Don't Think Twice, It's All Right
Encyclopedia
"Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" is a song written by Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...

 in 1962, and released on the 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released in May 1963 by Columbia Records. Whereas his debut album Bob Dylan had contained only two original songs, Freewheelin initiated the process of writing contemporary words to traditional melodies....

.

Context

Besides its original release, the song has appeared on several of Dylan's greatest hits compilations, including Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II
Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II
Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II , also known as More Bob Dylan Greatest Hits, was the second compilation album released by Bob Dylan. With Dylan not expected to release any new material for an extended period of time, CBS Records president Clive Davis proposed issuing a double LP compilation of...

(1971), The Best of Bob Dylan (1997) and The Essential Bob Dylan
The Essential Bob Dylan
The Essential Bob Dylan is a compilation by Bob Dylan, released as a double-CD set in 2000, part of Columbia Records' "The Essential" series....

(2000). Another version of the song, recorded as a demo for Dylan's music publisher M. Witmark & Sons
M. Witmark & Sons
M. Witmark & Sons was a leading publisher of sheet music for the United States "Tin Pan Alley" music industry.The firm of Marcus Witmark & Sons was established in New York City in 1886...

 in 1963, was included on two releases in Columbia's Bootleg Series
The Bootleg Series
The Bootleg Series is a collection of albums by Bob Dylan, all featuring rare and unreleased material. To date, nine volumes have been released: the first three volumes as a contiguous set; Vol. 4 Live 1966; Vol. 5 Live 1975; Vol. 6 Live 1964; Vol. 7 No Direction Home; Vol. 8 Tell Tale Signs, and...

: Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack
The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack
The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack is the third most recent installment in the Bob Dylan "Bootleg Series" of rare and/or officially unissued recordings....

(2005) and Vol. 9 – The Witmark Demos: 1962–1964 (2010). In addition, live versions have been released on Before the Flood
Before the Flood
Side threeSide four-Personnel:* Bob Dylan – vocal, guitars, harmonica, piano* Robbie Robertson – electric guitar, backing vocal* Richard Manuel – vocal, piano, electric piano, organ, drums* Garth Hudson – Lowrey organ, clavinet, piano, synthesizer, saxophone...

(1974), Bob Dylan at Budokan
Bob Dylan at Budokan
Bob Dylan at Budokan is a live album by Bob Dylan, released in 1979 by Columbia Records. It was recorded during his 1978 world tour and is composed mostly of the artist's "greatest hits"...

(1978), The Bootleg Series Vol. 6: Bob Dylan Live 1964, Concert at Philharmonic Hall
The Bootleg Series Vol. 6: Bob Dylan Live 1964, Concert at Philharmonic Hall
The Bootleg Series Vol. 6: Bob Dylan Live 1964, Concert at Philharmonic Hall is a complete recording of Bob Dylan's October 31, 1964 "Halloween" show at New York's Philharmonic Hall. It was released in 2004....

(2004) and Live at the Gaslight 1962
Live at The Gaslight 1962
Live at The Gaslight 1962 is a single CD release including ten songs from early Bob Dylan performances at the Gaslight cafe in New York City's Greenwich Village...

(2005).

Dylan once introduced "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" as "a statement that maybe you can say to make yourself feel better... as if you were talking to yourself." The song, written around the time that Suze Rotolo
Suze Rotolo
Susan Elizabeth Rotolo , known as Suze Rotolo , was an American artist, but is perhaps best known as Bob Dylan's girlfriend between 1961 and 1964 and a strong influence on his music...

 indefinitely prolonged her stay in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, is based on a melody taught to Dylan by folksinger Paul Clayton.

As well as the melody, a couple of lines were taken from Clayton's "Who's Goin' to Buy You Ribbons When I'm Gone?" which was recorded in 1960, two years before Dylan wrote "Don't Think Twice." Lines taken word-for-word or slightly altered from the Clayton song are, "T'ain't no use to sit and wonder why, darlin'," and, "So I'm walkin' down that long, lonesome road." On the first release of the song, instead of "So I'm walkin' down that long, lonesome road babe, where I'm bound, I can't tell" Dylan sings "So long, honey babe, where I'm bound, I can't tell". The lyrics were changed when Dylan performed live versions of the song and on cover versions recorded by other artists. Both Clayton's song and Dylan's song were based on the public domain traditional song "Who's Gonna Buy Your Chickens When I'm Gone".

The original album version of the song is played in a fast, fingerstyle manner by, some speculate, Bruce Langhorne
Bruce Langhorne
Bruce Langhorne is an American folk musician. He was active in the Greenwich Village folk scene in the 1960s, primarily as a session guitarist for folk albums and performances...

