Almanac Music: Dylan Cover Songs: International Style #6 – US Country Males Do Dylan

 

In this, the 6^th article to look at Dylan covers from across the non-antipodean world, I take my first glimpse into the USA. Dylan covers by USA artists are vast – probably enough vastness to take up several years’ worth of articles. So, in coming to terms with how best to unpack the US catalogue of Dylan covers, I have had to micro-manage discrete themes. Thus, this first article dedicated to US artists, has been sliced and diced to only include US males and then only those with a country music leaning.

 

The article will present the contribution of eleven such artists, in chronological order of when their Dylan cover was released. Unfortunately, the majority of contributors to this article have died, but fortunately, the music lives on.

 

 

Waylon Jennings

 

Born: 15 June 1937/Died: 13 February 2002 (age 64)

 

Regarded as a pioneer of the ‘outlaw movement’ in country music, Waylon’s career comprised over 50 studio and live albums released between 1964 and 2000, with eleven albums peaking at #1 on the Billboard Country charts.

 

During the mid-late 60’s, Waylon took a particular liking to the Dylan songbook, recording covers of ‘Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right’; ‘It Ain’t Me Babe’; and ‘Girl From The North Country’.

 

In March 1965, Waylon released a non-charting single of Dylan’s ‘I Don’t Believe You’ – which is this article’s opening selection:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• Waylon was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame (posthumously) in 2007;
• As a member of Buddy Holly’s 1959 touring band, Waylon voluntarily offered his seat on the ill-fated Beechworth Bonanza airplane to the Big Bopper. That kind gesture haunted Waylon for the rest of his days.

 

 

Johnny Cash

 

Born: 26 February 1932/Died: 12 September 2003 (age 71)

 

The life and times of Johnny Cash would fill multiple articles on the Footy Almanac site – but the raw statistics include 68 studio albums released between 1957 – 2004; and the first three ‘live’ albums each peaked at #1 on Billboard Country charts.

 

Although nine years older than Dylan, Johnny became a big Dylan fan after hearing the May 1963 Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan album. Shortly thereafter, they developed a life-long friendship – initially as pen pals and then as real-life pals once they met in person for the first time at the July 1964 Newport Folk Festival.

 

Johnny has recorded several Dylan songs:

 

• ‘Don’t’ Think Twice, It’s All Right’ and ‘Mama, You Been On My Mind’ on Orange Blossom Special (1965);
• ‘One Too Many Mornings’ on Johnny & June (1978);
• ‘Forever Young’ on Red Hot + Country (1994).

 

Perhaps most famously, on 18 February 1969, Johnny and Dylan recorded a duet of ‘’Girl From The North Country’ that was released on Dylan’s 1969 Nashville Skyline album.

 

Also recorded in February 1969, this impromptu duet of ‘Wanted Man’ (written by Dylan), shows the affection that had grown between Johnny and Dylan.

 

 

 

Note 1: Less than four months after this duet, Johnny recorded a solo live version of ‘Wanted Man’ for his At San Quentin live album.

 

Note 2: The impromptu 1969 duet was officially released fifty years later on the 2019 The Bootleg Series Vol.15: Travelin’ Thru, 1967-1969. Dylan has never released a solo version of ‘Wanted Man’.

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• Johnny has the unique distinction of being inducted into three Halls Of Fame: Country Music (1980), Rock and Roll (1992), and Gospel Music (2011);
• His highest charting single in Australia was ‘A Boy Named Sue’, which peaked at #3 in 1969. Carl Perkins played lead guitar on the song.

 

 

Carl Perkins

 

Born: 9 April 1932/Died: 19 January 1998 (age 65)

 

Carl came to international attention in 1956 with his chart topping single ‘Blue Suede Shoes’. While technically regarded as a ‘rockabilly’ artist, Carl was closely associated with Johnny Cash’s touring revue from the late 1960’s.

