The Greatest Cover Songs of All-time: 3. Jimi Hendrix - "All Along The Watchtower"

About this episode

The episode explores Jimi Hendrix's iconic cover of Bob Dylan's 'All Along The Watchtower' and its impact on music history.

Bob Dylan wrote "All Along the Watchtower" for John Wesley Harding (1967)—sparse acoustic folk, biblical apocalyptic imagery, three verses, 2:31, cryptic and minimal. January 1968: Jimi Hendrix heard it while recording Electric Ladyland. Understood it could be massive. Created the iconic opening guitar riff (not in Dylan's version), layered psychedelic guitars, built intensity, extended to four minutes. September 1968: released, hit #20 US, #5 UK, became definitive version. Dylan's response: started performing Jimi's arrangement live. Dylan admitted: "I took license with the song from his version...he understood my song better than I did." Jimi died 1970, song became rock classic. Everyone covers Jimi's version, not Dylan's. Garrett Fisher explores ultimate artistic generosity and recognition. Unlock an ad-free podcast experience with Caloroga Shark Media! Get all our shows on any player you love, hassle free! For Apple users, hit the banner on your Apple podcasts app. For Spotify or other players, visit caloroga.com/plus . No plug-ins needed! Subscribe now for exclusive shows like 'Palace Intrigue,' and get bonus content from Deep Crown (our exclusive Palace Insider!) Or get…

Topics covered

• cover songs
• music history
• Jimi Hendrix
• Bob Dylan
• rock music

Keywords

• cover songs
• Jimi Hendrix
• Bob Dylan
• All Along The Watchtower
• music history

Sponsors

Caloroga Shark Media

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: All Along The Watchtower, Electric Ladyland, John Wesley Harding

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