He Was a Friend of Mine
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
He Was a Friend of Mine is a traditional folk song in which the singer laments the death of a friend.
It has been recorded by Bob Dylan, The Byrds, Dave Van Ronk, Mercury Rev, The Mitchell Trio and Willie Nelson, and covered by Cat Power. The version recorded by Willie Nelson was used in the film Brokeback Mountain and is credited to Dylan, who arranged an early version of the tune in 1962.[1]
In the Byrds' version, John F. Kennedy was the friend whose death was lamented. The melody is changed considerably and Roger McGuinn takes a songwriter's credit.
The song was featured in an episode of the reality television series Jacob and Joshua: Nemesis Rising when the openly gay pop duo Nemesis recorded it for its upcoming album.
The Grateful Dead also performed this song in the late 60's through 1971.
[edit] References
- ^ BobDylan.com Bob Dylan: He Was a Friend of Mine (accessed 17 Sept 2006)
