Regarding the "Four For Fun" EP, which I don't own unfortunately, it was, as stated by several contributors, Carloyn Hester and Richard Farina who joined Rory and Alex McEwen on this. The two brothers did four other Waverley label EPs at this time but without the two Americans. The four of them had put on a series of shows at the Edinburgh Festival that year, with a jazz band and singer and with a succession of guest performers. The "Four For Fun" EP came out of that, the photo on the sleeve being taken in Edinburgh and Waverley Records being based there.

Another off-shoot of the festival show was a half-hour BBC TV programme (nothing directly to do with the "Tonight" TV show and Rory McEwen's occasional appearance on that). An audio tape of the TV show has survived (poor off-air quality and not quite complete) and it includes "Banks o' Sicily", introduced by Rory McEwen as you not often hearing this song performed by two Scots, a Texan and a Irish-Cuban American. I've probably got his words a bit wrong, as I'm relying on memory here.

Finally, I have spoken to Rab Noakes about this since the article appeared. In a sense, the existence of the EP and the TV recording supports the view he expressed. Despite having known both songs for, what, 40 years now, I still cannot hear the connection. In a booklet about Dylan's Bootleg Series Vols 1-3 (on which a piano demo of The Times They Are A-Changin'" appears), I put forward the view that the song was probably written in September 1963 and could well have been Dylan's response to the March on Washington (28 Aug 1963) at which he appeared. After this event, he spent some time in California at Joan Baez's place, amongst other things listening to her record collection. By this time, just before the March on Washington in fact, Richard Farina had married Mimi, Joan's sister, and the two were living close by. It is quite possible that Banks o' Sicily came up in their meetings.

It is equally possible that Dylan could have heard it in London folk clubs during his December 1962 - January 1963 visit. I most certainly did, when I started going to them about a year later.

Regarding "Arthur McBride", Dylan clearly got this from a much later Paul Brady album.

I still, however, remain to be convinced that "The Times" and "Banks o' Sicily" are connected directly.