#82 Bringing It All Back Home by Bob Dylan
The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time
- 2025 Album Rank
- 82
- 2011 Album Rank
- 79
- Total Points
- 789
- Year Released
- 1965
- Billboard 200 Chart Peak
- 6
- Weeks at #1
- N/A
- RIAA Sales Certification
- 1,000,000 (Platinum)
- Buy Album
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Bringing It All Back Home Album Details
Released in March 1965, Bringing It All Back Home marks a bold and revolutionary turning point in Bob Dylan's career. The first half of the album is electric, featuring a full rock band, a shocking move at the time for a figure associated with acoustic folk protest songs. The second half returns to solo acoustic material, but even these are denser and more surreal than his earlier work. This dual structure underscores the transitional nature of the album and Dylan's growing ambition as a songwriter and cultural figure.
With tracks like "Subterranean Homesick Blues", "Maggie's Farm", and "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)", Dylan unleashes a torrent of cryptic, rebellious, and visionary language. He turns from topical protest to something more apocalyptic, satirical, and poetic. This album laid the foundation for his mid-'60s trilogy, redefining rock lyrics and launching a new phase of American music.
Interesting Facts about Bringing It All Back Home
- The opening track, "Subterranean Homesick Blues", is often considered the first modern rap song due to its rapid-fire delivery and streetwise energy. Its promotional film clip, with Dylan flipping cue cards, became one of the earliest examples of the music video.
- Dylan recorded "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" during these sessions. Though not released on the original album, it was issued as a single in Europe and became a fan favorite for its sly humor.
- "She Belongs to Me" is often interpreted as a tribute to Nico (of The Velvet Underground) or possibly Joan Baez, though Dylan never confirmed the identity of the muse.
- The album was recorded in just three days at Columbia Studios in New York. Dylan had grown impatient with the limitations of folk recording and wanted more power and spontaneity in the sound.
- The acoustic half includes some of Dylan's most abstract and intense writing. "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" contains dozens of now-iconic lines, including "He not busy being born is busy dying."
- Several early versions and outtakes exist, including alternate takes of "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" and "Mr. Tambourine Man", the latter of which was famously electrified by The Byrds months later.
- "Bob Dylan's 115th Dream" opens with a failed take in which only Dylan starts singing, bursts into laughter, and begins again, a rare studio moment left on the album to underscore its irreverent tone.
- Dylan first performed several songs from the album live at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival. His electric set later that year caused an uproar among folk purists and helped solidify his move into rock territory.
- The phrase "bringing it all back home" refers to Dylan's effort to integrate the political and personal, the acoustic and the electric, and the literary and the streetwise, all within a single artistic framework.
- Dylan reportedly walked out of the studio after finishing the final take of "It's Alright, Ma", telling the engineers, "That'll do it." He viewed that song as a kind of exorcism, a lyrical tour de force with no need for retakes.
- Some pressings of the album initially had slightly different mixes or running times. Dylan and producer Tom Wilson were known for making last-minute edits and mix changes even after mastering.
- The album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2006 for its cultural and historical significance.
Bringing It All Back Home Tracklist
- Subterranean Homesick Blues - Reached #39 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart
- She Belongs to Me
- Maggie's Farm
- Love Minus Zero / No Limit
- Outlaw Blues
- On the Road Again
- Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
- Mr. Tambourine Man
- Gates of Eden
- It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)
- I's All Over Now, Baby Blue
