Bob Dylan Releasing Early '60s Demos on Ninth 'Bootleg Series' Compilation

Posted on Aug 24th 2010 3:00PM by Mike Ayers
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Gary Miller, FilmMagic

Bob Dylan is set to return once again this fall with a batch of old demo recordings, satiating the singer's faithful fans with another look into his early stabs at songwriting. Due Oct. 19, 'The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964' will be the ninth installment in Dylan's critically acclaimed 'Bootleg Series.' The title of this compilation refers to one of Dylan's first two publishers, M.Witmark and Sons, with the material being recorded all before he was 24.

The collection spans two discs and contains a whopping 48 tracks, with early versions of 'Mr. Tambourine Man,' 'Girl From the North Country,' 'A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall' and 'Blowin' in the Wind' before they became to be the revered classics that they are today. Other highlights include 'Masters of War,' 'I Shall Be Free" and 'The Times They Are a-Changin'.'

Also of note is that 15 songs from these sessions have never been made commercially available until this release. The presentation promises to show Dylan in a stark form, with just his voice accompanied by guitar, harmonica and the occasional piano.

'The Bootleg Series' first appeared in 1991, with the idea of making often-traded material of classic performances or outtakes available to consumers. Obviously, the 'Witmark Demos: 1962-1964' falls under the latter and culls from a period of Dylan's career that has yet to be explored to this degree.

But that's not all in store for Dylan collectors. Like the Beatles did last year, Dylan's first eight albums will be reissued in their original mono recordings, starting with 1962's eponymous debut and ending with 1967's 'John Wesley Harding.'

Dylan himself is currently on tour on the West Coast and is wrapping things up on Sept. 4 as a headliner at Seattle's Bumbershoot Festival.

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