British guitarist singer and songwriter Richard Hawley’s ‘Ballad of a Thin Man‘ was featured on the season finale of the latest episode of Peaky Blinders last night — Peaky Blinders, Season 5, Episode 6, “Mr. Jones“.
The song was heard at the end of the episode as Polly hands Tommy her resignation.
Richard Hawley’s ‘Ballad of a Thin Man‘ is, of course, a cover of the iconic Bob Dylan song. A song that was released by Dylan way back in 1965 for his album Highway 61 Revisited.
In later years, he also released live versions of the song on a variety of albums, as it proved to be a very popular recording.
About covering the song himself, Richard Hawley had this to say on his Instagram page about his involvement with Peaky Blinders and the song:
“Ballad of a Thin Man is out today and features in Peaky Blinders on Sunday. Me, the band, our families, we’re all massive fans of the show and of course Dylan. Dylan is the master and it’s always a soulful joy to sing his songs, but to sing and play one of his finest works in the context of @peakyblindersofficial is a proper buzz for us.”
So, yes, being able to record this version of the track must have made Richard Hawley’s year. And yes, it is a superb cover.
Listen to Hawley’s ‘Ballad of a Thin Man‘ in the video below, and in the Spotify widget below that.
And, if you happen to be in the UK and love Richard Hawley’s sound, he will be kicking off a short tour of the UK on October 2nd in Bristol. You can get more details about that on the singer’s website.
Related reading: Anna Calvi’s ‘Wish‘ was featured on the season finale of Peaky Blinders, Season 5