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This top five comes from Ian Cheney in Gales Ferry, Connecticut. A true fan, Bob Dylan is the namesake for Ian and his wife’s youngest son. A long time resident of Southeastern Connecticut Ian is a high school history teacher whose interests include history, politics, sports and spending time with his two sons Arden, age 9 and Dylan, age 7. Ian is also the author of the book Who Made the West: A Ranking of the 30 Most Influential Figures in Western History and the host of the podcast Presidential Politics for America
#5 “Baby I’m In The Mood For You”
Number five on Ian’s Top 5 Dylan Songs With The Word Baby In The Title came from a leader compilation album, 1985, s Biograph. About the song Ian wrote, “It's 1963 and the 22-year-old Bob Dylan is finding the words, voice, and sound that will change a generation. Somehow, this fun folk tune didn't make the cut for The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, Dylan's first album of mostly original songs, and wasn't released until 1985. That's how good the album was.”
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#4 “Someday Baby”
Ian’s number four Dylan Song With The Word Baby In The Title came from a later Dylan release, 2006’s Modern Times. About the song Dylan said, “Fast forward 42 years from song #5. Now it's 2006. It's Modern Times. And the 65-year-old Dylan still has it. This riff off of Muddy Waters' Trouble No More is a great homage to the father of Chicago blues.”
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#3 “It’s All Over Now Baby Blue”
Number three on Ian’s list came from Dylan’s fifth studio LP, 1965’s Bringing It All Back Home. About the song Ian wrote, “The entire Bringing It All Back Home album from 1965 is a great test for anyone unfamiliar with Dylan. As we hear in this song, his sound is not Sinatra, but Dylan fans don't want it to be. The poetry is what matters, and the poetry makes the most sense out of this unique voice.”
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#2 “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight”
Ian had this to say about his number two choice of his top-five Dylan songs with the word baby in the title, “This gem is sweet and smooth, like the rest of the underrated John Wesley Harding album from 1967. It's so sweet and smooth that a later artist who personified those words covered it nearly as beautifully -- Norah Jones.”
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#1 “Baby, Won’t You Be My Baby”
Coming in at number one is a song from the 138 song 2014 compilation set The Bootleg Series Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Complete. About the song Ian wrote, “In 1967, Dylan is at peak cool, and this song off the Basement Tapes drips with coolness. Plus, he manages to fit the word Baby twice into the title. We have a winner.”
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