Bob Dylan Joins Farm Aid Lineup, Previews ‘The Bootleg Series No. 18’ with “Rocks and Gravel (Solid Road)” From 1963 ‘Free Wheelin’ Sessions

“Bob Dylan (Bring it All Back Home Sessions)” by ky_olsen is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

At 84 years old, Bob Dylan’s fire continues to blaze. The musician, known for pedaling lyrics steeped in poetic and philosophical influence, has been added to the artist lineup for Farm Aid 40, which will take place on Saturday, September 20, at Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minn. Dylan’s imminent appearance will represent a home state return and another chapter of his event participation which extends back to the first concert, held in 1985. 

Word of Dylan’s participation in the charity concert arrived the same day as details behind the 18th edition of his Bootleg Series, Through the Open Window, 1956-1963, set for release on October 31, 2025, via Columbia Records/ Legacy Recordings. The eight-disc box set centers on the emergence of his career and artistic maturity, moving from the Land of 10,000 Lakes to the hip streets of Greenwich Village. 

The forthcoming collection comprises rare Columbia Records outtakes, early recordings from club appearances, as well as small informal gatherings and gigs at friends’ houses, which often resolved into jam sessions. Many of the captures have not been shared publicly and, upon release, will represent another layer of musical foreshadowing that informed one of the great careers of all time. 

Dylan’s Bootleg Series, Through the Open Window, 1956-1963, presents 139 tracks, 48 of which represent never-before-released performances, in addition to 38 ultra rarities. The deluxe set is also equipped with a hardcover book with extensive liner notes by Sean Wilentz, as well as over 100 rare images. 

“Of that time and those places, this collection is just a fragment,” writes author and historian Sean Wilentz in his liner notes. “Even so, as an aural record of an artist becoming himself—or in Dylan’s case, his first of many artistic selves—the collection aims to collapse time and space, not as a nostalgic reverie but as a living connection between the past and the present, the old and the new, which are never as distinct as we might think.”

As an initial preview of the collection, an audio recording of “Rocks and Gravel (Solid Road)” offers a glimpse into the time and a raw capture of Dylan’s capabilities during his early 20s. 

Pre-order Bootleg Series, Through the Open Window, 1956-1963. Listen to “Rocks and Gravel” below.

TRACKLIST

BOOTLEG SERIES VOLUME 18: THROUGH THE OPEN WINDOW, 1956-1963

Disc 1

1. Let the Good Times Roll

December 24, 1956 – Terlinde Music Shop, St. Paul, MN

2. I Got a New Girl

May 1959 – Home of Ric Kangas, Hibbing, MN

3. San Francisco Bay Blues

4. Jesus Christ

September 1960 – Home of Bob Dylan, Minneapolis, MN

5. East Virginia Blues

6. K.C. Moan

7. Hard Travelin’

Late 1960 – Madison, WI

8. Pastures of Plenty

9. Remember Me

February 1961 – Home of Bob and Sid Gleason, East Orange, NJ

10. Song to Woody

11. Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues

September 6, 1961 – The Gaslight Cafe, NYC

12. Ain’t No Grave

Summer 1961 – Home of Mell and Lillian Bailey, NYC

13. I Ain’t Got No Home

May 13, 1961 – Coffman Theater, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN

14. Death Don’t Have No Mercy

15. Devilish Mary

May 1961 – Minneapolis, MN

16. Introduction: Riverside Church

17. Handsome Molly

July 29, 1961 – Saturday of Folk Music (WRVR-FM), Riverside Church, NYC

18. Introduction: See That My Grave Is Kept Clean

19. See That My Grave Is Kept Clean

20. The Girl I Left Behind

21. Introduction: Pretty Boy Floyd

22. Pretty Boy Floyd

23. Railroading on the Great Divide

October 1, 1961 – Gerdes Folk City, NYC

24. Introduction: Fixin’ to Die

25. Fixin’ to Die

1961 – Folklore Center, NYC

26. I’ll Fly Away – Take 1 (Alternate Take)*

September 29, 1961 – Carolyn Hester sessions,Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

Disc 2

1. Introduction: In the Pines

2. In the Pines

3. Gospel Plow

4. Introduction: Young But Daily Growing

5. Young But Daily Growing

6. Man on the Street

7. This Land Is Your Land*

8. Pretty Polly

November 4, 1961 – Carnegie Chapter Hall, NYC

9. man of constant sorrow – Rehearsal (Alternate Take, Nov 20, 1961)

