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Artists who have covered "Wigwam" include [[the New Christy Minstrels]],<ref>{{harvnb|Special Merit Picks|p=65}}</ref> [[Sounds Orchestral]],<ref>{{harvnb|Sounds Orchestral – Wigwam}}</ref> and the French orchestra leaders [[Raymond Lefèvre]]<ref>{{harvnb|Raymond Lefèvre – Wigwam}}</ref> and [[Caravelli]].<ref>{{harvnb|Bennett|2006|p=160}}</ref> [[Drafi Deutscher]] released a version with German lyrics, entitled "Weil Ich Dich Lieb" ("Because I Love You"), that was a Top&nbsp;20 hit in Germany in 1970.<ref>{{harvnb|Drafi Deutscher – Weil Ich Dich Liebe}}</ref>
Artists who have covered "Wigwam" include [[the New Christy Minstrels]],<ref>{{harvnb|Special Merit Picks|p=65}}</ref> [[Sounds Orchestral]],<ref>{{harvnb|Sounds Orchestral – Wigwam}}</ref> and the French orchestra leaders [[Raymond Lefèvre]]<ref>{{harvnb|Raymond Lefèvre – Wigwam}}</ref> and [[Caravelli]].<ref>{{harvnb|Bennett|2006|p=160}}</ref> [[Drafi Deutscher]] released a version with German lyrics, entitled "Weil Ich Dich Lieb" ("Because I Love You"), that was a Top&nbsp;20 hit in Germany in 1970.<ref>{{harvnb|Drafi Deutscher – Weil Ich Dich Liebe}}</ref>


==Charts==
==Charts==
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Revision as of 03:24, 30 July 2013

"Wigwam"
Song
B-side"Copper Kettle"

"Wigwam" is a song by Bob Dylan that was released on his 1970 album Self Portrait. It was a hit single that reached the Top 10 in several countries worldwide. The song's basic track, including "la-la" vocals, was recorded in early March 1970 in New York City. Later that month, producer Bob Johnston had brass instrument overdubs added to the track; these were recorded in Nashville, Tennessee at a session without Dylan present.

Critical appraisal of "Wigwam" has been mostly positive, and reviewers have called it a highlight of Self Portrait. Several artists have covered the composition, including Drafi Deutscher, whose version of it was a Top 20 hit in Germany.

Recording

"Wigwam" was recorded during the sessions for Dylan's Self Portrait album, and produced by Bob Johnston.[2] The basic track was put on tape at the beginning of March 1970, at Columbia Studio A in New York City.[2][3] Dylan biographer Clinton Heylin writes that the recording was "early March", at a session that also included "All the Tired Horses" and vocals for a cover of Paul Simon's "The Boxer".[2] Olof Björner dates "Wigwam" as being from March 4, at a session that included an early version of "Went to See the Gypsy", covers of Eric Andersen's "Thirsty Boots" and "Tattle O-Day", and Gordon Lightfoot's "Early Morning Rain".[3] "Wigwam" was labelled "New Song 1" on the recording sheet.[3]

On March 17, 1970, at Columbia Recording Studios in Nashville, Tennessee, instrumental overdubs were recorded for "Wigwam" and several other songs.[2] Dylan was not present for the overdubs, and they were overseen by Johnston.[4]

In the song, Dylan sings "la-la" vocals, accompanied by horns,[5] in an arrangement that has been called "mariachi-like",[6] and "Tex-Mex".[7] The feeling of the song has also been described as "campfire music"[8] and as having a "hazy glow".[9]

Release

"Wigwam" was released on Self Portrait on June 8, 1970,[10] and as a single in June or July.[3][11][12] The single's B-side is "Copper Kettle".[1][11] The single was a Top 10 hit in Belgium,[13] Denmark (in 1972),[14] France,[15] Malaysia,[16] the Netherlands,[1] Singapore,[17] and Switzerland,[18] and was a Top 40 hit in Canada[19] and Germany.[20] In the US, the song reached No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100,[21] and No. 13 on the Billboard Top 40 Easy Listening chart.[22]

Years later, in the early 2000s, "Wigwam" appeared on the "Limited Tour Edition" of The Essential Bob Dylan.[23][24] The song was also included on the soundtrack to the film The Royal Tenenbaums (2001),[9] as well as on the compilations One Hit Wonders and Hard to Find Classics (2003),[25] Radio 2 - De Topcollectie '70 Vol. 2 (2010),[26] Top 40 Hitarchief - 1970 (2011),[27] and Remember the 70s Vol. 5.[28] On April 20, 2013, the demo version of "Wigwam" and Andersen's "Thirsty Boots" were released as a single for Record Store Day.[29]

