Video: Bob Dylan Plays ‘Blind Willie McTell’ for Martin Scorsese — Jan. 12, 2012


Bob Dylan – Blind Willie McTell (January 12… by Flixgr

When the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards were held two years ago, on Thursday, January 12, 2012, Martin Scorsese was the Music + Film honoree.

Appearing with his band to perform “Blind Willie McTell,” a song included in Scorsese’s PBS documentary series “The Blues,” was Bob Dylan.

Scorsese, of course, also put together the Dylan documentary, “No Direction Home.”

When Scorsese took the stage to accept his award he said:

“Such a great honor and an amazing performance by the great one, Bob Dylan. This award has a very special significance to me, so I’d like to begin with a special thank-you to Django Reinhardt, Stéphane Grappelli and the Hot Club of France. That was the music I used to hear when I was growing up in my apartment in New York, even before we had a TV, in the middle to late ’40s. Before anything for me, there was music and conversation, and for me they were both the same thing.”

Watch Olivia Harrison present the award and Scorsese accept it:

(If you’ve got Spotify, you might dig this Martin Scorsese jukebox plus clips from scenes in Scorsese films that include music.)

Other versions of “Blind Willie McTell”:

Accoustic version off The Bootleg Series Vol 1-3, from the Infidels sessions:

Electric version off The Bootleg Series Vol 1-3, from the Infidels sessions:

And a live electric version, Vienna, VA, August 24, 1997:

Blind Willie McTell by Bob Dylan on Grooveshark

About Michael Goldberg

Michael Goldberg is a distinguished pioneer in the online music space; Newsweek magazine called him an ‘Internet visionary.’ In 1994 he founded Addicted To Noise (ATN), the highly influential music web site. He was a senior vice-president and editor in chief at SonicNet from March 1997 through May 2000. In 1997, Addicted To Noise won Webby awards for best music site in 1998 and 1999, and also won Yahoo Internet Life! awards for three years running as best music site in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Prior to starting Addicted To Noise, Goldberg was an editor and senior writer at Rolling Stone magazine for 10 years. His writing has also appeared in Wired, Esquire, Vibe, Details, Downbeat, NME and numerous other publications. Michael has had three novels published that comprise the "Freak Scene Dream trilogy": "True Love Scars," "The Flowers Lied" and "Untitled" which can be ordered here. His new book, "Wicked Game: The True Story of Guitarist James Calvin Wilsey," can be pre-ordered from HoZac Books. In November Backbeat Books will publish "Addicted To Noise: The Music Writings of Michael Goldberg," which can be be pre-ordered here.

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