Highlands (song)


"Highlands" is a song by Bob Dylan, released on his 30th studio album Time Out of Mind in 1997. It is Dylan's second longest officially released studio recording at sixteen minutes and thirty-one seconds, surpassed only by "Murder Most Foul", which runs twenty-three seconds longer.

Song

The song's title is thought to be borrowed from the poem "My Heart's in the Highlands" by Scottish poet Robert Burns, whom Dylan later cited as his greatest influence. In the song's lyrics, Dylan makes references to musician Neil Young and author Erica Jong.
The song is based on a simple riff, inspired, according to Dylan, by an unnamed Charley Patton record that has yet to be identified. The riff is played the whole way through the song. The song has no traditional chorus or bridge.
According to Dylan's website, the song had been played live nine times, as of 2018. "Highlands" was named Dylan's 94th best song by Rolling Stone magazine.

Other versions

A live version of the song was included on the limited edition version of The Best of Bob Dylan, Vol. 2 and on a Japanese edition of the "Things Have Changed" single. The recording came from a performance in the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium in Santa Cruz, California on March 16, 2000.