It Shall Be Released: Bob Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Revue Revived On New Box Set, Netflix Film

By Joe Marchese

https://theseconddisc.com/2019/04/it-shall-be-released-bob-dylans-rolling-thunder-revue-revived-on-new-box-set-netflix-film/?fbclid=IwAR2pNtDBpqcrKd7lbL0ipg57i_eeRVL9IDap22g2TRhhY1WEatZ7T4PH3lk

April 30, 2019

Fourteen years after his seminal documentary No Direction Home, director Martin Scorsese is returning to the life and music of Bob Dylan with a new concert film celebrating one of the Bard of Hibbing’s most electrifying tours. Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese debuts June 12 on Netflix. The new film shines a spotlight on Dylan’s unforgettable adventures with an amazing cast of characters on the road during his 1975-1976 tour.  It will also screen in theaters in London, Paris, Washington, D.C., Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, Austin, Dallas, L.A., Houston, Portland, Tulsa, Tempe, Chicago, Cleveland, Minneapolis, Bologna,  and Sydney.

Needless to say, Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings won’t be letting the occasion of the documentary go unnoticed…and now we can finally share the confirmed details.  On June 7, the labels will premiere The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings, a remarkable new 14-CD box set that promises to be the ultimate chronicle of the initial leg of Dylan’s legendary Rolling Thunder Revue from the autumn of 1975.

The box includes five professionally recorded sets from the tour, plus rehearsals and a bonus disc of rare performances – for a total of 148 tracks, more than 100 of which are previously unreleased. These include tracks which ended up in Dylan’s lost film Renaldo and Clara (and all four cuts from the 4 Songs from Renaldo and Clara EP). The set kicks off with three discs of rehearsals, including two from New York and one from the Seacrest Motel in Falmouth, Massachusetts. It then launches into the five full shows from Worcester, Cambridge, Boston, and finally, Montreal. The 12-track bonus disc captures rarities including covers of “The Tracks of My Tears” and “Your Cheatin’ Heart” as well as performances captured in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, Montreal, and New York City between October and December 1975.

The first leg of the tour encompassed just 30 shows in intimate venues. Dylan was joined for these incendiary concerts by a handpicked band of musicians and singers dubbed Guam, including Bob Neuwirth, Scarlet Rivera, T-Bone Burnett, Steven Soles, Mick Ronson, David Mansfield, Rob Stoner, Howie Wyeth, and Luther Rix. In the freewheeling spirit of the Rolling Thunder Revue, various performers joined the proceedings, such as Ronee Blakley, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Allen Ginsberg, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, and Roger McGuinn. Baez, whose participation in the tour drew a tremendous amount of media attention, can be heard on “Tears of Rage,” “I Shall Be Released,” “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Wild Mountain Thyme,” “Mama, You Been on My Mind,” “Dark as a Dungeon,” “The Times They Are a-Changin’,” “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine,” “Never Let Me Go,” “The Water Is Wide,” and “This Land Is Your Land.” McGuinn is present on “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and “This Land Is Your Land.” The bonus disc features guest appearances by Eric Andersen and Robbie Robertson, among others.

The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordingsincludes a 52-page booklet of rare and unseen photos and liner notes by novelist/musician Wesley Stace, better known under the Dylan-inspired moniker of John Wesley Harding. (Visit him on Facebook here!) The CD box set will also be joined by a reissue of the long out-of-print 3-LP edition of The Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Bob Dylan Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue.  The 3-LP set was originally released in 2003 by Classic Records; that edition now commands high prices on the secondary market.  Legacy’s slipcased reissue has the discs housed in printed inner sleeves alongside a a 64-page booklet and a download code. (Note that Bootleg Vol. 5 presented a composite show drawn from the Worcester, Boston, Cambridge, and Montreal shows now being released in full; accordingly, all of the tracks on theBootleg volume are included on the 14-CD set.)  There is no dedicated “highlights” version of The Rolling Thunder Revue: The Live 1975 Recordings as such a set already exists in the form of Bootleg Vol. 5.

BobDylan.com is offering a limited-edition bundle including the box set, a Rolling Thunder Revue-emblazoned luggage tag (fashioned after those given to artists and crew on the tour), and a 12×18 movie poster for Netflix’s Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese.  The bundle is strictly limited to 1,500 units worldwide and available at this link.

