The Eleventh Hour of Dylan

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!

SHADOWS IN THE NIGHT (2015) (26/9/24)
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. 

From the opening When I Paint My Masterpiece, every song is a joy. The tender, heartfelt Forever Young is given another life, and feels as fresh as it ever did. What Was It You Wanted, from 1989's Oh Mercy (and the newest song here apart from Sierra's Tune), keeps its sense of malice although the doom is dialed down slightly. Two album tracks from Blonde on Blonde are rejigged with old-time music-hall verve, with Pledging My Time rolling along vibrantly and Most Likely You'll Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine positively bouncing. A track included on Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Vol.II, Watching the River Flow is still a big foot-tapper, but the bluesy feel is replaced with a kind of Cajun swing. That one is a big highlight for me, and it was issued as a single in April 2023 as a teaser for the album's release in June. I remember listening to it on the Spottersfy, excited that the album was going to be available for purchase. Although, it took me until our trip to QLD in October this year to nab myself a copy. In fact, my recent listening was the first time I've heard it in full since the record landed on the Spottersfy. 

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!

Ten Things I Love About Dylan

Okay, my tenth Dylan blog sees me in good company, album-wise. After ending the last one with 1997's excellent Time Out of Mind, we've got some more great listening ahead! It's been tough going, but we got there. Read on...


37. LOVE AND THEFT (2001) (29/8/24)
Bizarrely, this is one of a handful of albums with the infamous release date of the 11th of September, 2001. Ben Folds' solo record Rockin' the Suburbs and Jay-Z's The Blueprint also came out that day, along with releases from Slayer, Nickelback and Mariah Carey. That notoriety aside, this stands as another classic Dylan release in his late career. Continuing on from the strength of Time Out of Mind, Love and Theft is just as strong, if not quite as compelling. Rather than deep meditations on life and mortality we are presented with a number of stories and characters. 

Indeed the opening track, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, is just a mish-mash of clichés thrown together into a foot-tapping bluesy stomp, which feels like a parody of any song that ever used clichés. There is a loose story there, and the two characters, of course, but it's playful, and I reckon it's just Dylan warming up and having fun. We've come a long way from Wiggle Wiggle! The second track is Mississippi, now hailed as modern Dylan classic. It's a great tune, and has a studio take that befits it after failing to make the cut for TOoM. Rounding out the 1-2-3 punch is Summer Days, a rollicking slice of rockabilly, old-timey swing-rock and barn-burning hootenanny! Great way to kick off the record.

Dylan's 31st studio offering is one of his best albums of the last 25 years, and his first great album of the 21st century. This is also the first time he's credited himself as Jack Frost for the album's production. A part of his touring band at the time, guitarist Charlie Sexton makes his first of many appearances, adding to a wonderful backing group for Dylan, including drummer David Kemper, bassist Tony Garnier, guitarist Larry Campbell and Augie Meyers on accordion and keys. Other highlights for me include Po' Boy, Honest With Me and the time-shifting Cry a While. Great album!


38. MODERN TIMES (2006) (30/8/24)
After two fantastic albums, expectations were high for Bob Dylan's next long-player, and did he meet them? Did he, heck! Modern Times rounds out a trilogy of masterful original releases not seen since his high watermark of Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde in the mid-sixties. Once again, Dylan produces the album himself under the name Jack Frost. Keeping only bassist Garnier from Love and Theft, recruited musicians for this record are guitarists Denny Freeman and Stu Kimball, drummer George C. Receli and multi-instrumentalist Donnie Herron. The latter's gorgeous steel guitar playing are a hallmark on this excellent album, featuring prominently on tracks like Spirit on the Water and When the Deal Goes Down.

At the risk of overusing the word, the album gets off to a rollicking start with the opener Thunder on the Mountain. An assault of guitar solos and hilarious lyrics, this is one of my favourite Dylan tracks of this century. It has one of his more puzzling references to pop culture in there:

I was thinking about Alicia Keys, couldn't keep from cryin'/

When she was born in Hell's Kitchen, I was livin' down the line/

I'm wondering where in the world Alicia Keys could be/

I've been looking for her even clear through Tennessee

No idea what he's on about, and what his infatuation with Alicia Keys is, but it's funny to hear him sing her name. This album also contains a few other bit favourites of mine, the aforementioned Spirit on the Water, the epic closing track Ain't Talkin' and the ode to the working classes, Workingman's Blues #2. The latter was penned by Dylan as an unofficial sequel to Merle Haggard's 1969 hit Workin' Man Blues. I initially thought the '#2' reference was to an alternate version or a rewriting of an unreleased song of that name. It's a great song, and one I never get sick of hearing, like the whole album in general. One of the weaker tracks (in my opinion), Nettie Moore, also gets high praise, but I feel it's not as engaging as other songs. It's still a good one though! Dylan's riffing on the blues classics Rollin' and Tumblin' and When the Levee Breaks (reworked into The Levee's Gonna Break) are also very enjoyable. It's an absolutely top notch effort from Dylan, and one of my big favourites.

39. TOGETHER THROUGH LIFE (2009) (1/9/24)
Okay, now things start to get a little rocky. He he he...not to say that this is a bad listen, but it's certainly Dylan's weakest offering since Time Out of Mind. The songs aren't as immediate, and did somebody say piano accordion? The album is rife with it, giving the songs a swampy, zydeco-type feel; which comes courtesy of David Hildago, who also contributes guitar. Drummer Receli, bassist Garnier and multi-instrumentalist Herron all return to the fold, with ex-Heartbreaker Mike Campbell throwing in some strings and things as well. Dylan's production duties are again present in the form of his alter-ego Jack Frost. 

The big change to this effort, is that except for two tracks, the lyrics have been co-written by Dylan with Robert Hunter, formerly of The Grateful Dead. That doesn't dampen Dylan's vocal delivery, and the sense of humour keeps in line with His Bobness too. There's just nothing that really grabs you. My favourite tracks include album opener Beyond Here Lies Nothin', My Wife's Hometown and Jolene (no, not that one). The record's final track really falls flat, for mine, as Dylan tries to use a popular phrase (It's All Good), and doesn't land it. Forgetful Heart seems to be lauded by some too, but I don't see anything special about that one either. Not bad, but not great. 

40. CHRISTMAS IN THE HEART (2009)
Now, here's a big surprise...a Christmas album! And not a quick, by-the-numbers, I'll-get-out-a-Christmas-album-for-the-holidays moneymaker, but a sincere and well-thought out affair. Coming out less than six months after Together Through Life was released, Christmas In the Heart is an album for Dylan fans who love the yuletide season. This certainly won't win him any new fans though.

Keeping the same personnel from TTL (bar Mike Campbell), Dylan adds guitarist Phil Upchurch and keys player Patrick Warren. Oh, and there's a fair few burst of choir as well, of course! The latter adding Christmassy weight to carols such as The First Noel and Hark the Herald Angels Sing. Along with the traditional fair, there are also great versions of Here Comes Santa Claus, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and I'll Be Home for Christmas

The absolute highlight though, and I would even say the album's centrepiece, is the polka-styled version of Must Be Santa, an old Christmas song released in 1960 by Mitch Miller. A call-and-response number, that builds similarly to The Twelve Days of Christmas, this sees Dylan in full 'ho-ho-ho' mode. While it's not an album for every day of the year, it's nice to dust off in December.