 

During February 1969, at the same time Dylan and Johnny Cash were duetting on ‘Girl From The North Country’, Carl was hanging around the studio. For reasons of ‘right place/right time’, Carl and Dylan spent time co-writing a song called ‘Champaign, Illinois’. While Dylan never recorded a version of the song, Carl recorded a version for his 1969 On Top album:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• In 1986, ‘Blues Suede Shoes’ was inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame and in 1987, Carl was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame;
• Carl played lead guitar during Johnny Cash’s 1969 San Quentin concert, including on ‘Wanted Man’.

 

 

Lester Flatt & Earl Scruggs

 

Lester – Born 19 June 1914: /Died: 11 May 1979 (age 64)

 

Earl – Born: 6 January 1924 /Died: 28 March 2012 (age 88)

 

Lester and Earl performed as the successful American bluegrass duo Flatt & Scruggs from the late 1940’s until 1969.

 

Being 10 years younger than Lester, it was Earl who championed a more progressive attitude towards the duo’s recording output as the late 1960’s rolled on. When Columbia Records allocated Dylan’s late 60s album producer Bob Johnston to take charge of Flatt & Scruggs, Lester felt very much out of place.

 

The three studio albums recorded in 1968/69 started to include a disproportionate number of Dylan album allusions and cover songs (e.g. 1968 Nashville Airplane: 4 of 11 songs were Dylan covers; 1968 Changin’ Times: 5 of 11 songs were Dylan covers; 1970 Final Fling (One Last Time For Kicks): 7 of 11 songs were Dylan covers).

 

Lester had had enough and quite rightly stated: “I can’t sing Bob Dylan stuff, I mean. Columbia has got Bob Dylan, why did they want me?”. The duo disbanded in late 1969 and for ten years thereafter, the pair never spoke, until Earl turned up at Lester’s hospital bedside just before he died.

 

After the breakup, Earl continued to release albums under the banner of The Earl Scruggs Revue – with at least six subsequent albums including a Dylan cover (or two).

 

As for picking a cover song to showcase, there are well over 20 songs to choose from in the Flatt & Scruggs recordings. I have opted for ‘One More Night’ off their 1970 Final Fling album. The original comes off Dylan’s 1969 Nashville Skyline album. I am particularly taken by how Earl and Lester are portrayed on the album cover – one seems happy and content while the other is clearly wondering ‘why do they want me?’.

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• In 1985, Flatt & Scruggs were inducted into the Country Music Hall Of Fame.
• Flatt & Scruggs came to prominence in late 1962 as the musicians behind ‘The Ballad Of Jed Clampett’, which became the first ‘bluegrass’ song to peak at #1 on the Billboard Country singles chart. Spurred on by this success, they also provided the music for ‘Petticoat Junction’ – another US TV sitcom that aired between September 1963 – April 1970.

 

 

Buck Owens

 

Born: 12 August 1929/Died: 25 March 2006 (age 76)

 

Buck Owens and The Buckaroos were a force to be reckoned with – with twenty-one #1 hits on the Billboard Country charts, beginning with ‘Act Naturally’ in 1963. Buck also released over 30 albums between 1961-1991.

 

Within that vast ocean of music, there was only one occasion where Buck and The Buckaroos included a Dylan cover song – ’Love Minus Zero/No Limit’ at track 9 of their 1971 Bridge Over Troubled Water album:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• In 1996, Buck Owens was inducted into the Country Music Hall Of Fame.
• The 1963 hit song ‘Act Naturally’ was covered by The Beatles in 1965 for their Help album, with Ringo Starr providing lead vocals. In 1988, Buck and Ringo did a duet version with the single peaking at #22 on the Billboard Country charts.

 

 

Lee Hazlewood

 

Born: 9 July 1929/Died: 4 August 2007 (age 78)

 

Lee is recognised for his contribution to the ‘cowboy psychedelia’ sound and best remembered for writing and producing Nancy Sinatra’s 1966 #1 hit ‘These Boots Are Made For Walking’.