Additionally, Legacy has released a new single to promote the box: “One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below) (Seacrest Motel Rehearsal).” There appear to be two different performances released. While the version on Spotify, iTunes, and other download/streaming services is apparently recorded before a live audience, the version posted on Bob Dylan’s official YouTube page is an altogether unique performance sans audience applause at the end. You can hear both at the links below:

Official Music Video from Bob Dylan’s YouTube channel here:

Look for both The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings and the LP reissue of The Bootleg Series Vol. 5 on June 7 from Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings. See below for the full track listing and pre-order links for this rip-roaring tribute to one of the most memorable rock tours of all time!

Bob Dylan, The Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Live Recordings (Columbia/Legacy, 2019)

Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada

# included in the film Renaldo and Clara (1978)
~ released on 4 Songs From Renaldo and Clara EP (Columbia AS 422, 1978)
^ released on The Bootleg Series, Vol. 5: Bob Dylan Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue(Columbia C2K 87047, 2002)
* included in the film Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese (2019)
+ incomplete

Discs 1-2: October 19, 1975 – S.I.R. Rehearsals, New York, NY

1. Rake and Ramblin’ Boy * +
2. Romance in Durango * +
3. Rita May *
4. I Want You # +
5. Love Minus Zero/No Limit * +
6. She Belongs to Me * +
7. Joey +
8. Isis
9. Hollywood Angel +
10. People Get Ready # ~
11. What Will You Do When Jesus Comes? #
12. Spanish Is the Loving Tongue
13. The Ballad of Ira Hayes
14. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below) *
15. Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You
16. This Land Is Your Land
17. Dark as a Dungeon *

1. She Belongs to Me #
2. A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall
3. Isis
4. This Wheel’s on Fire/Hurricane/All Along the Watchtower
5. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)
6. If You See Her, Say Hello
7. One Too Many Mornings #
8. Gwenevere +
9. Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts +
10. Patty’s Gone to Laredo #
11. It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)

Disc 3: October 29, 1975 – Seacrest Motel Rehearsals, Falmouth, MA

1. Tears of Rage
2. I Shall Be Released
3. Easy and Slow
4. Ballad of a Thin Man
5. Hurricane
6. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)
7. Just Like a Woman
8. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door

Discs 4-5: November 19, 1975 – Memorial Auditorium, Worcester, MA

1. When I Paint My Masterpiece
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe
3. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
4. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
5. Romance in Durango
6. Isis
7. Blowin’ in the Wind
8. Wild Mountain Thyme
9. Mama, You Been on My Mind
10. Dark as a Dungeon
11. I Shall Be Released

1. Tangled Up in Blue
2. Oh, Sister
3. Hurricane ^ *
4. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)
5. Sara
6. Just Like a Woman
7. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
8. This Land Is Your Land

Discs 6-7: November 20, 1975 – Harvard Square Theater, Cambridge, MA

1. When I Paint My Masterpiece
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe # ~ ^
3. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
4. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry *
5. Romance in Durango ^ *
6. Isis
7. Blowin’ in the Wind *
8. Wild Mountain Thyme
9. Mama, You Been on My Mind ^
10. Dark as a Dungeon
11. I Shall Be Released

1. Simple Twist of Fate ^ *
2. Oh, Sister
3. Hurricane
4. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)
5. Sara
6. Just Like a Woman #
7. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door # ^
8. This Land Is Your Land

Discs 8-9: November 21, 1975 – Afternoon – Boston Music Hall, Boston, MA

1. When I Paint My Masterpiece
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe
3. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
4. A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall
5. Romance in Durango
6. Isis
7. The Times They Are a-Changin’
8. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine
9. Mama, You Been on My Mind
10. Never Let Me Go
11. I Shall Be Released ^

1. Mr. Tambourine Man ^
2. Oh, Sister
3. Hurricane
4. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)
5. Sara ^
6. Just Like a Woman
7. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
8. This Land Is Your Land

Discs 10-11: November 21, 1975 – Evening – Boston Music Hall, Boston, MA

1. When I Paint My Masterpiece
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe
3. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll ^
4. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry # ^
5. Romance in Durango
6. Isis ^
7. Blowin’ in the Wind ^
8. The Water Is Wide ^
9. Mama, You Been on My Mind
10. Dark as a Dungeon
11. I Shall Be Released

