"Tomorrow Is a Long Time" is a song written and recorded by

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

. Dylan's version first appeared on the album '' Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II'' compilation, released in 1971. It was subsequently included in the triple LP compilation '' Masterpieces''.

Dylan's versions

Dylan's officially released version of the song is a live recording from his April 12, 1963, concert at

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually house ...

. Dylan had recorded the song in December 1962 as a demo for M. Witmark & Sons, his publishing company. This particular recording, long available as a bootleg, was released by Columbia in 2010 on '' The Bootleg Series Vol. 9: The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964''. A studio version of the song, an outtake from the June 1970 sessions for ''

New Morning New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

'', has also been bootlegged. The song was featured in the first-season finale of '' The Walking Dead''. In the 2017 film '' The Vanishing of Sidney Hall'' the song appears twice: once sung by Logan Lerman and again by Bob Dylan in the closing scene.

Elvis Presley version

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

recorded the song on May 26, 1966, during a session for his album ''

How Great Thou Art "How Great Thou Art" is a Christian hymn based on an original Swedish hymn entitled "" written in 1885 by Carl Boberg (1859–1940). The English version of the hymn and its title are a loose translation by the English missionary Stuart K. Hine ...

''. The song originally appeared as a bonus track on the album '' Spinout''. Dylan once said that Presley's cover of the song was "the one recording I treasure the most". According to Ernst Jorgensen's' book ''Elvis Presley: A Life In Music - The Complete Recording Sessions'', Presley first heard the song via

Charlie McCoy Charles Ray McCoy (born March 28, 1941) is a Grammy-winning American session musician, harmonica player, and multi-instrumentalist. In 2009, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Based in Nashville, McCoy's playing is heard on ...

, who had previously participated in the ''

Highway 61 Revisited ''Highway 61 Revisited'' is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on August 30, 1965, by Columbia Records. Having until then recorded mostly acoustic music, Dylan used rock musicians as his backing band on every ...

'' and ''

Blonde on Blonde ''Blonde on Blonde'' is the seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released as a double album on June 20, 1966, by Columbia Records. Recording sessions began in New York in October 1965 with numerous backing musicians, i ...

'' sessions. McCoy played the 1965

Odetta Odetta Holmes (December 31, 1930 – December 2, 2008), known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, lyricist, and a civil rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire co ...

album '' Odetta Sings Dylan'' before an Elvis session and Presley "had become taken with 'Tomorrow Is A Long Time.'" Presley's cover was featured in

Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five ...

's 1983 film adaptation of S.E. Hinton's novel '' The Outsiders.''

Cover versions

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...

recorded in a 1963 Forest Hills, New York concert performance was included as a bonus track on the 2002 CD reissue of Baez' 1963 Vanguard album '' Joan Baez in Concert, Part 2'' * Ian and Sylvia released on their 1963 album, ''Four Strong Winds'' *

Judy Collins Judith Marjorie Collins (born May 1, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and musician with a career spanning seven decades. An Academy Award-nominated documentary director and a Grammy Award-winning recording artist, she is known for her ...

released on her 1965 album, '' Judy Collins' Fifth Album'' *

Holmes released on her 1965 album '' Odetta Sings Dylan'' * Pozo-Seco Singers released on their 1966 album ''Time'' *

Esther & Abi Ofarim Esther & Abi Ofarim were an Israeli musical duo active during the 1960s, consisting of husband and wife Abi Ofarim and Esther Ofarim. They enjoyed particular success in Germany. They had hits in Europe with their songs " One More Dance," " Mornin ...

released on their 1966 album, ''The New Esther & Abi Ofarim Album'' *

Dorris Henderson Dorris Henderson (February 2, 1933 – March 3, 2005) was an American-born, United Kingdom-based folk music singer and autoharp player. Early years Born in Lakeland, Florida but raised in Los Angeles, she was the daughter of an African Ame ...

released on her 1967 album, ''Watch the Stars'' *

The Kingston Trio The Kingston Trio is an American folk and pop music group that helped launch the folk revival of the late 1950s to the late 1960s. The group started as a San Francisco Bay Area nightclub act with an original lineup of Dave Guard, Bob Shane, ...

released the song on their 1969 live double album, ''

Once Upon a Time "Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 (according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'') in storytelling in ...

''. *

We Five We Five was a 1960s folk rock musical group based in San Francisco, California. Their best-known hit was their 1965 remake of Ian & Sylvia's " You Were on My Mind", which reached No. 1 on the Cashbox chart, #3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and ...

released on their 1970 album, ''Catch the Wind'' *

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

released on his 1971 album ''

Every Picture Tells A Story ''Every Picture Tells a Story'' is the third studio album by Rod Stewart. It was released on 28 May 1971. It incorporates hard rock, folk, and blues styles. It went to number one on both the UK and US charts and finished third in the Jazz ...

