Farewell (Bob Dylan song)

Last updated

"Farewell"
Song by Bob Dylan
from the album The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964
ReleasedOctober 19, 2010 (2010-10-19)
RecordedMarch 1963, M. Witmark & Sons, New York City, New York
Genre Folk
Length5:00
Label Columbia
Songwriter(s) Bob Dylan

"Farewell", also known as "Fare Thee Well", is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Dylan wrote the song in January 1963. [1] He considered it for his third album, The Times They Are a-Changin' , but only attempted a few takes during the album's first studio session. [2] Dylan's earlier recordings of "Farewell" found their way onto various bootlegs, and a collection of demos that included the song was released in October 2010 as The Bootleg Series Vol. 9 – The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964 . [3]

Contents

Over the years, "Farewell" has been recorded by about 20 other musicians worldwide, including Pete Seeger, Judy Collins, Lonnie Donegan, Dion, and Tony Rice.

Dylan's recordings

Dylan first recorded "Farewell" on February 8, 1963, along with 11 other songs, during a session that for many years was believed to have taken place in the basement of either Gerde's Folk City or the Gaslight Cafe, Greenwich Village venues where Dylan performed during the early 1960s. [2] [4] [5] His friend Happy Traum, then with The New World Singers, backed him on vocals and banjo. The recordings were eventually bootlegged under the title The Banjo Tape. Decades later, in interviews with author Michael Gray, Traum identified the session's location as the East Village apartment of Gil Turner, who worked at Gerde's and was an editor for the folk music magazine Broadside . [6]

A month after the session with Traum, Dylan recorded the song as a demo for his music publisher M. Witmark & Sons. [2] The demo version, which appeared on several bootlegs, was officially released on the Witmark Demos . [3] During the time Dylan was making periodic trips to Witmark's Manhattan studios, between 1962 and 1964, he was also visiting Broadside to tape songs for publication. In April 1963, he recorded "Farewell" for the magazine, and a transcription of its lyrics and music appeared in that month's issue. [7] Also in April, Dylan went to Chicago to appear at The Bear, a folk music club owned by his manager Albert Grossman. The next day, April 26, he was interviewed during a taping of author Studs Terkel's radio show on WFMT. He played seven songs on the show, opening with "Farewell" (the seventh was "Blowin' in the Wind"). [8] [9] Four months later during the first of six Times They Are a-Changin' sessions, Dylan recorded four takes of the song, none of them complete. [2] [10]

Only one live recording of the song is known to exist, released on The 50th Anniversary Collection 1963. Dylan played relatively few concerts during 1963. Besides a couple solo dates that year and performances as a "surprise guest" at several Joan Baez concerts, he made appearances at the Brandeis Folk Festival in Massachusetts, Monterey Folk Festival in California and Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island. He began touring in earnest the next year, both solo performances and a series of concert dates co-billed with Baez. "Farewell" does not appear on the setlists from either year's concerts. [2]

A shorter, previously unreleased studio version of the song was released on the soundtrack of the Coen brothers' 2013 film Inside Llewyn Davis [11] (although the "Witmark Demos" version was used in the actual film).

Song's origin and meaning

Dylan based the song on the traditional British folk ballad "Leaving of Liverpool". He first played it for friends in Greenwich Village after returning from a two-week trip to London in early January 1963. [12] In "Leaving of Liverpool", the ballad's first verse and chorus tell the tale of someone sailing from Liverpool to California, bound to miss the loved one left behind:

Farewell to you, my own true love;

I am going far away.
I am bound for Californ-i-a,

And I know that I'll return someday.

So fare thee well, my own true love,

And when I return, united we will be.
It's not the leavin' of Liverpool that grieves me,

But, my darling, when I think of thee. [13]

The opening lyrics in Dylan's song are very similar:

Oh it's fare-thee-well, my darlin' true,

I'm a-leavin' in the first hour of the morn.
I'm bound off for the Bay of Mexico,

Or maybe the coast of Cal-i-forn.

