I Shall Be Released, by The Band*.
Yes, indeed, it is a cover-of-a-cover, but that is sometimes the case the the Dylan/Band overlaps. I am way, way, way more familiar with The Band’s version, so that’s what this song is for me.
I spent a lot of time listening to The Band on a discman in Morocco — at least until I really got into the Gnaoua CD I picked up in Marrakech. This song might’ve been on one of those Band CDs I had on repeat when I hiked, alone, into the scrub outside Tinghir (Tenerhir) and left the tourist trail, scrambled up the rocks, and spent the night in what was clearly some goatherd’s regular campsite.
In the middle of the night, I woke once to the sound of bleating animals strolling by on the path; I woke up a hundred more times to the light of the moon in my eyes. (The ultralight tarp in my daypack was not enough to block it out; the clementines and almonds I brought were sufficient nourishment, though.)
The walk back through the date farms was a highlight of that trip, but I’ll save that for another song.
Leave a Reply