41. TEMPEST (2012) (3/9/24)
This album is the last record in the Dylan box set that begat this whole series of blog posts. This is the 45th CD, but not the last entry. That honour goes to the Side Tracks compilation (discs 46 & 47), which is made up of singles, live versions and other previously unreleased material. That set is unique to The Complete Album Collection Vol. One box. I might have to give Side Tracks its own post.

Annoyingly, Dylan has released five more albums since the set's release in 2013. So, the box is now outdated, and incomplete. Even more annoyingly was the failure of the proposed Vol. Two box set, which would have collected all of the Bootleg Series compilations together. There's still time, I guess! 

Of the five recent albums, three of them are made up of cover versions (Shadows in the Night, Fallen Angels and Triplicate), one is Shadow Kingdom, the soundtrack to his 'livestream' concert of reworked classics from 2021, and 2020's excellent studio effort Rough and Rowdy Ways. Again, I may need to blog about those offerings in the future.

But, I digress! Tempest is a great album, and one that I wish that was more familiar with when we saw His Bobness live for the third time at the Riverside Theatre, PCEC in August 2014. No less than six tracks from the ten track long Tempest made the setlist that night. Kicking off with the excellent modern-Dylan classic Duquesne Whistle, the scene is set for another fab record minus the excessive piano accordion. Another classic track on offer here is the growling Pay In Blood which features such excellent lyrics as:

My head's so hard, must be made of stone/

I pay in blood but not my own

Other album highlights for me include the bluesy Early Roman Kings, the riff-tastic Narrow Way and the plodding Lost and Wasted Years. The epic title track nearly hits the fourteen minute mark, and is a sprawling account of the sinking of the Titanic. Certainly worth a listen, but not essential. The same could be said about his tribute to John Lennon, Roll on John. It comes across a little laboured, almost like he didn't really want to write it, but there's some sentiment there, I think.

All songs on Tempest are written by Dylan himself, except for the opener, which he co-write with Robert Hunter. He's also produced the album as Jack Frost once again. The band is the same as his Together Through Life line-up, minus Mike Campbell and with the addition of guitarists Charlie Sexton and Stu Kimball. A nice way to end the albums in this box set, and with it, this tenth entry in my blog post series. I'll add an addendum shortly in the future!

Dylan on Cloud Nine

My ninth blog post of Dylan's albums sees me stuck in the 90's! By gum, it's been a little while. Almost a year or so! Not really been looking forward to listening to some of these, but hey, let's get down to business!

33. GOOD AS I BEEN TO YOU (1992) (9/2/24)
Consisting of Dylan performing solo on a acoustic guitar (with the odd burst of harmonica), this album of covers is pleasant background listening, but nothing earth-shattering. I'd not heard track one from this album before giving it its maiden spin, and I wasn't very familiar with the songs he'd chosen to include. Of the thirteen tracks, I only knew Hard Times and Froggie Went a Courtin', and a couple of songs I think I had heard of, like Sittin' on the Top of the World. Most of the tracks are old folk tunes from the UK and now reside in the public domain. These are the songs that must have been a big influence on Dylan as he rose up through the folk scene in the early 1960s. So, from that point of view, it's interesting to listen to him offer up songs that made a mark on him, but it's not why most of us choose to put on a Bob Dylan album. His next album would be a similar offering, but it's this period in time that gives Dylan a bit of a reset as he ponders what his next original album will be like. Similar to his burst of inspiration that gave birth to Oh Mercy's Political World, another well of songwriting was about to gush through the surface. However, that album is still five years away.

I can't see me ever spinning this record again, and I don't think I'll ever spend enough time with it to have any real favourite tracks. It's nice to listen to, but not an album I'd turn to. Feels like you're eavesdropping on him in his hotel room or backstage somewhere as he rips through some of his favourite songs to play. It's kind of cool, but kind of not at the same time.

34. WORLD GONE WRONG (1993) (13/2/24)
Okay, so here we are again with another album of acoustic covers. Interestingly, in between these last two records, Columbia honoured Dylan with The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration, which was recorded in Madison Square Gardens during October 1992, and released in August 1993. Earlier, in 1991, the Recording Academy also chose to honour His Bobness with their Lifetime Achievement Award. These are the sorts of events that usually occur at the end of someone's musical career. Dylan may have thought that the cards were stacked against him as far as releasing new original material went, and that might have been another reason behind his choice to issue two covers albums. Was he expected to just quietly bow out? Yes, the eighties were a difficult period for him, but he still managed to deliver two great albums in 1983's Infidels and 1989's Oh Mercy. 

But, back to the album in question. I actually enjoyed this much more than the former offering. Same concept, it's just Dylan playing acoustic covers, but the vibe seems so different. I knew even less of the songs on this one, having only heard various versions of Stagger Lee (here titled Stack a Lee) before and his go at Blood In My Eyes, which was included on the bonus DVD that accompanied the special edition of Modern Times. I'm not sure if the rawness that permeates this album is due to it being produced by Dylan himself or if the song choice is the defining factor of difference. Good As I Been To You was produced by Debbie Gold and seemed a little sterile in comparison. Arguably, his performances are just as good on both albums, but this one seems so much more listenable. I really dug the title track, Delia and Love Henry as well, the former seeming very similar to Nick Cave's Henry Lee. 

I think these albums were a bit of a reset for Dylan. Rather than thinking about what he should be doing and releasing, he just went back to the songs that inspired him. In doing so, he probably planted the seeds of what would lead to an output of outstanding albums starting with 1997's Time Out Of Mind. However, before we get to that offering, we need to talk a look at...

35. MTV UNPLUGGED (1995) (19/2/24)
Recorded over two nights in November 1994, this live album captures much of Dylan's performance on the MTV Unplugged television series. Back in the day, anyone who was anyone had an Unplugged record out or had at least appeared on the TV show. I have vague memories of giving this a spin when it came into stock at Southern Sound in Albany while I still worked there. Only being schooled in the more well-known material of Dylan at the time, I was not very familiar with His Bobness' song selection, who was 53 at the time of the recording. Indeed, two of the tracks weren't officially released at the time, John Brown and Dignity. The latter I know now from the Tell Tale Signs (The Bootleg Series Vol. 8) collection that spanned 1989-2006. The demo version, which is just Dylan on piano is included on that set, as well as a band recording from sessions in 1989. It wouldn't see an official release until 1994 when it became a single from his Greatest Hits Volume 3 album. 

The former, John Brown, was actually written by Dylan in 1962 and recorded in early 1963 and released on a folk compilation under the pseudonym Blind Boy Grunt. A protest song about a young man injured during the war, it hasn't been officially released on a Dylan album, except for live recordings and a demo that was included on The Witmark Demos 1962-1964 (The Bootleg Series Vol. 9) in 2010. An interesting choice for Dylan to include, but perhaps he wanted to share a deep cut or two with his more hardcore fans. Apparently, it was a regular track at his live shows until around 2012. 

