Some of the most interesting tips I got while researching the SJI essay came from a Dylan fanatic who had learned of the song by way of Dylan’s “Blind Willie McTell.” That tune pops up on on this list of songs Dylan “didn’t write.”
As you can guess if you’ve poked around this site much, I think the story of “SJI” is very much about the fluid nature of song-authorship, certainly when you’re dealing with something that’s been “in the tradition” for as long as “SJI” and its antecedants has. And on a more particular note: To whatever extent “Blind Willie McTell” borrows from McTell’s “Dyin Crapshooter’s Blues,” recall that friend of no notes Robert W. Harwood has shown that McTell borrowed that tune from somebody else.
That said, the list is worth a look to somebody (like me) who has some interest in how songs get rewritten, borrowed, whatever, and who is not a certified Dylanologist.
A couple of years ago I did some research into the song "St. James Infirmary," wrote up what I found, emailed that essay to friends and posted it on my web site (as part of a series of "Letters From New Orleans," as I was living in that city at the time). Based on the feedback, I wrote a second version of the essay, and asked for more feedback. Based on that, I wrote a 
