"Shelter from the Storm" is a song by
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
, recorded on September 17, 1974, and released on his 15th studio album, ''
Blood on the Tracks
''Blood on the Tracks'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on January 20, 1975, by Columbia Records. The album marked Dylan's return to Columbia Records after a two-album stint with Asylum Records. Dy ...
'', in 1975. It was later anthologized on the compilation album ''
The Essential Bob Dylan
''The Essential Bob Dylan'' is a compilation by Bob Dylan, released in 2000 as the inaugural entry in Sony Music's "The Essential" double-disc compilation series. ''The Essential Bob Dylan'' spans from 1963's "Blowin' in the Wind" (from ''The Fr ...
'' in 2000.
Composition and recording
Dylan recorded five takes of the song on September 17, 1974 at
A&R Recording
A & R Recording Inc. was a major American independent studio recording company founded in 1958 by Jack Arnold and Phil Ramone.
History
Before founding A & R Recording in 1958, Arnold and Ramone had been working at JAC Recording, Inc.; Arnold ...
in New York City, with the fifth take the one that was included on ''
Blood on the Tracks
''Blood on the Tracks'' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on January 20, 1975, by Columbia Records. The album marked Dylan's return to Columbia Records after a two-album stint with Asylum Records. Dy ...
''.
Dylan sang, and played guitar and harmonica, accompanied by Tony Brown on bass.
Both
Robert Shelton and Oliver Trager describe the song's narrator's mood as "tempest-tossed", with Shelton saying that the song explores a "search for salvation through love" and has similarities to the work of
W. B. Yeats
William Butler Yeats (13 June 186528 January 1939) was an Irish poet, dramatist, writer and one of the foremost figures of 20th-century literature. He was a driving force behind the Irish Literary Revival and became a pillar of the Irish liter ...
, and Trager interpreting it as the narrator "taking stock of himself, the dangerous world around him, and his lost love".
The song opens with anachronistic language and Christian symbolism:
Dylan scholar Tony Attwood calls the song a "complexly woven tale" that is "told around three chords". He notes that the same three chords repeat in every line of every verse, which culminates in the redemptive refrain "Come in, she said, I'll give you shelter from the storm". Attwood describes the story told in the song's lyrics thusly: "He finds her when he is nothing and has nothing or both, she welcomes him in, and he wanders off and loses her, much to his eternal regret".
In their book ''Bob Dylan All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track'', authors Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon note that Dylan's performance "oscillates between intimacy and declamation, and his performance is excellent, including short harmonica playing (in E)". They also note that the "excellent bass player Tony Brown", the only other musician on the track, "offers subtle and melodic playing" to accompany Dylan.
Critical reception
''Spectrum Culture'' included the song on a list of "Bob Dylan's 20 Best Songs of the '70s". In an article accompanying the list, critic Tyler Dunston credits Dylan for bringing out "the beauty and spirituality in pain, highlighting the terror that accompanies the greatest joy". He compares Dylan's vision of love to
Rainer Maria Rilke
René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), shortened to Rainer Maria Rilke (), was an Austrian poet and novelist. He has been acclaimed as an idiosyncratic and expressive poet, and is widely recogni ...
's ''
Duino Elegies
The ''Duino Elegies'' (german: Duineser Elegien) are a collection of ten elegies written by the Bohemian-Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke. He was then "widely recognized as one of the most lyrically intense German-language poets", and began t ...
'' for being "one in which pain and beauty, romance and faith are inextricable, almost indistinguishable, from one another".
''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' ranked the song 66th on a list of the "100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs". A 2021
''Guardian'' article included it on a list of "80 Bob Dylan songs everyone should know".
Other versions
The first take of the song, from the same recording session that produced the album track, was released on the soundtrack to the 1996 motion picture ''
Jerry Maguire
''Jerry Maguire'' is a 1996 American romantic comedy-drama sports film written, produced, and directed by Cameron Crowe; it stars Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr., Renée Zellweger, and Regina King. Produced in part by James L. Brooks, it was inspi ...
''. The same take was also featured on ''
The Best of Bob Dylan'' the following year. This take and three others are included in the 2018 deluxe edition of ''
The Bootleg Series Vol. 14: More Blood, More Tracks'', (with Take 2 included on its single-CD and 2-LP versions).
Live performances
According to his official website, Dylan played the song 376 times between 1976 and 2015. Live versions of the song have officially released on the albums
''Hard Rain'' in 1976 and ''
Bob Dylan at Budokan
''Bob Dylan at Budokan'' is a live album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released August 1978 on Columbia Records in Japan only, followed by a worldwide release in April 1979. It was recorded during his 1978 world tour and is composed mos ...