So it's fare-thee-well, my own true love,

We'll meet an-other day, an-other time;
It's not the leavin' that's a-grievin' me,

But my darlin' who's bound to stay behind. [14]

Obvious similarities aside, the story and sentiments of the two songs differ. In "The Leaving of Liverpool", the narrator is bound for California by sea and promises to return. [13] In "Farewell", the narrator mentions traveling by highway and trail, with California as one of two possible destinations, neither of them definite. As Dylan's narrator says, "I'm ramblin'...unnoticed and unknown." While indicating they will "meet another day, another time", the traveler promises only to think of his loved one and write from "time to time", without any mention of returning. [14]

Scottish singer Allan McLeod tells about the time he sang The Leaving of Liverpool as featured singer in an English folk club. Bob Dylan was visiting and sang one song. After the show, he asked Allan to write out the lyrics to The Leaving of Liverpool. One wag has hypothesized that Dylan wrote Farewell because he couldn't read Allan's handwriting.[ citation needed ]

Recordings by other artists

In 1963, folk singer Pete Seeger, who was closely associated with Broadside, recorded "Farewell" for The Broadside Ballads, Volume 2, a collection of songs Seeger selected from the pages of the magazine. Seeger's version was issued as "Fare-Thee-Well (My Own True Love)", the title from the published transcription. [15] [16] Judy Collins recorded it along with "Masters of War" for Judy Collins 3 as the first of many Dylan songs she would do over the next four decades. [17] [18] [19] The Hillmen also recorded the song in 1963 for their eponymous first album under the simpler title "Fare Thee Well". [20] The group featured Chris Hillman, a mandolin player who the next year switched to electric bass to become a founding member of The Byrds. [21]

Two recordings of "Farewell" were issued in 1964 using the simpler title from Dylan's Times They Are a-Changin' setlist, "Farewell". Anita and Helen Carter from the famed traditional folk group The Carter Family recorded it for their self-titled album. The Modern Folk Quartet also put out a version on the album Changes . One of the quartet's singers was Tim Buckley, who would later be hailed as "one of the great rock vocalists of the 1960s". [22] [23]

In 1965, The Kingston Trio, who six years before led the way in establishing folk as a commercial genre, recorded "Farewell" for Nick Bob John , listing it under both titles, "Farewell (Fare Thee Well)". [24] [25] British skiffle musician Lonnie Donegan on The Folk Album, also released a version of the song in 1965. Four years later, Dion DiMucci, leader of rock 'n roll's Dion and the Belmonts, issued a solo folk rock album, Wonder Where I'm Bound. The album, produced by Tom Wilson, who worked with Dylan on Bringing It All Back Home , included two Dylan songs, "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" and "Farewell". [26] Other notable releases of "Farewell" in later years included Greek singer Nana Mouskouri's version on her album Turn on the Sun, released in 1970, Irish folk singer Liam Clancy's version on 1975's Farewell To Tarwaithie and on 1982's The Dutchman and bluegrass musician Tony Rice's on 1984's Cold on the Shoulder. [27] [28]


Notes

  1. ↑ Bjorner & 2010 (2)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Bjorner & 2010 (1)
  3. 1 2 The Bootleg Series Volume 9—The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964. [bobdylan.com]. October 17, 2010. Retrieved December 14, 2010.
  4. ↑ Gray 2006 , p. 667
  5. ↑ Sounes 2001 , pp. 92–94
  6. ↑ Gray 2006 , pp. 667, 672–673
  7. ↑ Dylan 1963 , p. 5
  8. ↑ Heylin 2009 , pp. 118–119
  9. ↑ Scaduto 1973 , pp. 167–168
  10. ↑ Heylin 2009 , p. 734
  11. ↑ "Release "Inside Llewyn Davis" by Various Artists - MusicBrainz".
  12. ↑ Heylin 2009 , pp. 125–126
  13. 1 2 "The Leaving of Liverpool Lyrics". MetroLyrics. Archived from the original on April 24, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2011.
  14. 1 2 Dylan 1963, pp. 7
  15. ↑ Johnson, Zac. "Pete Seeger: Biography". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  16. ↑ Ruhlmann, William. "Broadside Ballads, Vol. 2 (Track Listing)". Allmusic. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  17. ↑ Gray 2006 , pp. 146–148
  18. ↑ Ruhlmann, William. "Judy Colins: Biography". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  19. ↑ "iTunes Preview". Judy Collins 3 . iTunes. January 1964. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  20. ↑ "The Hillmen: The Hillmen (Track Listing)". The Hillmen. Allmusic. Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  21. ↑ Ankeny, Jason. "Chris Hillman: Biography". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  22. ↑ Planer, Lindsay. "Review: Changes". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  23. ↑ Unterberger, Richie. "Tim Buckley: Biography". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  24. ↑ Eder, Bruce. "Kingston Trio: Biography". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  25. ↑ Eder, Bruce. "Review: Kingston Trio: Nick Bob John". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  26. ↑ Unterberger, Richie. "Review: Wonder Where I'm Bound". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  27. ↑ Winick, Steve. "Review: The Dutchman". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.
  28. ↑ Ankeny, Jason. "Review: Cold on the Shoulder". Allmusic . Retrieved December 19, 2010.