. However, Eyolf Østrem, the creator of the website dylanchords, argues it was Bob Dylan himself who played the guitar track. In live performances, Dylan often strummed the chords, or flatpicks
Flatpicking
Flatpicking is a technique for playing a guitar using a guitar pick held between two or three fingers to strike the strings...

, albeit in a similar, fast-paced manner.

The song was used on the television series Mad Men
Mad Men
Mad Men is an American dramatic television series created and produced by Matthew Weiner. The series premiered on Sunday evenings on the American cable network AMC and are produced by Lionsgate Television. It premiered on July 19, 2007, and completed its fourth season on October 17, 2010. Each...

, Friday Night Lights
Friday Night Lights (TV series)
Friday Night Lights is an American sports drama television series adapted by Peter Berg, Brian Grazer and David Nevins from a book and film of the same name. The series details events surrounding a high school football team based in fictional Dillon, Texas, with particular focus given to team...

, and Men of a Certain Age
Men of a Certain Age
Men of a Certain Age is an American comedy-drama television series, which premiered on TNT on December 7, 2009. The hour-long program stars Ray Romano, Andre Braugher and Scott Bakula as three best friends in their late forties dealing with the realities of middle age. The show ran for two years,...

.

Cover versions

"Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" has been covered by Peter, Paul and Mary
Peter, Paul and Mary
Peter, Paul and Mary were an American folk-singing trio whose nearly 50-year career began with their rise to become a paradigm for 1960s folk music. The trio was composed of Peter Yarrow, Paul Stookey and Mary Travers...

 (1963), Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin
Bobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...

, Arnaldo Baptista
Arnaldo Baptista
Arnaldo Dias Baptista is a Brazilian rock musician and composer.-Biography:Born from a lyric singer father and a pianist mother , Arnaldo studied classic piano from 1955 to 1959, double bass from 1962 to 1963, and acoustic guitar from1963 to 1965...

, Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...

, Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...

, Jackie DeShannon
Jackie DeShannon
Jackie DeShannon is an American singer-songwriter with a string of hit song credits from the 1960s onwards. She was one of the first female singer-songwriters of the rock 'n' roll period.- Life and early career :...

, Davey Graham
Davey Graham
David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham, originally spelled Davy Graham, , was a British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival...

, Odetta
Odetta
Odetta Holmes, known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals...

, Rory Gallagher
Rory Gallagher
William Rory Gallagher, ; 2 March 1948  – 14 June 1995, was an Irish blues-rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and bandleader. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland, and raised in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste...

, Stone the Crows
Stone the Crows
Stone the Crows were a blues band formed in Glasgow in late 1969.-History:The band were formed after Maggie Bell was introduced to Les Harvey by his elder brother, Alex Harvey...

, Heinz
Heinz (singer)
Heinz was a bassist and singer.-Life:Heinz was born in Detmold, but from the age of seven was brought up in Eastleigh, Hampshire, England, where a road is named after him. His biggest solo hit was "Just Like Eddie", a tribute to Eddie Cochran...

, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

, Burl Ives
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives was an American actor, writer and folk music singer. As an actor, Ives's work included comedies, dramas, and voice work in theater, television, and motion pictures. Music critic John Rockwell said, "Ives's voice .....

, Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL...

, Flatt and Scruggs, Steve Young
Steve Young (musician)
Steve Young is an American country music singer, songwriter and guitarist, known for his song "Seven Bridges Road"...

, Ramblin' Jack Elliott
Ramblin' Jack Elliott
Ramblin' Jack Elliott is an American folk singer and performer.-Life and career:Elliot Charles Adnopoz was born in Brooklyn, New York to Jewish parents in 1931. Elliott grew up inspired by the rodeos at Madison Square Garden, and wanted to be a cowboy...

, Jerry Reed
Jerry Reed
Jerry Reed Hubbard , known professionally as Jerry Reed, was an American country music singer, innovative guitarist, songwriter, and actor who appeared in more than a dozen films...

, Joan Baez
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez is an American folk singer, songwriter, musician and a prominent activist in the fields of human rights, peace and environmental justice....

 (who, in addition to covering it herself, also recorded it as a trio with the Indigo Girls
Indigo Girls
The Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duo, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. They met in elementary school and began performing together as high school students in Decatur, Georgia, part of the Atlanta metropolitan area...

), Doc Watson
Doc Watson
Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson is an American guitar player, songwriter and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues and gospel music. He has won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Watson's flatpicking skills and knowledge of traditional American music are highly regarded...

, The Waifs
The Waifs
The Waifs are an Australian folk rock band formed in 1992 by Josh Cunningham , and sisters Vikki Thorn and Donna Simpson...

, Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard
Vonda Shepard is an American pop/rock singer. She appeared as a regular in the television show Ally McBeal from seasons 1-5 in which she played a resident performer at the bar where the show's characters drank after work. She plays piano, guitar, and bass.-Biography:Vonda Shepard was born in New...

, John Martyn, Metric
Metric (band)
Metric is a Canadian indie rock and New Wave band founded in 1998 in Toronto. The band has also at various times been based in Montreal, London, New York City and Los Angeles...

, Elliott Smith
Elliott Smith
Steven Paul "Elliott" Smith was an American singer-songwriter and musician. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and resided for a significant portion of his life in Portland, Oregon, where he first gained popularity...

, Billy Bragg
Billy Bragg
Stephen William Bragg , better known as Billy Bragg, is an English alternative rock musician and left-wing activist. His music blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs, and his lyrics mostly deal with political or romantic themes...

, Nick Drake
Nick Drake
Nicholas Rodney "Nick" Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician. Though he is best known for his sombre guitar based songs, Drake was also proficient at piano, clarinet and saxophone...

, Sandi Thom
Sandi Thom
Alexandria "Sandi" Thom is a Scottish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She became widely known in 2006 after a series of webcasts and the success of the single "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker ".-1984–2004: Early life:Thom was born in Banff, Aberdeenshire...

, Susan Tedeschi
Susan Tedeschi
Susan Tedeschi is an American blues and soul musician, who has received multiple Grammy Award nominations, and is well-known for her singing voice, guitar playing, stage presence, and marriage to blues guitarist Derek Trucks...

, Emily Haines
Emily Haines
Emily Haines is a Canadian indie rock singer-songwriter. She is the lead singer and keyboardist of the band Metric and a member of Broken Social Scene. As a solo artist, she performed with her own name and under the alias Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton...

, Susanna and the Magical Orchestra
Susanna and the Magical Orchestra
Susanna and the Magical Orchestra is the moniker of singer Susanna Karolina Wallumrød , and keyboard player Morten Qvenild . Their style of music can be described as quiet, slow pop mixed with elements from electronica and jazz...

, Boris Grebenshchikov
Boris Grebenshchikov
Boris Borisovich Grebenshchikov also known as Boris Purushottama Grebenshikov, is one of the most prominent members of the generation which is widely considered the "founding fathers" of Russian rock music...

, Jackie Greene
Jackie Greene
Jackie Greene is an American singer-songwriter and musician.-Career:Greene was born Chris Nelson in Salinas, California, and developed an interest in music at an early age, starting with the piano. At 14, he began to play guitar and within a short time, was able to sit in with local bar bands. As...

, Bryan Ferry
Bryan Ferry
Bryan Ferry, CBE is an English singer, musician, and songwriter. Ferry came to public prominence in the early 1970s as lead vocalist and principal songwriter with the band Roxy Music, who enjoyed a highly successful career with three number one albums and ten singles entering the top ten charts in...

, Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros
Wolfgang Ambros is an Austrian singer-songwriter, most famously known for setting the then-new trend in the 1970s known now as Austropop. He is most famous for his song "Da Hofa" and "Schi foan"....

, Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Guthrie
Arlo Davy Guthrie is an American folk singer. Like his father, Woody Guthrie, Arlo often sings songs of protest against social injustice...

, Tristan Prettyman
Tristan Prettyman
Tristan Prettyman is a singer-songwriter and former Roxy model from San Diego, California. She is signed to Virgin Records and released her first major label album Twentythree on August 2, 2005, followed by her second album Hello...x which was released on April 15, 2008...

, Bree Sharp
Bree Sharp
Bree Sharp is an American singer and songwriter influenced by rock, pop, and folk. She is currently the lead vocalist of the electropop band Beautiful Small Machines.-Biography:...

, Gavin Castleton
Gavin Castleton
Gavin Castleton is a musician/songwriter from Providence, Rhode Island. Originally known for his work with Gruvis Malt as keyboardist and singer, Castleton has also released seven full length albums and 5 EPs Gavin Castleton is a musician/songwriter from Providence, Rhode Island. Originally known...

, Folk By Association, The Folkswingers
12 String Guitar! Vol. 2
12 String Guitar! Vol. 2 is the second album by The Folkswingers, released in 1963, featuring Glen Campbell playing a 12 string guitar.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Glen Campbell – 12 string guitar*Donavan Cotton – drums...

