Dylan of The Day II - Girl From the North Country

 Bob and the writing of Girl From The North Country

Woodstock, NY. 1968. Bob Dylan on his equipment truck outside his Byrdcliffe home. 

 

Photo by the legendary Elliott Landy 

In late 1962 and early 1963, Bob Dylan traveled to London, where he met British folk musicians, among them Martin Carthy. Mr. Carthy taught Dylan the traditional English song “Scarborough Fair,” upon which “Girl From the North Country” is loosely based. Dylan retains the song’s basic structure and some of the original lyrics (“She once was a true love of mine”), but he alters the melody and seems to personalize the song by setting it in the region of his own youth in Northern Minnesota, which is known locally as the North Country. 

Although the song’s source material is clear, there’s been a long ongoing debate regarding the person to whom Dylan is talking about. Some argue that it’s about his former girlfriend, Echo Helstrom, while others suggest Bonnie Beecher, both of whom Dylan knew before he left for New York. 

However, it’s most commonly suspected that the inspiration might have actually come from his then-girlfriend, Suze Rotolo. Dylan departed England and headed to Italy in search of Rotolo, who had caused a significant strain in their relationship due to her continued studies there. Rotolo had already returned to the United States, though, roughly around the same time Dylan arrived in Italy.

During this time, he completed the song and returned to New York to reconcile with Rotolo, convincing her to move back into his apartment on 4th Street. The album cover makes it more likely that the song’s muse was, in fact, Rotolo, as she is presented strolling arm in arm with Dylan down Jones Street, not far from their apartment.