10. HOUSE CARPENTER – Take 1 (Outtake, Nov 22, 1961)*

11. YOU’RE NO GOOD – Take 2 with Take 6 Insert (Alternate Take, Nov 20, 1961)

12. HE WAS A FRIEND OF MINE – Take 2 (Outtake, Nov 20, 1961)*

13. ramblin’ round – Take 2 (Outtake, Nov 22, 1961)*

Bob Dylan sessions Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

14. Story: East Orange, New Jersey

15. Stealin’

16. Po’ Lazarus

17. Dink’s Song*

18. I Was Young When I Left Home*

19. In the Evening

20. Baby, Let Me Follow You Down

21. Cocaine

December 22, 1961 – Home of Bonnie Beecher, Minneapolis, MN

Disc 3

1. The Death of Emmett Till

2. Conversation: Folksinger’s Choice, 1

3. Roll On, John*

4. Conversation: Folksinger’s Choice, 2

5. Hard Times in New York Town

Broadcast March 11, 1962 – Folksinger’s Choice,WBAI-FM Studios, NYC

6. Talkin’ John Birch Paranoid Blues

March 1962 – Home of Mell and Lillian Bailey, NYC

7. Ballad of Donald White

September 20, 1962 – Home of Mac and Eve McKenzie, NYC

8. Midnight Special – Rehearsals

9. Midnight Special – Take 17 (Alternate Take)

February 2, 1962 – The Midnight Special sessions, Webster Hall, NYC

10. Wichita (Album Version)*

11. It’s Dangerous (Album Version)*

March 2, 1962 – Three Kings and the Queen and Kings and the Queen, Volume Two sessions, Cue Recording Studios, NYC

12. Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance**

13. Talkin’ New York**

14. Corrina, Corrina*

15. Deep Ellum Blues**

16. Introduction: Blowin’ in the Wind

17. Blowin’ in the Wind*

April 16, 1962 – Gerdes Folk City, NYC

18. Rambling, Gambling Willie – Take 3 (Outtake)**

19. (I Heard That) Lonesome Whistle – Take 2 (Outtake)**

April 24, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

20. Rocks and Gravel – Take 3 (Outtake)**

April 25, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

21. Paths of Victory

22. Train A-Travelin’ (Album Version)*

October-December 1962 – Broadside Office, NYC

23. Hiram Hubbard**

24. Quit Your Low Down Ways**

25. Let Me Die in My Footsteps**

26. Ramblin’ on My Mind**

27. Blue Yodel No. 8 (Mule Skinner Blues)**

July 2, 1962 – The Finjan, Montreal, Canada

Disc 4

1. Baby, Please Don’t Go – Take 3 (Outtake)**

April 25, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

2. Worried Blues – Take 1 (Outtake)**

3. Baby, I’m in the Mood for You – Take 4 (Outtake)**

4. Bob Dylan’s Blues – Take 2 (Outtake)**

July 9, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

5. Introduction: Tomorrow Is a Long Time

6. Tomorrow Is a Long Time

7. This Land Is Your Land – The Last Verses

8. Long Time Gone

August 11, 1962 – Home of Dave Whitaker, Minneapolis, MN

9. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall*

10. Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right*

11. Barbara Allen*

12. The Cuckoo*

October 1962 – The Gaslight Cafe, NYC

13. That’s All Right – Take 5 (Outtake)**

October 26, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

14. Mixed-Up Confusion – Take 10 (Single Alternate Take)**

November 1, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

15. Ballad of Hollis Brown – Take 2 (Outtake)**

16. Kingsport Town – Take 2 (Outtake)*

November 14, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

17. Whatcha Gonna Do? –  Remake, Take 1 (Outtake)**

18. Hero Blues – Take 4 (Outtake)**

19. I Shall Be Free – Take 3 (Alternate Take)**

December 6, 1962 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

Disc 5

1. The Ballad of the Gliding Swan

Broadcast January 13, 1963 – “Madhouse on Castle Street,” BBC-TV Studios, London, England

