Bob Dylan Draft Results
Who brought the best Bob?
Here are the results of the Bob Dylan Rock and Roll Fantasy Draft™. Full team lists at the end of this article.
1. TEAM B (Steve Leftridge)
2. TEAM A (Mark Manary)
3. TEAM D (Justin Burch)
4. TEAM C (Spencer Marquart)
Total 2024 Rock and Roll Fantasy Draft™ Win-Loss Records:
Steve Leftridge 5-1
Spencer Marquart 1-5
Justin Burch 0-5
Mark Manary 0-5
Total 2024 Rock and Roll Fantasy Draft™ FINAL Standings:
Steve Leftridge 22 (1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 3rd, 1st)
Justin Burch 16 (2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd)
Mark Manary 14 (3rd, 2nd, 3rd, 2nd, 4th, 2nd)
Spencer Marquart 9 (4th, 4th, 4th, 4th, 1st, 4th)
Bob Dylan might be a complete unknown, but the winner of our Rock and Roll Fantasy Draft™ for Bob Dylan is not. I won. I was TEAM B. Not to jingle-jangle my own tambourine, but I think I painted my masterpiece with this one. I’ll break it all down for you—the reason I pulled away and never looked back, leaving the other three teams churning and gagging back in their own idiot winds (to varying degrees)—here in a bit.
But this win gives me my fifth win in six drafts and secures the overall Championship for the 2024 Rock and Roll Fantasy Draft™ season. (I’ll post a picture of me hoisting the 2024 Championship Trophy as soon as the engravers complete their work on it.) The good news for the other three players is that we are starting over for the 2025 Season. So we are zeroing everything out and will be holding our January draft (Stevie Wonder!) in the next couple of weeks. Isn’t that lovely?
I will admit that, when it comes to the Dylan draft, I earned it. Each of these draft subjects provides an impetus to brush up on the artists, and beyond listening to the entire discographies, I had read two Led Zeppelin biographies ahead of the Zep draft and the new Peter Ames Carlin bio for the R.E.M. draft. But for Dylan, I studied even harder, really leaning into advanced Dylanological scholarship.
We timed this draft to bump up against the Dylan movie that everyone is talking about. You can read my review of A Complete Unknown here. But watching that film is child’s play when it comes to doing one’s Dylan diligence. So I read the following books ahead of the draft:
Bob Dylan’s Chronicles, Vol 1. Third time I’ve read it.
Mark Polizzotti’s Highway 61 Revisited. Part of the 33 ⅓ series, the only Dylan album in the series so far.
Behind the Shades (Revisited) by Clinton Heylin. The consensus for the most complete and reliable biography overall, but you have to be okay with Heylin’s oral-history approach of interrupting his own prose with tons of long quotes from key figures. (Heylin is also kind of an asshole.)
Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan by Howard Sounes. The other definitive biography.
Folk Music: A Bob Dylan Biography in Seven Songs by Greil Marcus. No one else has written about Dylan with Marcus’s depth of intelligence and analysis.
Bob Dylan in America by Sean Wilentz. Brilliant collection of essays that covers a lot of specific ground across Dylan’s career. Thanks to Neil Salsich for the recommendation on this one.
Bob Dylan: The Essential Interviews, edited by Jonathan Cott.
But I also read parts of or relied on information from the following:
Dylan: The Biography by Denis McDougal
Dylan: A Biography by Bob Spitz
Once Upon a Time: The Lives of Bob Dylan by Ian Bell
Bob Dylan: Mixing Up the Medicine by Mark Davidson and Parker Fishel
Hard Rain: A Dylan Commentary by Tim Riley
Bob Dylan: All the Songs by Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon
Bob Dylan: Lyrics 1962-2001
Rolling Stone’s Bob Dylan—The Complete Album Guide
The Philosophy of Modern Song by Bob Dylan
I’m not saying that this kind of comprehensive research was essential to winning this draft, but it didn’t hurt. For example, I would say that being able to grab “Blind Willie McTell” in Round 20 was helpful in putting me over the top, and I might not have picked it had I not read Sean Wilentz’s (and others’) assessment of the song within Dylan’s canon. (As a point of comparison, the other teams’ picks in the 20th round were a study in droopiness: “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine” (Mark), “Dignity” (Spencer), “Changing of the Guards” (Justin).)
At another point, there was some sniggling when I picked “Murder Most Foul,” the 17-minute final track from Rough and Rowdy Ways. Not only did I select it, but I took it pretty early—round 13 of 25. I was much more eager to secure it before anyone else did after reading Greil Marcus’s essay on the song. (Plus, “Murder Most Foul” has surged across other fan and critical lists lately.)
