Things Have Changed

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Dylan critic Kees de Graaf places "Things Have Changed" in the context of the Biblical teaching Dylan encountered when he studied with the Vineyard Fellowship in the late 1970s. The song was inspired by a meeting with country musician Marty Stuart and Stuart's song "The Observations of a Crow" from the concept album The Pilgrim. Clinton Heylin, in his account of Dylan's songs between 1974 and 2008, believes the song was recorded at Sony Studios, New York, probably on July 25 and 26, 1999. Lynch referenced the song for a second time on his June 1, 2021, weather report: "Today I was thinking about Bob Dylan and his song 'Things Have Changed'".

Ultimate Classic Rock critic Matthew Wilkening rated it as the 2nd best song Dylan recorded between 1992 and 2011, saying that it "occupies a nearly perfect middle ground between 1997's pessimistic ' Time Out of Mind' and the then yet-to-be released, more hopeful 2001 album ' Love and Theft'. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience.This makes it his ninth most frequently performed live song ever and the only Dylan song since the 1970s on the list of his top 10 most performed songs. When it comes to ‘Things Have Changed’, Henley says it left a lasting impression on him when he first heard it: “That most recent song he did – ‘Things Have Changed’ – really knocked me out,” he said.

Henley added: “I was driving around one day, and I’d never heard it before, and I thought to myself, ‘Wow, somebody is really doin’ a good Bob Dylan. Song to Woody", "Highlands" and "Blowin' in the Wind" recorded live at Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, Santa Cruz, California on March 16, 2000. It is nothing outstanding, but is a welcome addition to the scarcity of commercially-available live tracks.

Numerous artists have ventured into the realm of film soundtracks, yet when Bob Dylan was tapped to compose for Wonder Boys, it was a real game changer. His original song for the film earned him an Academy Award and accrued acclaim on account of its lyrics, which combine poetry and introspection to explore themes of change, disillusionment, and uncertainty. Engineer Chris Shaw has confirmed there was another version, which "was really great, which had a kind of New Orleans shuffle to it".

Other notable versions include those by Barb Jungr on her 2002 album Every Grain of Sand: Barb Jungr Sings Bob Dylan, The Persuasions on their 2010 album Knockin' on Bob's Door, Curtis Stigers on his 2012 album Let's Go Out Tonight and Bettye LaVette on her 2018 album Things Have Changed, which takes its name from the song. And that was pretty funny, because the very last thing Bob did was raise the shaker up like 10db, making it ridiculously loud, and that was the mix he wanted to go with". The video appears on the bonus DVD included in the Limited Edition version of Dylan's 2006 album Modern Times. But when the studio recording could not be located, it was replaced by a live version recorded in Portland, Oregon, on June 15, 2000. Brian Hiatt, writing in Rolling Stone, where the song placed first on a 2020 list of "The 25 Best Bob Dylan Songs of the 21st Century", saw it as a stylistic about-face from 1997's Daniel Lanois-produced Time Out of Mind and the beginning of an important new chapter in Dylan's career: "The effortless feel of the playful-yet-ominous, hard-grooving, utterly dazzling 'Things Have Changed' was an early indication of the renewed friskiness of Dylan’s 21st-century work — and the vividly live-in-the studio creations he would achieve as his own producer, with the help of engineer Chris Shaw".Dylan also made a surprise televised appearance to perform the song at the American Film Institute Awards 2009 where Wonder Boys star Michael Douglas received the Lifetime Achievement award. On March 25, 2001, at the 73rd Academy Awards, "Things Have Changed" was awarded Best Original Song.