 

Between 1969 – 2004, Lee released over 20 solo and collaborative albums. There have only been two occasions where Lee has shone a light on the Dylan songbook – in 1973, with the album title and song ‘I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight’; and in 1976, with the 20^th Century Lee album that features this article’s chosen cover of ‘To Ramona’:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• In 2020, Rolling Stone ranked Lee and Nancy Sinatra #9 on the 20 Greatest Duo’s Of All Time. Just for the record – the top 3 spots were: #1 Everly Brothers; #2 Ike & Tina Turner; #3 Simon & Garfunkel.
• In the late 1950’s, Lee collaborated with pioneering rock guitarist Duane Eddy resulting in a string of instrumental hits, including ‘Rebel Rouser’ in 1958.

 

 

Willie Nelson

 

Born: 29 April 1933 (age 92 and still going strong)

 

Another member of the ‘outlaw movement’ in country music, Willie’s professional music career began in 1962. Since then, he has released an astonishing 77 solo and 26 collaborative studio albums. Willie’s reputation in the USA started to skyrocket from 1975 with the #1 charting album Red Headed Stranger, although it took until the 1978 Stardust album for Australia to sit up and take notice.

 

In a career where Willie has recorded over 1000 cover songs, there are but three occasions where he has recorded a Dylan song in the studio: 1993, on the Across The Borderline album with ‘What Was It You Wanted’; 2008, on the Moment Of Forever album with ‘Gotta Serve Somebody’; and 2015 on the Django and Jimmie collaborative album with Merle Haggard with ‘Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right’.

 

Willie also sang ‘What Was It You Wanted’ at Dylan’s 30^th Anniversary Concert at Madison Square Garden in October 1992 – and it this version that is now showcased:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

 

• Inducted into: Country Music Hall Of Fame (1993); Songwriters Hall Of Fame (2001); Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame (2023). Winner of twelve Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award (2000).
• Willie (aged 92yrs) and Dylan (aged 84yrs) have been co-headlining the 2025 Outlaw Music Festival 10^th Anniversary Tour in the USA. The tour has been performing at 36 different locations between mid-May to mid-September. As I draft this article, the Festival will be setting up at Herseypark Stadium, Hersey, Pennsylvania. Dylan will take the stage at 8.05pm, seated behind a piano and with a four-piece band (Tony Garnier, Doug Lancio, Bob Britt and Anton Fig). After a 17-song/1hr 20m set, Dylan will depart the stage to make way for the final act of the night – Willie Nelson. As you read this article – circa early September 2025 – the Festival will be setting up in Maine Savings Amphitheatre, Bangor, Maine. Along with Willie and Dylan, the program will feature Sheryl Crow, Waxahatchee and Madeline Edwards.

 

 

Garth Brooks

 

Born: 7 February 1962 (age 63)

 

Since 1989, Brooks has released sixteen studio albums and two live albums. The vast majority of these albums have peaked at #1 on the US Billboard charts. Overall, Brooks is the top-selling solo artist of all time with over 162,000,000 certified albums in the US alone. This reputation has not been replicated in Australia – only his 1993 In Pieces album peaked at #1 on the ARIA charts and the best performing single has been ‘One Night A Day’ which peaked at a very modest #35.

 

In April 1998, Garth released a cover of Dylan’s ‘To Make You Feel My Love’ for the Hope Floats soundtrack. The subsequent single peaked at #1 (US), #22 (Can) and #94 (Aust). Most interestingly, Garth’s version was the second to be released (only behind Billy Joel) and pre-dates Adele’s defining cover version by ten years. Take a moment to join some 12,764,753 other views of Garth’s performance of this song at the 1999 Academy Of Country Music:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• In 2020, Garth received the Library Of Congress Gershwin Prize For Popular Song. Inaugurated in 2007, and awarded annually, other winners include: Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, Carole King, Burt Bacharach & Hal David, Billy Joel, Willie Nelson, Joni Mitchell, Elton John & Bernie Taupin. This is one award that remains missing from Dylan’s CV.
• With nine albums reaching ‘Diamond’ status (i.e. 10,000,000 sales in the USA), Garth has surpassed all other artists, including The Beatles (who reside in 2^nd place with 6 Diamond albums).