In terms of overall data crunching, it was tougher to draw conclusions based on the teams’ various patterns and proclivities this time out, as the teams tended to be fairly even in terms of choosing songs from particular albums and/or eras (although there were some notable aberrations, as we shall see).
For example, each team understood the importance of spreading picks out among many different albums. We essentially matched each other in that regard, as no one was going to risk losing the draft by weighing too heavily on one particular album. As a result, here are the remarkably similar numbers in terms of different albums that were represented in each of our lists.
Mark (A): 15
Steve (B): 15
Spencer (C): 16
Justin (D): 17
But how about the different Bob Bylan eras? And what are those eras anyway? For this analysis, I broke Dylan’s career into five eras, which alone is enough to spark controversy among the Dylan faithful. One could easily break his career into 10 or more eras or to simply go by the decades or pick any number of ways to classify his work. We could go around and around about it, but here’s what I went with:
Era I. 1961-1966. The classic opening run, from the debut to the motorcycle crash.
Bob Dylan
The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan
The Times They Are A-Changin’
Another Side of Bob Dylan
Bringing It All Back Home
Highway 61 Revisited
Blonde On Blonde
Era 2. 1967-1974. Woodstock, Nashville, country rock, bookended with the Band.
The Basement Tapes
John Wesley Harding
Nashville Skyline
Self-Portrait
New Morning
Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid
Planet Waves
Era 3. 1975-1981. The ‘70s renaissance plus the Born Again phase.
Blood on the Tracks
Desire
Street-Legal
Slow Train Coming
Saved
Shot of Love
Era 4. 1983-1990. The post-Jesus ‘80s, including the Traveling Wilburys.
Infidels
Empire Burlesque
Knocked Out Loaded
Down in the Groove
Oh Mercy
Under the Red Sky
Era 5. 1997-2020. Everything since the second Lanois comeback.
Time Out of Mind
Love and Theft
Modern Times
Together Through Live
The Sinatra LPs
Rough and Rowdy Ways
Again, the four teams matched up pretty closely in their coverage of the different eras. For example, all four teams selected exactly two songs from Era 5. And, unsurprisingly, all four teams drafted most heavily from Era 1, as we all assumed that most voters would feel that the lion’s share of classic haymakers are found on the albums that run from Freewheelin’ through Blonde on Blonde.
The four teams’ eras distribution:
Some numbers here stand out:
I (Team B) had the most Era 1 selections and won the overall draft.
Mark (Team A), who finished second in the voting, picked the fewest songs from Era 1. Mark had an overall very strong selection of songs top to bottom and also had the most balanced draft eras-wise of all the teams, which perhaps helped offset his paucity of Era 1 selections. But if we’re looking for reasons he finished second instead of first, his weak numbers for Era 1 is the first place to look.
Spencer (Team C) had—and I grow faint just typing this—only one song from Era 2. You read that correctly. Spencer drafted just a single track (“Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You”) from Dylan’s late-’60s and early-70s years that included The Basement Tapes, John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline, and New Morning. He finished last in the voting.
Spencer picked seven (!) songs from Era 4. That’s the largest number of songs that any team picked from any era beyond Era 1. Keep in mind Era 4 is the ‘80s run of albums that established Dylan’s commercial and critical nadir. Spencer took only four songs more from Era 1 than he took from Era 4 and finished last in the voting.
But let’s get to the topic that you’ve all been waiting for. What about the Kitty in the Middle™? (If you’re just joining us, the Kitty in the Middle™—named after Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way”—is the song in an artist’s catalog that is deemed too popular, too ubiquitous, too overplayed, too obvious, thereby turning off potential voters. Think “Stairway to Heaven” or “Losing My Religion.”) So does Bob Dylan have a Kitty in the Middle™?
There was some speculation ahead of the draft that Dylan’s Kitty might be “Like a Rolling Stone” even though (or because) that song felt like a sure thing to be the overall #1 draft pick. But that notion—that “Like a Rolling Stone” was the Kitty—was emphatically put to rest when, as expected, Mark picked it #1 and voters responded favorably. Exit polling even exposed some single-issue voters who testified that the presence of “Like a Rolling Stone”—the critical/historical consensus for Dylan’s (or even Rock and Roll’s) Greatest Song—atop Mark’s list canceled out every other list from the competition.
Okay, so, if “Like a Rolling Stone” wasn’t the Kitty in the Middle™ this time, what was? The answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the #2 spot on Spencer’s team. How many times must a man finish last/Before he starts picking better songs?
If “Like a Rolling Stone” is Dylan’s greatest song, “Blowin’ in the Wind” is probably his most famous one. Walk up to a random person on the street and ask him or her to name a Bob Dylan song: If that person has the scantest knowledge of Dylan and can cough up only a single title, “Blowin’ in the Wind” is probably the one. It’s a song so Kitty you can hear it purr.