Back to the rest of the album, I was also unaware at the time of his tendency to re-work his older songs and give them new arrangements. The first of these to arrive on the album is The Times They Are A-Changin', which has a full band performance married with a swing feel. It's something that probably annoyed 19-year-old me, but I'm down with how Dylan approaches his live shows and early catalogue now. I quite like this arrangement, and in the four times I've seen him live between 2007 and 2018, he's not dusted it off. 

On further reflection, it's pretty safe to say that none of his live performances here sound that much like their studio recordings. Except for maybe, Shooting Star, which is the newest track on this set, coming off 1989's Oh Mercy album. Desolation Row shares a similar instrumental arrangement of just two guitars, an upright bass and Dylan's vocal, but the feel is different. It's a little livelier or something. The bass comes courtesy of Tony Garnier, who joined Dylan's live band in 1989, and still plays with him today (at the time of writing). Other notable musicians in Dylan's ensemble include Bucky Baxter on many stringed instruments (a member of Steve Earle and the Dukes), and producer Brendan O'Brien on the Hammond organ, who has helmed recordings by acts such as Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen.  

In all, I found this to be quite an enjoyable listen. Other standouts for me include the opening track Tombstone Blues and final song With God On Our Side, although I feel it's an unusual choice to close the album, and not one that probably ended either night's set. The latter shows him singing the track in its original key, and doing a pretty good job despite the grizzled quality seeping into his voice. His performance on this album seems a little more enthusiastic than his appearance at his 30th Anniversary concert, but maybe that's because he was being pushed by other forces into a career swansong that he wasn't ready for. Indeed, 2022 marked 60 years since his first solo release for Columbia, so that concert can now be seen as a halfway point, in hindsight. He certainly wasn't ready to hit the oldies concert circuit and just play the 'hits'. He had more to say, and he had just found his voice.

36. TIME OUT OF MIND (1997) (21/2/2024)
A very strong contender for my favourite Bob Dylan album, I still have a vivid memory of my first encounter with this mid-career masterpiece. It was shortly after its release that I found myself in the now-defunct store 78 Records in the Perth CBD. They had a big red display stand that was actually a listening station. It had multiple copies of six different albums, each of which were able to be piped through the attached headphones. I noticed that Time Out of Mind was one of them, and thought "Hmmm...the new Bob Dylan album". With that, I grabbed the headphones and dialed up the opening track Love Sick. 

I was greeted by a low hum of amps and a little bit of guitar noodling, so I turned up the volume. Then the short bursts of the opening organ chord assaulted my right ear before Dylan's croaky, distorted voice came in: "I'm walking/Through streets that are dead..." I'm not sure how long I listened, but I think I got through most of the song. It was unlike anything else I'd heard him do, which was fairly limited at that time. I still remember that first moment every time I hear that track.

I don't remember when I actually took the plunge and bought the album. I think before I grabbed a copy of it, I only owned 1997's The Best of Bob Dylan and the triple CD compilation Masterpieces, originally issued in 1978. I remember one of my school friends in Albany had a copy of the latter, which belonged to his dad. We thrashed some songs off it. So, my knowledge of Dylan was fairly limited at that time. I think I'm correct in recalling that this album is the first full studio Dylan I ever owned or listened to, this being his thirtieth effort. That may have a hand in the reason I hold it in such high esteem.

After the killer opening of Love Sick, the mood is broken by Old Dirt Road Blues. The dark and swampy angst of the former is almost hypnotic in its slow pace and accented lines, so when the jaunty second track kicks up, it's a bit of a shock. Arguably one of the album's weakest moments, Old Dirt Road Blues still a pleasant listen and serves a definite purpose in the tracklisting. I think because Love Sick is such a strong track, and such an excellent statement for what the album will be, it was always going to be hard to follow. It also has the distinction of being one of only a few tracks that doesn't rely on a fade out, and actually ends. The feel returns to a sense of melancholy with Standing in the Doorway which at nearly eight minutes long is the second longest track here. Mourning the loss of a relationship, the song has its narrator (Dylan himself maybe?) pining for someone who left him "standing in the doorway crying/Suffering like a fool". Rather than wanting the person back, Dylan seems to be coming to terms with the finality of it all, and moving towards acceptance. Despite its length, it doesn't outstay its welcome, and I used to always get surprised when I noticed the CD time display tick over seven minutes. I think it's just one of many instances on this album where Dylan's peak songwriting and Daniel Lanois' production come together to make something very special. 

While I've mentioned that the album has a melancholy feel in places, there's also a bit of desire simmering under the surface. The next track, Million Miles, has its narrator trying his best to court or return to the object of his affection. The distance between them can be taken either as a physical barrier or a mental one, as not all journeys are completed by traveling. There were a lot of critics who called Time Out of Mind the 'mortality album', as some songs appear to show Dylan contemplating the end of his life. Indeed, after Dylan completed his work on this album he became quite ill, and had a battle with a near-fatal infection of histoplasmosis (Google it). He spent much of June 1997 in serious pain and had to cancel a tour he had scheduled for that time period. Despite the album being pretty much completed before he was hospitalised, critics thought the experience has caused Dylan to become more aware of his time on Earth. 

The first track to feel like it looks death in the eyes has a refrain stolen from an old blues track. Tryin' To Get To Heaven sees its protagonist trying the enter the holy gates before they close the door. This could imply that Dylan felt he had some amends to make before he enters his twilight years, or that he is experiencing something of a rebirth. It wasn't written in the aftermath of his near-death illness, so Dylan's motivations remain his own. The song is another album highlight for me in an album full of them, and it doesn't fade out.

Connecting a thread from Love Sick to Million Miles is the following song, 'Til I Fell in Love With You, which makes the case that while this love was not exactly planned, it's not the worst thing in the world either. Dylan returns to the matter of life and death with the hauntingly beautiful Not Dark Yet. A gorgeous layered soundscape with a gentle riff that's repeated throughout the track, this is one of my favourite Dylan songs. As the narrator takes stock of his life he finishes each verse with the line "It's not dark yet/But it's gettin' there". It's just sublime and it is one of those tracks that takes me out of wherever I am and drops me into the images and emotions of the song. I don't think I actually listen to it; I experience it. Oooh, and it doesn't fade out either!

The next track is Cold Irons Bound, which was one of my least favourite tracks on the album for a long while. It wasn't until I heard the version from the 2003 movie Masked & Anonymous that I started to dig it. The clip of that performance was included on the DVD that accompanied the special edition of the Modern Times CD. It's got a rollicking and rambling vibe that the version on Time Out of Mind just doesn't have, and it got its hooks into me. During my first listen of that performance it took me a bit to realise it was the same song! Again, the song has a sense of impending doom, as Dylan ends each verse with "I'm 20 miles out of town/Cold irons bound". Rather than death awaiting him, it is consequences of some sort of action taken. Producer Lanois and Dylan butted heads several times during the recording of this album, which saw initial sessions begin in Lanois' studio Teatro. Dylan made the decision to move to the Criteria Studio in Miami in January 1997, as he felt Lanois' studio was too close to his home in Malibu and he was getting distracted. Apparently their clash of opinion regarding Cold Irons Bound ended with Lanois smashing a guitar and declaring this song would not make the final album. Ironically, the track would win Dylan the Grammy award for Male Performance of the Year. Another interesting fact to note is that this album is the last time Dylan used a producer. From 2001’s Love And Theft, he would self produce his records under the pseudonym Jack Frost.