Related Research Articles

<i>Highway 61 Revisited</i> 1965 studio album by Bob Dylan

Highway 61 Revisited is the sixth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on August 30, 1965, by Columbia Records. Dylan continued the musical approach of his previous album Bringing It All Back Home (1965), using rock musicians as his backing band on every track of the album in a further departure from his primarily acoustic folk sound, except for the closing track, the 11-minute ballad "Desolation Row". Critics have focused on the innovative way Dylan combined driving, blues-based music with the subtlety of poetry to create songs that captured the political and cultural climate of contemporary America. Author Michael Gray argued that, in an important sense, the 1960s "started" with this album.

<i>The Freewheelin Bob Dylan</i> 1963 studio album by Bob Dylan

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan is the second studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on May 27, 1963, by Columbia Records. Whereas his self-titled debut album Bob Dylan had contained only two original songs, this album represented the beginning of Dylan's writing contemporary lyrics to traditional melodies. Eleven of the thirteen songs on the album are Dylan's original compositions. It opens with "Blowin' in the Wind", which became an anthem of the 1960s, and an international hit for folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary soon after the release of the album. The album featured several other songs which came to be regarded as among Dylan's best compositions and classics of the 1960s folk scene: "Girl from the North Country", "Masters of War", "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" and "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right".

<i>The Times They Are a-Changin</i> (Bob Dylan album) 1964 studio album by Bob Dylan

The Times They Are a-Changin' is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It was released on February 10, 1964, through Columbia Records. Whereas his previous albums, Bob Dylan and The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, combined original material and cover songs, this was the first to feature only original compositions. The album consists mostly of stark, sparsely arranged ballads concerning issues such as racism, poverty, and social change. The title track is one of Dylan's most famous; many feel that it captures the spirit of social and political upheaval that characterized the 1960s.

"A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" is a song written by American musician and Nobel Laureate Bob Dylan in the summer of 1962 and recorded later that year for his second studio album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan (1963). Its lyrical structure is based on the question-and-answer refrain pattern of the traditional British ballad "Lord Randall", published by Francis Child.

"Masters of War" is a song by Bob Dylan, written over the winter of 1962–63 and released on the album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in the spring of 1963. The song's melody was adapted from the traditional "Nottamun Town." Dylan's lyrics are a protest against the Cold War nuclear arms build-up of the early 1960s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Times They Are a-Changin' (song)</span> 1965 single by Bob Dylan

"The Times They Are a-Changin'" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released as the title track of his 1964 album of the same name. Dylan wrote the song as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of change for the time, influenced by Irish and Scottish ballads. Released as a 45-rpm single in Britain in 1965, it reached number 9 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was not released as a single in the U.S. In 2019 it was certified Silver by BPI.

"Bob Dylan's Dream" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1963. It was recorded by Dylan on April 24, 1963, and was released by Columbia Records a month later on the album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.

"The Death of Emmett Till", also known as "The Ballad of Emmett Till", is a song by the American musician Bob Dylan about the murder of Emmett Till. Till, a 14-year-old African American, was killed on August 28, 1955, by two white men, after being accused of disrespecting a white woman. In the song's lyrics, Dylan recounts the murder and trial.

