If Bob Dylan wasn’t still alive, you may believe that he reincarnated as Cat Power. Power, whose real name is Chan Marshall, channels The Bard in her new album. To promote her new offering, Cat Power Sings Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert, Power appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon singing a Dylan classic — “Like a Rolling Stone.”
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Like a Rolling Stone
Far from feeling like an imitation, Power put her own spin on the classic song, adding new dimensions to the lyrics. That being said, Power doesn’t try to change things too much. She isn’t interested in deconstructing Dylan but rather honoring the wordsmith.
Power told The Lines of the Best, “Let’s do something real nice, let’s do something elegant. Let’s do something true to form. No improv. No fucking deconstruction, nothing. Let’s do something genuine and elegant and simple!”
If you’ve ever wondered what the meaning of “Like a Rolling Stone” was, in a lot of ways, it’s about perseverance. Power lets that attitude shine through in a performance that’s both swagger and sincerity.
Cat Power on Bob Dylan
Recreating one of Dylan’s most historic tours may seem like a strange move to some, but Power approached the project with nuance. It reads less as a cover album than a love letter to one of music’s most influential figures.
In particular, Power didn’t appreciate the negativity that Dylan got over his voice in his early years. She told the outlet, “Everybody’s the biggest Bob Dylan fan but I just love the guy because anytime his songs would come on I didn’t notice that his voice sounded bad or whatever.”
For Power, the album and her performances like the one on Fallon are about giving respect where respect is due. It’s also about finding her own inner strength as a performer. That’s something that Dylan, who often found inspiration from his own personal life, would relate to.
Power said, “I had and still have such respect for the man who crafted so many songs that helped develop conscious thinking in millions of people, helped shape the way they see the world. So even though my hands were shaking so much I had to keep them in my pockets, I felt real dignity for myself. It felt like a real honor for me to stand there.”
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