This will be my eleventh, and for the time being, final blog post of His Bobness' albums. As I've finished listening to all of his albums in The Complete Album Collection Vol. 1 box set, this entry will see me focusing on his releases post-2013 (when the collection was issued). So, let's get cracking!
SIDE TRACKS (2013) (18/9/24)
This is an interesting collection of odds and sods that were either issued as singles or unreleased outtakes and live versions. Some tracks here were included as new songs on Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol. II (1971), which is just a great selection of his stuff from 1963-1971. It's one of my favourite Dylan compilations, in fact. So, the usual suspects are here, the live version of Tomorrow Is A Long Time, from the aforementioned compilation, along with I Shall Be Released, You Ain't Goin' Nowhere, Down in the Flood, and one of my big faves, Watching the River Flow. Also present are singles Positively 4th Street, Mixed-Up Confusion, Can You Please Crawl Out Your Window? and 2000's excellent Oscar-winning Things Have Changed. There are also some 'famous' outtakes like Up to Me from the Blood on the Tracks sessions and Lay Down Your Weary Tune from the sessions for The Times They Are A-Changin'. Two outtakes from Oh Mercy which wound up on 1994's Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Volume 3 set, namely Series of Dreams and Dignity, are also included.
I think the idea was to have a supplemental disc (or two) which filled in the gaps on non-album tracks, and it does a pretty good job. There's some live version from the Rolling Thunder Revue tours in the mid-seventies and a couple of alternative takes as well. The only song that sticks out to me as being absent is the wonderful Rita May, which thankfully, I have a copy of on Masterpieces. Nice way to end the box set!
Bob's thirty-sixth studio effort consists wholly of covers made famous by ol' Blue Eyes himself, Mr Frank Sinatra. The vocal stylings of the two could not differ more, but somehow, this seems to work. There's a melancholy feel that permeates the material, and the fact that there is no drummer lends an airey quality to the production. It all just floats over you, with Dylan's world-weary rasp taking you through his favourite Sinatra tunes.
Once again produced by Dylan himself using the name Jack Frost, he has a similar line-up of musicians he employed on 2012's wonderful Tempest album. Despite the lack of drums, George Receli is here on percussion duties, joining bassist Tony Garnier, guitarists Stu Kimball and Charlie Sexton along with Donnie Herron's wonderful pedal steel. There are also brass musicians adding to the colour of the music.
I'm pretty sure I bought this on CD soon after it was released. I was quite fascinated by the concept, despite only knowing three songs on the tracklisting, which were Some Enchanted Evening, What'll I Do and The Night We Called It A Day. With only ten tracks, and a running time that barely breaks thirty-five minutes, it's an easy listen. Nothing earth-shattering, but it's pleasant enough, and I quite like Autumn Leaves and album opener I'm a Fool to Want You, which at nearly five minutes, is the longest song on offer.
FALLEN ANGELS (2016) (3/10/24)
Again, we are treated to a record of covers from His Bobness, and I think this is even more enjoyable than Shadows in the Night. Again with his usual band of suspects, plus guitarist Dean Parks and some horn musos, Dylan produces this album under the Jack Frost moniker. And again, like his previous offering, all of the songs had been recorded by Sinatra, except for Skylark.
He opens the album with a big favourite of mine, Young At Heart, with Dylan and his band delivering a lovely version. The album has a gentler, swoonier vibe for mine as well, except for the hint of swing that creeps into That Old Black Magic. I also really like his take on All the Way, It Had to Be You and Maybe You'll Be There. By the time Come Rain or Come Shine ends the record, you're left feeling a little recharged. Well, I was anyway. I think at the time it came out I was hoping that Dylan would focus on making an original album next. Like, after the two covers albums in the 90s, he gave us Time Out of Mind! Ooooh, what's next?!
TRIPLICATE (2017) (21/11/24)
Ahhh, another album of covers! Who saw that coming? Not just another simple covers album though...this time we get three times as much, as hinted at in the title. Released as either 3CD or 3LP sets, this offering gives us around 90min of Dylan crooning us softly with these songs. Possibly could have been a double disc, or even shaved down to 80min to fit on one CD. Maybe the idea was to emulate the old records of yore?
Anyway, this is what the title suggests: a triple helping of Shadows in the Night or Fallen Angels. The repertoire isn't limited to songs that Sinatra sang here though. The production is just as good as the former albums, and Dylan’s voice fares even better. Once again self-produced under the alias of Jack Frost, the usual suspects appear in his band, namely Charlie Sexton (guitar), Dean Parks (guitar), Donnie Herron (steel guitar), Tony Garnier (bass) and George Receli (drums). There is also a fair bit of horns sprinkled throughout the album.
The running time of this release, coupled with the amount of songs I wasn’t familiar with, was something of a deterrent preventing me from listening to this album. The high costs of purchase (3CD = $50, 3LP = $100) was also a bit of a block. So, to complete my Dylan blogging, I relented and took it all in, on the Spottersfy, in one sitting.
I was instantly won over by the opening track, I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plans. I'd not heard it before, but dug the vibe and loved the sound of the band and Dylan's performance. Other highlights for me along the way included his tender cover of As Time Goes By, his take on These Foolish Things, a song I'd not heard before called I Could Have Told You and his go at Sentimental Journey. I also really liked a song called Braggin', which decried the use of the concept, saying that if you've got it good, people will find out without you boasting.
