"Tomorrow Is a Long Time" is a song written and recorded by Bob Dylan. 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 officially released version of the song is a live recording from his April 12, 1963, concert at New York's Town Hall. 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, has also been bootlegged.
Elvis Presley recorded the song on May 26, 1966, during a session for his album How Great Thou Art. 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".[4][5]
According to Ernst Jorgensen's book Elvis Presley: A Life In Music - The Complete Recording Sessions, Presley first heard the song via Charlie McCoy, who had previously participated in the Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde sessions. McCoy played the 1965 Odetta album Odetta Sings Dylan before an Elvis session and Presley "had become taken with 'Tomorrow Is A Long Time.'"
Joan Baez 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
Magna Carta recorded it on their album Putting it back together in 1976
Ulf Dageby of Nationalteatern 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 and Mikael Wiehe.
Chris Hillman released on his 1982 album, Morning Sky
^Ernst Jorgensen (1998). Elvis Presley: A Life In Music - The Complete Recording Sessions. St. Martin's Press. ISBN0-312-18572-3.
^Rolling Stone (1981). The Rolling stone interviews : talking with the legends of Rock & Roll, 1967-1980. St. Martin's Press/Rolling Stone Press. ISBN0-312-68954-3.