Bob Dylan / 4:17
Musicians
Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica
Robbie Robertson: guitar
Richard Manuel: clavinet
Garth Hudson: organ
Rick Danko: bass
Levon Helm: drums
Recording Studio
The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, California / Studio B: November 6, 1973
Technical Team
Producers: Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, and Rob Fraboni
Sound Engineer: Rob Fraboni
This song could be Dylan’s confession, a reflection on his status as an artist. In the first four verses, he talks to his muse, to whom he gives four different names, “tough mama,” “dark beauty,” “sweet goddess,” and “silver angel.” In the last verse he refers to his entire audience who brought him to the top. Was it worth the effort? He gives the answer in the line, “I’ve gained some recognition but I lost my appetite.” The struggle is bitter, cruel, even pathetic: “I ain’t a-haulin’ any of my lambs to the marketplace anymore / The prison walls are crumblin’, there is no end in sight.” But “Tough Mama” may be viewed from a more esoteric perspective, as Dylan explained in 1978 to Jonathan Cott when asked the meaning of “Sweet Goddess / Born of a blinding light and a changing wind.” The songwriter responded in an enigmatic way, “That’s the mother and father, the yin and the yang. That’s the coming together of destiny and the fulfillment of destiny.”20
“Tough Mama” is a mid-tempo rock song, during which the Band displays group cohesion. Robbie Robertson provides excellent rhythm on his guitar, a bit funky but perfectly mastered, which interweaves nicely with Richard Manuel’s clavinet. Bass, drums, and organ are in unison; only Dylan’s rhythm part on his Telecaster lacks rigor. The song suffers slightly, but in Dylan’s defense, he is simultaneously singing and playing harmonica (in D). “Tough Mama” was recorded in seven takes on November 6, 1973, the fifth being selected. Dylan performed the song onstage for the first time on January 3, 1974, at Chicago Stadium, accompanied by the Band.
Bob Dylan / 2:50
Musicians: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica; Robbie Robertson: guitar; Richard Manuel: piano; Garth Hudson: organ; Rick Danko: bass; Levon Helm: drums / Recording Studio: The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, California / Studio B: November 6, 1973 / Producers: Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, and Rob Fraboni / Sound Engineer: Rob Fraboni
“Hazel” is one of those sentimental ballads that Bob Dylan has regularly written since the beginning of his career. Perhaps he is remembering his own childhood, an adolescent with a tender heart. Robert Shelton has suggested that Echo Helstrom, Dylan’s girlfriend during his Hibbing years, may be hiding behind “Hazel.”
There were eight takes of “Hazel,” all recorded during the session on November 6, 1973. The final take was selected for Planet Waves. But why so many takes for such a simple piece? Probably because the vocal line is not as obvious as it seems. Dylan must push his voice in the treble on the bridge, and it lacks accuracy in some places, especially on really care at 1:22 and blinder and blinder at 1:30. But he still gives a very emotional vocal, full of nostalgia. The Band provides seamless support for this slow blues-rock song, similar to those performed by Ray Charles. During the last harmonica solo (in E), Robbie Robertson turns on his wah-wah pedal (from 2:18).
Dylan performed this song for the first time at the Unplugged concert at the Sony Music Studios on November 17 and 18, 1994. “Hazel,” however, is absent from the track listing of MTV Unplugged, released the following year. Since then he has only performed the song six times.
Bob Dylan / 4:45
Musicians: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar, harmonica; Robbie Robertson: guitar; Richard Manuel: piano; Garth Hudson: organ; Rick Danko: bass; Levon Helm: drums / Recording Studio: The Village Recorder, West Los Angeles, California / Studio B: November 6, 1973 / Producers: Bob Dylan, Robbie Robertson, and Rob Fraboni / Sound Engineer: Rob Fraboni
“Something There Is About You” is the logical continuation of “Hazel.” Once again, Dylan goes back to his teen years in Minnesota. He remembers “Rainy days on the Great Lakes, walkin’ the hills of old Duluth,” with Danny Lopez and Ruth. Everything about this song is poetic, an evocation of youth with the typical Dylanesque line “the spirit in me sings.” Who is Ruth? Dylan’s first love of his teenager years or the “ghost” of Echo Helstrom? Clinton Heylin has another hypothesis, based on an interview with the British journalist Don Short of London’s Daily Mirror in which Dylan explains, “Sara and I grew up as kids together in Minnesota. Then some years back we met again in a New York restaurant where Sara was working as a waitress. We fell in love—although it was not love at first sight, and five years ago we were married in New York State.”7 So the young woman may be none other than Sara. In this case, one of the last lines of the song takes on a special meaning: “Something there is about you that moves with style and grace / I was in a whirlwind, now I’m in some better place.”
After “Hazel,” Dylan chooses a slow tempo to express his memories of childhood. “Something There Is About You” allows Robbie Robertson to dominate the instrumental parts with his distinctive guitar playing, especially in the introduction. The sound of his six-string is mainly achieved by a combination of chorus and flanger effects and vibrato. Unfortunately, he may be a little bit too assertive, and in the end overshadows his bandmates. Garth Hudson’s organ and Richard Manuel’s piano could have been stronger.
This autobiographical song was recorded in three takes on November 6, 1973. The last take was chosen for Planet Waves. Dylan performed the song for the first time at the inaugural concert of the American tour in 1974 at Chicago Stadium. “Something There Is About You” is the second single, with “Tough Mama” on the B-side, excerpted from Planet Waves. The song only reached number 107 on the Billboard charts in the United States.