Covering Dylan: 5 Iconic Takes on “Simple Twist of Fate”

Bob Dylan released “Simple Twist of Fate” on his 1975 masterwork Blood on the Tracks. The song plays out like a sad short story until the final verse, when the narrator (whom we can assume is a stand-in for Dylan) enters to draw parallels between that story and his own missed romantic opportunity.

There have been many wonderful covers of “Simple Twist of Fate” over the years that run the gamut in terms of style and genre. Here are five of those takes that stand out.

The Mimicking Take: Joan Baez from Diamonds & Rust (1975)

Baez made a play for rock credibility with her Diamonds & Rust album, which was notable for the title track, a somewhat scathing assessment of Dylan’s fickle affections from someone who knew them well. But Baez couldn’t have been that put out about Bob, because she made sure to get in one of the first notable covers of “Simple Twist of Fate” just months after the original was released. It’s a kind of big-band attack, with Larry Knechtel’s wild piano adding some spice. In one of the later verses, Baez does a spot-on Dylan impersonation as a kind of snarky homage.

The Grungy Take: Concrete Blonde from Still in Hollywood (1994)

By the time Concrete Blonde released this compilation of covers, live songs, and B-sides, the group had already pretty much run its course. They broke up when they couldn’t quite follow up on the success of their 1990 alternative smash Bloodletting, which included their unforgettable single “Joey.” This version of “Simple Twist of Fate” includes nothing but some droning electric guitar and the impassioned warbling of lead singer Johnette Napolitano. She doesn’t treat Dylan’s lyrics as sacrosanct, which lets her get lost inside the song and give a standout performance.

The Piano Ballad Take: Diana Krall from Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International

It seems like every couple of years there’s some sort of massive roundup of artists doing cover versions of Bob Dylan’s music, and it’s always a lot of fun to see which artists step up. But if you’re one of the artists on the same compilation as Diana Krall, you know you might have a hard time hanging with whatever she does. On her version of “Simple Twist of Fate,” she keeps it simple with just a piano and vocal, but that’s all she needs to deliver an entrancing take. Note how she ratchets up the vocal intensity in the final verse when the lyrics switch to the first person, which is just the right time to do it.

The Torch Song Take: Sarah Jarosz from Build Me up From the Bones (2013)

If you’re looking for one of the best interpreters of Dylan over the past few decades, Jarosz, a stellar songwriter in her own right, should be one of the first artists you seek. (Prime example: Her gorgeous take on “Ring Them Bells.”) She can tiptoe between genres like folk, blues, and even bluegrass quite well. Her take on “Simple Twist of Fate” sounds like something you might expect from a jazz chanteuse taking on a classic from the Great American Songbook. It’s sparse, with just the subtlest instrumentation, and haunting, thanks to Jarosz’s perfectly measured approach.

The Bluegrass Take: Leftover Salmon from Grass Roots (2023)

It’s always fun to hear what bluegrass experts can do with the work of expert songwriters you might not always consider as being suited to the genre. (Not that Dylan hasn’t dipped into bluegrass himself now and again: Check out “High Water (For Charley Patton)” as an example.) Leftover Salmon came together in the late ’80s as a kind of bluegrass supergroup, and their 2023 album Grass Roots was dedicated to the songs they played when they first assembled. The furious fingerpicking in conjunction with Vince Herman’s bluesy vocal make for a fantastic combination.

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Photo by Erika Goldring/Getty Images for Americana Music Association