 

 

Rodney Crowell

 

Born: 7 August 1950 (age 75)

 

Rodney is a contemporary country music singer/songwriter. In a recording career that began in 1978 and continues to this day, Rodney has released seventeen studio albums – although only one of his solo albums has cracked it into the top 10 on the US Country charts. The album in question is his 1988 Diamonds & Dirt, which peaked at #8. Interestingly, five singles off the album each reached #1 on the US Country and Canadian Country charts.

 

Two collaborative albums with Emmylou Harris (Old Yellow Moon 2013; The Traveling Kind 2015) both entered the top 10 charts.

 

In 2005, Rodney released The Outsider. On an album containing ten original songs, Rodney decided to add in his one and only ever Dylan cover – ‘Shelter From The Storm’, in duet with Emmylou Harris:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• Rodney has won two Grammy Awards: 1990 Best Country Song for ‘After All This Time’: and 2014 Best Americana Album for Old Yellow Moon (with Emmylou Harris);
• Rodney was married to Roseanne Cash between 1979-1992. During this period, Rodney helped produce Roseanne’s only two #1 charting albums – Seven Year Itch (1981) and Rhythm & Romance (1985).

 

 

Charlie Daniels

 

Born: 28 October 1936/Died: 6 July 2020 (age 83)

 

In a recording career that spanned from 1971 – 2016, Charlie and his band, released 30 studio albums. Charlie fused rock, country, blues and jazz music and pioneered Southern rock & progressive country. He is best known across the planet for his one and only US #1 hit ‘The Devil Went Down To Georgia’. In Australia, the contemporaneous album, 1979’s Million Mile Reflections only peaked at #77 on the Kent Music charts.

 

Prior to 1971, Charlie mostly did session work and it was during this period that Charlie and Dylan’s paths crossed – on Dylan’s 1969 Nashville Skyline and 1970 New Morning albums, where Charlie is credited with contributing bass guitar and guitar.

 

Some 43 years later, Charlie decided to record an entire album of Dylan covers – partly as a ‘thank you’ to Dylan for the lessons learned from being in the studio with Dylan that guided Charlie when he formed his own band. The ‘tribute’ album – Off The Grid: Doin’ It Dylan (2014) contains ten cover songs drawn primarily from Dylan’s 1960’s songbook, however the showcase song for this article is a live, ‘like a version’ style rendition of ‘Tangled Up In Blue’:

 

 

 

Accolade and snippet of trivia:

 

• Charlie was inducted into the Grand Old Opry (2008); Musicians Hall Of Fame (2009) and Country Music Hall Of Fame (2016);
• Dylan is acknowledged as saying: ’when Charlie was around, something good would usually come out of the session’. Charlie, reflecting upon the Dylan sessions, stated: ‘it was loose, free and, most of all, fun’. As for Charlie’s first Nashville session with Dylan: he was supposed to fill in for a day for a guitar player who didn’t show up. Unfortunately, for the guitar player who didn’t show up, Dylan wanted Charlie to keep playing.

 

 

The Highwaymen

 

Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings & Willie Nelson – refer above

 

Kris Kristofferson – Born: 22 June 1936 /Died: 28 September 2024 (age 88)

 

The Highwaymen can best be regarded as a country music supergroup. Between 1985-1996, they released three studio albums, while simultaneously continuing on with their individual careers.

 

In 2016, Willie and Kris recorded a virtual collaboration of Dylan’s ‘One Too Many Mornings’, featuring archived vocals by Johnny and Waylon recorded during the 1980s. This was released as a bonus track on the 2016 Live: American Outlaws album and is now showcased as this article’s final selection:

 

 

 

Final comment:

 

Sometime in the future – no idea when – I will return to US Country and look at the women of country who have given Dylan’s anthology a decent shake. With first names like Linda, Emmylou, Rita, Bonnie, Jessi, Dolly, Eileen, Roseanne and Shelby, the article will be certain to please.

 

 

More from Karl Dubravs can be read Here.

 

 

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