Bob Dylan’s Most-Streamed Song Is an ‘Exercise in Splendid Simplicity’

It goes without saying that Bob Dylan is one of the most highly-respected and critically-acclaimed singer-songwriters of all time; after all, he was the first musician to ever win the Nobel Prize in Literature. However, Dylan has also been hugely successful from a commercial standpoint — and over half a century since the start of his career, he’s still racking up streams on platforms like Spotify.

While a large number of Dylan’s timeless classics continue to captivate listeners, his most-streamed song is a 1973 hit that was originally written for a movie soundtrack. According to the music data website Kworb.net, “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” is Dylan’s top-streamed song with a total of 722,838,250 streams (and 834,638 daily). Perhaps unsurprisingly, coming in at second and third place are two more of his most well-known and beloved tunes: “Like a Rolling Stone,” with 428,949,715 streams, and “The Times They Are A-Changin'” with 265,625,329.

Dylan wrote “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” for the Sam Peckinpah-directed Western Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, in which the folk rock star also appears. He went on to nab a Grammy nomination for the film’s score, with “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” in particular becoming a worldwide hit. Critics were as blown away by the tune as fans. Dylan biographer Clinton Heylin, for one, called it “an exercise in splendid simplicity,” per American Songwriter.

Over 100 artists have covered “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” in the decades since its release, including Neil Young, Lana Del Rey, Nick Cave, Patti Smith, Paul Simon, Bono, Bon Jovi, Roger Waters and Jerry Garcia, with two of the most well-known covers coming from Eric Clapton and Guns N’ Roses.

What Bob Dylan said about the Guns N’ Roses cover of ‘Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door’

The hard-rocking band started covering “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” live sometime around 1987, going on to release a studio version in 1990 for the movie soundtrack to Days of Thunder and yet another take for their 1991 album, Use Your Illusion II.

According to Axl Rose, Dylan initially approached him about recording the song.

“Bob asked me, ‘When you gonna record ‘Heaven’s Door’?’ And I said, ‘I don’t know, but we really love that song,’” Rose said, according to Vulture.

“And he said, ‘I don’t give a f—k I just want the money.’ True story,” Rose added.

During a 1991 interview with Eduardo Bueno (courtesy of Rock and Roll Garage), Dylan shared his hilariously unfiltered opinion of the band’s take on his song.

“Guns n’ Roses are OK. Slash is OK. But there’s something about their version of that song that reminds me of the movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers. I always wonder who’s been transformed into some sort of a clone, and who’s stayed true to himself. And I never seem to have an answer,” he said.

Related: Bob Dylan Once Called This Iconic Guitarist a ‘Boomer’ With a ‘Chip on His Shoulder’

This story was originally reported by Parade on Sep 20, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.