The Story Behind the Album Cover: Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited”

Dylan Album Cover

In advance of the release of Bob Dylan’s The Best Of The Cutting Edge 1965 – 1966: The Bootleg Series Vol. 12, rock scholar Bob Egan of PopSpots has been telling the stories behind the covers of the Bob Dylan albums of that mid-1960s era. In the latest mini-documentary, Egan explains how the cover of Highway 61 Revisited (1965) came to be.

In the video below, Egan walks the path taken by Dylan and photographer Daniel Kramer before they ended up outside an apartment owned by Dylan’s manager, Albert Grossman. Egan also explains how Dylan’s friend Bob Neuwirth ended up standing behind Dylan in the photo. For the most part, it seems, there was little planning that went into the iconic album cover photo. Check out the story behind the cover of Highway 61 Revisited.

The Best Of The Cutting Edge 1965 – 1966: The Bootleg Series Vol. 12 will be released on November 6, 2015 in three different versions. The new album focuses on the period when Dylan first went electric, featuring outtakes from the albums Bringing It All Back Home (1965), Highway 61 Revisited (1965), and Blonde on Blonde (1966).

What is your favorite Bob Dylan album cover? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Author: chimesfreedom

    Editor-in-chief, New York.

    3 thoughts on “The Story Behind the Album Cover: Dylan’s “Highway 61 Revisited””

    1. Pingback: The Story Behind the Album Cover: Dylan’s “Blonde on Blonde” | chimesfreedom

      1. If you mean the person standing behind Dylan on the cover with the red and white striped shirt, my understanding is that it is Bob Neuwirth, Dylan’s friend. On the flip side of the cover of my album I think only Dylan is in all the photos. Hope that helps.

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