By the way, while Spencer fell prey to the Kitty in the Middle™, everyone was careful to avoid any Shiny Happy Curse™ (a song passionately despised by enough people that it’s too risky to draft). For instance, after drafting a full 100 Dylan songs, no one selected “Rainy Day Women #12 & 35,” even though it’s one of Dylan’s biggest hits. Needless to say, no one reached for “Ugliest Girl in the World,” “Wiggle Wiggle,” “Man Gave Names to All the Animals,” or “Ballad in Plain D” either. (Justin did, however, take “Gotta Serve Somebody,” a song that has long split the Dylan community; moreover, he took it as his 8th overall pick.)
Then there is the matter of team playlist lengths. As with the Led Zeppelin draft, there is some perceived value in long songs within the Dylan oeuvre. Dylan, as everyone knows, has been heralded for pushing the conventional wisdom on song lengths, and some of his longest songs are his most acclaimed. So it stands to reason that voters see his extra-long songs as substantial and weighty and uniquely Dylanesque.
So it may be worth noting that I, at 2 hours and 12 minutes, had the longest of the playlists and finished first, while Spencer, at 1 hour and 53 minutes, had the shortest of the playlists and finished last. Yes, “Murder Most Foul” helped put me over the top, but even without it, I had two other songs (“Desolation Row” and “Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands”) that crested the 11-minute mark. (Justin did have the 16-plus-minute “Highlands,” but neither Mark nor Spencer had any song that reached even nine minutes.)
Before I focus further on why I brought the victory back home, let’s look at a couple of other fatal flaws from the other players.
MARK (Team A). As mentioned earlier, Mark had an excellent draft, consistently focusing on unassailable classics. But he had some conspicuous missteps. There was the aforementioned blunder of taking too few songs from Era 1. Specifically, he took zero songs from The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan and was the only player to skip that album entirely. If Spencer hit Freewheelin’ too hard (three of his top nine picks), Mark didn’t hit it hard enough (as in, at all). And Mark took three tracks from John Wesley Harding. Can’t impeach “All Along the Watchtower,” of course, but two more picks from that album was overpetting JWH, especially with Freewheelin’ sitting there totally neglected.
JUSTIN (Team D). Great overall list with some inspired picks, but he sliced the ball into the rough at the end, favoring esoteria over popularity and recognizability. Among Justin’s final six picks, he chose two non-album curios, a peripheral Planet Waves album cut, a Street-Legal track that never charted, and a forgotten Wilbury non-essential.
SPENCER (C). We already talked about the Kitty in the Middle™. And we mentioned the troubles earlier with Spencer’s picks-per-era (one from Era 2, seven from Era 4). He was also the only team that took nothing from the Basement Tapes. But what was with “You’re a Big Girl Now” landing in his #4 spot? I didn’t have the song ranked in my top 100 at all. But even if Blood on the Tracks album cuts are your jam, the smart money is on reserving the #4 spot for the top strata of the Dylan pantheon. For example, other #4 songs on our lists included “Mr. Tambourine Man” (me) and “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” (Mark).
Also, costly was Spencer’s personal aversion to Blonde on Blonde. Granted, it’s not one of Spencer’s favorite albums, but Spencer conflated the personal with the populist, only taking a single song from Blonde on Blonde (“Absolutely Sweet Marie”) and not even getting to that one until the desolate, windswept 19th round. Blonde on Blonde waited for Spencer until the album was half-sick.
But enough spinning in circles here. You and I know damn well what caused the most catastrophic destruction to Spencer’s chances. Everyone can see the source of the Category 5 disaster that led to comprehensive structural failure for his entire team and caused a total power outage in his list after voters saw his top line.
This is the story of Spencer taking “Hurricane” as his #1 pick.
Look, I’m not saying “Hurricane” is insignificant Dylan, but by selecting it as the #1 song on his team (and as the #3 pick overall), Spencer seemed to badly overestimate the number of voters out there who are big Rubin Carter innocence advocates, who are devoted fans of playwright Jacques Levy, who think Bob Dylan’s best songs were co-written, and for whom the defining Dylan sound is a severe, streaking violin. Unfortunately, “Hurricane” caused Spencer’s team to lose all of its strength as soon as our draft lists made landfall online. And as the votes started coming in, Spencer’s Team C was all wet.
So we know how all these other guys laid eggs. But where did I go right? What was the key? How did I end up leaving blood all over these poor sonsabitches’ tracks? Well, come gather ‘round, people, wherever you roam, and I will reveal the secret.
Here it is. Are you ready?
I picked better songs than everyone else. Here is a Top 10 list of examples:
I went with the big, classic, famous songs from his biggest, best albums early—“Tangled Up in Blue,” “Mr. Tambourine Man,” “Don’t Think Twice,” “Maggie’s Farm.”
