Various Artists
Nobody Sings Dylan Like Dylan: May Your Songs Always Be Sung (Vol. 9)

Putting together this series, the biggest challenge has been finding covers of songs other than “the hits.” Perhaps you can never have too many versions of “All Along the Watchtower,” “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” and “Like a Rolling Stone,” but it can be even more rewarding to hear a new interpretation of a lesser known or rarely performed song, like Maria McKee’s version of “New Pony” or Tom Russell doing “Seven Curses” (both featured on NSD Vol. 6). So this time out I’ve decided to include only songs not featured on previous volumes of this project.

The highlight for me is Lou Reed’s solo rendition of “Foot of Pride.” Lou butchered this tune at Dylan’s 30th anniversary concert; here, without a band to confuse his sketchy sense of rhythm, he conquers it. I’ve never really gotten this song–“Like the lion tears the flesh off of a man/ So can a woman who passes herself off as a male” has to be the weirdest opening couplet in Dylan’s canon–but this version makes me a believer.

Thanks to all the folks who’ve sent me suggestions and files, as well as the tapers, the original uploaders, and especially the performers and composer. Pdiamond and dsgtrane have been kind enough to create great artwork for the first eight volumes, and hopefully one or both of them or someone else will do the same for this one. Due to the many different sources, I am not including lineages. I have done nothing to the original files but normalize the levels and fade in and out on each track (using Cool Edit). Enjoy!

01 Wiggle Wiggle – John Wesley Harding (5-25-91, The Catalyst, Santa Cruz, CA)
02 The Man in Me – Cracker (4-29-05,Twilight Criterium Music Fest, Athens, GA)
03 Disease of Conceit – The Waterboys (11-3-89, Warfield Theater, San Francisco, CA)
04 Foot of Pride – Lou Reed (6-8-93, Paradiso, Amsterdam, Holland)
05 Well Well Well – Ben Harper (8-2-05, Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN)
06 Man in the Long Black Coat – Joan Osborne (5-4-96, Lakefront Arena, New Orleans, LA)
07 I Threw it All Away – Elvis Costello (10-14-84, Orpheum Theatre, Boston, MA)
08 If You See Her Say Hello – Jeff Buckley (8-13-92, Knitting Factory, New York, NY)
09 Simple Twist of Fate – Elliot Murphy (3-16-04, Kulturzentrum Cobra, Solingen, Germany)
10 Abandoned Love – Chuck Prophet (4-16-05, King Tut’s, Glasgow, Scotland)
11 Tears of Rage – Paul Barrere and Fred Tackett (1-31-03, Grand Lido Braco Resort, Jamaica)
12 Lord Protect My Child – Susan Tedeschi with the Persuasions (10-28-06, Nokia Theater at Times Square, New York, NY)
13 Ballad of Hollis Brown – Stephen Stills (7-25-95, Hard Rock Cafe and Casino, Las Vegas, NV)
14 The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll – Christy Moore (11-12-06, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool, England)
15 With God on Our Side – Buddy Miller (5-4-03 Rhythm & Roots Festival, Kilkenny, Ireland)
16 Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands – Robyn Hitchcock (3-26-05, Maxwell’s, Hoboken, NJ)