Cover of the Week – "You Ain't Going Nowhere," The Rave-Ups

Yeah, I know you hear "The Rave-Ups" and you immediately think: Molly Ringwald.

True, Miss Molly was a friend of the band (thanks to her sister Beth, who was involved with the group's leader Jimmer Podrasky) and you can see them perform two songs in Pretty in Pink (1986) as a result of that friendship.

But that in no way should diminish this band's musical contributions.

The Rave-Ups' debut full-length album, Town & Country (1985), placed the band firmly in the forefront of the country-rock movement that also included Rank & File and the Long Ryders.

And though "Positively Lost Me" was the big "hit" off this independently released album, I much prefer this cover version of the Bob Dylan song – even over the version that the Byrds recorded for their classic Sweethearts of the Rodeo (1968). The Rave-Ups version uses the Dylan version of the song, recorded a few years after the Byrds. It includes a jab at Byrds leader Roger McGuinn, who screwed up one of the lines on the original recording.

What can I say? I'm a child of the 80s. In any case, I love the propulsiveness of this version. It really captures Dylan's wit and humor. I hope Mr. Zimmerman approved.

Play "You Ain't Going Nowhere" by The Rave-Ups