Tag: Girl from the North Country

One Degree of Separation Between Bob Dylan & Twilight Zone: Bonnie Beecher & “Come Wander With Me”

Some of the earliest recordings of Bob Dylan singing were made at the apartment of his college girlfriend Bonnie Beecher, who went on to play some iconic TV roles during her short acting career.

Bonnie Beecher, who was born on April 25, 1941, establishes an interesting connection between Bob Dylan and two classic TV shows, The Twilight Zone and Star Trek.

First, her connection to Dylan. Beecher was friends with and dated Dylan when they both went to the University of Minnesota. One theory is that “Girl from the North Country” may be at least partially about Beecher.

Perhaps most significantly for music history, there is no doubt that some of Dylan’s earliest recordings were made at Beecher’s home in 1961. Below are some of those recordings, including “Omie Wise,” “Wade in the Water,” and the not-to-be-missed “I Was Young When I Left Home.”

After her relationship with Bob Dylan, Beecher had a short successful acting career. Not long after her relationship with Dylan in the 1960s, Beecher pursued an acting career in television. Her biggest role was probably on the episode of The Twilight Zone entitled, “Come Wander With Me” (1964). In the episode, which was the final one of the series filmed, Beecher played a muse haunting a young singer seeking a new song.

Beecher, who beat out Liza Minelli for the role, also sings in the episode. She sings the title folk song that foretells the doom of the young man. Beecher, whose voice appears with Dylan on some of the Minneapolis tapes, had a wonderful singing voice herself.

The song “Come Wander With Me” was written by Jeff Alexander and Anthony Wilson. Most recently, Beecher’s recording of the song was used in the Netflix series Baby Reindeer (2024).

Beecher, however, did not continue with her acting and singing career past the 1960s. Her career ended around 1968, not long after appearing in a Star Trek episode, “Spectre of the Gun.” In that show, she appeared as Pavel Chekov’s love interest (where his love for her character saved his life).

In addition to Bob Dylan (and Chekov), Beecher’s love for another famous man would fill much of her life. Since 1967, she has been married to 1960s icon (and Woodstock MC) Wavy Gravy. She runs charitable organizations and  Camp Winnarainbow with him.  After her marriage to Gravy with whom she has a son, she adopted the name Jahanara Romney.

Finally, below, Beecher tells a funny story about Dylan traveling to Oklahoma.

Happy birthday Ms. Beecher/Romney! Leave your two cents in the comments.

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  • Sheila Atim Peforming “Tight Connection to My Heart” (Great Bob Dylan Covers)
  • Bob Dylan’s 1964 Quest
  • Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s Cover of Bob Dylan’s “Brownsville Girl”
  • Vampire Weekend Saluting a Font By Covering Bob Dylan’s “Jokerman”
  • Clarence Ashley: “The Cuckoo” & “Little Sadie”
  • Dylan Releases “Murder Most Foul”
    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Sheila Atim Peforming “Tight Connection to My Heart” (Great Bob Dylan Covers)

    Shiela Atim gave an outstanding performance of Bob Dylan’s “Tight Connection to My Heart” when she starred in the play “Girl from the North Country.”

    Before making it to Broadway, the musical Girl from the North Country had its debut in London at the Old Vic and the West End. The play by Conor McPherson, in its various incarnations, featured a number of wonderful covers of Bob Dylan songs. One of those outstanding performances came from Sheila Atim in the 2017-2018 original London production.

    In the play, Atim performed “Tight Connection To My Heart (Has Anyone Seen My Love).” The song first appeared on Dylan’s 1985 album, Empire Burlesque. Although few rank the album among Dylan’s best and many criticize its 1980s production, I have always had a fondness for “Tight Connection to My Heart.” I recall it being one of the first Dylan videos I saw on MTV, and it was one of my favorite songs on that channel for some time.

    Dylan’s “Tight Connection”

    Dylan initially recorded an earlier version of “Tight Connection to My Heart,” then entitled “Someone’s Got a Hold of My Heart,” while making his Infidels album. Despite attempting a number of takes of the song, Dylan decided not to release it on that 1983 album. One of the takes would appear on the 1991 box set The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991.

    While I like the early incarnation of ths song too, I am especially fond of the Empire Burlesque version with its Gospel backing vocals and synthesizers. Not surprisingly, at least to me, Rolling Stone lists “Tight Connection to My Heart” among “20 Overlooked Bob Dylan Classics.”

    Sheila Atim’s “Tight Connection”

    And now I am a fan of Atim’s version. The play’s slower take on the song is perhaps more similar to Dylan’s original vision of “Someone’s Got a Hold of My Heart” rather than the recorded version of “Tight Connection to My Heart.”

