We're paying tribute this week to the life and work of Bob Dylan, who is celebrating 50 years of revolutionary recordings in 2012. His critically acclaimed 35th studio album, Tempest, came out Tuesday, Sept. 11, and he tours Canada extensively in October and November. We asked a variety of musicians about their all-time favourite Dylan songs and will post their responses every day for the rest of the week.
Among his friends and fans, Jason Collett is regarded as a massive Dylan fan, and rises to the challenge of his hero in writing his own thoughtful folk and pop songs. Collett's new album is entitled Reckon, and will be released Sept. 25 on Arts and Crafts. Before he heads out on a massive tour, Collett shared his thoughts about “Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues” from the 1965 LP, Highway 61 Revisited. Picking his favourite Dylan song wasn’t an easy decision, though.
“It really shifts," says Collett. "It used to be ‘Visions of Johanna’ for years but these days it’s ‘Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues.’ I particularly like the Nina Simone version, though. I think that’s a marker of a great song, y’know – that it can be interpreted. It’s kind of otherworldly. It’s one of the more mysterious ones. I listen to the words and it conjures up images of Mexico in that era, even though I have no idea what it was like! It’s kinda romantic, dark, seedy and overall, just mysterious. I love songs that evoke that kind of imagery.”
Keep checking CBC Music's Bob Dylan page this week for more thoughts on the man and his songs.
Join the conversation. What's your favourite Bob Dylan song? Please tell us what it is and why.
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