One Final Serenade: Songs of Billy Joel
 Download "Highway 61 Revisited"
And he said yes I think it can be easily done
Just take everything down to Highway 61 Billy released his demo cover of Bob Dylan's classic "Highway 61" on My Lives. It is a perfect song for Billy to cover given the bittersweet and sardonic lyrics, and its roadhouse rocker feel. This could have been an appropriate B-side to anything from Storm Front. It is both a faithful rendition of the original, while also giving the song a new twist. Billy has performed with his other musical idols such as Ray Charles, Stevie Winwood, and Paul McCartney; I'd like to see him perform or record with Dylan sometime. As an aside, my favorite cover of a Dylan song is Nina Simone's "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues."
As noted earlier on this website, Billy had been a fan of Bob Dylan as a teen, and signed with Columbia Records in the early 1970s rather than Atlantic Records in part because Dylan was on Columbia. So it was natural that Billy performed Dylan's classic song "The Times They Are A Changin'" while in Russia in 1987. When Dylan released the song back in the 1960s in the United States, it perfectly captured the changing cultural and political climate of the United States including the Civil Rights movement and Free Speech movement. Billy aptly saw that something similar was happening in Russia at the time. Ten years later, in 1997, Billy would cover another Dylan tune, "To Make You Feel My Love" on Billy's Greatest Hits, Volume III. Billy's version actually was released before Dylan's own version. 
Michael Jackson, Christie Brinkley, Bob Dylan and Billy Joel at the recording of "We Are The World" (1985). Photo: Sam Emerson.
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Oh God said to Abraham, “Kill me a son”
Abe says, “Man, you must be puttin’ me on” God say, “No.” Abe say, “What?” God say, “You can do what you want Abe, but The next time you see me comin’ you better run” Well Abe says, “Where do you want this killin’ done?” God says, “Out on Highway 61” Well Georgia Sam he had a bloody nose Welfare Department they wouldn’t give him no clothes He asked poor Howard where can I go Howard said there’s only one place I know Sam said tell me quick man I got to run Ol’ Howard just pointed with his gun And said that way down on Highway 61 Well Mack the Finger said to Louie the King I got forty red, white and blue shoestrings And a thousand telephones that don’t ring Do you know where I can get rid of these things And Louie the King said let me think for a minute son And he said yes I think it can be easily done Just take everything down to Highway 61 Now the fifth daughter on the twelfth night Told the first father that things weren’t right My complexion she said is much too white He said come here and step into the light, he says hmm you’re right Let me tell the second mother this has been done But the second mother was with the seventh son And they were both out on Highway 61 Now the rovin’ gambler he was very bored He was tryin’ to create a next world war He found a promoter who nearly fell off the floor He said I never engaged in this kind of thing before But yes I think it can be very easily done We’ll just put some bleachers out in the sun And have it on Highway 61 Copyright © 1965 by Warner Bros. Inc.; renewed 1993 by Special Rider Music Billy's demo version of Bob Dylan's "Highway 61."
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