Bob Dylan's 1971(?) single: "George Jackson" (1 Viewer)

[Jarrod_L]

My uncle (who is somewhat of a Dylan aficionado)and I were talking about Bob the other day & he made mention of a song called "George Jackson" that Dylan released in '71 (he thinks). Said that it was a single w/ an acoustic version on side A, and a "Big Band" version on side B. I found the acoustic version on Kazaa, but it's been recorded from a scratchy old 45, but I couldn't find the Big Band version.

Anybody have any info on this? Or where I might find a decent sounding MP3 of either song?

Anyone know why Dylan never put "George Jackson" on an LP? What's the story behind it...was "George Jackson" a real person?

 

[BrianB]

http://www.searchingforagem.com/1972.HTM has info on the single.

 

[Greg_Y]

If you use the track search at dylanbase.com you can find some CDs on which it appears. None are legit and probably shouldn't be discussed here.

 

[Anthony Hom]

To those that do not know the story, a rough synopsis has to do with an incident in San Quentin prison in which George Jackson was gunned down and killed.

I believe he was the leader of the black panthers at the time. Some blame the prison administration for killing him inside San Quentin prison in California.

Bob Dylan's song is a protest song about the incident. I think it is in a similar vein to his Hurricane song, about the boxer.

 

[Louis C]

I have the big band version. It was the "b" side of the single.

 

[Jarrod_L]

Thanks for the info Anthony! I really appreciate it!

I was able to download a pretty clear version of the acoustic version off of Kaaza yesterday...still looking for the Big Band version on there!

Thanks everybody!

 

[Vic_T]

Dylan did two single only releases in 1971. George Jackson and Watching the River Flow. WTRF eventually wound up on Greatest Hits Vol 2, but GJ, unfortunenately, was overlooked by any legit compilation album. At the time, releasing a song as a single with no album inclusion planned for it was not an uncommon thing to do. Many of the great Beatles songs were never on albums (Day Tripper for one). The releases may have been Bob's idea, they may have been his record companies idea to "keep him in the public eye" until his next ablum came out. At the same sessions that the recorded GJ, he also recorded a song called "Wallflower" which eventually wound up on the Bootleg Series Vol 1-3. For years, the Australian box set, Masterpieces, sold as an import because it contained George Jackson along with other rare Dylan songs.

 

[Larry Geller]

I have the big band version. It was the "b" side of the single.

The Big Band Version is the A side (and was the version that was played on the radio). Great single!