‘Pressing On’: The cover Bob Dylan called “once in a lifetime”
Cover songs are a tricky thing to pull off, but covering Bob Dylan must be an endlessly daunting task. After all, Dylan has amassed a reputation as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, whose performances and recordings are afforded an unparalleled level of reverence by fans and fellow musicians alike. Despite this, Dylan’s work has been covered countless times over the years, with the results ranging from Jimi Hendrix’s ‘All Along The Watchtower’, to Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Knocking On Heaven’s Door’.
Dylan has never really shied away from discussing cover versions of his own work. In fact, he has routinely declared Hendrix’s version of ‘All Along The Watchtower’ as the definitive version of the song. Another particular favourite cover of the songwriter is Johnny Rivers’ version of ‘Positively 4th Street’, but, in truth, there have simply been too many Bob Dylan covers for the songwriter to give a rounded or expansive view of each and every one.
This fact should not be all that surprising, of course. After emerging from the folk clubs of Manhattan during the early 1960s, Dylan came to define the musical landscape of the decade, blending elements of folk, blues, and rock to reflect the politically turbulent era within his groundbreaking lyricism. Even the criticism he received during those early years, particularly after his decision to ‘go electric’ at Newport Folk Festival in 1965, could not denounce the artist’s genius as a socially-reflective songwriter.
Following on from the 1960s, Dylan continued to dedicate himself to inventive and individualistic songwriting, routinely reinventing himself and his inherent sound. Records like Self Portrait subverted audience expectations of the songwriter, while later efforts like Slow Train Coming allowed the Minnesota-born musician to espouse his love of gospel and newfound devotion to the Christian faith.
Dylan’s gospel period, which was predominantly confined to three albums between 1979 and 1981, is rarely treated with the same intense adoration as his earlier work. It is certainly true that the work contained on that trilogy of albums fails to garner the same reception as classic songs like ‘Subterranean Homesick Blues’ or ‘Like A Rolling Stone’, but his songwriting quality during that period remained as strong as ever.
A notable highlight of this era in Dylan’s discography came with the track ‘Pressing On’, from 1980’s Saved. Taking inspiration from Bible passages and the evolution of Dylan’s musical career itself, the song is an inarguable stand-out from the Saved album. As such, ‘Pressing On’ has been covered by multiple artists over the years, spanning the spectrum from Alicia Keys to Anohni.
One cover of ‘Pressing On’, recorded by punk and folk-rock hero John Doe for the soundtrack of I’m Not There, quickly endeared itself towards Dylan himself. Doe, a founding member of legendary Los Angeles punk outfit X, created the cover in 2007 for Todd Haynes’ Dylan biopic film, which saw multiple different actors playing the part of Bob Dylan as a means of exploring his various lives and personalities.
Although the film itself saw mixed reviews, the soundtrack – and Doe’s cover in particular – was a triumph. Dylan himself cited Doe’s version of ‘Pressing On’ as “a once-in-a-lifetime” recording during a 2015 Q&A. So, while covering one of the greatest songwriters of all time might be a daunting task, it can often inspire incredible results.
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