I wanted the female vote, so I went with romantic ballads that everyone knows: “Just Like a Woman” and “Lay Lady Lay.”
I wanted the singalongs that end tribute shows during all-star jams: “I Shall Be Released” and “Forever Young.” Songs everyone covers.
I knew I also had to sprinkle in some “serious” Dylan songs, the long songs with a dozen verses, the ones people sound like when they try to imitate Dylan: “Idiot Wind” and “Desolation Row.”
I grabbed Dylan’s best song from the Traveling Wilburys, knowing Gen Xers were a big part of our voting bloc.
I was determined to nab the prettiest acoustic love songs from Era 1: “Boots of Spanish Leather,” “One Too Many Mornings,” and, especially, “Spanish Harlem Incident.”
I didn’t ignore the Band. I got not only “I Shall Be Released” but also “When I Paint My Masterpiece” and “Tears of Rage.”
I wasn’t going to waste my two Era 5 picks on non-singles. I went with behemoths—“Mississippi” and “Murder Most Foul.”
I took zero Jesus songs—nothing from Dylan’s Born Again trilogy. I was the only team that avoided Bob’s much-maligned Christian phase altogether.
After round 20, when the other guys were farting around with tracks from Empire Burlesque and Down in the Groove, I was still landing blockbusters from Dylan’s blockbusters. I had two Blonde on Blonde tracks in my last five picks. I took a Freewheelin’ classic among my last four. And I got “Tomorrow is a Long Time,” one of Dylan’s most oft-covered standards, in the goddamned 23rd round.
But hey, I can be a rooster crowing at the break of dawn for only so long. For the losers now will be later to win. It’s a new year, and we’ve got another draft and a whole new season starting up.
Thanks to everyone who played along with us during our inaugural season, and we hope you’ll stick with us in 2025. Until then, may your hands always be busy, may your feet always be swift, and may you have a strong foundation when the winds of changes shift.
TEAM A (Mark)
1. Like a Rolling Stone
2. All Along the Watchtower
3. It’s Alright, Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)
4. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
5. Visions of Johanna
6. Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues
7. Positively 4th Street
8. Every Grain of Sand
9. The Times They Are A-Changin’
10. Shelter from the Storm
11. Chimes of Freedom
12. You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere
13. Not Dark Yet
14. Ring Them Bells
15. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
16. Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts
17. Tombstone Blues
18. I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight
19. If Not For You
20. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine
21. Gates of Eden
22. If You See Her, Say Hello
23. Shooting Star
24. Silvio
25. Thunder on the Mountain
TEAM B (Steve)
1. Tangled Up in Blue
2. Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
3. I Shall Be Released
4. Mr. Tambourine Man
5. Desolation Row
6. Maggie’s Farm
7. Forever Young
8. Idiot Wind
9. Just Like a Woman
10. When I Paint My Masterpiece
11. Tweeter and the Monkey Man
12. Lay Lady Lay
13. Murder Most Foul
14. Boots of Spanish Leather
15. Song to Woody
16. Mississippi
17. One More Cup of Coffee
18. Spanish Harlem Incident
19. Tears of Rage
20. Blind Willie McTell
21. Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine)
22. Oxford Town
23. Tomorrow is a Long Time
24. One Too Many Mornings
25. Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands
TEAM C (Spencer)
1. Hurricane
2. Blowin’ in the Wind
3. It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue
4. You’re a Big Girl Now
5. Girl from the North Country
6. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
7. Jokerman
8. She Belongs to Me
9. Masters of War
10. Make You Feel My Love
11. Queen Jane Approximately
12. You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go
13. Most of the Time
14. Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You
15. I Believe in You
16. Abandoned Love
17. Sweetheart Like You
18. To Ramona
19. Absolutely Sweet Marie
20. Dignity
21. What Was It You Wanted
22. Tight Connection to My Heart (Has Anyone Seen My Love?)
23. Baby, Let Me Follow You Down
24. Dirty World
25. Workingman’s Blues #2
TEAM D (Justin)
1. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall
2. Subterranean Homesick Blues
3. Ballad of a Thin Man
4. Simple Twist of Fate
5. Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
6. Highway 61 Revisited
7. It Ain’t Me Babe
8. Gotta Serve Somebody
9. My Back Pages
10. This Wheel’s On Fire
11. Buckets of Rain
12. Things Have Changed
13. Everything is Broken
14. The Man in Me
15. Talkin’ New York
16. Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat
17. Isis
18. John Wesley Harding
19. All I Really Want to Do
20. Changing of the Guards
21. Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?
22. Tough Mama
23. The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar
24. Congratulations
25. Highlands