A cover of Wanted Man, the song which paired Bob Dylan with Johnny Cash, has been praised by fans who say Nick Cave nails it.
The Bad Seeds frontman is no stranger to covering the works of music legends, not least Dylan, whose Death Is Not the End rendition featured on his hit album, Murder Ballads. It was not the last time Cave would cover Dylan, either, with his Wanted Man version hailed by fans as an extraordinary rendition of the song. The song featured in the closing moments The Road to God Knows Where, a documentary on The Bad Seeds’ 1989 tour of North America. Cash, who famously performed the Dylan-penned song at San Quentin prison, would go on to cover Cave’s work for his American Recordings albums.
Listeners of Cave’s Wanted Man cover have since praised his work on the song. One fan has suggested Cave is the “perfect interpreter” of the song, which was a bit of a slow burn for some listeners who are only just coming around to appreciating Cave’s jagged version of the Dylan and Cash classic.
One YouTube comment left below the Wanted Man upload reads: “I quite agree, Dylan was a great songwriter, but Cave is the perfect interpreter of this song, he brings the necessary intensity that the song deserves…”
Another added: “It took some time for me to appreciate it, but like I just said, you left me with two thumbs up and a newfound respect and appreciation. I’d never heard any of your music before, but now I am looking forward to hearing what else you do.
“Good job on Wanted Man and thanks for putting it out there, glad I gave it a chance like I say, two thumbs up… I’ll pass it on and can’t wait to listen to and experience something else of yours.”
A third user wrote: “Sounds great. Mr. Cave at his vicious, menacing best… this could fit well on the end of Murder Ballads.” George Thorogood and The Destroyers would cover the track in 1982, while Cave and The Bad Seeds’ version was first released in 1985.
The song first released in 1969 as part of Cash’s San Quentin live album, with a studio version of the song releasing on the 1970 album, Little Fauss and Big Halsy. A demo version of the song, featuring Cash and Dylan as part of a duet, released in 2019 on Dylan’s The Bootleg Series Vol. 15: Travelin’ Thru, 1967 – 1969.
Cave would cover Dylan’s Death Is Not the End for his Murder Ballads album, which featured Kylie Minogue. A live version featuring Shane MacGowan was also rapturously received by listeners. Cave has rarely performed Wanted Man in concert, but did so in a recent date on the Wild God tour.
He told the Amsterdam crowd on August 27: “We took it [Wanted Man], and we turned it into a masterpiece. It’s called Wanted Man. You can listen to Cave and The Bad Seeds’ cover of Wanted Man below.
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