The Bob Dylan Top 125 Countdown & This Week's Statistics

Now that we're already counting down the Top 60 songs in our Dylan list, you may wonder why some songs are in the lower reaches of the Top 60 rather than higher on; the thing is, all of these songs are masterpieces in their way. Any one of these would be among the Top 3 songs of any other singer-songwriter. Dylan, however, had so many of them. So, in order to come up with a reasonable order, I rated the songs according to the degree that they resonate emotionally with me. Sometime that would depend on extra-musical criteria, depending on the time and place that I became acquainted with the songs. For these reasons, I stress that I do no profess that this order of merit is anything other than subjective. Enough with the chit-chat, time to move on!

Isis (album: Desire, 1975), is one of those great songs that could've been much higher, yet when all is said and done, is found at #57 in my list. Sara Dylan was in the studio the day her husband recorded Isis. Her presence was fitting: The song may well be an elaborate allegory of their marriage, separation and brief reunion – reimagined as the epic quest of a narrator who must trek through icy storms, scale pyramids and rob an ancient grave before winning back his runaway bride, the "mystical child" named Isis. Dylan wrote much of it in an all-night session with theater director Jacques Levy. He was so proud of the lyrics that he presented them to friends at the New York club the Other End. "Bob read the lyrics to a bunch of people sitting around the bar, and everybody responded," said Levy. "Everyone gets hooked in that story." Before long, an incendiary version of Isis became a mainstay of Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. With his face painted white, Dylan would stalk the stage like a shaman, using only his voice, harmonica, hands and body to illustrate the song's tall tale. It was the first time most fans had ever seen him perform in concert without a guitar.

Here's the studio version:

Isis

... And here's a live version:

At #56 is a song from Bob's monumental album Blonde On Blonde (1966), Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat. Not many songs about sexual jealousy are as hilarious as this loping, snarling 12-bar Chicago-style blues number. The Blonde on Blonde recording has the loose, stumbling tone of a one-take throwaway, but in fact Dylan uncharacteristically took 22 different stabs at Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat over the course of four sessions in six weeks; an earlier, slower ramble through it can be found on the No Direction Home soundtrack.

It's a little masterpiece of inside-out innuendo and twisted double-entendre: the drunken hookup implicit in "just like a mattress balances on a bottle of wine," an invitation to see the sun rise, followed by "We'll both just sit there and stare." And who's the victim of Dylan's invective here? Rumors suggest that it's fashionable-hat-wearer Edie Sedgwick, with whom he'd been spending time not long before. When asked about the inspiration in Rolling Stone, Dylan was typically cagey, saying the song was just about a hat: "Mighta seen a picture of one in a department store window."

This is the 8th studio take:

... And here's Dylan live at the Royal Albert Hall in 1966:

Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat

Finally for today, at #55, is a song from the The Times They Are a-Changin' album (1964), called Boots of Spanish Leather. Lyrically, Boots of Spanish Leather is a "restless, forlorn ballad for the ages and sages - a classic Dylan tale of two lovers, a crossroads, and the open sea." The song is written as a dialogue, with the first six verses alternating between the two lovers; however, the last three verses are all given by the lover who has been left behind. Within these nine verses, one of the lovers - a woman - goes across the sea. She writes, asking whether her lover would like any gift and he refuses, stating that he only wants her back. Towards the end it becomes clear that she is not returning, and she finally writes saying she may never come back. Her lover comes to realize what has happened and finally gives her a material request: "Spanish boots of Spanish leather." Michael Gray says there is a strong parallel between this line and the traditional folk song Blackjack Davey, which Dylan arranged and recorded for his 1992 album Good as I Been to You, and in which footwear of Spanish leather also plays a significant role.

Keith Richards had said: In a way, I see Girl From the North Country, Boots of Spanish Leather and To Ramona as a trilogy. Is Ramona the girl from the north country? Is she the same chick who sends the boots of Spanish leather? There's some connection between them. Also, the guitar picking is almost the same lick in Boots of Spanish Leather and Girl From the North Country. It's like an extension of the same song.

Here's the studio version:

Boots of Spanish Leather

... And here's a live version, recorded at April 12, 1963:

Now to our weekly statistics. Firstly, let me just say that my "prophecy" from last week has been fullfilled: Minute Taker managed to overtake Donovan, Domna Samiou and finally George Michael (part 1), to become the third most visited topic ever, after Labi Siffre and the leading story of George Michael (part 2). Not bad at all for a 10-day old story concerning an artist that hasn't had any chart hits so far. May his popularity on this blog translate into a very, very successful career.

As far as countries are concerned, this week's big winners were France, Indonesia, and Belgium. The United Kingdom, Cyprus, and the United Arab Emirates remained stable, Italy and the Netherlands suffered minor losses, while the United States, Greece, Germany, and Russia, suffered bigger losses. Here are this week's Top 10:

1. the United States

2. France

3. Indonesia

4. Greece

5. Belgium

6. the United Kingdom

7. Cyprus

8. the United Arab Emirates

9. the Netherlands

10. Italy

Here are the other countries that graced us with their presence since our last statistics (alphabetically): Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Barbados, Belarus, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Croatia, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar (Burma), Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam. Happy to have you all!

Here's the all-time Top 10:

1. the United States = 52.2%

2. Greece = 9.4%

3. Germany = 6.3%

4. France = 6.1%

5. Russia = 5.0%

6. the United Kingdom = 3.5%

7. the United Arab Emirates = 1.12%

8. Italy = 1.05%

9. Cyprus = 0.84%

10. the Netherlands = 0.64%

That's all for today, folks. Till the next one!