1. I Don’t Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)
2. Tangled Up in Blue # ^
3. Oh, Sister ^
4. Hurricane
5. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below) ^
6. Sara
7. Just Like a Woman ^
8. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
9. This Land Is Your Land

Discs 12-13: December 4, 1975 – Forum de Montreal, Montreal, Canada

1. When I Paint My Masterpiece
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe
3. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll *
4. Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You ^
5. A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall # ^ *
6. Romance in Durango #
7. Isis # ~
8. Blowin’ in the Wind
9. Dark as a Dungeon
10. Mama, You Been on My Mind
11. Never Let Me Go # ~
12. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine *
13. I Shall Be Released

1. It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue ^
2. Love Minus Zero/No Limit ^
3. Tangled Up in Blue
4. Oh, Sister
5. Hurricane
6. One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below) # *
7. Sara #
8. Just Like a Woman
9. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
10. This Land Is Your Land

Disc 14: Bonus Disc – Rare Performances

1. One Too Many Mornings (October 24 – Gerdes Folk City, New York City, New York) *
2. Simple Twist of Fate (October 28 – Mahjong Parlor, Falmouth, MA) *
3. Isis (November 2 – Technical University, Lowell, MA)
4. With God on Our Side (November 4 – Afternoon – Civic Center, Providence, RI)
5. It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding) (November 4 – Evening – Civic Center, Providence, RI)
6. Radio advertisement for Niagara Falls, NY shows
7. The Ballad of Ira Hayes (November 16 – Tuscarora Reservation, NY) *
8. Your Cheatin’ Heart (November 23) *
9. Fourth Time Around (November 26 – Civic Center, Augusta, Maine)
10. The Tracks of My Tears (December 3 – Chateau Champlain, Montreal Canada)
11. Jesse James (December 5 – Montreal Stables, Montreal, Canada)
12. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (December 8 – “Night of the Hurricane,” Madison Square Garden, New York, NY)

Bob Dylan, December 1975 (Bettmann/Getty Images)

On Discs 1-13:
Bob Dylan – vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica
Joan Baez – vocals and guitar on “Tears of Rage,” “I Shall Be Released,” “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “Wild Mountain Thyme,” “Mama, You Been on My Mind,” “Dark as a Dungeon,” “The Times They Are a-Changin’,” “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine,” “Never Let Me Go,” “The Water Is Wide,” and “This Land Is Your Land”
Roger McGuinn – guitar and vocals on “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” and 
”This Land Is Your Land”
Guam: 
Bobby Neuwirth – guitar, vocals
; Scarlet Rivera – violin
; T Bone J. Henry Burnett – guitar, vocals; 
Steven Soles – guitar, vocals
; Mick Ronson – guitar
; David Mansfield – steel guitar, mandolin, violin, dobro; 
Rob Stoner – bass, vocals
; Howie Wyeth – drums, piano
; Luther Rix – drums, percussion, congas
; Ronee Blakley – vocals
; Ramblin’ Jack Elliott – vocals, guitar
; Allen Ginsberg – vocals, finger cymbals; 
Joni Mitchell – vocals

On Disc 14:
Bob Dylan – vocals, guitar, piano, harmonica
Joan Baez – vocals (2)
Rob Stoner – bass (2)
Eric Andersen, Arlen Roth – guitars (2)
Guam (3, 10, 12)
Larry Keegan – vocals (8)
Robbie Robertson – guitar (12)

Bob Dylan, The Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Live 1975 – The Rolling Thunder Revue [3LP Vinyl Box](Columbia/Legacy/Classic C2K 87047-1, 2003 – reissued Columbia/Legacy, 2019) (Amazon U.S./ Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1, Side 1:

1. Tonight I’ll Be Staying Her With You
2. It Ain’t Me, Babe
3. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall

Disc 1, Side 2:

1. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
2. Romance In Durango
3. Isis

Disc 2, Side 1:

1. Mr. Tambourine Man
2. Simple Twist Of Fate
3. Blowin’ In The Wind
4. Mama, You Been On My Mind

Disc 2, Side 2:

1. I Shall Be Released
2. It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
3. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
4. Tangled Up In Blue

Disc 3, Side 1:

1. The Water Is Wide
2. It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry
3. Oh, Sister
4. Hurricane

Disc 3, Side 2:

1. One More Cup Of Coffee
2. Sara
3. Just Like A Woman
4. Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door