The Basement Tapes 2008

Sony are sitting on the raw material for an outstanding Dylan release - The Basement Tapes 2008. The best of the 100+ tracks of this intermittently outstanding material, recorded in 1967, deserves a proper airing.

If I were in charge of the project, I’d:

* ditch the Band tracks;

* add three groups of Dylan performances – recordings which were subsequently released; the best of the unreleased Dylan compositions; and the best of the unreleased covers;

* tidy up the sound quality.

It would make a very fine Bootleg Series vol 8. Here’s a suggested track listing:

CD1
* Dylan vocals from the 1975 release (16)
Odds and Ends
Million Dollar Bash
Goin' to Acapulco
Lo and Behold!
Clothesline Saga
Apple Suckling Tree
Please, Mrs. Henry
Tears of Rage
Too Much of Nothing
Yea! Heavy and a Bottle of Bread
Crash on the Levee (Down in the Flood)
Tiny Montgomery
You Ain't Going Nowhere
Nothing Was Delivered
Open the Door, Homer
This Wheel's on Fire

* Dylan vocals subsequently released (4)
I Shall Be Released
The Mighty Quinn (Quinn The Eskimo)
Santa Fe
I’m Not There

CD2
* Unreleased Dylan compositions (4)
Get Your Rocks Off
Next Time On The Highway
Sign On The Cross
Silent Weekend

* Unreleased covers, Dylan vocals (14)
All American Boy
The Banks Of The Royal Canal
Bonnie Ship The Diamond
Cool Water
Four Strong Winds
The French Girl
I’m In the Mood
Joshua Gone Barbados
See That My Grave Is Kept Clean
Waltzing With Sin
Wild Wood Flower
Will The Circle Be Unbroken
You Win Again
Young But Daily Growing



Gerry Smith