Bob Dylan is widely known for many songs, and this doesn’t include the instant hit – “Lay Lady Lay.” The song was released in 1969 and ever since, it has been covered by numerous bands and artists, including Buddy Guy, Duran Duran, and many others.
The Midnight Cowboy Soundtrack
Up until the 1971 interview was released, it was believed that Bob Dylan wrote the song for the Midnight Cowboy’s OST. However, the song never made it to the finished film as it wasn’t submitted on time.
Joel Whitburn, an American author and music historian has a theory himself that the infamous song was written for his wife, Sarah Lowndes. This is not a very popular opinion, and even though the song never made it to the film’s soundtrack, people still believed that it was originally written for it.
The 1971 Bob Dylan Interview That Changes Everything
Recently, old transcripts from an interview that took place several days between Bob Dylan and his friend Tony Glover, which had never been revealed before, are telling the truth. Glover was working on an article that was supposed to be published in Esquire but never made it to the magazine.
The newly found transcripts from the interview make it clear that Dylan wrote the song for Barbara Streisand (not necessarily about her).
“You said Father of Night was written for a play, and Lay Lady Lay was done for ‘Midnight Cowboy,” Glover says.
“It was written for Barbra Streisand,” Bob Dylan replies.
Streisand Had No Knowledge of This Up Until Now
In a recent NBC News statement, Barbara Streisand reveals that she frequently got flowers from Bob Dylan, with a handwritten note asking her to sing a duet with him. However, this never happened as she “just couldn’t imagine it then.” Streisand also shares that she is very flattered to find out that ‘Lay Lady Lay’ was written for her and if she was asked about the duet today, she would do it.