The ninth song on the album is also the shortest, and one of the greatest love songs Dylan has ever written. Make You Feel My Love was covered by Billy Joel on his Greatest Hits Volume III in August 1997, a month or so before Time Out of Mind was released. That was the first of what would become many covers of this song, sometimes titled To Make You Feel My Love for some reason. I think a lot of people are familiar with Adele's cover, but other artists who have given it a stab include Neil Diamond, Garth Brooks, Pink, Kelly Clarkson, and um, Michael Bolton. It's another one of my favourite Dylan songs, and I quite like performing it on occasion myself. I didn't hear him perform it live until we saw him for the fourth time at RAC Arena in 2018. 

Returning to theme of lust or longing comes the album's penultimate track, Can't Wait. This has a great murky stomp to it, which is a little bit bluesy and a little bit shuffle-y. So, yeah, with the tracks of desire outnumbering those that deal with death, I'm surprised by the reputation this album had when critics sunk their teeth into it. Again, Dylan's illness might have pushed that theme to the fore. It would be interesting to see how the legacy of Time Out of Mind would differ if Dylan hadn't become so ill just before its release.

The record ends with its longest track, Highlands. With a staggering length of sixteen minutes and thirty-one seconds it would have the title of Dylan's longest studio recording until 2020's Murder Most Foul, which nearly hits the seventeen minute mark. For a long time, I would end the album here. It was sixteen odd minutes of Dylan delivering a long monologue with a musical backing that has a riff playing continuously throughout. There's no chorus, there's no bridge and there's no ending, it just fades out. There's nothing you can really sing along to, except the repeated line "Well, my heart's in the Highlands..." and the odd lyric that sticks in your brain. For the most part, Dylan sort of speak-sings his way through the song. Over time I've become a little fonder of it, and I don't skip it anymore. One of the big turning points was when Rolling Stone magazine published an online article that ranked 100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs and included Highlands at No. 94! That made me think that there may be more to this song that I gave it credit for, and it was possibly worth my time to get to know it a little better. While I don't think I hold it in such high esteem as that, I certainly like it more now. But seriously, after sixteen minutes and thirty-one seconds, could you not think of an ending? I hate fade outs. You might have noticed. That fact does certainly not diminish my serious love for this album. I've thoroughly enjoyed revisiting it, and I'm very excited for the next song of offerings my subsequent Dylan blog post will bring!

BONUS: THE BOOTLEG SERIES Vol. 17: FRAGMENTS - TIME OUT OF MIND SESSIONS (1996-1997)
I was lucky enough to receive this amazing collection from my lovely family for my birthday this year! So, I've been thrashing it a bit. Amazing timing that I'm revisiting Time Out of Mind now after soaking up the alternate versions, outtakes and live performances from the album. This set also has a 2022 remix of the original record, which is a little closer to Dylan's vision for the album, and softens some of Daniel Lanois' swampy production. Apparently there was a murkiness on Time Out of Mind that Dylan was never really happy with. While I like the remix in that the drums have more presence and the vocals are higher in the mix, and I think it's possibly louder as well, the original is highly revered and loved for a reason. 

There were 15 songs in contention for Time Out of Mind, and 11 made the final album. The second and third discs document how the songs shaped up. Starting in a Malibu studio in 1996 before heading to Florida in 1997, these recording sessions reveal how the songs evolved in the studio. One track that missed the cut, Mississippi, shows up in several renditions here, with a live recording on the fourth disc and three outtakes on the fifth. Thankfully, it would make Dylan’s 2001 follow-up album Love and Theft, but I wonder why it didn’t land on TOOM. I think if it had been swapped out for Dirt Road Blues the album would have been even stronger. But which version? For me, the LAT version is the best, but that incarnation wouldn’t fit on TOOM. I think Version 1 on the second disc would fit nicely…with its repeated (but pilfered) refrain of “Only one thing I did wrong/I stayed in Mississippi a day too long”. Be a good fit, methinks!

Two other songs recorded, but apparently never really in contention were The Water Is Wide (an old Scottish folk tune that Dylan had played live numerous times) and Red River Shore. The latter is quite a sweet song that is reminiscent of Girl From the North Country, which really feels a bit out of place here. I can see why it was left of the album, but I think it’s a shame it never surfaced on another. 

Some songs evolved into other songs, like Too Late becoming Foot of Pride during the Infidels sessions, but ultimately not being rehearsed unfortunately. Dreamin’ Of You was released as a single in 2008 before the issue of the excellent Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989-2006 (The Bootleg Series Vol 8). It would eventually morph into Standing In The Doorway, but the unreleased version included on this set has a great swagger and a fab vocal track and clocks up two extra minutes! Rather than being a better incarnation of a song we’ve heard before, it’s a fascinating insight into Dylan’s creative process. The same can be said for Marchin’ to the City, which also popped on TTS:RAU 1989-2006, but this version is a bit jauntier and shorter. This would soon be reworked into Not Dark Yet, but it’s nearly unrecognisable in this iteration. 

It’s great to have such a collection of different versions, live performances and outtakes from one of my favourite Dylan albums. It lends itself well to casual listening as well as zealous study. I like the journey of seeing how Not Dark Yet became the haunting, hypnotic masterpiece on the finished album and the changes in feel and production along the way. Each track from the original album appears at least once either as a live performance or an unreleased outtake. It’s a feast and a very tasty one. What’s the next Bootleg Series release, Bob?!?

Eighth Wonder of the Dylan

The eighties were a difficult period for Bob Dylan. He struggled to find his voice and the weight of expectation on him kept growing with each album that flopped. It has been interesting sifting through this period of his, as I'd not heard much of it. Bizarrely, the Bootleg Series set from 1980-1985 that came out in 2021 has been the most interesting part of this section of the journey. I was wary of his 'Christian trilogy' of albums, them being 1979's Slow Train Coming, 1980's Saved and Shot of Love from 1981, but I found them not too hard listen to, particularly the former. Infidels (1983) is definitely a big highlight for this decade so far, as Empire Burlesque (1985) and Knocked Out Loaded (1986) weren't great. I am keen to press on though, because I know that 1997's absolute masterpiece Time Out of Mind isn't far away now. Not that I haven't listened to it lately or anything, but it's interesting following the course he plotted leading up to that point. So, onward!

29. DOWN IN THE GROOVE (1988) (22/3/23)
It would seem that for many, the nadir of Dylan's album output is either this one, or the previous offering Knocked Out Loaded. Yeah, it's a bit average. Kicking off with a pedestrian cover of Let's Stick Together (did we need another one?), this album threatens to underwhelm; and it makes good on that threat. 

