David Bowie’s three covers of Bob Dylan: “Now hear this Robert Zimmerman”
He’s indisputably one of the most unique artists music has ever had the nerve to conjure up. David Bowie’s brilliance lies firmly within his daring to create a sound, aesthetic and way of life that defied expectation, refused the routine and devoted itself to artistic purity. However, like all stars who shone brightly in the art world, Bowie was still indebted to those who came before him.
During Bowie’s break-out album, Hunky Dory, the soon-to-be Starman wrote an ode to a hero. ‘A Song for Bob Dylan’ would feature on his 1971 LP and become a unique moment in Bowie’s career. Rather than a track designed to lavish praise and adoration on the freewheelin’ troubadour, this tune was crafted to make a statement of intent that Bowie was now hot on the heels of the songwriter, vying to become the new voice of a new generation.
Bowie himself once highlighted the song’s significance in a 1976 piece in Melody Maker, in which he recalled: “There’s even a song – ‘Song for Bob Dylan’ – that laid out what I wanted to do in rock. It was at that period that I said, ‘okay (Dylan) if you don’t want to do it, I will.’ I saw that leadership void”. It was a massive statement for Bowie to make. Of course, he had already enjoyed success with ‘Space Oddity’ in 1969, but he was still a long way off, even coming close to the kind of esteem held within the gnarled hands of Dylan.
The singer continued: “Even though the song isn’t one of the most important on the album, it represented for me what the album was all about. If there wasn’t someone who was going to use rock ‘n’ roll, then I’d do it.” You can’t argue with determination like that, and Bowie proved himself right again and again, later showing his true affection for Dylan.
While it would be easy to assume that Bowie, therefore, saw Dylan as a contemporary to be competed with, the truth is that Bowie has always held a deep appreciation for Dylan. He’s heaped praise on the unique position Dylan is in when performing live as well as complimenting his writing too when he said in 1997: “His albums have a great class to them, even those albums where he is actually playing songs of long-dead blues singers. His writing, his song texts, leave me speechless.“
Below are three occasions when Bowie took the songs of his hero, Bob Dylan, and recharged them with his unique star power. Paying tribute and making the tracks his own, here are three times Bowie covered Dylan perfectly.
David Bowie’s three Bob Dylan covers:
‘Maggie’s Farm’ – Tin Machine
Perhaps the standout of the three covers, Bowie’s band, Tin Machine, deliver an absolutely rip-roaring version of Dylan’s classic ‘Maggie’s Farm’. First performed at La Cigale in Paris, Tin Machine eventually released the song as a full-blown cover as part of a self-titled double A-side. It’s one of Dylan’s finest tunes and is given a marked refresh under the tutelage of Bowie’s more experimental outfit.
Released on Bringing It All Back Home, Dylan’s 1965 ruminations on a crumbling society, ‘Maggie’s Farm’ is comprised of fast-paced lyricism and an unstoppable wit that’s often cited as a precursor to rap, this style truly sets the tone for the rest of the album and marked out Dylan as a unique force.
By 1989, Bowie had moved beyond the pop sound that had defined much of the previous decade, opting instead to push himself and his music into uncharted territory. Always striving for reinvention, he embarked on one of his most daring artistic periods with Tin Machine. Their cover of a Dylan classic perfectly encapsulates Bowie’s searing talent and relentless creative evolution.
‘Like A Rolling Stone’ – David Bowie and Mick Ronson
As part of Mick Ronson’s final solo record, Heaven and Hull, Bowie jumped onto the cover of Bob Dylan’s iconic 1965 classic. “Now hear this Robert Zimmerman, though I don’t suppose we’ll meet,” Bowie sang on the aforementioned ‘tribute’ to the songwriter, but would use this cover as a more traditional way to pay homage.
“I think he hates me,” Bowie once said in an interview after their first meeting. However, the years would go by, and mutual respect would develop between the two. While it may not reside high on some of Bowie’s best vocal work, it’s the connection that is happening both behind the scenes and on centre stage. A friendship rekindling and an adoration that has gone back decades brought together in unison.
However, perhaps the most poignant part of this cover is Bowie reconnecting with his old bandmate Mick Ronson. Recorded not too long before Bowie’s former guitarist would die, the collaboration remains one of the final moments the two men would work together. Having defined a generation of glam rock idols in the early 1970s as part of Ziggy Stardust and the Spider from Mars, Bowie and Ronson share a far more tender moment.
‘Trying to Get to Heaven’
Released five years after his death as part of the 2021 celebration of Bowie’s birthday, ‘Trying to Get to Heaven’ has been polished into a truly impressive piece of work. Beginning with a dark sky and an ashen outlook, Bowie can’t help but re-jig Dylan’s original circular narrative into something a little more linear.
Bowie builds tension and pace with every note by cutting Dylan’s second verse and moving the fourth and fifth into something a little more rushed. Soon enough, as the desperation reaches fever pitch, Bowie commits to the song and, seemingly, never lets go.
A little-known Dylan song always means there is a good case for the original falling down the pecking order. While it is up for debate who does the song better, there can be no doubt that Bowie’s version is bristling with urgency.
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.