Gospel Plow

Album: Bob Dylan (1962)
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Songfacts®:

  • This traditional American gospel song is based on Jesus Christ's admonition for total dedication from his followers in Luke 9:62. The verse reads: "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God."
  • Bob Dylan recorded the song for his eponymous debut album, cutting it in a single take. According to Dominick Cavallo's A Fiction of the Past: The Sixties in American History, when recording the LP, Dylan turned down requests to do second takes. "I said no. I can't see myself singing the same song twice in a row. That's terrible."

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