Few compilation albums are evolving with modern times. In an age where you can select songs yourself, putting them in whichever order you fancy on streaming services or burning them to CDs, the age of compilations is dead. No more do you need to wait until an official package drops to hear an artist cover Ballad of a Thin Man. You do if you want a vinyl version of that Richard Hawley gem, but for the bulk of these album compilations, they are relatively useless. There is a small window of time where they can provide an incredible purpose, though, such as in the build towards a bigger release. That’s exactly the case for The Complete Unknown, a MOJO Magazine compilation which features, at the time of writing, an unreleased Bob Dylan song. It’s not a completely unreleased piece, just an early take on One Too Many Mornings, an outstanding song which peaked on the Hard Rain live album.
But those who prefer the folk rendition of this classic would do right to pick up a copy of MOJO Magazine. An exceptional collection of country and folk protest tracks with Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger featured here. These are names which will be known to those dedicated Dylan listeners, or those who caught A Complete Unknown, half asleep in a reclining theatre chair. However you heard about it, it’s a compilation of interest to those who enjoy digging into the alternate versions, the deeper cuts from artists they know and respect. That’s very much the case for One Too Many Mornings (Take 1). A chance to hear an incredible song in that early process of creation, the gestation period between finalised version and fundamental ideas, is a beautiful listen. Bootleg after bootleg, some officially released and others passionately pieced together by fans, offer this. One Too Many Mornings (Take 1) should not be thrown in with the rest of those offerings, though.
Dylan is still working out the vocal rate here. He is not quite sure whether to take the song up a tempo or to slow it down and have it be this beautiful, touching piece. It works because of that mystifying blend of harmonica and acoustic guitar. Veteran listeners of Dylan will know he gives a larger intonation to words at random during his live performances, but this version of One Too Many Mornings is unlike any other. He sounds shy, scared of what he has on his hands. You can hear the grooves of greater performances to come, the history of the song pouring out of this stripped-back version. Dylan is figuring out the larger details before he brings in those tempo changes and reflective notions. What you have here is a steadiness and fragile tenderness which would be preserved on the offical release.
What surprises most of all is just how much of the archival tapes and footage are yet to be released. An unreleased version of One Too Many Mornings that is this strong sounds like a perfect addition to one of the already released bootleg entries. But here it is, years on from when it should have been offered to audiences. It’s a tremendous version of the song. Not too far off from what would be featured on The Times They Are A-Changin’, but also with enough difference in the detail to note a staggering variation. As much an opportunity to hear an alternate version of a great song as it is a chance to reconnect with the original. Hard Rain and its vice-like grip slips somewhat when the fundamentals of acoustic folk are brought back into the spotlight. What one man, a guitar, and a harmonica can do is mesmerising decades later. A must-listen for fans who can get their hands on this CD.
