Tangled Up In Blue - Bob Dylan 1975 (7/11/22)

Today's highlighted song may be "Great," but it sure had an unhappy beginning...and ending.

1975's "Tangled Up in Blue" by Bob Dylan was written after Bob had retreated to a farm he had just purchased in Minnesota.

His marriage to first wife Sarah Lowndes was ending, he had just changed record labels, and he was taking art classes, which had changed his perspective on songwriting.

Overall, his life was in turmoil...and so was the process of completing the song for his album, "Blood on the Tracks."

It was originally recorded in New York under producer Phil Ramone, but Bob was not happy with it. He went back to Minnesota and recorded the whole thing over again.

His brother David helped recruit an excellent group of Twin Cities musicians, including guitarist/singer Kevin Odegard who, after rehearsing the song, was bold enough to suggest that Bob should "pitch it up a key, from G to A to give it more power, more urgency, and more tension."

After a few moments of thought, Bob agreed to give it s shot.

And that's when "Tangled Up in Blue" went from being a "Good" Song" to a "Great Song!"

When it was released as a single, it peaked at #31 on the Hot 100...but more importantly, it was met with universal critical acclaim--and all these years later, it sits at #67 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the Top 500 Songs of All Time.

Epilogue: Unfortunately, Bob and Sarah divorced in 1977...and Kevin and the other Minnesota musicians were never credited for their work--nor have they received any royalties for a song (and an album) that has sold millions of copies. (Apparently, album covers listing the New York musicians had already been printed, and changing them would have cost a huge bundle of money).

But still...

"Tangled Up in Blue" by Bob Dylan: a "Great Song of 1975."