The Oscar-winning song Bob Dylan made “in one afternoon”
Numerous artists have ventured into the realm of film soundtracks, yet when Bob Dylan was tapped to compose for Wonder Boys, it was a real game changer. His original song for the film earned him an Academy Award and accrued acclaim on account of its lyrics, which combine poetry and introspection to explore themes of change, disillusionment, and uncertainty. These themes align with Dylan’s recurrent motifs and offer a poignant reflection on personal experiences, seamlessly integrating into the context of Wonder Boys.
When reflecting on iconic songs, it’s common to assume that their creation was a painstaking process, with artists meticulously refining lyrics and arrangements over an extended period until the whole thing is near-perfect. Yet, with Dylan’s ‘Things Have Changed’, the magic unfolded in a single evening.
As Dylan’s engineer, Chris Shaw, puts it: “We did ‘Things Have Changed’ in one afternoon,” Shaw recalls, “And when we were done we did a very quick mix of it, and I thought it was just going to be a rough mix to give to Bob who’d maybe give it to someone else, like Daniel Lanois, who’d wind up engineering and mixing the final thing. But it turned out that that rough mix ended up being the final mix.”
In truth, ‘Things Have Changed’ is often considered one of Dylan’s later-period gems, and rightly so. Its success in the world of film and the Academy Award win introduced a new audience to Dylan’s music and reaffirmed his influence in the world of songwriting and performance. Many modern musicians still regard it as one of his best tracks, including Eagles’ very own Don Henley.
For Henley, Dylan is “the quintessential enigmatic character” who’s been able to “maintain a certain mystery that he cultivated from the very beginning”. When it comes to ‘Things Have Changed’, Henley says it left a lasting impression on him when he first heard it: “That most recent song he did – ‘Things Have Changed’ – really knocked me out,” he said.
Henley added: “I was driving around one day, and I’d never heard it before, and I thought to myself, ‘Wow, somebody is really doin’ a good Bob Dylan.’ I was saying, ‘This is better than Bob,’ and it turned out to be him. He’s a cyclical person, as all great artists are – he sort of comes and goes”.
The beauty of ‘Things Have Changed’ is its simplicity, from its initial creation right through to its sound. For instance, Dylan originally wrote the lyric “I’ll get as far away from myself as I can” on a business card that was revealed as part of his archive at the Center for American Research in Tulsa. This line eventually became the lyric, “I’ve been trying to get as far away from myself as I can”.
In the end, therefore, ‘Things Have Changed’ stands as a testament to Dylan’s remarkable knack for swiftly creating art — a skill possessed by only a chosen few.
Never Miss A Tale
The Far Out Bob Dylan Newsletter
All the latest stories about Bob Dylan from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.