Wikipedia

Knockin' on Heaven's Door

For other uses, seeKnockin' on Heaven's Door (disambiguation).

"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"is a song by American singer-songwriterBob Dylan,written forthe soundtrackof the 1973 filmPat Garrett and Billy the Kid.Released as a single two months after the film's premiere, it became a worldwide hit, reaching the Top 10 in several countries. The song became one of Dylan's most popular and most covered post-1960s compositions, spawning covers fromEric Clapton,Guns N' Roses,Randy Crawford,and more.

"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
SinglebyBob Dylan
from the albumPat Garrett & Billy the Kid
B-side"Turkey Chase"
ReleasedAug. 1973[1]
Recorded1973
Genre
Length2:32
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Bob Dylan
Producer(s)Gordon Carroll
Bob Dylansingles chronology
"George Jackson"
(1971) 		"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
(1973) 		"A Fool Such as I"
(1973)

Described by Dylan biographerClinton Heylinas "an exercise in splendid simplicity",[3]the song features two short verses, the lyrics of which comment directly on the scene in the film for which it was written: the death of a frontier lawman (Slim Pickens) who refers to his wife (Katy Jurado) as "Mama".[4]

It was ranked number 190 in 2004 byRolling Stonemagazine, in their500 Greatest Songs of All Time,[5]and number 192 in 2010.[6]

Musicians

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Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[23] Gold 45,000‡
Italy (FIMI)[24] Platinum 70,000‡
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[25] Platinum 60,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] Gold 400,000‡

‡Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Other Bob Dylan versions

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According to his website, Dylan has performed the song in concert 460 times between its live debut in 1974 and its last outing in 2003.[27]Some of these versions have appeared on Dylan's live andBootleg Seriesalbums including:

Eric Clapton and Arthur Louis versions

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In January 1975Eric Claptonplayed onArthur Louis's recording of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door"which was arranged in a cross-overreggaestyle. After the recording sessions with Louis, Clapton recorded his own version of the song which was released as a single in August 1975 two weeks after Louis's version.[28]This version was released onTimepieces: The Best of Eric Clapton.Clapton's version made it to No. 38 on the UK charts,[29]but the single was less successful in the U.S. where it failed to chart on theBillboardHot 100(although it reached on No. 109 onCashbox'sLooking Ahead chart[30]). Clapton's 1996 boxed setCrossroads 2: Live in the Seventiesfeatures a performance of the song recorded in London in April 1977. There were also performances of the song included on theJourneyman(1990) and theOne More Car, One More Rider(2003) world tours. Several Clapton compilation albums also feature the song.[31]

Guns N' Roses versions

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"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
SongbyGuns N' Roses
from the albumDays of Thunder (soundtrack)
ReleasedJune 26, 1990[32]
Length5:36
LabelGeffen
Songwriter(s)Bob Dylan
Producer(s)
"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
1992 UK picture sleeve
SinglebyGuns N' Roses
from the albumUse Your Illusion II
B-side"Knockin' on Heavens Door" (live)
ReleasedMay 11, 1992(1992-05-11)[33]
Length5:36
LabelGeffen
Songwriter(s)Bob Dylan
Producer(s)
Guns N' Rosessingles chronology
"November Rain"
(1992) 		"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
(1992) 		"Yesterdays"
(1992)

In 1987, Americanhard rockbandGuns N' Rosesstarted performing the song. A live version of the song was released on the12-inch singleof "Welcome to the Jungle"the same year. They recorded and released a studio version in 1990 for the soundtrack of the filmDays of Thunderthat reached No. 18 on the USBillboardAlbum Rock Trackschart and No. 56 on Canada'sRPM100 Hit Tracks chart.

This studio recording was slightly modified for the band's 1991 albumUse Your Illusion II,discarding the responses in the second verse. Released as the second single from the album, it reached No. 2 on theUK Singles Chartand theNew Zealand Singles Chart.Elsewhere, the single topped the charts of Portugal, Belgium, and the Netherlands; it was the best-selling song of 1992 in the latter country. In Ireland, where the song also reached No. 1, it became Guns N' Roses' third (and to date last) number-one single as well as their ninth consecutive top-five hit.

Their performance of the song at theFreddie Mercury Tribute Concertin 1992 was used as the B-side for the single release and was also included on theirLive Era '87–'93album, released in 1999.[34]Another version was released on the videoUse Your Illusion World Tour - 1992 in Tokyo II.Themusic videofor this version of the song was directed byAndy Morahan.[35]

Personnel

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Guns N' Roses

Guest musicians

  • The Waters – backing vocals

Charts

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[56] Gold 35,000^
Brazil (Pro-Música Brasil)[67] Platinum 60,000‡
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[68] Platinum 90,000‡
Germany (BVMI)[69] Gold 250,000^
Italy (FIMI)[70] Platinum 50,000‡
Netherlands (NVPI)[71] Platinum 75,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[72] Platinum 600,000‡

^Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Dunblane tribute

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"Knockin' on Heaven's Door"
SinglebyDunblane
A-side"Throw These Guns Away"
ReleasedDecember 9, 1996(1996-12-09)[73]
Recorded1996
StudioAbbey Road(London, UK)
Length4:09
Label
Songwriter(s)
  • Bob Dylan
  • Ted Christopher
Producer(s)Peter Cobbin

In 1996 and with the consent of Dylan, Scottish musician Ted Christopher wrote a new verse for "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" in memory of the schoolchildren and teacher killed in theDunblane school massacre.This has been, according to some sources, one of the few times Dylan has officially authorized anybody to add or change the lyrics to one of his songs.[74][75]

This version of the song, featuring children from the village singing the chorus with the guitarist and producer of Dylan's albumInfidels(1983),Mark Knopfler,was released on December 9, 1996, in the United Kingdom and reached No. 1 on theUKandScottish Singles Charts,[76][77]as well as No. 6 in Iceland and Ireland.[78][79]The proceeds went to charities for children.[80] The song was featured on the compilation albumHits 97,where all royalties from the song were given to three charities.[81]

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Chart (1996–1997) Peak
position
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[78] 6
Ireland (IRMA)[79] 6
Scotland(OCC)[77] 1
UK Singles(OCC)[76] 1

Year-end charts

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Chart (1996) Position
UK Singles (OCC)[82] 31
Chart (1997) Position
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[83] 97

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[84] Platinum 600,000^

^Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Sampled version

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Gabrielle's single "Rise"(2000) sampled from this song. Dylan liked" Rise "so much that he allowed Gabrielle to use the sample for free, while receiving a co-writer credit for providing the song's chord progression and vocal sample.[85]

References

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