, O.A.R.
O.A.R.
O.A.R. is an American rock band composed of Marc Roberge , Chris Culos , Richard On , Benj Gershman , and Jerry DePizzo...

 with Matt Nathanson
Matt Nathanson
Matt Nathanson is an American singer-songwriter whose work is a blend of folk and rock music. In addition to singing, he plays acoustic and electric guitar, and has played both solo and with a full band. His work includes the platinum-selling song "Come On Get Higher".-Early life and college...

 and Mike Ness
Mike Ness
Mike Ness is an American guitarist, vocalist, and chief songwriter for the punk rock band Social Distortion, which was formed in 1978. As of Dennis Danell's death in 2000, he is now the only original member of the band...

, Social Distortion
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness , Jonny Wickersham , Brent Harding and David Hidalgo, Jr...

, Donavon Frankenreiter
Donavon Frankenreiter
Donavon Frankenreiter is an American musician and surfer. He is a long-time friend of Jack Johnson and his debut self-titled album was released in 2004 on Johnson's Brushfire Records through Universal Music and made the Australian ARIA Top-40 charts in April 2004.-Surfing career:He took up surfing...

, Billy Paul
Billy Paul
Billy Paul is a Grammy Award winning American soul singer, most known for his 1972 number-one single, "Me and Mrs. Jones" as well as the 1973 album and single "War of the Gods" which blends his more conventional pop, soul and funk styles with electronic and psychedelic influences...

, guitarist Lenny Breau
Lenny Breau
Leonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...

, Ryan Montbleau
Ryan Montbleau
Ryan Michael Montbleau is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He annually tours across the U.S. with the Ryan Montbleau Band.-Background:...

, John Mayer
John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American pop rock and blues rock musician, singer-songwriter, recording artist, and music producer. Born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and raised in Fairfield, Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. He moved to Atlanta in 1997, where he refined his...

, The Allman Brothers Band
The Allman Brothers Band
The Allman Brothers Band is an American rock/blues band once based in Macon, Georgia. The band was formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman and Gregg Allman , who were supported by Dickey Betts , Berry Oakley , Butch Trucks , and Jai Johanny "Jaimoe"...

, Emilie-Claire Barlow
Emilie-Claire Barlow
Emilie-Claire Barlow is a Canadian jazz singer and voice actress. Born to parents who were professional musicians, she was encouraged to sing and study several instruments including piano, cello, clarinet and violin. By age seven she had begun her career, singing television and radio...

, Cock Robin
Cock Robin (band)
Cock Robin is an American pop rock band, mostly popular in the 1980s, particularly in continental Europe where they became famous. The band was founded by singer-songwriter Peter Kingsbery in 1982, disbanded in 1990, and reformed in 2006.-History:...

, and Barbara Dickson
Barbara Dickson
Barbara Ruth Dickson, OBE is a Scottish singer whose hits include "I Know Him So Well" and "January February"...

. The Peter, Paul and Mary cover was the definitive single, reaching #9 pop Billboard Hot 100, #2 easy listening on Billboard's charts.

Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...

 adapted portions of the song into his own single "Understand Your Man
Understand Your Man
"Understand Your Man" is a 1964 single by Johnny Cash. The single went to number one on the country charts for six weeks.. "Understand Your Man" also crossed over to the Top 40, peaking at number 35....

".

The Four Seasons
The Four Seasons (group)
The Four Seasons are an American rock and pop band who became internationally successful in the mid-1960s. The Vocal Group Hall of Fame has stated that the group was the most popular rock band before The Beatles...

 released a cover of the song as a single in 1965 (with the title "Don't Think Twice") under the pseudonym The Wonder Who?
The Wonder Who?
The Wonder Who? was a nom de disque of The Four Seasons for four single records released from 1965 to 1967. It was one of a handful of "names" used by the group at that time, including Frankie Valli and The Valli Boys...

 Their "joke" version reached the #12 position on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

Hot 100 chart and eventually sold one million copies.

Fashawn
Fashawn
Santiago Leyva , better known as Fashawn or Fash is an American Rapper from Fresno, California. He is best known for his debut album, Boy Meets World, which was produced entirely by one half of Emanon, Exile...

's "Samsonite Man" features a heavy sampling of Billy Paul
Billy Paul
Billy Paul is a Grammy Award winning American soul singer, most known for his 1972 number-one single, "Me and Mrs. Jones" as well as the 1973 album and single "War of the Gods" which blends his more conventional pop, soul and funk styles with electronic and psychedelic influences...

's version.

Electro-pop singer Kesha
Kesha
Kesha village is a small village nestled in the mountains of Yongshun County, northwestern Hunan province, China, located at latitude 29 05' 50", longitude 109 57' 9". The name is pronounced in Standard Chinese. The official language is Manderin Chinese....

has also done a cover of the song.
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