12. PAT GARRETT & BILLY THE KID (1973) 4/2/16
Dylan's foray into the soundtrack world is interesting, but not essential listening. The movie itself is notable for also casting Dylan in the role of Alias. Even though the album is not vital, it is very easy to listen to. Fairly perfect for being in the background of a small social gathering perhaps, except for the semi-raucous banjo frenzy of Turkey Chase. Amongst the instrumental tracks lies the true jewel in this offering: Knockin' On Heaven's Door; a song that has nearly been covered to death, ironically enough. This remains my favourite version, as it's stripped-back and pithy. There's a real sense of melancholy that is missing from other renditions, except for maybe Warren Zevon's cover. The various takes of Billy throughout the album are also highlights.
[Side note: in November 1971, between the releases of New Morning and Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid, Columbia issued the double album compilation Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II. The excellent set contains five songs not on any other release at that point; I'm sure they'll turn up on the double CD Side Tracks which makes up the 46th and 47th CD of the Dylan box set.]
13. DYLAN (1973) 26/5/16
Apparently this album was released without any input from Dylan. Columbia simply grabbed two outtakes from Self Portrait and seven from New Morning and issued a new Dylan record! All nine songs are covers too, so there is no new original material here either. Further probing led me to discover that this album was never released on CD in the US market, at Dylan's request. Its inclusion in this box set is one of the only ways to obtain the album on CD. While an album of covers might not be what we turn to Dylan for, this is still an enjoyable offering. There's nothing earth-shattering here, but his versions of Mr Bojangles, Big Yellow Taxi and Can't Help Falling In Love are pretty good. I also liked the opening track, Lily Of The West (and old traditional folk tune) and Spanish Is The Loving Tongue. The latter was previously issued as the B-side to the 1971 single Watching The River Flow, albeit a different version, which I'd heard before on the Masterpieces compilation. I think the Dylan take is nicer.
14. PLANET WAVES (with The Band) (1974) 27/5/16
This was the first album in a while that felt like a real Dylan record. Aptly backed up by The Band, this is probably the most enjoyable listening experience since New Morning. It's certainly the first album since Blonde On Blonde where you could apply the term 'rollicking'. Right from the opening track, On A Night Like This, you are assured that this is Dylan back in form. Although they don't lend any harmonies to the songs, The Band do serve up plenty of grooves and gentle funk. Sometimes you get lost in the instrumentation and think that you're listening to an album of The Band's, until you hear Dylan sing again. Aside from the slightly overlong Dirge, this album is all killer. My favourite tracks would be the aforementioned On A Night Like This, Wedding Song, Going Going Gone and the truly stellar Forever Young. I'm not sure why they included an alternate version of the latter straight after the version we're all familiar with, but whatever. It was the seventies, I guess, and perhaps a bit of a precursor into how Dylan's back pages of tunes would shape-shift as his career moved forward. Forever Young holds a special place in my heart for a few reasons. I first heard it played by Perth muso Rick Steele in a pub in Kalgoorlie during the mid-90's. When Rhones and I got married, a very good friend of her family wrote the entire first verse in our 'congratulations' book. Dylan ended the first two live shows I saw him perform with Forever Young as well. It's such a great song, and I absolutely love the last lines of the third verse:
14. PLANET WAVES (with The Band) (1974) 27/5/16This was the first album in a while that felt like a real Dylan record. Aptly backed up by The Band, this is probably the most enjoyable listening experience since New Morning. It's certainly the first album since Blonde On Blonde where you could apply the term 'rollicking'. Right from the opening track, On A Night Like This, you are assured that this is Dylan back in form. Although they don't lend any harmonies to the songs, The Band do serve up plenty of grooves and gentle funk. Sometimes you get lost in the instrumentation and think that you're listening to an album of The Band's, until you hear Dylan sing again. Aside from the slightly overlong Dirge, this album is all killer. My favourite tracks would be the aforementioned On A Night Like This, Wedding Song, Going Going Gone and the truly stellar Forever Young. I'm not sure why they included an alternate version of the latter straight after the version we're all familiar with, but whatever. It was the seventies, I guess, and perhaps a bit of a precursor into how Dylan's back pages of tunes would shape-shift as his career moved forward. Forever Young holds a special place in my heart for a few reasons. I first heard it played by Perth muso Rick Steele in a pub in Kalgoorlie during the mid-90's. When Rhones and I got married, a very good friend of her family wrote the entire first verse in our 'congratulations' book. Dylan ended the first two live shows I saw him perform with Forever Young as well. It's such a great song, and I absolutely love the last lines of the third verse:
"May your heart always be joyful
May your song always be sung
And may you stay forever young"
15. BEFORE THE FLOOD (with The Band) (1974) 4/6/2016
The first official live release from Dylan sees him paired up with The Band again. Documenting their joint US tour, this double album offers four sides of those shows. Side 1 is Dylan and The Band rolling through some classics (of Zimmy's), while Side 2 is The Band sans Dylan. The first half of Side 3 is Dylan solo, with the second half featuring The Band on their own. Side 4 is Dylan back with The Band again. Phew! Got it? For the most part, it's an enjoyable affair, albeit a little unhinged in places. The arrangements of Dylan's songs are certainly different, with Knockin' On Heaven's Door managing to sound upbeat. The Band bring a swagger that sets fire to classics like All Along The Watchtower, Ballad of a Thin Man, Highway 61 Revisited and Lay, Lady, Lay. Opening track Most Likely You'll Go Your Way (and I'll Go Mine) is almost unrecognisable until the chorus, but it's still great. The Band's Dylan-less performances are excellent with the standout tracks for me being The Night They Drove All Dixie Down, The Shape I'm In and When You Awake.