I don't know if it's something that I'll ever listen to again, particularly as I it's the only Dylan album I don't own. It's long, and it's very similar to the albums that preceded it. So, if I'm in the mood for ol' Croon-Eyed Zimmy, I'll probably spin one of those. I enjoyed the listen, but it's done now. I've ticked it off, and I can't see me ticking it again. But now, the occasional track may turn up on a playlist. You just never know how the algorithm will work.
ROUGH AND ROWDY WAYS (2020) (23/11/24)
This is actually one of my favourite Dylan albums. Top 5? Probably not. Top 10? Yeah, I think so! It also holds a very special place in my heart because it was a gift from my family on Father's Day in 2020. Lachlan spearheaded the idea of giving me the CD, because he knew I would want the new Bob Dylan album, and he was right. He he he... I'm not sure if it was a birthday or Christmas present now, but I also got given the record on vinyl a little later down the track. In fact, I'm listening to it right now as I type these words.
Before the album came in June 2020, Dylan released a single in March, as COVID was beginning to tighten its grip on the world. I'm pretty sure I listened to it that day on the Spottersfy. It was the song Murder Most Foul, which is the last song on Rough and Rowdy Ways. It's quite an extraordinary piece of work for a few reasons. For one, it's Dylan's longest studio recording, clocking in at nearly seventeen minutes. Also, it deals exclusively with the death of JFK, a subject that Dylan avoided addressing until this time. In true Dylanesque fashion, he paints a picture of the murder and the aftermath, and also weaves in pop culture references from the years following Kennedy's death. It is quite stirring, and I struggle to listen to it without shedding a tear. Another point of note is the appearance of Fiona Apple on the piano. She was purportedly very nervous about sitting in on the session, wanting her performance to be perfect. Apparently Dylan said to her that she didn't need to be perfect, she just needed to be herself.
The rest of the album is a marvel, and as I've already expressed, one of Dylan's best. Kicking off with the sublime I Contain Multitudes, Dylan swings from genre to genre with ease. It's quite a diverse album musically, with the opening track delving into old-school folk and acoustic pop. From there we have a bluesy stomper in False Prophet before the torch song-like My Own Version of You. That's just Side 1 of the two disc vinyl.
It's a great journey, with Dylan again producing, although not credited this time around. In the fold remain guitarist Charlie Sexton, multi-instrumentalist Donnie Herron and bassist Tony Garnier; but George Receli is replaced by Matt Chamberlain on the drums, and in Dean Parks' stead is guitarist Bob Britt, who featured on Dylan's Time Out of Mind album. It's a cracking band. They rock on tracks like the excellent Goodbye Jimmy Reed and they roll on the exquisite I've Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You.
There isn't a bad song to be had here. Another big highlight for me is Crossing the Rubicon, which features a very swampy bluesy rock-type refrain that builds and falls throughout the track. It's a such a good album. I hope that his Rough and Rowdy Ways Tour gets to Australia. It'll be my fifth time seeing him live and I hope I get that chance.
SHADOW KINGDOM (2023) (24/11/24)
I remember watching this on TV when it was live-streamed during the COVID years. Initially, I thought it was actually live, until a some songs revealed a looped background or musicians deliberately not playing what was being played. All very tongue-in-cheek, and very Bob. The selections were mostly from his output in the sixties, as the full title of the film reads Shadows Kingdom: The Early Songs of Bob Dylan.
In true Dylan style, the songs are quite different in these performances from his studio versions. They have been reworked, and some cases re-imagined. To add to the show-type feel of the film, all the songs flow into each other, with no silence separating them, rather a little flourish from the band. The songs possibly work better without the video, as you're not distracted by the gimmicky black and white vignettes accompanying each track. With just the music, you appreciate the new arrangements more, and Dylan's phrasing of his old work. Some songs have additional riffs that weren't on the original release, or the style is quite radically changed. The instrumentation is very similar on all the songs, mainly using acoustic guitars, accordion and double bass. There are no drums or percussion either, but Dylan gives us an occasional burst of harmonica, as the cover art would suggest. No musicians are credited on the album (or the film), but you can spot Charlie Sexton a mile away, and apparently T. Bone Burnett had a hand in there as well.
The most radical reworking is possibly It's All Over Now, Baby Blue, which is almost delivered like a soliloquy, with sparse instrumentation that fades and rises throughout. It's a fitting end to the film before the credits roll and it ends the selection of songs nicely. The album (and the film) feature hugely enjoyable performances that are easy to listen to. In fact, when it ends, it feels like we were short-changed, but after 54 minutes of excellence, it's possibly anymore would have been too much. Always leave them wanting more, huh? It's such an enjoyable listen, and there's not a bad performance here.
There were only two tracks I was unfamiliar with, them being The Wicked Messenger from John Wesley Harding and the instrumental closing track that ran over the credits, Sierra's Tune. The latter was newly written, especially for the film. Not sure who Sierra is or was, but there you are.
Wow, so that's all of the Dylan albums listened to now. I'm not sure if we'll get anything new from him again, or if he'll tour down this way, but he's still going and I'm still enjoying. Still discovering and re-discovering. Thanks for all the music, Bob!
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