'' *

Sandy Denny Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer". After briefly w ...

released on her 1972 self titled album *

Glenn Yarbrough Glenn Robertson Yarbrough (January 12, 1930 – August 11, 2016) was an American folk singer and guitarist. He was the lead singer (tenor) with the Limeliters from 1959 to 1963 and also had a prolific solo career. Yarbrough had a restless ...

released on his 1970 album, ''The Best of Glenn Yarbrough'' *

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent ...

released on his 1982 album, ''Morning Sky'' *

Nickel Creek Nickel Creek (formerly known as the Nickel Creek Band) is an American bluegrass band consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), and siblings Sara Watkins ( fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). Formed in 1989 in Southern California, they released six ...

released on their 2005 album, '' Why Should the Fire Die?'' *

The Seldom Scene The Seldom Scene is an American bluegrass band that formed in 1971 in Bethesda, Maryland. The band's original line-up comprised John Starling on lead vocals and guitar, Mike Auldridge on Dobro and baritone vocals, Ben Eldridge on banjo, Tom G ...

included the song on their 2007 album '' Scenechronized''. *

Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter known for his acoustic guitar-based songs. He did not find a wide audience during his lifetime, but his work gradually achieved wider notice and recognit ...

released on his 2007 album of home recordings, ''

Family Tree A family tree, also called a genealogy or a pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. More detailed family trees, used in medicine and social work, are known as genograms. Representations o ...

'' *

Zé Ramalho Zé Ramalho (born José Ramalho Neto on October 3, 1949 – Brejo do Cruz, Paraíba, Brazil) is a Brazilian composer and performer. Zé Ramalho has collaborated with various major Brazilian musicians, including Vanusa, Geraldo Azevedo and Al ...

released the song on his 2008 album '' Zé Ramalho Canta Bob Dylan – Tá Tudo Mudando'' * Dan Navarro released on his 2009 live album, ''Live at McCabe's'' (Dan Navarro with Stonehoney) * Zee Avi for the 2012 Dylan tribute album '' Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International'' * Justin Rutledge released on his 2013 album '' Valleyheart'' *

Chely Wright Chely Wright (born Richell Rene Wright; October 25, 1970) is an American activist, author and country music artist. She initially rose to fame as a commercial country recording artist with several charting singles, including the number one hit, ...

featuring the Milk Carton Kids on her 2016 album '' I Am the Rain''. *

Ulf Dageby Ulf Thorbjörn Dageby (born 10 May 1944) is a Swedish rock musician, singer and songwriter. Dageby is mostly known for his role in the leftist "rock orchestra" and theater ensemble Nationalteatern. At the 18th Guldbagge Awards he won the Special ...

of ''

Nationalteatern Nationalteatern is a Swedish progg rock group from the 1970s that featured leftist political lyrics. It was originally a traveling theater ensemble with many members, most notably Ulf Dageby, Anders Melander, Totta Näslund, Nikke Ström, Hans ...

'' translated the song to Swedish and released it on their 1978 album ''Barn av vår tid'' as ''Men bara om min älskade väntar''. The translated version has since then been covered by a variety of Swedish artists and bands, most notably ''

Joakim Thåström Sven Joakim Eriksson Thåström (born 20 March 1957), better known as Thåström, is a Swedish singer and songwriter, mostly known for the bands Ebba Grön and Imperiet. He has moved between a number of genres, from punk to rock, industrial and a ...

'' and ''

Mikael Wiehe Mikael Christian Wiehe (born 10 April 1946 in Stockholm) is a Swedish singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer. As the main songwriter and driving force of Hoola Bandoola Band he was also one of the most important people in the progg movement ...

''. * Margo Timmins recorded a version on her album ''The Ty Tyrfu Sessions'' released in 2021 but recorded years earlier by Jeff Bird. *

Chrissie Hynde Christine Ellen Hynde (born September 7, 1951) is an American musician. She is a founding member and the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter of the rock band the Pretenders, and one of the band's two remaining original members alon ...

recorded it on her album of Dylan covers ''Standing in the Doorway'' in 2021

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tomorrow Is a Long Time 1962 songs Songs written by Bob Dylan Bob Dylan songs Elvis Presley songs Odetta songs Chris Hillman songs Dion DiMucci songs Harry Belafonte songs Joan Baez songs Judy Collins songs The Kingston Trio songs Rod Stewart songs We Five songs