The Age Old Question: A Podcast for Music Fans · Rich Price and Clint Bierman

What Is Your Favorite Bob Dylan song?

September 18, 2023·1 hr 5 min·4 clips

Mike Gordon of Phish performed with his daughter Tessa—a father-daughter moment that brought the house down.

Hosts Rich Price and Clint Beerman explore the question of a favorite Bob Dylan song through the lens of a recent benefit concert for Vermont farmers. The episode features backstage interviews with musicians from the "Hug Your Farmer Hard Rain" event, which raised over $219,000 for flood relief. Performers included Mike Gordon of Phish, Chadwick Stokes of Dispatch, and Broadway star Kelli O'Hara. Mike Gordon performed "If Not For You" with his daughter Tessa, while Martin Sexton delivered a rewritten version of "Wagon Wheel" with new verses about the flooding. The house band, featuring musicians like Peter Day and Matt Flinner, backed various artists throughout the night. Clint Beerman shares that his favorite Dylan songs are "She Belongs to Me," which his band Honeywell rearranges, and the complex "Hurricane." Rich Price highlights the lyrical mastery in "Tangled Up in Blue," reciting specific verses about a meeting in a bookstore. Guest Jeff Simons names "Idiot Wind" from *Blood on the Tracks* as his top choice, praising its emotional complexity and multiple recorded versions. Kelli O'Hara's earliest Dylan memory is "Blowing in the Wind," while drummer Steve Hadika favors the concise "Country Pie." Fiddle player Matt LaRocca chooses "Buckets of Rain" for its delightfully impenetrable lyrics. The hosts note Dylan's unique songwriting habits, like his frequent use of the minor three chord and his general avoidance of bridges in song structures. A clip from a *60 Minutes* interview reveals Dylan himself reflecting on the lost "magic" of his early, prolific writing periods. The episode contrasts Dylan's rapid, prolific creativity with the meticulous revision process of artists like Leonard Cohen. The backstage camaraderie is palpable, with stories like Martin Sexton adopting the phrase "I appreciate you" from opener Josh Panda. The tone is warm, conversational, and celebratory, blending music analysis with personal anecdotes from a tight-knit community event. Listeners who enjoy intimate, behind-the-scenes looks at live music and thoughtful discussions of songcraft will love this episode. Those seeking a formal, academic critique of Bob Dylan's work or a debate among experts might find it too anecdotal and locally focused.

As heard by us

A warm Dylan debate with real benefit-concert texture and enough craft talk to keep it moving.

Bob Dylan comes off here less like a monument and more like something people can still argue about. Set backstage at an all-star benefit concert for Vermont farmers hit by flooding, the discussion keeps one foot in fandom and the other in the room's purpose.

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Why you'd press play

Press play if you like Bob Dylan talk that feels like a backstage room full of music people debating favorites.

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