Happy 75th to a poet, a rock ‘n roll icon, a folk sensation, and a living legend. Stop and take a moment to fathom that number; 75 years. Bob Dylan has spent 54 of those on earth as a recording artist. He was at the forefront of the NYC folk scene, marched on Washington for civil rights, defected from the folkies into an electrified cultural icon who influenced just about every style of music imaginable, and is still out there, doing his thing. Sure, he’s released a few clunkers along the way, but all it takes is a release such as the outrageously captivating Time Out Of Mind or the subtle, beautiful comfort of last year’s Shadows In The Night to demonstrate Dylan’s undeniable/unshakable genius.

During the heady period of 1965-66, Dylan bottled lightning in the studio by reinventing and rearranging the songs that comprise one of the greatest three album runs in the history of music (Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited, Blonde On Blonde). But he also made changes on two of those albums after they were initially pressed. There are more than a handful of different mixes available via different pressings of Blonde On Blonde, and it can be confusing working out what’s what. However, we’ll keep it simple, and post this rarity. Only the initial (stereo only) pressings of Highway 61 Revisited feature an alternate take of the rollicking “From A Buick 6” that has a harmonica intro – one that is completely absent on all other official releases. Want a copy of your own? Memorize the matrix numbers of the first press, and look out for the word ‘unbreakable’ on the label. words / d see

Related: Aquarium Drunkard – The Collected Bob Dylan Archives