"The Times They Are a-Changin'" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released as the title track of his 1964 album, The Times They Are a-Changin'. The song was ranked #59 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

Dylan appears to have written the song in September and October 1963. He recorded it as a Witmark publishing demo that month, a version that was finally released on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991. The song was then recorded at the Columbia studios in New York on October 23 and 24, and the latter session yielded the version that became the title song of Dylan's third album.

Dylan recalled writing the song as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of change for the moment. In 1985, he told Cameron Crowe: "This was definitely a song with a purpose. It was influenced of course by the Irish and Scottish ballads ...'Come All Ye Bold Highway Men', 'Come All Ye Tender Hearted Maidens'. I wanted to write a big song, with short concise verses that piled up on each other in a hypnotic way. The civil rights movement and the folk music movement were pretty close for a while and allied together at that time."

The Times They Are a-Changin' is singer-songwriter Bob Dylan's third studio album, released in January 1964 by Columbia Records.

Produced by Tom Wilson, it is the singer-songwriter's first collection to feature only original compositions. The album consists mostly of stark, sparsely-arranged story songs concerning issues such as racism, poverty, and social change. The title track is one of Dylan's most famous; many felt that it captured the spirit of social and political upheaval that characterized the 1960s.

Some critics and fans were not quite as taken with the album as a whole, relative to his previous work, for its lack of humor or musical diversity. Still, The Times They Are a-Changin' entered the US chart at #20, eventually going gold, and belatedly reaching #4 in the UK in 1965.

Dylan began work on his third album on August 6, 1963, at Columbia's Studio A in New York City. Once again, Tom Wilson was the producer for the entire album. Dylan had, by the time of recording, become a popular, influential cultural figure.

Bob Dylan ( /ˈdɪlən/), born Robert Allen Zimmerman on May 24, 1941, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist. He has been an influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly reluctant figurehead of social unrest. A number of Dylan's early songs, such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin'", became anthems for the US civil rights and anti-war movements. Leaving his initial base in the culture of folk music behind, Dylan's six-minute single "Like a Rolling Stone" has been described as radically altering the parameters of popular music in 1965. However, his recordings employing electric instruments attracted denunciation and criticism from others in the folk movement.

Dylan's lyrics incorporated a variety of political, social, philosophical, and literary influences. They defied existing pop music conventions and appealed hugely to the then burgeoning counterculture. Initially inspired by the songs of Woody Guthrie,Robert Johnson, and Hank Williams, as well as the music and performance styles of Buddy Holly and Little Richard, Dylan has both amplified and personalized musical genres. His recording career, spanning fifty years, has explored numerous distinct traditions in American song—from folk, blues and country to gospel, rock and roll, and rockabilly to English, Scottish, and Irish folk music, embracing even jazz and swing.

Franky Perez is an American musician best known as the guitarist for Scars on Broadway as well as being a solo artist. He has released two solo albums, Poor Man's Son and My 4th of July, and performed with Velvet Revolver guitarist Slash in his live band before Slash has assembled the tour band that backed him during his fist full solo tour with Myles Kennedy, while he also collaborated with Slash's VR band mate Dave Kushner, releasing songs under the pseudonym of DKFXP.

Perez has also performed with a number of cover bands over the years including Camp Freddy, Ducati All-Stars and more recently, formed Carnival of Dogs with Matt Sorum, Tracii Guns and Phil Soussan.

At the beginning of his career, Perez befriended conga player and Cuban exile Lazaro Valdez before moving to Miami, Florida although he initially planned on moving to New York City. After waiting tables in Miami, Perez was contacted by former Van Halen and The Black Crowes manager Pete Angelus who suggested that Perez move from Miami to Los Angeles. Perez also brought his band to L.A., named The Highway Saints, and signed a deal with Atlantic Records in 2002. He released his debut solo album, titled Poor Man's Son, on May 13, 2003 to some positive reviews, with Christina Fuoco of Allmusic stating that "with Cuban music as a base, he successfully experiments with a buffet of tastes including sultry blues, roots rock, inoffensive '80s rock, and anthemic pop." The albums single, "Something Crazy", peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Adult Top 40.

Eddie Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American musician and singer-songwriter who is best known for being the lead singer and one of three guitarists of the alternative rock band Pearl Jam. Known for his powerful vocals, he is widely considered an icon of alternative rock.

He is also involved in soundtrack work and contributes to albums by other artists. In 2007, Vedder released his first solo album as a soundtrack for the film Into the Wild (2007). His second album, Ukulele Songs, along with a live DVD titled Water on the Road, was released on 31 May 2011.

Vedder was born Edward Louis Severson III in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, Illinois, son of Karen Lee Vedder and Edward Louis Severson, Jr. His parents divorced in 1965, when Vedder was one year old. His mother soon remarried a man named Peter Mueller, an attorney, and Vedder was raised believing that Mueller was his biological father. His adopted name became Edward Mueller. While living in Evanston, Vedder's family fostered seven younger children in a group home.