"Let Me Die in My Footsteps" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan in February 1962. The song was selected for the original sequence of Dylan's 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, but was replaced by "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall". This version was recorded at Columbia studios on April 25, 1962, during the first Freewheelin' session, and was subsequently released in March 1991 on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 1961–1991.

"I'll Keep It with Mine" is a song written by Bob Dylan in 1964, first released by folk singer Judy Collins as a single in 1965. Dylan attempted to record the song for his 1966 album Blonde on Blonde.

"Dink's Song" is an American folk song played by many folk revival musicians such as Pete Seeger, Fred Neil, Bob Dylan and Dave Van Ronk, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, and Cisco Houston as well as more recent musicians like Jeff Buckley. The song tells the story of a woman deserted by her lover when she needs him the most.

"Oxford Town" is a song written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan in 1962. It was recorded in Columbia's Studio A on December 6, 1962, for his second album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan bootleg recordings are unreleased performances by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, that have been circulated throughout the public without undergoing an official, sanctioned release. It is commonly misconceived that bootlegs are only restricted to audio, but bootleg video performances, such as Dylan's 1966 film Eat the Document, which remains officially unreleased, are considered to be bootlegs. Dylan is generally considered to be the most bootlegged artist in rock history, rivaled only by the Grateful Dead.

"Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues", also known as "Talkin' John Birch Society Blues" and "Talkin' John Birch Blues", is a protest song and talking blues song written by singer-songwriter Bob Dylan in 1962. It is a satirical song, in which a paranoid narrator is convinced that communists, or "Reds" as he calls them, are infiltrating the country. He joins the John Birch Society, an anti-communist group, and begins searching for Reds everywhere. The narrator decries Betsy Ross as a communist and four U.S. Presidents as Russian spies, while lauding Adolf Hitler and George Lincoln Rockwell. After exhausting the possibilities of new places to find communists, he begins to investigate himself.

<i>The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964</i> 2010 compilation album by Bob Dylan

The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964 is a compilation album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, containing demo recordings he made for his first two publishing companies, Leeds Music and M. Witmark & Sons, from 1962 to 1964. The seventh installment of the ongoing Bob Dylan Bootleg Series, it was released on October 19, 2010 on Legacy Records.

"John Brown" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. The song, written in October 1962 was released under his pseudonym "Blind Boy Grunt" on the Folkways Records compilation album Broadside Ballads, Vol. 1 (1963). Live performances have been officially released on MTV Unplugged (1995), Live at The Gaslight 1962 (2005), and Live 1962–1966 – Rare Performances From The Copyright Collections (2018). A demo version was issued on The Bootleg Series Vol. 9 – The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964 (2010).

Gil Turner was an American folk singer-songwriter, magazine editor, Shakespearean actor, political activist, and for a time, a lay Baptist preacher. Turner was a prominent figure in the Greenwich Village scene of the early 1960s, where he was master of ceremonies at New York City's leading folk music venue, Gerde's Folk City, as well as co-editor of the protest song magazine Broadside. He also wrote for Sing Out!, the quarterly folk music journal.

"Mama, You Been on My Mind" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Written in 1964 during a trip to Europe, the song dealt with his recent breakup with his girlfriend, Suze Rotolo. Dylan first recorded the song in June of that year during a session for his album Another Side of Bob Dylan. However, the song was not included on the album, and Dylan's version remained unreleased until 1991. In total, in the 1990s and 2000s four versions were put out on Dylan's Bootleg Series of releases, including two live performances with Joan Baez from 1964 and 1975.

"Talkin' Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It was written by Dylan in June 1961, and recorded on April 25, 1962, at Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, New York, produced by John Hammond. It is a humorous talking blues, which Dylan wrote after Noel Stookey gave him a press clipping about how the sale of forged tickets for a Father's Day picnic trip to Bear Mountain State Park had led to overcrowding and injuries.

"I Shall Be Free" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. It was recorded on 6 December 1962 at Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, New York, produced by John Hammond. The song was released as the closing track on The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan on 27 May 1963, and has been viewed as a comedic counterpoint to the album's more serious material. Dylan has never performed the song in concert.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.