Why John Lennon Wanted to Produce Records for Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley
The history of music sometimes feels like a history of missed opportunities. John Lennon discussed the prospect of producing albums for Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley. He wasn’t the biggest fan of one of Dylan’s classics. It’s unclear if Dylan would have wanted to work with John given a comment he made about Paul McCartney.
What John Lennon would have done for Bob Dylan and Elvis Presley
John produced Harry Nilsson’s 1974 album Pussy Cats. Around the same time, he also worked on David Bowie’s “Fame” and “Across the Universe” and Elton John’s rendition of The Beatles’ “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” During a 1975 interview with Rolling Stone, John was asked if he would like to produce other singers. “Dylan would be interesting because I think he made a great album in Blood on the Tracks but I’m still not keen on the backings,” he said. “I think I could produce him great.
“And Presley,” he said. “I’d like to resurrect Elvis. But I’d be so scared of him I don’t know whether I could do it. But I’d like to do it. Dylan I could do, but Presley would make me nervous.
“But Dylan or Presley, somebody up there,” he added. “I know what I’d do with Presley. Make a rock ‘n’ roll album. Dylan doesn’t need material. I’d just make him some good backings. So if you’re reading this Bob, you know….”
Working with Elvis Presley and working with Bob Dylan would’ve been very different
Elvis generally sang whatever songs Colonel Tom Parker wanted him to sing. If Parker decided John should work with Elvis, that would have happened. Sadly, the two icons never collaborated.
During a 2009 interview with HuffPost, Dylan distanced himself from Paul and other artists from the same generation. “My stuff is different from those guys,” he opined. “It’s more desperate.
“[The Who’s Roger] Daltrey, [The Who’s Pete] Townshend, McCartney, The Beach Boys, Elton, Billy Joel,” he continued. “They made perfect records, so they have to play them perfectly … exactly the way people remember them. My records were never perfect. So there is no point in trying to duplicate them. Anyway, I’m no mainstream artist.” Considering Dylan saw Paul’s compositions as being very distinct from his own, it’s not clear if he would have wanted to work with John.
Bob Dylan saw himself as a cultural misfit
Dylan said a lot of the singers from his generation started out as part of the counterculture. Then, they took over the world. He felt they made music for celebrations and dinner parties.
In Dylan’s opinion, he’s a misfit because he started out when the culture was dominated by The Sound of Music, Perry Como, Andy Williams, and Frank Sinatra. He didn’t fit into the mainstream then and he doesn’t fit into it now. Dylan said that the hit versions of his songs were generally performed by other singers. Notably, John helped Nilsson cover Dylan’s “Subterranean Homesick Blues” for Pussy Cats.
Perhaps, even if all three of them lived long lives, John still never would have worked with Elvis or Dylan. However, they music they would have made together would have been legendary.