16. BLOOD ON THE TRACKS (1975) 13/6/2016
This is the only album out of these five that I'd listened to in its entirety before writing this blog post. I reviewed it during my time with the afyccim blog, and wasn't as impressed with it as I assumed I would be. It's touted by many as Dylan's finest work from the 70's, and some even cite it as his best album. I like it much more than I did when I first listened to it, but I don't fall into the latter category; but I'm getting closer to being in the former. Give me a few more years and I might just adore it as much as the album's strongest admirers. I still struggle with the overlong Idiot Wind and the fairly pedestrian Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts, but I pretty much like the rest of the album now. My strongest loyalties lie with the more acoustic numbers, with my favourites being Buckets Of Rain, Shelter From The Storm and the gorgeous Simple Twist of Fate. There's no denying the awesomeness of opening track Tangled Up In Blue though (hands off, Hootie!). I remember seeing a live and solo version of it on RAGE late one night when I was a teenager, with Dylan wearing mascara, faded white face makeup and a hat. Unfamiliar with the song, I was drawn into its narrative and just loved the title! I heard Dylan perform it in a totally different arrangement at the old Burswood Dome in 2007. It took a while for the crowd to cotton on to what they were hearing, but come on! If you don't know those opening lyrics, what kind of Dylan fan are you? He played it again at the Fremantle Blues n Roots Festival in 2011 as well, and the arrangement had changed again! Hehehe...Dylan doesn't look back very often. But getting to back to the album at hand, Blood On The Tracks remains a hugely influential and important record. As with many artists, emotional upheaval can ignite bursts of creativity and as Dylan's marriage to Sara was disintegrating, he wears his heart on the album sleeve.
Okay, well, that will do it for now. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going and get through a few more albums sooner rather than later.
The first official live release from Dylan sees him paired up with The Band again. Documenting their joint US tour, this double album offers four sides of those shows. Side 1 is Dylan and The Band rolling through some classics (of Zimmy's), while Side 2 is The Band sans Dylan. The first half of Side 3 is Dylan solo, with the second half featuring The Band on their own. Side 4 is Dylan back with The Band again. Phew! Got it? For the most part, it's an enjoyable affair, albeit a little unhinged in places. The arrangements of Dylan's songs are certainly different, with Knockin' On Heaven's Door managing to sound upbeat. The Band bring a swagger that sets fire to classics like All Along The Watchtower, Ballad of a Thin Man, Highway 61 Revisited and Lay, Lady, Lay. Opening track Most Likely You'll Go Your Way (and I'll Go Mine) is almost unrecognisable until the chorus, but it's still great. The Band's Dylan-less performances are excellent with the standout tracks for me being The Night They Drove All Dixie Down, The Shape I'm In and When You Awake.
16. BLOOD ON THE TRACKS (1975) 13/6/2016
This is the only album out of these five that I'd listened to in its entirety before writing this blog post. I reviewed it during my time with the afyccim blog, and wasn't as impressed with it as I assumed I would be. It's touted by many as Dylan's finest work from the 70's, and some even cite it as his best album. I like it much more than I did when I first listened to it, but I don't fall into the latter category; but I'm getting closer to being in the former. Give me a few more years and I might just adore it as much as the album's strongest admirers. I still struggle with the overlong Idiot Wind and the fairly pedestrian Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts, but I pretty much like the rest of the album now. My strongest loyalties lie with the more acoustic numbers, with my favourites being Buckets Of Rain, Shelter From The Storm and the gorgeous Simple Twist of Fate. There's no denying the awesomeness of opening track Tangled Up In Blue though (hands off, Hootie!). I remember seeing a live and solo version of it on RAGE late one night when I was a teenager, with Dylan wearing mascara, faded white face makeup and a hat. Unfamiliar with the song, I was drawn into its narrative and just loved the title! I heard Dylan perform it in a totally different arrangement at the old Burswood Dome in 2007. It took a while for the crowd to cotton on to what they were hearing, but come on! If you don't know those opening lyrics, what kind of Dylan fan are you? He played it again at the Fremantle Blues n Roots Festival in 2011 as well, and the arrangement had changed again! Hehehe...Dylan doesn't look back very often. But getting to back to the album at hand, Blood On The Tracks remains a hugely influential and important record. As with many artists, emotional upheaval can ignite bursts of creativity and as Dylan's marriage to Sara was disintegrating, he wears his heart on the album sleeve.
Okay, well, that will do it for now. Hopefully I can keep the momentum going and get through a few more albums sooner rather than later.
