season 2 of the HBO TV series "True Blood", screened in the USA on 13 Sep 2009, was called "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'" The Dylan track from Together Through Life was used during the end credits - thanks to Bob Stacy and Harold Lepidus for confirming this.

6 Jan 2010: Thanks to Laurence J. Epstein for information about his "Dylan Watch" article on "Bob Dylan's Voice", see . For information about his forthcoming book "Political Folk Music in America from its Origins to Bob Dylan", see .

31 Dec 2009: Thanks to Michio Kinoshita for news that Sony Music Japan are planning finally to release the 2CD compilation "Dylan Ga Rock [Dylan 'N' Rock]" on 10 Mar 2010. For more details, see 1993.

2 Dec 2009: Thanks to Ian Woodward for news that the UN is releasing a documentary film called "Hard Rain: Our Headlong Collision with Nature" to mark this month's climate change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. The film consists of a live performance by Bob of A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall with images by photographer Mark Edwards. The film will be released on DVD at the start of the conference. Thanks to Larry Crum for confirming the performance is from Carnegie Hall,  New York, 26 Oct 1963, and can currently be found of CD1 of The Bootleg Series Vol. 7 - No Direction Home: The Soundtrack (2005) along with When The Ship Comes In.  For six further songs from Carnegie Hall, see the limited release Bob Dylan Live At Carnegie Hall 1963 (2005). For more information, see . For a BBC News article, see .

26 Nov 2009: Thanks to Harold Lepidus for news that a large number of independent record stores in the USA are giving away the limited edition 7" vinyl single (see 20 Nov 2009) with copies of Christmas In The Heart. For more information and a full list of stores, see .

20 Nov 2009: Thanks to Harold Lepidus for information that Episode 9 of Season 1 of the NBC TV series "FlashForward", "Believe", includes Shelter From The Storm, the live 1976 version from Hard Rain. I'm also told a Bob song has been used in an earlier episode, once at a karaoke bar and then at the end - more information required! Thanks also to Harold for news that skyroo.com are giving away a limited edition 7" vinyl single with copies of Christmas In The Heart. The A-side is Must Be Santa and the B-side is a non-album track, 'Twas The Night Before Christmas. This is taken from Bob Dylan's "Theme Time Radio Hour" Christmas show broadcast on 20 Dec 2006, with Bob reciting the poem and accompanying music performed and written by John Fahey, a guitarist who has released several albums of Christmas music. The poem 'Twas The Night Before Christmas, originally titled "An Account Of A Visit From St. Nicholas", was first published anonymously in the "Sentinel" newspaper, Troy, New York, on 23 Dec 1823. It has been attributed to Clement Clarke Moore and Major Henry Livingston Jr. The poem has been performed by many artists including Perry Como and Aretha Franklin and was also made into a 1974 Rankin-Bass animated film.

30 Oct 2009: Thanks to "Isis" magazine for news that Bob has performed two Woody Guthrie songs, Vigilante Man and Do Re Mi, for inclusion in a documentary film project called "The People Speak" to be broadcast on the History Channel in the USA on 13 Dec 2009. The documentary was inspired by two books: "A People's History of the United States" by Howard Zinn (1980, revised edition 2003) and "Voices of A People's History of the United States", edited by Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove (2004). Apparently only Do Re Mi is included in the broadcast, but Vigilante Man may be included in one of a number of supplementary videos which will be made available online. Thanks to Tim Dunn for info that a CD of “The People Speak” is scheduled for release by Hip-O-Records on 8 Dec 2009, also, Amazon lists a DVD of “The People Speak” to be released by A&E Home Video on 26 Jan 2010 (no details yet).

22 Oct 2009: Thanks to Sophie Kaila of Proud Galleries, Camden, London, for new about limited edition Bob Dylan prints. Sophie says "The Proud Galleries would like to bring your attention to our beautiful collection of limited edition Bob Dylan prints by a selection of world-renowned and celebrated photographers from Jerry Schatzberg and Mark Makin to John Cohen and Elliott Landy. With prices starting from £250 ex VAT your fan members could be part of the elite group of people who own some of the world’s most exciting photography. In response to outstanding interest we couldn’t resist exhibiting a few special images of Bob Dylan in our Best of Proud collection. Please pop down to Proud Camden to take your first look whilst enjoying our outstanding venue adorned by rock royalty throughout. We have a favourite Dylan print shot by the infamous Jerry Schatzberg. It is available from our Proud Camden Gallery for £2000 ex VAT. As one of the most popular privately-owned photographic galleries in the UK, Proud always endeavours to offer an efficient, personalised service for photography fans who care as much as we do about preserving and sharing history’s greatest photographic images.  If you have any questions about our prints, enquiries about forthcoming exhibitions or are simply trying to track down a special image or photographer in the run up to Christmas, please do give me a call and I will be happy to help." Proud Galleries are on +44 (0) 207 482 3867  or email Sophie Kaila.

