Heart of Mine (Bob Dylan song)

"Heart of Mine"
Single by Bob Dylan
from the album Shot of Love
B-side	"Let It Be Me" (Europe) "The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar" (USA)
Released	July 1981 (Europe) September 1981 (USA)
Recorded	May 15, 1981
Genre	Pop[1] reggae[2]
Length	4:32 (album version) 3:30 (single version)
Label	Columbia
Songwriter(s)	Bob Dylan
Producer(s)	Chuck Plotkin Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan singles chronology
"Saved" (1980) "Heart of Mine" (1981) "Dead Man, Dead Man" (1981)
Audio sample
file help

"Heart of Mine" is a song by Bob Dylan that appeared on his 1981 album Shot of Love. Recorded on May 15, 1981, it was released as a single, and reached No. 8 in Norway. A live version of the composition was released on Biograph in 1985.

Artists who have covered the song include Norah Jones, Mountain, Steve Gibbons, Blake Mills, Maria Muldaur, and Ulf Lundell.

Recording

The music of "Heart of Mine" has been described as having a "loose, garagey" feel encompassing a "vaguely Latin/Caribbean vibe", and featuring "loosey-goosey piano" by Dylan.^[3] Dylan's piano playing has also been described as "honky-tonk".^[4]

Personnel

• Bob Dylan - vocals, piano
• Ringo Starr – drums^[5]
• Ronnie Wood – guitar^[5]
• Donald "Duck" Dunn – bass^[5]
• Clydie King - vocals

Release

In Europe, "Heart of Mine" was released as a single in July 1981,^[6] at a length of 3:30 (compared with 4:32 for the album version).^[7] The B-side was "Let It Be Me",^[6] written by M. Curtis, P. Delanoe, and G. Becaud.^[8] Dylan had released a different version of the song on his 1970 album Self Portrait,^[9] but the non-album B-side of "Heart of Mine" was newly recorded during the Shot of Love sessions.^[10] As a single, "Heart of Mine" reached No. 8 in Norway, and spent six weeks in the Norwegian Top 10.^[7] "Heart of Mine" was released on Shot of Love in August 1981.^[7]

In the United States, the single was released in September 1981, with "The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar" as the B-side.^[6] "The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar" originally did not appear on the Shot of Love album; it first appeared on Biograph in 1985, but was later added to subsequent releases of Shot of Love.^[11] Also on Biograph, Dylan included a live version of "Heart of Mine", recorded on November 10, 1981, in New Orleans, Louisiana.^[12]

Reception

Record World said that Dylan's "rollicking piano and nasal vocal are dazzling."^[13] Writer Jeff Perkins describes "Heart of Mine" as a highlight of Shot of Love.^[14] Critic Sean Egan calls the song "sweet and vulnerable",^[15] but considers the live version on Biograph "immediately superior", due to the "suffocatingly bad production" on Shot of Love.^[16] Bill Janovitz of Allmusic considers the Shot of Love version to have a "good feel", characteristic of the "warm and natural" sound of the album as a whole, and describes the lyrics as "clever".^[3] Clinton Heylin, by contrast, writes that "the song... rambles from cliché to cliché", giving the examples of "If you can't do the time, don't do the crime" and "Give her an inch and she'll take a mile".^[17] Heylin describes the take used on Shot of Love as "half-assed" and "ill-conceived"; he believes Dylan should have instead released a version recorded in April 1981 that is "more engaging" and "pop-friendly".^[17]

Covers

Norah Jones and Peter Malick recorded the song for their 2003 album New York City ^[18] and which featured in the 2003 film Runaway Jury being used in the closing credits.^[19] Mountain included the song on their Dylan cover album, Masters of War,^[20] and Steve Gibbons on his Dylan Project 2.^[21] Maria Muldaur likewise released the song on her Dylan cover album, Heart of Mine: Love Songs of Bob Dylan,^[22] as well as recording a live version for her CD and DVD Live in Concert.^[23][24] Danielle Haim and Blake Mills covered the song on Chimes of Freedom: Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International.^[25] Ulf Lundell released a version in Swedish entitled "Hjärtat mitt" on his 1984 album Sweethearts,^[26] and a concert version on Maria Kom Tillbaka: Live.^[27]

Charts

Chart (1981)	Peak position
Norwegian Charts	8[7]

Notes

1. Woodbury, Jason P. (July 14, 2011). "Bob Dylan Comes to God in an Arizona Hotel Room". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved February 13, 2010.
2. Vaughan, Andrew (October 2, 2010). "Saturday Night Special: Bob Dylan, Shot of Love". Retrieved December 25, 2020.
3. Janovitz
4. Rogovoy 2009, p. 229
5. James 2006, p. 160
6. Shelton 1986, p. 555
7. Bob Dylan – Heart of Mine
8. Let It Be Me
9. Dylan Ends French Tour
10. Heylin 1995, pp. 137, 139
11. James 2006, p. 164
12. Björner 2003
13. "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. September 26, 1981. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-03-01.
14. Perkins 2012
15. Egan 2011, p. 326
16. Egan 2011, p. 354
17. Heylin 2010, pp. 209–210
18. Collar
19. IMDB "Soundtrack of film Runaway Jury" Retrieved 14 October 2016.
20. Campbell
21. Steve Gibbons/The Dylan Project
22. Jurek
23. Live in Concert (CD): Overview
24. Live in Concert (DVD): Overview
25. Erlewine
26. Sweethearts: Overview
27. Maria kom tillbaka: Live – Ulf Lundell

References

• Björner, Olof (2003). "Still on the Road: Saenger Theater Saenger Performing Arts Center New Orleans, Louisiana 10 November 1981". Bjorner.com. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• "Bob Dylan – Heart of Mine". Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• Campbell, Al. "Masters of War: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• Collar, Matt. "New York City: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• "Dylan Ends French Tour". Billboard. 1981-08-08. Retrieved 2012-10-26.
• Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
• Egan, Sean (2011). Self Portrait. Constable & Robinson Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84901-466-3. Retrieved 2012-10-25. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)^{[permanent dead link‍]}
• Heylin, Clinton (1995). Bob Dylan: The Recording Sessions, 1960–1994. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0-312-15067-9.
• Heylin, Clinton (2010). Still on the Road: The Songs of Bob Dylan, 1974-2006. Chicago Review Press. p. 524. ISBN 978-1-55652-844-6. Heylin Still on the Road Heart of Mine.
• James, Peter (2006). Warehouse Eyes: The albums of Bob Dylan. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781411680845. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
• Janovitz, Bill. "Heart of Mine: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
• Jurek, Thom. "Heart of Mine: Love Songs of Bob Dylan: Review". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• "Let It Be Me". Bobdylan.com. Retrieved 2012-10-26.
• "Live in Concert (CD): Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• "Live in Concert (DVD): Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• "Maria kom tillbaka: Live – Ulf Lundell". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-10-23.
• Perkins, Jeff (2012). Bob Dylan Uncensored On the Record. Coda Books. ISBN 9781781580042. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
• Rogovoy, Seth (2009). Bob Dylan: Prophet, Mystic, Poet. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4165-5915-3. Retrieved 2012-10-25.
• Shelton, Robert (1986). No Direction Home: The Life and Music of Bob Dylan (2003 ed.). Da Capo Press. ISBN 9780306812873. Retrieved 2012-10-25.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
• "Steve Gibbons/The Dylan Project". RGF Records. Archived from the original on 2011-07-19. Retrieved 2011-02-25.
• "Sweethearts: Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 2012-10-23.

External links

• Lyrics at Bob Dylan's official site
• Chords at Dylanchords