2. Only a Hobo (Album Version)*

3. John Brown (Album Version)*

February 1963 – Broadside Ballads, Vol. 1 sessions, Folkways Studio, NYC

4. All Over You**

February 8, 1963 – NYC

5. Oxford Town* (Demo)

March 1963 – Witmark Studio, NYC

6. Bob Dylan’s Dream*

7. Introduction: Walls of Red Wing

8. Walls of Red Wing**

9. Introduction: Tomorrow Is a Long Time

10. Tomorrow Is a Long Time*

11. Dusty Old Fairgrounds**

12. Introduction: Pretty Peggy-O

13. Pretty Peggy-O**

14. Who Killed Davey Moore?**

15. Last Thoughts on Woody Guthrie*

April 12, 1963 – Town Hall, NYC

16. James Alley Blues**

April 18, 1963 – Home of Mac and Eve McKenzie, NYC

17. I Rode Out One Morning**

April 19, 1963 – Home of Mac and Eve McKenzie, NYC

18. House of the Rising Sun**

April 18, 1963 – Home of Mac and Eve McKenzie, NYC

19. Talkin’ World War III Blues

April 21, 1963 – Club 47, Cambridge, MA

20. Masters of War – Take 6 (Alternate Take)

21. Girl from the North Country – Take 4 (Alternate Take)

April 24, 1963 – Freewheelin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

Disc 6

1. Introduction by Cordell Reagon

2. Only a Pawn in Their Game

3. Blowin’ in the Wind

July 6, 1963 – SNCC Voter Registration Rally, Greenwood, MS

4. Eternal Circle

5. Liverpool Gal

6. West Memphis

July 17, 1963 – Home of Tony Glover, Minneapolis, MN

7. North Country Blues*

8. With God on Our Side*

July 27, 1963 – Newport Folk Festival, Newport, RI

9. Playboys and Playgirls*

July 28, 1963 – Newport Folk Festival, Newport, RI

10. Blowin’ in the Wind*

July 26, 1963 – Newport Folk Festival, Newport, RI; Bob Dylan: vocals and guitar

11. Slate: Boots of Spanish Leather

12. Boots of Spanish Leather – Take 1 (Alternate Take)

13. Seven Curses – Take 3 (Outtake)*

14. Farewell – Take 5 (Outtake)*

August 6, 1963 – The Times They Are A-Changin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

15. Bob Dylan’s New Orleans Rag – Remake, Take 3 (Outtake)

August 7, 1963 – The Times They Are A-Changin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

16. Moonshiner – Remake, Take 1 (Outtake)*

August 12, 1963 – The Times They Are A-Changin’sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

17. Introduction by Joan Baez

18. Troubled and I Don’t Know Why*

August 17, 1963 – Forest Hills Tennis Stadium, NYC

19. Introduction by Ossie Davis

20. When the Ship Comes In**

August 28, 1963 – March on Washington, Washington, D.C.

21. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll

September 1963 – Home of Ben Shapiro, Los Angeles

22. The Times They Are A-Changin’

September 1963 – California

23. One Too Many Mornings – Take 1 (Alternate Take)

October 24, 1963 – The Times They Are A-Changin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

24. Key to the Highway – Take 1 (Outtake)

October 23, 1963 – The Times They Are A-Changin’ sessions, Studio A, Columbia Recording Studios, NYC

Disc 7

1. The Times They Are A-Changin’*

2. Ballad of Hollis Brown*

3. Introduction: Who Killed Davey Moore?

4. Who Killed Davey Moore?*

5. Boots of Spanish Leather*

6. Talkin’ John Birch Paranoid Blues*

7. Lay Down Your Weary Tune*

8. Introduction: Blowin’ in the Wind

9. Blowin’ in the Wind**

10. Introduction: Percy’s Song

11. Percy’s Song**

12. Seven Curses**

13. Walls of Red Wing**

14. Introduction: North Country Blues

15. North Country Blues*

16. A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall*

October 26, 1963 – Carnegie Hall, NYC

Disc 8

1. Talkin’ World War III Blues**

2. Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right**

3. Story: Hootenanny Hoot

4. With God on Our Side*

5. Only a Pawn in Their Game**

6. Introduction: Masters of War

7. Masters of War*

8. Introduction: The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll

9. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll*

10. Introduction: When the Ship Comes In

11. When the Ship Comes In*

October 26, 1963 – Carnegie Hall, NYC

* All tracks previously UNRELEASED unless otherwise noted

** Previously released on 50th Anniversary Collection 1962 and