    Taken from the Bob Dylan album and put in the context of the play, “Tight Connection to My Heart” becomes a heartbreaking epic in Atim’s voice. Unlike Dylan’s upbeat recording, the play’s version and music digs deep into the sadness of the lyrics. In choosing the song for the play, McPherson clearly recognized the cinematic aspect of the lyrics. Those lyrics fit well on stage, perhaps, because as Dylan scholar Michael Gray has noted, Dylan included several lines from Humphrey Bogart films in the song.

    In Girl from the North Country, Atim played a pregnant woman abandoned by her lover. As The Guardian explained, “An arrangement for piano and double bass, with a choir of cast members providing gentle harmonies in support of Atim’s direct, unaffected and perfectly poised delivery, helps McPherson locate an essence that the song may never have known it possessed.”

    Atim knew of Dylan’s music before working on Girl from the North Country. But, as you can see from her connection to “Tight Connection to My Heart,” she became a fan of Bob Dylan’s music, finding a deep connection, while working on the play.

    Atim, who was born in Uganda and grew up in the United Kingdom, has had a succussful career on the stage. Additionally, she composes music and plays several instruments. In more recent years, she has made several television and film appearances. With her great talent, we look forward to whatever she does next.

    Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • One Degree of Separation Between Bob Dylan & Twilight Zone: Bonnie Beecher & “Come Wander With Me”
  • Bob Dylan’s 1964 Quest
  • Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s Cover of Bob Dylan’s “Brownsville Girl”
  • Vampire Weekend Saluting a Font By Covering Bob Dylan’s “Jokerman”
  • Clarence Ashley: “The Cuckoo” & “Little Sadie”
  • Dylan Releases “Murder Most Foul”
    • ( Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Buy from Amazon

    Bob Dylan’s 1964 Quest

    Dylan 1964
    In 1964 on the Toronto television show Quest, 23-year-old Bob Dylan performed several of his now-classic songs. At the time, he was promoting his latest album, The Times They Are a-Changin’ (1964). Quest was a regular series, initially called Q for Quest, that featured various artists and ran on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) network during 1961-1964.

    In 1964, Robert Whitehead hosted the series. But for Dylan’s segment, the producers offered Dylan the entire 30 minutes for his music with no interviews. So Dylan performed throughout the show in a rustic cabin-like setting with various actors in the background. The music, though, is fantastic.

    In the entire 30-minute program, Dylan performed “The Times They Are a-Changin’,” “Talkin’ World War III Blues,” “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll,” “Girl from the North Country,” “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall,” and “Restless Farewell.” The version of “Girl from the North Country” from this show appears on the DVD release of Martin Scorsese’s No Direction Home (2005). [Update: The video of the entire show is no longer available, so below is the opening song of the show, “The Times They Are a-Changin’.”]

    According to the TV Talkin’ website about Dylan’s early recorded performances, this Quest show is the earliest video of a full Dylan performance available. The TV Talkin’ website lists the date of the show as January 2, 1964, although that may be the date of the recording instead of the broadcast. Another website, Queens’ Film and Media, lists the date of the Dylan show as March 10, 1964, which is probably the broadcast date.

    The audio for the show is available on the 10-CD Man on the Street bootleg (Thanks to one of our readers for this information!).  It appears on the eighth CD under ” Quest Canada CBC-TV (Feb. 1, ’64).”  So it puts the date somewhere between the January and March dates listed above.

    Dylan’s special TV episode was the last one executive producer Daryl Duke did for Quest before leaving the show. He went on to produce The Steve Allen Show, where Dylan would appear on February 25, 1964.

    Reportedly, prior to these TV appearances, Dylan had appeared on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in summer or late 1963. But no video survives of that appearance and nobody seems even to know what Dylan sang then. Fortunately, though, this Quest performance from the same period survives.

    What is your favorite song in the segment? Leave your two cents in the comments.

  • One Degree of Separation Between Bob Dylan & Twilight Zone: Bonnie Beecher & “Come Wander With Me”
  • Sheila Atim Peforming “Tight Connection to My Heart” (Great Bob Dylan Covers)
  • A Hard Rain, Lord Randall, and the Start of a Revolution
  • When Bob Dylan’s Ship Comes In
  • Bonnie “Prince” Billy’s Cover of Bob Dylan’s “Brownsville Girl”
  • Vampire Weekend Saluting a Font By Covering Bob Dylan’s “Jokerman”

    • (Some related Chimesfreedom posts.)

    Buy from Amazon