2 Oct 2009: Thanks to Freddy Ordóñez Araque and Derek Barker for confirming that the singer on Kris Kristofferson's album is Stephen Bruton, not Bob after all. This album will now be added to the Red Herrings page!

1 Oct 2009: Thanks to Sonny Boy McFitzson for news that the Japanese release of Christmas In The Heart Sony Music SICP 2477, 25 Nov 2009, will be the deluxe edition with five greetings cards only, there will be no standard edition in Japan. The price will be ¥2,520 (¥2,400 before sales tax).

Older News

Old news items are kept on here until the rarities referred to actually surface, or until it becomes clear that they're not going to!

20 Mar 2009: The soundtrack for "My Own Love Song", a film by French director Olivier Dahan starring Forest Whitaker and Rene Zellweger, will include Life Is Hard from Bob's new album Together Through Life.

Photo from eBay - the handwritten text is almost unreadable

2 Mar 2009: Thanks to Arie de Reus for information about a UK acetate of I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine and Drifter's Escape from John Wesley Harding on eBay that purports to contain alternate takes to the released versions. Arie doesn't think it's genuine, but to check it out see here.

18 Dec 2008: Thanks to Jack from Canada for information that Sony may be releasing a 2CD Legacy Edition of  Blood On The Tracks with CD1 being the album as released in 1975 and CD2 including the complete withdrawn "New York" version of the album with five replaced tracks, see 1974. More information will be added when available.

15 Dec 2008: Thanks to Gil Walker for news about a tape being auctioned on eBay that was recorded during the Nashville Skyline sessions at Columbia Recording Studios, Nashville, TN, 14 Feb 1969, with five out-takes of Lay, Lady, Lay and a previously uncirculating song Going To Chicago. This has been added to the Starlight in The East "G" page. It has different lyrics from Doc Watson's Going To Chicago Blues, so may be a Dylan original. Thanks to Tim Dunn for information that this tape with five takes of Lay, Lady, Lay is part of what in 1993 were known as "The Lost Warehouse Tapes". These were between 2200 and 3000 reels of tape recorded between 1953 and 1971, discarded by Columbia and acquired by record producer Clark Enslin. Other recordings by Bob are known to be Mr. Bojangles (released on the 1973 Dylan album), Wild Thing, Blue Moon, Ring Of Fire and Take A Message To Mary.

19 May 2008: Ian Woodward's "Wicked Messenger" column in "Isis" issue 138 reports that Bob has put music to some of the "Shoebox Songs" - unpublished lyrics left by Hank Williams in notebooks and papers in a shoebox. Apparently an album featuring Bob and other artists will be released by Sony later this year. Norah Jones performed one of the Shoebox Songs in New York in Mar 2008 with music written by herself. Ian also says a new volume of The Bootleg Series is likely to be released by Columbia/Legacy in Autumn 2008 - this is expected to be a 2CD set of previously officially-unreleased studio material like Vols. 1-3.

14 May 2007: Thanks to Dave Plentus and Harold Lepidus for news that Classic Records are to release a stereo 200gm vinyl version of the withdrawn edition of  The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan with the four replaced tracks (see 1963). This will be released as a 2LP set with the regular version. For more information, see .

26 Sep 2006: Thanks to Harold Lepidus and Jean-Pol Hiernaux for news that Bob's friend from Hibbing, Ric Kangas, is auctioning a three-song tape from 1959 and other memorabilia with a starting price of $25,000. The songs on the tape reel are When I Got Troubles (included in the 2005 release of The Bootleg Series Vol. 7 - No Direction Home), The Frog Song, I Got A New Girl. The site is Heritage Auction Galleries - for more details, see here .

31 Aug 2006: Thanks to Harold Lepidus for news that a forthcoming tribute album to songwriter Peter LaFarge will include Bob's recording of The Ballad Of Ira Hayes from the long-deleted Columbia Dylan album - see 1973.