The only two songs I knew were Death Is Not the End (thanks to Nick Cave et al's cover on 1996's Murder Ballads) and Silvio, much to my surprise. I have memories of hearing the latter on the radio around the time it came out, but I thought it was called 'Sylvia'. I'd forgotten all about it until I spun this! It's not brilliant, but it's a decent enough listen. The track was co-written with the Grateful Dead's Robert Hunter, and some members of the band are also present too. Hunter co-wrote the questionable Ugliest Girl in the World as well. Dylan's next project would be their live album together, 1989's Dylan & the Dead, so not a big shock that they are contributors here. Getting back to Death Is Not the End, it's interesting to note that the band on that song nearly make up an Infidels reunion. You have Sly & Robbie back on drums and bass, and Dire Strait's Mark Knopfler and Alan Clark on guitar and keyboards respectively. Oh, and ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor as well. Knopfler is credited as a co-producer, so it's possibly a lost Infidels outtake. Can't confirm or deny that.

Other big name guests include Ronnie Wood, Mitchell Froom, Danny Kortchmar, Eric Clapton, The Clash's Paul Simonon, The Sex Pistols' Steve Jones and Kip Winger! No wonder it's not very cohesive as an album. Only two songs are fully written by Dylan on his own, with Death Is Not the End being one of them. It's a fairly unremarkable affair, and not one I'll visit that often, methinks.

30. DYLAN & THE DEAD (1989) (30/3/23)
Well, this does what it says on the tin. It's Dylan playing live with The Grateful Dead, with the tracks culled from their 1987 tour. With a running time of nearly forty five minutes and only seven songs, some tracks outstay their welcome. The shortest song here is I Want You, which nearly hits four minutes, with the longest offender being Joey from 1976's Desire, creeping past nine minutes! While it's kind of nice to hear it getting an airing, it does go on a bit. The renditions of Slow Train and Gotta Serve Somebody are probably the album highlights for mine, and Queen Jane Approximately is a nice surprise inclusion, but the performance is a little lacklustre. By the time the final songs All Along the Watchtower and Knockin' On Heaven's Door roll around, it feels like you've spent longer in the presence of this album than you actually have. Just a mini-document of the Dylan & the Dead stadium tour, akin to the one Dylan did with The Band which resulted in the far superior Before The Flood in 1974. Apparently bootlegs of some shows circulated heavily at the time, creating much fervour for the release of this record, which ultimately failed to deliver.

31. OH MERCY (1989) (30/3/23)
Dylan is very nearly out of the wilderness here. This is his best studio offering since 1983's Infidels, which was four middling albums ago. Indeed it was this record's opening track, Political World, that started Dylan on the path out of his funk. According to the liner notes of The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989-2006, Dylan wrote all the verses to that song in one sitting, the words simply pouring out of him. Something he'd not experienced for years. Indeed, from the first few moments of the song, you can feel that there's a change in the air. There's a freshness to the sound, and the music isn't just a product of its production or era. I think a lot of that credit goes to producer Daniel Lanois, who would go on to helm 1997's magnificent Time Out of Mind. 

As well as production, Lanois contributes multiple guitar parts, bass and omnichord, failing to appear on only one track, Disease of Conceit. His opening bits of dobro on Political World set the tone for an earthy, rootsy feel that permeates the rest of the record. It's just so enjoyable to listen to! After the effort of the last few albums, this one is a welcome relief. I've spent more time with this album than any of his other efforts from the eighties, even Infidels. While Oh Mercy has its strong highlights like Everything is Broken and Most of the Time, it's all good. The most solid and consistent Bob Dylan album since the seventies, in my opinion. 

Versions of the songs from this record that appeared on The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989-2006 aren't the massive improvements that revealed themselves on other Bootleg Series albums. Instead, they show the progression of the song, and how the arrangements changed while they were being workshopped. The dreamy, swampy take of Most of the Time here is reduced to just guitar and harmonica on Tell Tale Signs. It's an interesting to hear the song so stripped back, but this version is a better listen. The music and vocals just wash over you, rather than the song being delivered. Other highlights for me include the sinister Man in the Long Black Coat and What Was It You Wanted, which I first heard being sung by Willie Nelson at the Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary concert. Closing off with the almost sentimental Shooting Star, this album is forty minutes of a reinvigorated Dylan, who began to remember what it was like to be Bob Dylan. Unfortunately, it wasn't to last.

32. UNDER THE RED SKY (1990) (13/4/23)
Right from the awkward and syncopated beats of album opener Wiggle Wiggle, the disappointment is palpable. Not only is that track one of Dylan's worst efforts ever, it fills you with a sense of foreboding for the rest of the record. Despite having Slash (yes, that Slash) adding some guitar work, it's just awful:

Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle like a gypsy queen

Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle all dressed in green

Yeah, you can imagine, even if you haven't heard the song.  Coming on the heels of the excellent album Oh Mercy, this feels like a giant step backwards. Instead of Daniel Lanois on production duties, His Bobness teamed up with Don and David Was, crediting himself as Jack Frost for the first time. So, that earthy and dreamy feel on Oh Mercy has gone, and the album sounds like it was made in the mid to late eighties. It doesn't help that the songs just aren't as good either. Although, Born in Time isn't a bad listen, although the version on Tell Tale Signs is much more palatable. I quite liked 10,000 Men as well. 

Like some of his mediocre eighties offerings, Dylan has littered this album with big names, including Elton John, George Harrison, David Crosby, Bruce Hornsby, Al Kooper and the Vaughn brothers. Famed session musos David Lindley and Waddy Wachtel also contribute. But they fail to elevate the album to the same heights of Oh Mercy. The penultimate track Handy Dandy (terrible title!) sounds like it could have been a reworking of Like a Rolling Stone. For me, whatever spark Dylan had rekindled in the late eighties just got squashed. I don't know if his involvement with the Traveling Wilburys was a factor, but yes, I'm looking forward to leaving this period. 

Onwards!

Seventh Son of a Seventh Dylan

Well, I can't stop the momentum now! I'll just keep on trucking. Or something. I was super keen to jump into Infidels after wading through the Christian trilogy, and as patchy as the eighties were for Dylan, I'm hoping to find some lost treasures. To me, anyway. So, let's get it started!

25. INFIDELS (1983) (6/2/23)
I would argue that this is Dylan's strongest effort melodically since Slow Train Coming and lyrically since Street Legal, or perhaps to fall in line with every rock critic on Earth, Blood On The Tracks. Forever the album his future offerings get compared to, for some reason. I guess that's seen by many as his last 'classic album'. 

For a change of pace and scene, after finishing his heavily religious run of records, Dylan headed to The Power Station studio in New York with the view to seeking a co-producer who was up on all the latest technology. The studio utilised the latest digital equipment, so this would be Dylan's first digitally recorded, and mixed, long player. Allegedly, he'd considered or contacted Elvis Costello, David Bowie and Frank Zappa before landing on Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler. 

The effect on the album's production is palpable, as it sounds like Dylan has joined the eighties, with the drums in particular standing out as having a very different sound from his previous few records. The rhythm section of Infidels is made up of the legendary Jamaican duo Sly & Robbie, namely drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare. Additionally, Knopfler recruited Dire Straits keyboardist Alan Clark, and Benmont Tench also appears on a few tracks. There's also some tasty guitar work from ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor.

