Historically, Biograph is significant not for what it did for Dylan's career, but for establishing the box set, complete with hits and rarities, as a viable part of rock history. Following Biograph, multi-disc box sets for veteran rockers became accepted and almost the norm, but that doesn't discount this set's strengths as a summary of Dylan's career, using the familiar and the rare to draw a fully rounded portrait of his strengths as a songwriter, musician, and record-maker in a way that conventional choices alone couldn't achieve. Certainly, the chief attraction of this set, even years after its initial release, is its smattering of rarities that aren't just rare, but revealing -- ranging from forgotten rock B-sides and singles to demos, alternate takes, and unreleased songs that rival official releases. But Biograph is really remarkable for weaving these songs into a fabric that reveals the true trajectory of Dylan's career, offering as much to the curious as it does to the dedicated. That sets a standard for box sets that has rarely been matched, making Biograph all the more impressive in retrospect.
Disc one
1. "Lay, Lady, Lay" – 3:18 (Nashville Skyline, 1969)
2. "Baby, Let Me Follow You Down" (G. Davis/R. von Schmidt/D. Van Ronk) – 2:34 (Bob Dylan, 1962)
3. "If Not for You" – 2:42 (New Morning, 1970)
4. "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight" – 2:38 (John Wesley Harding, 1967)
5. "I'll Keep It with Mine" – 3:45 (previously unreleased - 1965)
6. "The Times They Are a-Changin'" – 3:13 (The Times They Are A-Changin', 1964)
7. "Blowin' in the Wind" – 2:47 (The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, 1963)
8. "Masters of War" – 4:32 (The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, 1963)
9. "The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll" – 5:46 (The Times They Are A-Changin', 1964)
10. "Percy's Song" – 7:42 (previously unreleased, 1963)
11. "Mixed-Up Confusion" – 2:28 (previously unreleased, 1962)
12. "Tombstone Blues" – 5:57 (Highway 61 Revisited, 1965)
13. "The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar" – 4:04 (B-side to "Heart of Mine," 1981)
14. "Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)" – 3:29 (Before the Flood, 1974)
15. "Like a Rolling Stone" – 6:09 (Highway 61 Revisited, 1965)
16. "Lay Down Your Weary Tune" – 4:36 (previously unreleased, 1963)
17. "Subterranean Homesick Blues" – 2:20 (Bringing It All Back Home, 1965)
18. "I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)" – 5:18 (previously unreleased live version, 1966)
Disc two
1. "Visions of Johanna" – 7:33 (previously unreleased live version, 1966)
2. "Every Grain of Sand" – 6:15 (Shot of Love, 1981)
3. "Quinn the Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)" – 2:20 (previously unreleased version, 1967)
4. "Mr. Tambourine Man" – 5:29 (Bringing It All Back Home, 1965)
5. "Dear Landlord" – 3:16 (John Wesley Harding, 1967)
6. "It Ain't Me, Babe" – 3:34 (Another Side of Bob Dylan, 1964)
7. "You Angel You" – 2:54 (Planet Waves, 1974)
8. "Million Dollar Bash" – 2:33 (Basement Tapes, 1975)
9. "To Ramona" – 3:54 (Another Side of Bob Dylan, 1964)
10. "You're a Big Girl Now" – 4:23 (original 'New York' version - 1974)
11. "Abandoned Love" – 4:29 (previously unreleased outtake, 1975)
12. "Tangled Up in Blue" – 5:45 (Blood on the Tracks, 1975)
13. "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" – 5:40 (previously unreleased live version, 1966)
14. "Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window?" – 3:34 (single, 1965)
15. "Positively 4th Street" – 3:54 (single, 1965)
16. "Isis" (Dylan/Levy) – 5:21 (previously unreleased live version, 1975)
17. "Jet Pilot" – 0:49 (previously unreleased, 1965)
Disc three
1. "Caribbean Wind" – 5:54 (previously unreleased outtake, 1981)
2. "Up to Me" – 6:18 (previously unreleased outtake, 1974)
3. "Baby, I'm in the Mood for You" – 2:56 (previously unreleased, 1962)
4. "I Wanna Be Your Lover" – 3:27 (previously unreleased, 1965)
5. "I Want You" – 3:07 (Blonde on Blonde, 1966)
6. "Heart of Mine" – 3:43 (previously unreleased live version, 1981)
7. "On a Night Like This" – 2:58 (Planet Waves, 1974)
8. "Just Like a Woman" – 4:55 (Blonde on Blonde, 1966)
9. "Romance in Durango" (Dylan, Levy) – 4:39 (previously unreleased live version, 1975)
10. "Señor (Tales of Yankee Power)" – 5:41 (Street Legal, 1978)
11. "Gotta Serve Somebody" – 5:25 (Slow Train Coming, 1979)
12. "I Believe in You" – 5:10 (Slow Train Coming, 1979)
13. "Time Passes Slowly" – 2:36 (New Morning, 1970)
14. "I Shall Be Released" – 3:04 (Greatest Hits Vol. II, 1971)
15. "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" – 2:30 (Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid, 1973)
16. "All Along the Watchtower" – 3:04 (Before the Flood, 1974)
17. "Solid Rock" – 3:58 (Saved, 1980)
18. "Forever Young" – 2:02 (previously unreleased demo, 1973)