7 Aug 2006: Thanks to Ian Woodward and others for news that the Royal Festival Hall, London, 17 May 1964 concert is being considered for release as a "mini album" of eight tracks, rather like last year's incomplete "Gaslight Tapes" and "Carnegie Hall" releases. Two of these performances, Mr. Tambourine Man and Eternal Circle, turned up in 2004 on a Fantasy Records acetate of the unreleased 1964 Bob Dylan In Concert album (see 1964 and 2004).

22 Mar 2006: Thanks to Artur Jarosinski for information about Wolfgang's Vault . This is a site primarily selling memorabilia, much from the archives of legendary rock promoter Bill Graham (of the Fillmore East and West), whose actual first name was Wolfgang. The site also has an online radio which plays live performances from Bill Graham's collection, including many with Bob. For more information see here.

Picture from www.christies.com

6 Nov 2005: Christies in Rockefeller Plaza, New York, is auctioning this tape made by Peter McKenzie on Thanksgiving, 1961. It is about 60 mins in length and has seven songs by Bob: Baby, Let Me Follow You Down, San Francisco Bay Blues, You're No Good, House Of The Rising Sun, In My Time Of Dying, Highway 51 and This Land Is Your Land, with two instrumentals and interjections from the McKenzie Family, Suze Rotolo, Kevin Krown, and other people present. The selling price is expected to be between $40,000-60,000! The auction will  take place on 21 Nov 2005. The lot also includes the two microphones used to record the performances (shown on the left of the picture). It's important to note that "This recording is offered for sale without copyright, broadcast rights, performers' consents and other reproduction rights." Therefore it's unlikely this material will be officially released any time soon!

28 Oct 2005: Thanks to Jack from Canada for the information that, in addition to the Capitol 6 disc set The Band: A Musical History (see 2005), there will be an 8CD set of Levon and The Hawks called Bacon Fat And Judgement Day released by the Canadian label Other People's Music. This will include 1967 Woodstock Basement Tapes material, and may include tracks with Bob. For more information, see . In a reply to a query from Jack, OPM said:

"There were many recordings from "The Basement" which excluded Bob Dylan. OPM Inc. supplied a few of these for the Band Box Set: Words And Numbers, You Don't Come Through, etc., on disc 1. There's more that is currently being considered for inclusion in The Hawks' Box Set.

Any songs including Bob Dylan would require his consent. If we were able to include any material of the Hawks featuring Bob Dylan on lead vocals from "The Basement", we would focus only on a few selections. Those considered would be cover songs... Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, etc., as this project is about The Hawks. They would not be Dylan originals. Certainly we hope to include the other version of "Will The Circle Be Unbroken" with Dylan singing lead and the Hawks singing back-up harmonies. Robbie originally wished to include both versions; with and without Dylan. Despite the report in the liner notes by Rob Blowman that this version was too distorted to use, I'm not sure that the esteemed Mr. Blowman has even heard the entire version of this song; certainly not a restored version. It's quite haunting."

Picture from eBay

21 Oct 2005: Thanks to Ian Woodward for information about the May 1959 Ric Kangas tape, which was offered on eBay for $1.5 million! It contains four songs: When I Got Troubles (on The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home), Teen Love Serenade (a short excerpt is featured in the "No Direction Home" film), and two other songs, I Wish I Knew (song by Ric Kangas with Bob backing), and The Frog Song (a song by Bob with Clarence "Frogman" Henry-style vocals). Thanks to Jean-Pol Hiernaux for finding the item on eBay. It's now closed and there were no bids!

Picture from eBay

21 Aug 2005: Thanks to Peter Stone Brown and Fred Muller for news that the four songs performed by Bob in his role as Bobby the Hobo in the 1962 BBC TV drama "Madhouse On Castle Street" have been restored after being thought long lost. These are an early version of Blowin' In The Wind, Ballad Of A Gliding Swan, The Cuckoo, and Hang Me, Oh Hang Me. The songs are due to be broadcast in Sep 2005 in an Arena documentary on BBC4, "Dylan In The Madhouse", shown as part of a Bob Dylan season including the BBC screening of "No Direction Home". I doubt if they will be officially released in any form, but I'll add further information when available.

