Diamonds & Rust

This Music Monday, we're taking a deeper look at Joan Baez's 1975 album "Diamonds & Rust".

The title track wasn't originally about Bob Dylan

Originally, the song was about something completely different until one day, Baez receieved a call from Dylan, ringing her from a Midwest phonebooth. "He read me the entire lyrics to 'Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts' that he'd just finished from a phone booth in the Midwest," Baez told music writer Mike Ragogna. "That must have been one helluva call", said Ragogna.

Check out my list of my favorite Joan Baez songs for more song breakdowns: https://www.thehotchildinthecity.com/post/my-favorite-joan-baez-songs

She even told Dylan 'Diamonds and Rust' was about her ex-husband David Harris (which was false)

As Dylan and Baez discussed songs to include in their upcoming Rolling Thunder Revue concerts, Dylan requested 'Diamonds And Rust':

"You gonna sing that song about robin's eggs and diamonds?" Bob had asked me on the first day of rehearsals.

"Which one?"

"You know, that one about blue eyes and diamonds..."

"Oh", I said, "you must mean 'Diamonds And Rust,' the song I wrote for my husband, David. I wrote it while he was in prison."

"For your husband?" Bob said.

"Yeah. Who did you think it was about?" I stonewalled.

"Oh, hey, what the fuck do I know?"

"Never mind. Yeah, I'll sing it, if you like."

Baez recounted in her memoir "And a Voice to Sing With".

The album includes covers from the likes of Stevie Wonder, The Allman Brothers, Jackson Browne, John Prine, Janis Ian and of course Bob Dylan

My favorite being her version of Dylan's 'Simple Twist of Fate'. Her version is a lot more rocking and she even does a spot on Dylan impression.

Judas Priest's cover

The heavy metal band covered the title track on their album "Sin After Sin". Baez said of the cover:

"I love that! I was so stunned when I first heard it. I thought it was wonderful. It's very rare for people to cover my songs. I think there are a couple of reasons. One is they're personal – they don't have a universal quality to them. And I think maybe it's because I've already sung them, and who wants to compete with that? But it's always flattering when somebody does."

Joni Mitchell's input

Not only was Jackson Browne's 'Fountain of Sorrow' which Baez covered on the album rumored to be about his relationship with Mitchell, Mitchell herself appears on "Diamonds & Rust". Mitchell and Baez sing a duet of 'Dida' with an alternate recording appearing also on Joan's album "Gracias a la Vida" from the year before.