'' in 1979. Dylan's live performance debut of the song during the
Rolling Thunder Revue
The Rolling Thunder Revue was a 1975–1976 concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan with numerous musicians and collaborators. The purpose of the tour was to allow Dylan, who had now become a major recording artist and concert perfor ...
tour was described by Trager as having a "blustery, metallic edge complete with screeching electric guitar crescendos".
During Dylan's
1978 World Tour, a saxophone part played by
Steve Douglas and backing vocals featured in the renditions.
Trager criticized the "emotionless lead vocal and sax solo" from the 1978 tour,
while
Paul Williams felt that the saxophone and backing vocalists failed to match the intensity of Dylan's singing.
Notable covers
Jimmy Lafave
Jimmy LaFave (July 12, 1955 – May 21, 2017) was an American singer-songwriter and folk musician. After moving to Stillwater, Oklahoma, LaFave became a supporter of Woody Guthrie. He later became an Advisory Board member and regular performer ...
recorded the song on his 1992 live record ''Austin Skyline''. The song was covered by
Manfred Mann's Earth Band
Manfred Mann's Earth Band are an English rock band formed by South African musician Manfred Mann (musician), Manfred Mann. Their hits include covers of Bruce Springsteen's "For You (Bruce Springsteen song), For You", "Blinded by the Light" an ...
, released on their 1996 studio album ''
Soft Vengeance
''Soft Vengeance'' is an album released in 1996 by Manfred Mann's Earth Band.
Track listing
#" Pleasure and Pain" (Mike Chapman, Holly Knight) – 5:39
#" Play with Fire" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) – 3:58
#" Nothing Ever Happens" ( Justi ...
''. The song has also been covered by jazz singer
Cassandra Wilson
Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female Jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed wi ...
on ''
Belly of the Sun
''Belly of the Sun'' is a studio album by American jazz singer Cassandra Wilson. It was released on the Blue Note label in 2002.
Background
The title of the CD comes from a line in "Only a Dream in Rio" that Wilson had translated to Yoruba "... ...
'' released in 2002.
Soul Flower Union
Soul Flower Union, also known as SFU, is a Japanese musical group that incorporates Asian styles and world music styles into a rock and roll band. They are known for their blend of psychedelic, rock, Okinawan music, Celtic music, chindon (a kind ...
as 嵐からの隠れ家 (''Arashi kara no Kakurega'') covered the song on their 2002 studio album ''
Love ± Zero
''Love ± Zero'' (pronounced "Love Plus/Minus Zero") is an album by the Japanese band Soul Flower Union.
Track listing
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Love Zero
2002 albums ...
''.
Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell (born August 7, 1950) is an American musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music. Crowell has had five number one singles on Hot Country Songs, all from his 1988 album '' Diamonds & Dirt''. ...
covered the song, with
EmmyLou Harris
Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...
, for Crowell's 2005 album ''The Outsider.'' In 2006, English singer-songwriter
Steve Adey
Steve Adey (born in Great Barr, Birmingham) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. His music is characterised by slow tempos, minimalist arrangements, underpinned by piano and a rich baritone vocal. As of 2018 Adey has released three st ...
reinterpreted the song, slowing it down to a funeral pace. Adey's version made ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' top songs of 2006. Pakistan's Sachal Jazz Ensemble, with guest
Becca Stevens
Becca Stevens (born June 14, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist who draws upon elements of jazz, chamber pop, indie rock, and folk.
Early life and education
Stevens was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina as the youngest ...
, recorded the song with sitar and other traditional instruments for their album ''Song of Lahore'' (Universal, 2016).
Bill Murray
William James Murray (born September 21, 1950) is an American actor and comedian. He is known for his deadpan delivery. He rose to fame on ''The National Lampoon Radio Hour'' (1973–1974) before becoming a national presence on ''Saturday Nigh ...
sings along to the song in its entirety in the film ''
St. Vincent
Saint Vincent may refer to:
People Saints
* Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr
* Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia
* Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305) ...
''.
Chris Martin
Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist, pianist, rhythm guitarist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Devon, he went to Univ ...
of the band
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University Col ...
performed a solo acoustic version of the song in the ''
Saturday Night Live at Home'' episode of ''
Saturday Night Live
''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'' on April 11, 2020.
In popular culture
Hip hop group
Public Enemy
"Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe p ...
reference it in their 2007 Dylan tribute song "
Long and Whining Road
"Long and Whining Road" is a song by American Hip hop music, hip hop group Public Enemy (band), Public Enemy that appears as the 16th track on their 20th anniversary album ''How You Sell Soul to a Soulless People Who Sold Their Soul?'' released in ...
": "There's a poison goin' on, there's a shelter from the storm / Hard rain's gonna fall, still the people rock on".
References
External links
Lyricsat Bob Dylan's official site
Chordsat Dylanchords
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shelter From The Storm
Songs written by Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan songs
1975 songs
Song recordings produced by Bob Dylan
Manfred Mann songs