13 Jun 2005: Thanks to Gil Walker for information about the Larry Keegan disc that failed to sell on eBay in 2002 (see below). The tracklist is mentioned in Greil Marcus' new book about Like A Rolling Stone, and is said to be covers of:

There are only seven songs as opposed to the eight mentioned below. Apparently the quality of both the sound and the performances is awful!

Picture from eBay

On 20 Nov 2002, I reported that the latest issue of "Isis" magazine (#105) says that the 1956 acetate shown left only attracted a single bid on eBay for $1! I've since learned that the record is definitely genuine, and is being sold by the sister of Bob's long-time friend Larry Keegan, who died in Sep 2001. However the price being asked ($150,000-$200,000) was very high for an item which could only be acquired for a personal collection, since there would seem no likelihood of the owner being able to use it for commercial benefit. I still don't have details of the songs on the acetate. The eBay description of this acetate is as follows: "This vintage master sound recording from 1956 features Bob Dylan, a legendary performer and composer, an icon of Rock & Roll. It was recorded on Christmas Eve in the recording facility of Telinde Music, a retail music store in St. Paul, Minnesota. It is the earliest known recording of Bob Dylan at the age of 15, a very unique master. There are approximately eight minutes of eight recorded songs on the disc, with Bob playing piano and singing, accompanied by Larry Keegan and Howard Rutman on vocals. This 10 inch 78 rpm solid aluminium, vinyl coated record is in excellent condition."

On 30 Jan 2002 I reported: "Bob Dylan is reported to be one of the musicians participating in an album of tribute to the Cuban singer and songwriter Pablo Milanés, according to informed journal "Cuban Rebellious Youth" yesterday. The album, called Pablo Querido, will be published by PM (Pablo Milanés) Récords in February 2002." That album appeared without Bob, but Bob and other artists such as Sting, Harry Belafonte, Stevie Wonder and Peter Gabriel may now appear on a new album tentatively called Pablo Querido 2, with Bob performing on a song called Dónde Andarán [Where They Will Walk]. For more details, see (in Spanish).

A "new" Townes Van Zandt release called Van Zandt Country was scheduled to be released in the USA on Tomato/Glitterhouse Records in the "early summer" of 2002. It was supposed to feature duets with Bob Dylan (For The Sake Of The Song), Lyle Lovett (Flyin' Shoes), Van Morrison (Snow Don't Fall), and Neil Young (Loretta). Glen Dundas told me that around ten years ago there were rumours in Austin, TX, about a collaboration between Bob and Townes Van Zandt, but they were never confirmed. Thanks to Paul Read for details of his interval chat with Townes during the interval at his performance at the Winning Post in York in mid 1994, when they spoke about the duets project and Dylan's involvement (which Townes was still waiting for). It now appears most likely that the duet did not happen during Townes' lifetime and Bob's contribution has been recorded posthumously. Re the Townes Van Zandt duets (see "Older News" below), Rod MacBeath writes: "One little bit of news relates to the Townes Van Zandt duets album Vol. 2, featuring Townes and Bob on For The Sake Of The Song. The last I heard, this release had been put back to Spring 2003, thought there are great disputes between Townes' widow and the producer about his over-production standards and both seem to think that they have a legal right to the final say.  I'm sure, as you stated, that Bob's contribution was only done after Townes' death. I spoke to him in '94 and '95 about it (see the first issue of  "The Bridge") and it was clear that things were a long way off happening. There is the possibility that Bob recorded more than one song though - I recall hearing that up to three was a possibility,  and some artistes will have been featured more than once by the time all five volumes are out (or if all five come out). Of course, the intention may have been simply to get a selection of duets of the same song to choose from."

Before he died George Harrison was working with Jeff Lynne on a Traveling Wilburys anthology (perhaps a boxed set) called Maximum Traveling, which would have contained all the previously released material (see Traveling Wilburys), plus previously unreleased tracks, such as a cover of Paul Simon's Run That Body Down, and three 1990 tracks with Del Shannon as the replacement for Roy Orbison. The 2007 Wilburys boxed set release supersedes this, but we live in hope of  more from the Wilburys!

[The Official Rarities Yearly Lists] [Traveling Wilburys] [Online Performances (bobdylan.com)] [Online Performances (Other)] [Interviews with Bob] [VHS & DVD]
[International Mono Releases] [International Promotional Releases] [International Stereo Releases] [Questionable Releases] [Released Rarities] [Honourable Mentions]

[Updates] [Red Herrings] [Other Pages] [Go back to bobdylan.com]

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