I SHALL BE RELEASED - Made Famous By Several...

I Shall Be Released

by Bob Dylan

They say ev'rything can be replaced,
Yet ev'ry distance is not near.
So I remember ev'ry face
Of ev'ry man who put me here.
I see my light come shining
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any day now,
I shall be released.

They say ev'ry man needs protection,
They say ev'ry man must fall.
Yet I swear I see my reflection
Some place so high above this wall.
I see my light come shining
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any day now,
I shall be released.

Standing next to me in this lonely crowd,
Is a man who swears he's not to blame.
All day long I hear him shout so loud,
Crying out that he was framed.
I see my light come shining
From the west unto the east.
Any day now, any day now,
I shall be released.

A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE IS SEEN & HEARD IN EACH RENDITION FROM BOB DYLAN, TO THE BAND, TO JEFF BUCKLEY. ALL FASCINATING MUSICIANS & EACH HOLD THEIR OWN PLACE IN MUSIC HISTORY.

The song itself can be taken literally & it can be taken in many philosophical threads. The original is written & sung by Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan: I Shall Be Released: 1986

The Band - I Shall Be Released

Jeff Buckley - I Shall Be Released (by phone on a radio show)

Comments: 3

James B. Oct 15, 2009, 8:37pm EDT

The first official release that I can think of now is from Greatest Hits vol. 3, about which bobdylan.com says ""I Shall Be Released," "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere" and "Down In The Flood" recorded in October 1971 with Happy Traum on Bass, Banjo, Second Guitar and Vocal Harmony."

"Released" was first recorded by Dylan with The Band in 1967 during the Basement Tapes sessions, and one version, an out-take from The Basement Tapes, is available on "Bob Dylan: the bootleg series, vol. 1-3." A "real" bootleg derived from The Basement Tapes had long circulated under the album name "Great White Wonder." The booklet that comes with "Bob Dylan: the bootleg series, vol. 1-3" was written by John Bauldie and states that (in 1991) over 50 covers of I Shall be Released has been recorded, including versions by The Hollies, Bette Midler, The Heptones and Sting. I highly recommend this first installment of the official Dylan bootleg series (actually, I like them all...).

I believe that this song was first released on "Music from the Big Pink," The Band's highly influential first album on their own. The late Richard Manuel's vocals are outstanding. This album is essential listening, as is all of The Band's work, including their relatively new releases like Jericho from 1993.

Thanks for the post about a favorite song!