The question is no longer just what Bob Dylan will have to say about Elvis Costello’s “Pump It Up” or the Clash’s “London Calling” when he writes about them in his new book, “The Philosophy of Modern Song.” Now we can wonder how Helen Mirren or Renée Zellweger will sound giving voice to Dylan’s prose as they read those chapters, respectively, in the audiobook version, which, like the hardback, arrives Nov. 1.
PvNew previously reported the titles of the historical songs Dylan has written essays about for the tome, followed by the the names of the actors enlisted to read individual chapters for the audiobook, but those two lists hadn’t been paired up till now. A look at the list below, being revealed for the first time today, shows that all of the stars involved have been given multiple assignments, including Jeff Bridges, Oscar Isaac, Rita Moreno, Jeffrey Wright, Sissy Spacek, John Goodman, Alfre Woodard and Steve Buscemi as well as Mirren and Zellweger.
As first promised when the book was announced, Dylan himself will also do some reading for the audiobook, although he’s not taking on any full chapters himself. He will read short introductions or interstitial pieces that appear between chapters in the book, described by publisher Simon & Schuster as “a series of dream-like riffs that, taken together, resemble an epic poem and add to the work’s transcendence.”
The chapters may well have been assigned at random, but Dylanologists may still have fun speculating on what reason, if any, Buscemi was picked to read about the Fugs’ “CIA Man,” Elvis Presley’s “Viva Las Vegas” and Warren Zevon’s “Dirty Life and Times”… or why Mirren was the woman for the job of intoning “On the Street Where You Live” from “My Fair Lady” and the Frank Sinatra standard “Strangers in the Night” as well as Costello’s new-wave-era classic… or why Woodard’s voice was the one for a literary exegesis of Little Richard’s “Tutti Frutti,” the Nina Simone classic “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” and Rosemary Clooney’s “Come On-a My House.”
One connection seems clear enough: Renée Zellweger reads a chapter about the Judy Garland-sung “Come Rain or Come Shine” not too many years after playing Garland on the big screen.
One could also suppose that Bridges was picked for Hank Williams’ “Your Cheatin’ Heart” because of the Williams song catalog having played such a large part in “The Last Picture Show,” although, ironically, maybe, that was one of the few big Williams hits not included on that film’s soundtrack.
The full matching of titles and readers being released by Simon & Schuster Audio is below.
Essay/Song Narrator DETROIT CITY Jeff Bridges PUMP IT UP Helen Mirren WITHOUT A SONG Jeffrey Wright TAKE ME HOME FROM THIS GARDEN OF EVIL Sissy Spacek THERE STANDS THE GLASS John Goodman WILLY THE WANDERING GYPSY AND ME Renee Zellweger TUTTI FRUTTI Alfre Woodard MonEY HONEY Helen Mirren MY GENERATION Oscar Isaac JESSE JAMES Rita Moreno POOR LITTLE FOOL Renee Zellweger PANCHO AND LEFTY Jeff Bridges THE PRETENDER Steve Buscemi MACK THE KNIFE Jeffrey Wright WHIFFENPOOF SONG Helen Mirren YOU DON’T KNOW ME Sissy Spacek BALL OF CONFUSION Alfre Woodard POISON LOVE Steve Buscemi BEYOND THE SEA John Goodman ON THE ROAD AGAIN Renee Zellweger IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME BY NOW Jeffrey Wright THE LITTLE WHITE CLOUD THAT CRIED Rita Moreno EL PASO Steve Buscemi NELLY WAS A LADY Rita Moreno CHEAPER TO KEEP HER John Goodman I GOT A WOMAN Jeffrey Wright CIA MAN Steve Buscemi ON THE STREET WHERE YOU LIVE Helen Mirren TRUCKIN’ Renee Zellweger RUBY, ARE YOU MAD? Sissy Spacek OLD VIOLIN Rita Moreno VOLARE Helen Mirren LonDON CALLING Renee Zellweger YOUR CHEATIN’ HEART Jeff Bridges BLUE BAYOU Oscar Isaac MIDNIGHT RIDER Sissy Spacek BLUE SUEDE SHOES John Goodman MY PRAYER Helen Mirren DIRTY LIFE AND TIMES Steve Buscemi DOESN’T HURT ANYMORE Sissy Spacek KEY TO THE HIGHWAY Alfre Woodard EVERYBODY CRYIN’ MERCY Renee Zellweger WAR Jeffrey Wright BIG RIVER John Goodman FEEL SO GOOD Steve Buscemi BLUE MOON Jeff Bridges GYPSIES, TRAMPS & THIEVES Renee Zellweger KEEP MY SKILLET GOOD AND GREASY Sissy Spacek IT’S ALL IN THE GAME Rita Moreno A CERTAIN GIRL Jeffrey Wright I’VE ALWAYS BEEN CRAZY Jeff Bridges WITCHY WOMAN Steve Buscemi BIG BOSS MAN Alfre Woodard LONG TALL SALLY Rita Moreno OLD AND onLY IN THE WAY Sissy Spacek BLACK MAGIC WOMAN Oscar Isaac BY THE TIME I GET TO PHOENIX Rita Moreno COME ON-A MY HOUSE Alfre Woodard DON’T TAKE YOUR GUNS TO TOWN Jeffrey Wright COME RAIN OR COME SHINE Renee Zellweger DON’T LET ME BE MISUNDERSTOOD Alfre Woodard STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT Helen Mirren VIVA LAS VEGAS Steve Buscemi SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES Oscar Isaac WAIST DEEP IN THE BIG MUDDY Alfre Woodard WHERE OR WHEN John Goodman