There's some great stuff here, and the album kicks off with the classic Jokerman. It's worth pointing out that this song does contain some religious imagery, and there are spiritual themes throughout the record. I think he may have toned things down, but his Christianity is still important to him. I first heard this track on a compilation Dylan CD I bought in the late nineties, The Best of Bob Dylan. Since then, I've heard pieces of this album. One of the highlights, License to Kill, was wonderfully covered by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at the 30th Anniversary Concert in late 1992 (album came out the following year). Sweetheart Like You was covered by Rod Stewart on his 1995 offering A Spanner In The Works, which I somehow own a copy of. Recently I stumbled upon the video of an alternate version of Don't Fall Apart on Me Tonight on the YouTubs. It was released to promote 2021's The Bootleg Series Vol. 16: Springtime in New York 1980-1985, which features outtakes from this album, Shot of Love and Empire Burlesque. I became quite taken with the song, which lead me to obtain said Bootleg Series 2CD set. I haven't listened to it yet, as I'm waiting until I've spun all the albums first. 

Overall, it's a pretty strong effort, and my highlights are Jokerman, License to Kill, I and I and Don't Fall Apart on Me Tonight, although I prefer the alternate version. Neighbourhood Bully isn't a bad listen either. The tone is consistent and the production is sound, and it's nice to hear Dylan not being preachy. 

Apparently the song Blind Willie McTell was pulled from the Infidels tracklisting by Dylan, a move that flummoxed Knopfler. Eventually the track was released on the first Bootleg Series set, Vol. 1-3 (Rare & Unreleased) in 1991, to much fervour. It hit No.19 on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs list as well. I can't remember the song that well, as I did make my through all those songs after reading the online article. However, it is now hailed as a highpoint from his eighties output. So, maybe I'll think similarly after a few listens. It is on Springtime in NY.. as well, you see. Maybe it didn't fit because it's quite stripped back compared to the rest of the album. Anyway, that's that record. Nice one, Zimmy!

26. REAL LIVE (1984) (15/2/23)
I didn't realise that Dylan had released so many live albums! Not even heard of this one, me. Following hot on the heels of Infidels, this offering features a few of his new tracks and some classics, although the latter songs may sound a little different than their studio counterparts. I don't think true Dylan fans are bothered by this. He's been changing the way he plays his songs since the seventies! Having said that, critics seem to want Dylan to just recreate his work as they remember it. Indeed his versions of Highway 61 Revisited and Maggie's Farm are reworked with the former another shadow of its live Hard Rain self. 

His band of this tour included Faces keyboardist Ian McLagan and ex-Rolling Stone Mick Taylor on guitar, who's in top form here, particularly on the Infidels cut I and I, and the aforementioned Highway 61 Revisited. License to Kill gets a faithful airing before a couple of solo Dylan numbers, which the crowd enthusiastically singalong with; It Ain't Me, Babe and Tangled Up in Blue. Another solo recording is near the end of the album, Girl From the North Country, which to my ears, sounded like a Dylan caricature! It came across to me like someone trying to take the piss out of Dylan, not the real deal! Maybe he was satirising himself in some weird way. Be that as it may, I would offer the solo tracks up as the album's highlights.

Carlos Santana guest guitars on the album's closing number Tombstone Blues, which again was unrecognisable from the original version Dylan recorded for Highway 61 Revisited in 1965. All in all, another middling live effort. Not great, not terrible.

27. EMPIRE BURLESQUE (1985) (17/2/23)
Well, Dylan has definitely landed in the eighties now! The production and sound of this record threaten to overshadow the actual songs, and in some cases, succeeds. A quick glance at the tracklisting had me resigned to the thought that I wasn't familiar with any of the material on the album, but I did end up recognising a couple, as I'd heard them covered by other artists before. Firstly, Emotionally Yours was performed by The Ojays at Bob's 30th Anniversary Concert, so I knew that one. Albeit, it's not a big fave, but it's a pleasant enough listen. The other track I knew was the seven and a half minute When the Night Comes Falling From the Sky, thanks to The Black Crowes recording a version of during sessions for their By Your Side album. While it didn't make the record, it was issued as the B-side of Only a Fool in 1999. They keep the song down to a svelte four minutes, so I was surprised when Dylan's original just seemed to not end, he he he...

There's a heap of famous players on this one too. Sly & Robbie return on a few tracks, and Alan Clark puts in an appearance as well. Mick Taylor plays on album opener Tight Connection to My Heart (Has Anybody Seen My Love), which was previously known as Someone's Got a Hold of My Heart during the Infidels sessions. Three of Tom Petty's Heartbreakers are present as well, namely keyboardist Benmont Tench, guitarist Mike Campbell and the late bassist Howie Epstein. Session pro Jim Keltner plays drums on a few tracks, and even Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood contributes a guitar lick or two. Despite such stellar musicians, the album is bit of a mess. Dylan had decide to take on the role of producer and I'm not sure if that helped or hindered. The record is very much a product of its era, and it makes the songs less appealing. Not to say that the album is unlistenable, but what makes Dylan unique is somewhat diluted by synths and eighties drums. 

The final song, Dark Eyes, is a breath of fresh air. It's just Dylan and a guitar with a splash of harmonica. Not his best work, but after the songs proceeding it, the track is most welcome. Apparently the song was written at the behest of the producer Arthur Baker, who was handling the mixing duties on this record. Dylan liked the idea of ending the album with a sparse guitar and harmonica number, so he went and wrote Dark Eyes the night Baker suggested it. Interesting effort this album, but not an endearing listen, I don't think. 

28. KNOCKED OUT LOADED (1986) (1/3/23)
This is an interesting album, huh? He he he... while it might be seen by many as the nadir of his eighties output it's not unlistenable. There's just nothing that really grabs you. Popular opinion states that the eleven minute epic Brownsville Girl is the album's one redeeming feature, and its length makes it responsible for almost a third of the record's running time, and over half of the second side in the vinyl format. It hasn't grabbed me like it has grabbed others, but it's the only song here that sounds Dylanesque, in terms of lyrics and character. Co-written with the actor Sam Shepard, the track started off as New Danville Girl, and became an outtake of the Empire Burlesque record. I had heard this incarnation, as it was included on the Springtime in NY.. set, which I dipped into before listening to this album. Again, not blown away by it or anything, but a cool enough track. Might be a grower.

The last two songs on the second side were co-writes, one with Tom Petty and one with Carole Bayer Sager. Both fairly middling affairs despite the presence of Heartbreakers on the former, Got My Mind Made Up and Blondie's drummer Clem Burke on the latter, Under Your Spell. Filling out the rest of the album are two original tracks (Driftin' Too Far From the Shore and Maybe Someday), covers of songs by Kris Kristofferson, Little Junior Parker and a reworked traditional number called Precious Memories. Yeah, might not give this one that many spins. 

BONUS: THE BOOTLEG SERIES Vol. 16: SPRINGTIME IN NEW YORK 1980-1985
I really enjoyed listening to this set. I've given it a good few goes since spinning Empire Burlesque. Some songs are alternate takes or rehearsals of songs from that album, or earlier efforts Shot of Love and Infidels. All in all, it's a pretty entertaining listen, and an excellent sum of the parts of albums Dylan was making at the time.

