Herman Parker Jr. / 3:17
Musicians: Bob Dylan: vocals, guitar; T-Bone Burnett: guitar; Ira Ingber: guitar (?); Ted Perlman; guitar (?); Al Kooper: keyboards; Steve Douglas: saxophone; Steve Madaio: trumpet; James Jamerson Jr.: bass; Raymond Lee Pounds: drums; Carolyn Dennis, Madelyn Quebec, Muffy Hendrix, and Annette May Thomas: backup vocals / Recording Studio: Topanga Skyline Studio, Topanga, California: May 5, 1986 (Overdubs May 14, 16, 23, 1986) / Producer: Sundog Productions / Sound Engineer: Britt Bacon
“You Wanna Ramble” is an adaptation of a song by Herman Parker Jr., also known as Little Junior Parker, the king of the Memphis blues. He was a member of the Beale Streeters with B. B. King and Bobby Bland before Ike Turner discovered him in the early 1950s and signed him to Modern Records. He recorded his first record, “You’re My Angel,” on this record label. In 1953, for Sun Records, he recorded “Mystery Train,” a song covered by Elvis Presley in 1954. The tune became a rockabilly standard and inspired many members of the blues scene, from the Doors and the Band to Neil Young and the Stray Cats. With Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan recorded a version of “Mystery Train” during the Nashville Skyline sessions in 1969.
Seventeen years later, Dylan revisited “You Wanna Ramble” and included it in his repertoire. The text is no longer written in first person, but in the second person, and Dylan’s lyrics recount a more depressing story. Parker’s version is about a sleepless night spent in search of fun, while in Dylan’s version the night is dangerous. Only the line “You wanna ramble / To the break of dawn” remains.
While Dylan’s lyrics are dissimilar, the music is pretty close to Parker’s version. For this opening track, Dylan sings with an excellent rock intonation, accompanied by great musicians, namely his longtime keyboard player Al Kooper and also T-Bone Burnett, who had played guitar for the Rolling Thunder Revue. Also present is James Jamerson Jr., the son of the legendary Motown bassist, who provides a good bass groove.
However, the drum is too static and the brass instruments are barely noticeable at the end of the song (from 2:55). Although the liner notes report only two guitars, it seems that there may have been others.