Bob Dylan has written and recorded hundreds of songs in his productive, prolific career. The law of averages insists that a few of them were bound to feature titles with a woman’s name in them.
We focused here on songs where Bob seems to be singing directly to the named girl. (Meaning no songs like “The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll”.) See if you agree with our list.
“To Ramona”
Dylan wasn’t crazy about the album title Another Side Of Bob Dylan. It was foisted upon him by his record company for his fourth album, released in 1964. But the album title accurately nailed the fact that Dylan was trying something a little bit different. Instead of the problems of the world, he put his focus on more personal issues, including his heaviest dose of relationship songs to that point. “To Ramona” finds him advising and consoling a girl beset with depression and heartache. Dylan’s lyrics flow gently and effortlessly from line to line as he makes his argument. At the end of the song, he acknowledges that he himself knows quite well the sadness that this girl feels.
“Visions Of Johanna”
While there is a wide variety of Dylan albums that fans name as their favorite, Blonde On Blonde probably goes neck-and-neck with Blood On The Tracks for the consensus most popular. The former album, released in 1966, culminated Dylan’s dynamic early period when he seemed to be revolutionizing music at every step. “Visions Of Johanna” is one of the standouts. Dylan sings with hallucinatory wordplay about the various trials and tribulations of the narrator, which includes a few escapades with a girl named Louise. But they’re all just a mere distraction, and a futile one at that, from Johanna, who leaves his mind obsessed and his heart tortured.
“Isis”
The last two songs on this list both come from the album Desire. That’s the 1976 record where Dylan collaborated on eight of the ten tracks with Jacques Levy. Levy’s background in theatre no doubt came in handy as Dylan put together tracks like “Isis”, with its sprawling narrative and vivid imagery and dialogue. It takes place on two levels. There’s the narrator’s strange tomb-raiding quest, which seems to be more a diversion from him than a passion. Then there’s his encounter with Isis, whom he describes in fantastical terms, even as their back-and-forth is as pedestrian as a conversation from a decades-long marriage.
“Sara”
Most Dylan experts read “Isis” as a tribute to and lament about his wife Sara. At the time, the two were experiencing marital difficulties, segueing between separation and stretches of reunion. There can be no doubt, however, as to whom “Sara” is directed. Dylan wrote this song solo. He performed it in the studio with her watching him, which then led to a stretch where they got along again for a while. Dylan bravely pours out the contents of his heart. There are points where he reminisces about the good old days with their kids. He heartbreakingly contrasts that with the empty horizons of his current life. For an extra touch, he name-drops “Sad-Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands”, which he also wrote about Sara.
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