Highlights for me include the alternate take of Don't Fall Apart on Me Tonight from Infidels, which is a massive improvement on the album version, Angelina (outtake from Shot of Love), the band versions of Too Late and Blind Willie McTell (Infidels outtakes) and the alterate take of Emotionally Yours from Empire Burlesque. Someone's Got a Hold of My Heart was meant for Infidels, and that version here was recorded before it morphed into Tight Connection to My Heart (Has Anybody Seen My Love) from Empire Burlesque. The latter is also included in this with an alternate (and better, in my humble opinion) mix. 

I stumbled across a promo video for the aforementioned Too Late on the YouTubs a little while ago. Some of the lyrics were very familiar to me, although I was pretty sure I hadn't heard that track before. It dawned on me that those lyrics were from Foot of Pride, an Infidels outtake that appeared on Dylan's first Bootleg Series CD set, Vol. 1-3: Rare and Unreleased in 1991. I still haven't heard that version, but I was quite familiar with it from Lou Reed's rendition of it at the Dylan 30th Anniversary Concert in 1992. A different take of the song is on this set, and it's pretty good. Interesting to hear how it morphed from Too Late into Foot of Pride. 

The liner notes express that every version that appears here has not been released before. So, they differ from the takes and mixes that are also on any other Bootleg Series album. I found it a more engaging and interesting listen than the three albums put together. Shot of Love is hit and miss, and Empire Burlesque is patchy as heck, but Infidels still holds up pretty well. This is a fascinating document of Dylan chasing a particular sound, and the songs come and go as he works towards his sonic goal. Some become different tracks as they develop, some never get fully realised, and others just go the wayside. But what Dylan chooses to include on an album is not necessarily an accurate document of what those sessions entailed. Really enjoyed this! Might be a few more Bootleg Series discs in my future...

The Sixth Time's a Charm for Dylan!

Awrighty, well, it's been nearly five years since I stopped listening to Dylan's albums in succession. Not that I ever stopped listening to him, mind. Still do that plenty. But, I've not revisited the box set of CDs since 2018! Far freaken out! So, I decided to jump back in, me. 

As a footnote to proceedings, in between these sessions Rhona and I watched Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese on the Netflicks. Although it played fast and loose with the truth, the live performances were quite captivating. I toyed the idea of doing a Dylan tribute concert from the era, but it didn't eventuate unfortunately. I did manage to get my hands on the double CD of The Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Bob Dylan Live 1975, The Rolling Thunder Revue though. Together with 1976's live album Hard Rain, it makes for a nice document of that tour. I came to dig some of the versions on those albums more than the studio recordings. I'd always loved the Hard Rain reworking of Maggie's Farm, but I really started loving the performances of A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall, The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll, One Too Many Mornings, Isis and I Shall Be Released (which featured Joan Baez on backing vocals). One wonders what the 14 disc set issued in 2019 contains...

But anyway, on with the albums!

21. BOB DYLAN AT BUDOKAN (1978) (18/1/23)
As is usual for a live Dylan album, a lot of the songs here vary significantly from their studio counterparts. There's reggae influenced takes on Don't Think Twice, It's All Right (arguably the album's low point) and Knockin' On Heaven's Door, along with full band arrangements of Mr Tambourine Man, Simple Twist of Fate, Shelter From the Storm and It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding). The performance of Maggie's Farm is different again from the Hard Rain version, which would have only been two years beforehand. Interestingly, the guitar riff used in this take of I Shall Be Released sounds remarkably similar to the main guitar line repeated throughout Not Dark Yet, from the excellent 1997 record Time Out Of Mind. I found most of it pretty easy to listen to, despite the ravaging it got from the critics at the time of release. Not one to look back, Dylan rarely performs his songs the same way, so I guess we're all a little more forgiving of this now. Well, some of us are. I know what to expect at a Dylan concert. Sometimes you won't recognise a song until the chorus! The clumsy intro of the album's closing track The Times They Are A-Changin' suggest that the band don't even really know how they're going to be playing any given song either.

22. SLOW TRAIN COMING (1979) (21/1/23)
I've hit the run of Dylan albums that I was dreading. They're possibly the reason I put off listening to the rest of the box set. Hmmm, maybe not that possibly. This album, and the following Saved and Shot of Love were released hot on the heels of Dylan's conversion to Christianity. In 1971, he made the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, and was seen at The Wailing Wall wearing a yarmulke. Dylan spouted that he was searching for his Jewish identity, but shortly afterwards he began studying at the Vineyard Christian Fellowship in California. To jump into gospel-tinged compositions that either celebrate God/Jesus, or share lessons from the Bible, must have been fairly alienating for an artist who had never really written faith-based music. And at that, not the faith he had been raised with. Having said that, the music is quite appealing, at least to my ears. 

Recorded at Muscle Shoals studio in Alabama, and produced by Barry Beckett and Jerry Wexler, the production gives most of the tracks a funky groove. The prominent organ paired with the fabulous rhythm section of bassist Tim Drummond (Neil Young, CSNY, Eric Clapton) and drummer Pick Withers (Dire Straits) make for an enjoyable soundscape. A young fella named Mark Knopfler also plays some lead guitar on the record. Dylan had caught a Dire Straits concert and pretty much invited him to be part of his next album straightaway. Little did Knopfler know that it would be the first of three offerings of Christian rock! He would return to the Dylan fold again in the eighties, producing the Infidels album. 

Kicking off with album highlight Gotta Serve Somebody, your ears are drawn to Beckett's keyboard as it permeates the plod of the drums and bass. I'd forgotten that the song came from this album, so it was a nice surprise on my first spin. One of my favourite lines from it is:

"You may call me Terry, you may call me Timmy

You may call me Bobby, you may call me Zimmy"

It just tickles me when Dylan is a little playful, and I love the idea of someone calling him 'Zimmy'. I'd name the title track as another highlight as well, although the official title is shortened to just Slow Train. The only cut that feels like a straight-out gospel song to me is the album closer When He Returns, which sees Dylan almost preaching to a lone piano backing. It doesn't feel overly religious to me, and the musicality makes up for any zealousness in the lyrics. While I was dubious about listening to these albums, I've come away from this one quite pleased. I've even given it a few spins!

23. SAVED (1980) (31/1/23)
Well, this one takes it up a notch, huh? The preachiness increases and the funk lessens. Although Beckett and Wexler return as producers, and the sessions are again at Muscle Shoals, there is a distinct shift in vibe. Tim Drummond remains on bass, but drummer Pick Withers has been replaced by session legend Jim Keltner. Gone are Beckett's funky keyboards as well, with Neil Young bandmate Spooner Oldham tackling the keys. The subject matter is much more biblical, with songs like Covenant Woman and In The Garden, which details Judas' betrayal of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane. Kicking off with a snippet of country standard A Satisfied Mind, the album then launches into the borderline evangelical title track, co-written with Drummond. Yeah, nah. Not one I'll probably ever play again. It's nice that Dylan was happy with his deepening faith, and let's face it, artists are moved by what's relevant to them at the time of writing. But yeah, this isn't why I listen to music. The cover was altered in future editions to show Dylan performing live, rather than the religious illustration on the original.

