The latest release from six-piece folk group Caribou Run comes as an ode to one of the greats of the genre. Paired with a video, their cover of Bob Dylan‘s 1963 track “Girl from the North Country” is a little piece of familiarity for the band as well as for the folk community as a whole.
Suspected to have been inspired by a former girlfriend of Dylan, Suze Rotolo, who he had followed to Italy only to find she had already left the country. Before returning to the United States, Dylan finished writing “Girl from the North Country,” which carries a soft tune with vocals and harmonica that emanate emotions straight from the heart.
Caribou Run‘s cover, however, was fashioned more to match the sound of the Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash duet version of the song. This version moves away from intricate finger picking and towards a slower strum. Their track features only two of the band’s members: guitarist and vocalist Drew Moores as lead, and keyboardist and vocalist Danielle Noble as harmonizing vocalist.
It seems only natural for a folk band to cover a track by two of music’s most influential folk artists.
“Bob Dylan is a big influence on our music, as I would say he is for most folk songwriters,” says Moores. “I like to think we draw more influence from The Band, and Bob helped them out so we can thank him for that, too!”
But the track means more than just that to the band. It is a tune they have been playing together for years but briefly forgot about.
“It is a song that we used to jam all the time at parties with friends. Over time we forgot about I guess, and haven’t actually played it in a few years,” continues Moores.
“A friend and former bandmate Jason Barkhouse recently moved back to Mahone Bay and brought the song out one night, which reminded us about it. Being a cold and wintery December, it just seemed to fit the mood. Danielle and I recorded it in our apartment one night for fun and it turned out alright so we decided to release it to the world.”
The video they have released alongside it was filmed by Moores and features a walk through a path in the woods of Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, where the band are based. It carries a slow pace and takes time to stop and show viewers some of the more interesting sights along the way. It fits just the type of activity that one might find themself doing while listening to such an emotive track.
Though the song is on the softer side of the bands repertoire, it nicely suits the type of music we would expect of Caribou Run and acts as a nice tribute to important figures who helped shape the folk music scene as we know it.