Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” raises more questions than answers.
One of Bob Dylan’s great songs is “All Along the Watchtower” from his John Wesley Harding album. Dylan’s eighth album remains one of his great accomplishments. Released in December of 1967, seven months after The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Band, the acoustic sound of John Wesley Harding appears as a stark contrast to the psychedelic sounds from across the ocean.
The lyrics to “All Along the Watchtower” raise more questions than answers, but that is the brilliance of the song. Who are the princes and the two riders? Who is the joker and who is the thief, and why did the joker tell the thief, “There must be some way out of here”?
All along the watchtower, princes kept the view. While all the women came and went, barefoot servants too; Outside in the distance, a wildcat did growl; Two riders were approaching, the wind began to howl.
Nerdwriter 1 created a short video exploring the depth of “All Along the Watchtower,” a song you may have thought was a simple tale. But in the video, Nerdwriter1 dissects some of the mysteries behind the lyrics, and why the brilliance of the song helps explain why Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize in literature. Check it out.
Some believe that Dylan is the “Joker” in the song, while Elvis Presley is the “Thief.” Others surmise how the two characters are really different sides of Dylan. Still others see a Biblical reference, with Jesus as the Joker and the Thief being the thief on the cross. There is no one answer, but a great thing about the song is how it can make you think and find your own interpretation.
Another wonderful feature, as Jimi Hendrix knew, is the way the song rocks.
What do you think is the meaning behind “All Along the Watchtower”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
A new Jimi Hendrix album, Both Sides of the Sky, features unreleased studio recordings that Hendrix made from 1968 to 1970. A new music video for “Lover Man” supports the album from Hendrix.
Producer and engineer Eddie Kramer worked on the album’s release. Kramer worked as recording engineer on every Hendrix album released during the lifetime of the guitar great who died in 1970 when he was 27.
Songs on Both Sides of the Skyinclude a number of great musicians, with some songs supported by artists such as Johnny Winters, Stephen Stills, and original Jimi Hendrix Experience members Mitch Mitchell and Noel Redding. Band of Gypsys, Hendrix’s group with Buddy Miles and Billy Cox, also appears on several of the songs.
Both Sides of the Sky completes a trilogy of recent releases from Hendrix’s vaults. The series also included Valleys Of Neptune (2010) and People, Hell & Angels (2013).
“Lover Man”
One of the previously unreleased songs on the album is “Lover Man.” John Vondracek directed the video, which features archival footage of Hendrix.
Pastemagazine notes that Hendrix apparently included a riff from the Batman television series at around the 1:43 mark in “Lover Man.” Check it out.
Experience Hendrix and Legacy Recordings released Both Sides Of The Sky on March 9, 2018.
What is your favorite posthumous Jimi Hendrix release? Leave your two cents in the comments.
On Sunday July 16, 1967, Jimi Hendrix opened for The Monkees for the final time. The opening performance by the Jimi Hendrix Experience was the last of three shows at Forest Hills Tennis Stadium in Queens, New York, and it ended a seven-show run for Hendrix that started when he joined the ongoing tour in Jacksonville, Florida, on July 8. After Jacksonville, the pairing also performed in Miami Beach (Florida) on July 9, Charlotte (North Carolina) on July 11, and Greensboro (North Carolina) on July 12 before heading north for the final shows together in Queens on July 14, 15, and 16.
The Pairing of Jimi Hendrix With The Monkees
During the summer of 1967, Hendrix was popular in the United Kingdom, but he was still rising in the United States. He garnered attention at his performance earlier in the summer at the Monterey Pop Festival, where Peter Tork and Mickey Dolenz had seen him. But Hendrix’s first album Are You Experienced (1967) was not released in the U.S. until August. So, Hendrix ended up as the opening act for The Monkees, who were in the middle of their successful 1966-1968 TV series run.
The teaming of The Monkees and the Jimi Hendrix Experience was meant to go longer then seven shows, continuing until August 20. And the members of The Monkees were fans of Hendrix and enjoyed having him on tour.
