Duquesne Whistle

"Duquesne Whistle" is a song written by Bob Dylan and Robert Hunter that appears as the opening track on Dylan's 2012 studio album Tempest. It was first released as a single on August 27, 2012[1] then as a music video two days later.

"Duquesne Whistle"
Song by Bob Dylan
from the album Tempest
ReleasedAugust 27, 2012
Genre
Length5:43
LabelColumbia Records
Songwriter(s)
  • Bob Dylan
  • Robert Hunter
Producer(s)Jack Frost (Bob Dylan)

It has been described as a "chugging number" with lyrics that entwine train imagery, and the motif of a train whistle in particular, with an affectionate reminiscence of a woman.[2] Like much of Dylan's 21st-century output, he produced the song himself using the pseudonym Jack Frost.

Reception

Music journalist Simon Vozick-Levinson, writing in a 2020 Rolling Stone article where the song ranked 10th on a list of "The 25 Best Bob Dylan Songs of the 21st Century", commented on the playful ambiguity of the lyrics, noting that the central image of a train whistle could either sound like "the last trumpet of the apocalypse" or function as a "symbol of music's redemptive power". He also mentions the song's melodic similarity to "a 1930 tune ('Easy Day') by New Orleans jazz great Jelly Roll Morton".[3] Ann Powers, writing for NPR, likewise noted the song's relationship to jazz, favorably comparing Dylan's vocal performance to that of Louis Armstrong, and considering the possibility that the song could be "a sly tribute to Earl 'Fatha' Hines, the jazz great whose stride piano would have fit perfectly in this arrangement, and who was born in Duquesne (Pennsylvania) in 1903."[4]

Music video

Nash Edgerton directed a music video for the song, which debuted on the website of The Guardian on August 29, 2012, 12 days before the release of Tempest. The video intercuts footage of Dylan and a group of younger cohorts walking through downtown Los Angeles with a narrative involving a man's disastrous attempt to court a woman on the same city's streets. The two storylines converge in a final scene where Dylan and his crew literally step over the man's badly beaten body on the sidewalk. The video drew substantial commentary because of its depiction of violence,[5][6] although some defended it on the grounds that it functions as a subversive parody of the Romantic comedy genre.[7]

Commercial performance

The song spent four weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 60 on October 19, 2012.[8]

Live performances

Between 2013 and 2018, Dylan played the song 379 times on the Never Ending Tour.[9]

Cover versions

"Duquesne Whistle" was covered by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench on his 2014 debut solo album You Should Be So Lucky.[10]

References
  1. "Song Premiere: Bob Dylan, 'Duquesne Whistle'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  2. "New Music: Bob Dylan - "Duquesne Whistle"". Consequence of Sound. 2012-08-27. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  3. Vozick-Levinson, Jon Dolan,Patrick Doyle,Andy Greene,Brian Hiatt,Angie Martoccio,Rob Sheffield,Hank Shteamer,Simon; Dolan, Jon; Doyle, Patrick; Greene, Andy; Hiatt, Brian; Martoccio, Angie; Sheffield, Rob; Shteamer, Hank; Vozick-Levinson, Simon (2020-06-18). "The 25 Best Bob Dylan Songs of the 21st Century". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  4. "Song Premiere: Bob Dylan, 'Duquesne Whistle'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  5. "Watch Bob Dylan's Bloody, Tarantino-Ish 'Duquesne Whistle' Video". Spin. 2012-08-29. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  6. "Watch: Bob Dylan's New Brutally Violent Clip For Duquesne Whistle". Music Feeds. 2012-08-29. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  7. michaelgloversmith (2012-08-30). "Bob Dylan's Duquesne Whistle and the Return of Love Stalker". White City Cinema. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  8. "Bob Dylan". Billboard. Retrieved 2020-12-18.
  9. "Bob Dylan Tour Statistics | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved 2020-12-19.
  10. www.bluenote.com http://www.bluenote.com/benmont-tench-to-release-solo-debut-album-you/. Retrieved 2020-12-19. Missing or empty |title= (help)
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