| "Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poem by Bob Dylan from the album The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961-1991 | ||||
| Released | March 26, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | April 12, 1963 | |||
| Genre | Spoken Word, Poetry | |||
| Length | 7:08 | |||
| Label | Columbia | |||
| Writer | Bob Dylan | |||
| The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961-1991 track listing | ||||
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"Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie" is a poem written by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, and recited live during his April 12, 1963 performance at New York City's Town Hall.[1] It was released in 1991 on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961-1991 after circulating on bootleg releases for years, even appearing on the ten-LP box set Ten of Swords in 1985.
Dylan's performance at the Town Hall on April 12 was used to debut several new compositions, such as "Tomorrow Is a Long Time", "Dusty Old Fairgrounds", "Ramblin' Down Thru the World", and "Bob Dylan's New Orleans Rag".[2] However, at the end of the concert, Dylan returned to the stage to recite one of his poems in public, "Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie", which he has never done since.[1] In his introduction, Dylan explained that he had written the piece after being asked to "write something about Woody...what does Woody Guthrie mean to you in twenty-five words" in the impending release of a book about Guthrie.[2] He then explains that he "couldn't do it, I wrote out five pages, and, I have it here, have it here by accident, actually." Apparently, the poem described his "feelings towards Woody Guthrie",[2] but, Guthrie's name is not mentioned until the last stanza.[3]
The poem was also put to music by Jack Johnson, who performed it at a live concert in Boulder, Colorado.