Covered by numerous artists, "All Along the Watchtower" is strongly identified with the interpretation
Jimi Hendrix recorded with the
Jimi Hendrix Experience for its third studio album,
Electric Ladyland (1968).
[3] The Hendrix version, released six months after Dylan's original recording, became a
Top 20 single in 1968, received a
Grammy Hall of Fame award in 2001, and was ranked 48th in
Rolling Stone magazine's
500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2004 (40th in the 2021 version). Dylan first played the song live in concert on the
Bob Dylan and the Band 1974 Tour, his first tour since
1966.
His live performances have been influenced by Hendrix's cover, to the extent that they have been called covers of a cover. Dylan has performed the song live more than any of his others, with over 2,250 recitals.
...
Impact of the Hendrix recording on Dylan's performances
In 1995, Dylan described his reaction to hearing Hendrix's version: "It overwhelmed me, really. He had such talent, he could find things inside a song and vigorously develop them. He found things that other people wouldn't think of finding in there. He probably improved upon it by the spaces he was using. I took license with the song from his version, actually, and continue to do it to this day." In the booklet accompanying his 1985
Biograph album, Dylan said: "I liked Jimi Hendrix's record of this and ever since he died I've been doing it that way ... Strange how when I sing it, I always feel it's a tribute to him in some kind of way." In 1974, Dylan, with
the Band, embarked on his first concert tour since his
1966 world tour. From the first show of the
Bob Dylan and the Band 1974 Tour on January 3, 1974, in Chicago, the shows featured what Heylin described as a "Hendrixized" version of "All Along the Watchtower". From the first live performance, Dylan has consistently performed the song closer to Hendrix's version than to his own original recording.