The album version of “Idiot Wind” is one of Bob Dylan’s best songs, featuring a recording from Minneapolis with a full backing band, but Dylan first recorded the classic the year before in New York as a mostly acoustic track. The song, which features allusions to the American Civil Rights movement, Shakespeare’s MacBeth, Woody Guthrie, and his own personal life, appeared on Blood On The Tracks in 1975, having been one of a number of songs re-recorded to match the heavier sound of the album. This original outtake was eventually included on the second disc of The Bootleg Series, released in 1991.
The differences between the two versions are mostly cosmetic, with no major changes to the lyrics or structure of the song. There are many live versions of “Idiot Wind,” including as the closing track to Dylan’s 1976 live album, Hard Rain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMzcwlmhfws
Header image courtesy of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.