24. SHOT OF LOVE (1981) (2/2/23)
I found this album much easier to listen to than Saved. Although there are still strong Christian themes in songs like Property of Jesus and the opening title track, but to my ears, it's a little more palatable. The producer is now Chuck Plotkin (Bruce Springsteen, The Cowsills) and the sessions were recorded at Rundown Studios in Santa Monica. As well as the differences in production, there are also several big names contributing to the album. Ringo Starr and Ronnie Wood play on album highlight Heart of Mine, and there are also appearances from keyboardist Benmont Tench (Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers) and guitarist Danny Kortchmar (Carole King, James Taylor, etc.). As such, there's more of a rock feel than an evangelical gospel one. 

Keeping Jim Keltner on the drums, and Tim Drummond on the bass (although the role is shared with Donald 'Duck' Dunn), the last of Dylan's Christian albums trilogy is an intriguing listen, but not unpleasant. One track here I really like wasn't included on the original release (and subsequently, not included in the tracklisting artwork), and I was about to be a little dismayed. Thankfully when the CD player clicked over to track six and The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar fired up, I was a happy man! It was just the B-side for the single release of Heart of Mine, but saw itself included on further pressings and releases of the album. Good thing too! I was only turned on to it via the Rolling Stone 100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs online article from a few years back (No.90, if you're interested). Again there's lines about God in there, but its not preachy. I think that's the big difference here. The other well-known track is the album closer Every Grain of Sand, which came in at No.10 on that list I just mentioned. I don't think I'm as fond of it as some, but it's quite heartfelt and has a similar feel to Forever Young. Rather than giving advice though, he's looking at himself and how he sees God in everything on the planet. It's a nice way for Dylan to end the album, and with it, the Christian influenced period of his songwriting. 

Onto the next few albums! Which will also include The Bootleg Series Vol. 16: Springtime in New York 1980-1985! That set features outtakes and alternative versions from Shot of Love, Infidels and Empire Burlesque. I need to listen to the latter two before cracking the package! Till next time. 

Sunday Morning Albums

My buddy Kieran and I were waxing lyrical on the wonder of the Sunday morning album recently. He offered up the notion that that particular time of the week was optimal for enjoying good albums. But, what makes an album good for Sunday morning? 

I suppose it has to have several things going for it. Firstly, it has to be something that everyone present will enjoy, or at the very least, tolerate. If the music is familiar and well-loved it adds a cosy comfort to the morning atmosphere, but that's not necessary essential. It can be a gamble to try a maiden listen on a Sunday morning and a wobbly aural start to the day can be difficult to shift, if the mood isn't right. 

Ultimately, you want the musical equivalent of a loving hug. Or a welcoming sunrise. Something that seems to promise that today will be a good day. For a lot of people, Sunday morning is a special time, and to have a soundtrack worthy of inhabiting the family's ears is just good sense. It's a time to recharge and reflect on the week that was, while pondering the incoming one.

We always have a big breakfast on Sunday, or as we call it 'Special Breakfast'. Usually that means French toast and hashbrowns for the kids, bacon and eggs for me and Rhones. I tend to add in mushrooms and grilled tomato as well. It's one of the only times we all sit around the dining table together, and we always endeavour to keep it sacred. 

So, for the hour or so I spend in the kitchen preparing Special Breakfast, it's good to have some choice tunes going. I'll ruminate on this subject a bit more in the future, methinks, but for now, I will simply offer up some of my favourite albums to play on a Sunday morning.

*            *            *

Bryter Layter NICK DRAKE (1971)
A lovely, mellow record to throw on the turntable. It even has an instrumental track called Sunday that finishes it off. Drake's voice is quite soft-spoken, which results in a vocal delivery that doesn't intrude. It sits nicely in the background, but you can also sing along when you want to. Big hallmark of a Sunday morning album right there, I reckon. 

Tapestry CAROLE KING (1971)
Another good quality for a Sunday morning album to have is a solid tracklisting. This record is a prime example of the classic adage 'all killer, no filler'. Even when it starts off with the slightly funky I Feel The Earth Move, it's not intrusive. It's a hearty welcome to the morning in the guise of a piano riff. The ballads are certainly more enjoyable on a lazy Sunday, but the upbeat numbers don't make you feel like you should be getting up to clean house or anything.

Fleet Foxes FLEET FOXES (2008)
These guys are getting played quite a bit in our house at the moment. While our son Lachlan and I battle for sonic supremacy, there are a number of bands we both like to play. This is one of them, and this album is wonderful for a Sunday morning. Reverb-drenched vocals and folky music production together with hooks and lovely lyrics. When White Winter Hymnal kicks off, you can't help but hum or sing along. Their second album Helplessness Blues is also a corker. 

Spring and Fall PAUL KELLY (2012)
A fairly mellow affair, this album could also pass for a late night record. Following the loose concept of the start and end of a romantic relationship (the spring and fall, as it were), this has some of Kelly's best work on it. The promise of New Found Year, as the couple celebrate their love together sits well with the jaunty For The Ages. As the tide turns and the themes get darker, the musical production doesn't; it remains light and acoustic. None Of Your Business Now does have a menacing feel, but it doesn't grab you by the throat or anything. The album's closer, Little Aches and Pains, is one of my favourite PK songs ever. 

Feels Like Home NORAH JONES (2004) 
Norah's follow-up to Come Away With Me is a more enjoyable affair, in my humble opinion. There's a relaxed feeling that permeates the whole record, and it seems as though you're just listening to musicians jamming. Everything sounds effortless and easy, much like a Sunday morning should be. Her cover of Tom Waits' Long Way Home is a big highlight, as is What Am I To You?, which features Levon Helm on drums and Garth Hudson on keys.

Apple Venus XTC (1999)
XTC's thirteen studio album, is also their second last effort, sadly. From the opening string plucks of River of Orchids to the haunting final notes of The Last Balloon, this is hugely enjoyable power pop that never outstays its welcome. Again, the upbeat numbers here are never overpowering, and there's an optimism throughout most of the playlist. Your Dictionary being one of the obvious exceptions, but I'd Like That and Easter Theatre are wonderful doses of sunny pop.

Modern Times BOB DYLAN (2006)
Dylan's last album of his critically acclaimed 'Late Trilogy' (along with the excellent Time Out of Mind and Love & Theft), is immensely enjoyable and perfect for a Sunday morning. Although the opening riffs of Thunder on the Mountain threaten to derail the desired free-and-easy atmosphere, the song settles into a steady toe-tapping groove. Even the guitar solos don't grate against you. Rollin' and Tumblin' could also blow the doors off in the hands of another interpreter, but Dylan keeps a lid on his band nicely. Ballads like Workingman's Blues No.2 and Spirit on the Water rank amongst Dylan's best tracks and they certainly help to welcome a new day.

Silver & Gold NEIL YOUNG (2000)
Utilising the mellow acoustic feel of the Harvest, Comes a Time and Harvest Moon albums, this absolute pearler is a joy from start to finish. Songs of love, nostalgia and gentle yearnings. The title track holds strong significance between Rhona and I as well, citing it as one of (if not, THE) 'our songs'. I rank Distant Camera and Razor Love pretty highly as well. Hearing Neil reminisce about his old band on Buffalo Springfield Again is something special too.