The Eventual Split
But many who came to see The Monkees were not happy to hear an opening act so different from the band they came to see. For example, some fans yelled “We Want Davy [Jones]” as Hendrix played.
One often repeated story is that after Hendrix had enough, he flipped off the audience at the Forest Hills show and then left. Hendrix told NME magazine that it was just the “wrong audience,” joking that he was being replaced with “Mickey Mouse.”
Hendrix, however, also told the magazine that he got along well with the members of The Monkees. And by most accounts the departure was amicable.
By some accounts, Hendrix’s managers knew the combination would not work and had planned the pairing as a publicity stunt all along. Either way, it was one of the most unique concert billings in rock history, and one that would never be repeated.
A little more than three years later, Hendrix passed away on September 18, 1970. Four days after Hendrix’s death, Davy Jones and Micky Dolenz recorded the final Monkees song for the original band, with Peter Tork and Michael Nesmith having already quit.
Tour Promo
Below is a radio promo for the Detroit show featuring Hendrix opening for The Monkees. Note that the photos were added for the YouTube video and were not a part of the promotion.
The Detroit show took place on August 13, by which time Hendrix had left the tour. So fans who bought tickets based on this promo may have ended up disappointed. Check it out.
Note: The This Day in History website states that the final Hendrix-Monkees show was July 17, 1962, but the concert poster shown in this video verifies that the final Forest Hills date was on July 16. Also, some websites claim that Hendrix and The Monkees played together at eight shows, but a Monkees website that lists the shows between Jacksonville and Forest Hills confirms there were seven shows in that span.
Do you wish you had seen one of these concerts? Leave your two cents in the comments.
The PBS American Masters series presents My Train A Comin’, a documentary about the life of Jimi Hendrix, who died at the age of 27. The documentary features previously unseen concert footage and home movies. For example, the movie includes recently discovered footage of Hendrix at the 1968 Miami Pop Festival. My Train A Comin‘ also contains interviews with people ranging from Paul McCartney to Hendrix’s girlfriend Linda Keith. I am not sure how long the PBS video will be available online, but for now you may check it out below. [May 2014 Update: Unfortunately, the full PBS documentary is no longer available online, so below is the trailer.]
The American Masters website features a number of extras related to the documentary, such as outtakes and an interview with director Bob Smeaton.
What is your favorite part of My Train A Comin’? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Jimi Hendrix was born on November 27, 1942 in Seattle, Washington. Various articles linked below commemorate the 70th anniversary of his birth.
Unlike some artists who died young, it is not too hard to imagine Hendrix around today still playing relevant music even though he died more than forty years ago on September 18, 1970. His music like “Hey Joe” was timeless in that he could be both cutting edge while being steeped in the history of the blues too.
Some features about Jimi Hendrix’s birthday provide interesting quotes. San Francisco Weekly Blog has a collection of 13 quotes from Hendrix, including a quote from his final interview (“I don’t feel the need to dress up so much now I see others doing it”). ABC News has quotes from other rock stars remembering Hendrix.
Some other articles feature cool photos. ABC News Blog has a collection of photos from Hendrix’s life and career (make sure to check out Hendrix in a tie with Curtis Knight and the Squires in 1965). Huffington Post has a slide show of items from a new Jimi Hendrix exhibit at Seattle’s EMP Museum. The Albany Sun Times Blog remembers Hendrix’s one year in the military with photos of excerpts from a deposition by Hendrix’s not-too-happy sergeant.
But it is not just about the past. Rolling Stone magazine discusses a new album from Hendrix — People, Hell & Angels (released March 5, 2013). Antimusic has a track-by-track description of the twelve previously unreleased studio recordings on the album. The Future Heart also has a track-by-track description, along with other stories about Hendrix including a video of The Experience’s May 3, 1969 concert in Toronto.
Happy birthday Jimi.
What is your favorite Jimi Hendrix performance or song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
One of Bob Dylan’s great songs is “All Along the Watchtower” from his John Wesley Harding
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on March 9, 2018.
On Sunday July 16, 1967, 
(released March 5, 2013). 