Appraisal

Reactions to the song have been generally positive. A review in Billboard magazine describes the track as "winning".[7] Biographer Rober Shelton includes "Wigwam" among the "quality" songs on Self Portrait, describing it as "hard to forget";[30] it is also one of the "AllMusic Picks" of the highlights of Self Portrait,[10] and Michael Gray similarly rates it as one of the "best tracks" on the album.[31] Greil Marcus is likewise positive about the track, calling it "a great job of arranging".[8] PopMatters reviewer Tom Useted calls the song "more than worthy",[32] while NME writer Paul Stokes qualifies it as "melodious" and as demonstrating Dylan's "versatility and impact".[33] In a review of The Royal Tenenbaums soundtrack, critic Heather Phares writes that the "hazy glow" of the song "add[s] to the album's strangely timeless but emotionally direct atmosphere."[9] Critic Sean Egan writes that "Dylan la-las against a big brass arrangement in a not disagreeable way—but is 'not disagreeable' supposed to be what a Dylan track amounts to?"[5]

On a more negative note, writer Seth Rogovoy describes "Wigwam" as a "bizarre, wordless vocal tune".[6] Critic Anthony Varesi considers the instrumentation on "Wigwam" to be an example of "horns misplaced", and "evidence of flaws" in Bob Johnston's production choices on Self Portrait.[34] Pitchfork writer Rob Mitchum characterizes the song as "moaning along with the brass section" and "rather unpleasant".[35]

Covers

Artists who have covered "Wigwam" include the New Christy Minstrels,[36] Sounds Orchestral,[37] and the French orchestra leaders Raymond Lefèvre[38] and Caravelli.[39] Drafi Deutscher released a version with German lyrics, entitled "Weil Ich Dich Lieb" ("Because I Love You"), that was a Top 20 hit in Germany in 1970.[40]

Charts

Chart (1970) Peak
position
Belgian Charts 9[13]
French Charts 12[41]
Canadian RPM Singles Chart 17[19]
Dutch Single Top 100 3[1]
German Singles Charts 33[20]
Malaysia Top 10 8[16]
Swiss Music Charts 9[18]
US Billboard Hot 100 41[21]
US Billboard Top 40 Easy Listening 13[22]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d Bob Dylan – Wigwam (GfK Dutch Charts)
  2. ^ a b c d Heylin 1995, pp. 77–79
  3. ^ a b c d Björner 1996
  4. ^ Heylin 1995, p. 82
  5. ^ a b Egan 2011, p. 175
  6. ^ a b Rogovoy 2009, pp. 131–132
  7. ^ a b Top 60 Pop Spotlight, p. 80
  8. ^ a b Marcus 2010, p. 24
  9. ^ a b c Phares
  10. ^ a b Erlewine: Self Portrait Review
  11. ^ a b Hinton 2006, pp. 412, 418
  12. ^ Portrait Single From LP Hot For Columbia 1970, p. 3
  13. ^ a b Bob Dylan – Wigwam (Belgian Charts)
  14. ^ Hits of the World (1972-03-18), p. 56
  15. ^ Hits of the World (1970-11-28), p. 68
  16. ^ a b Hits of the World (1970-11-07), p. 61
  17. ^ Hits of the World (1970-10-17), p. 66
  18. ^ a b Bob Dylan – Wigwam (Hitparade.ch)
  19. ^ a b Top Singles - Volume 14, No. 1, August 22, 1970
  20. ^ a b Single – Bob Dylan, Wigwam
  21. ^ a b Self Portrait: Billboard Singles
  22. ^ a b Top 40 Easy Listening, p. 58
  23. ^ Bob Dylan – The Essential (Album)
  24. ^ Erlewine: The Essential Bob Dylan Review
  25. ^ One Hit Wonders & Hard to Find Classics: Overview
  26. ^ Radio 2 - De Topcollectie '70 Vol. 2
  27. ^ Top 40 Hitarchief - 1970
  28. ^ Remember the 70s Vol. 5
  29. ^ WIGWAM single to be released for Record Store Day
  30. ^ Shelton 1986, p. 419
  31. ^ Gray 1981, p. 13
  32. ^ Useted 2008
  33. ^ Stokes 2011
  34. ^ Varesi 2002, p. 99
  35. ^ Mitchum 2002
  36. ^ Special Merit Picks, p. 65
  37. ^ Sounds Orchestral – Wigwam
  38. ^ Raymond Lefèvre – Wigwam
  39. ^ Bennett 2006, p. 160
  40. ^ Drafi Deutscher – Weil Ich Dich Liebe
  41. ^ Cite error: The named reference frenchcharts was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

References

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