He Walks Among Us (Bob Dylan in general)

Member Name: Robin_Hod12

Product:	Bob Dylan in general
Date:	29/01/09 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Greatest Musical Artist Ever

Disadvantages: None

Many of you may have read some of my reviews of the albums by the artist that this review will hopefully show to be the greatest musician to have lived, and from them I hope that I give some indication of the canon of Bob Dylan and the quality of his work from his debut in 1961 with his self-titled Bob Dylan to the recent number one album Modern Times. Some musicians inspire the generation that they live in, but few have the ability to inspire and encapsulate multiple generations, which is something that is key in the quality o Dylan, he is able to get to the heart of something and provide it in a medium that can reach anyone. Many people can't quite grasp what it is that so enthrals his fans and some are put off by his distinct style and ability to surprise and confound both his fans and critics. He is a man for all seasons, with a musical history that takes from anything the human mind ca draw upon, whether that be musical or otherwise. Joan Baez once said of him during her interview for No Direction Home, a biographical account of Dylan's first few years in the spotlight, "He draws upon every part of human experience" and this is something that can be seen through the vast discography of the great man.
His first musical experiences came not from folk music, but in fact rock and roll, with a band in his hometown of Duluth, Minnesota. According to some reports his band played during a school talent show, but was forced to leave once the plug had been removed from their instruments after the principal viewed the music as being too loud and animalistic. But this was soon to change as Dylan heard Odetta on the radio singing, and knew he wanted to become a folk singer, instantly trading in his electric guitar for an acoustic one. Thus began the musical story of Dylan, the young musician began to absorb the work of a huge number of acts that he heard on the radio. He became a prolific learner and coverer of songs, and once said of himself that he could hear a song once and then would be able to play it straight off. Whether this is true or not will be left unknown and by any respects, he consumed a vast array of tracks that would later influence his musical development and lead him in his career.
During this period he was a restless child, tired of School and the enclosed nature of the small mining town, and is said to have ran away from home on numerous occasions. And because of this he is said to have visited a number of large cities, allowing his hunger for success and musical development to grow. But from this he eventually found Woodie Guthrie, a folk singer of the 30s and 40s whose influence on early folk music is vast. He become obsessed with him, and after reading his biography, he knew that he had to meet him. And so it was that a young Bob Dylan left home and went hitch hiking to find his idol Guthrie. He eventually found him in Brooklyn State Hospital, where he was being cared for after being diagnosed with Huntington's disease. He played for his idol and visited him intermittedly. Around the same time Dylan came to Greenwich Village, where he was formally introduced to the folk movement there and the beatnik culture that thrived there.
This was truly the beginning of the Dylan legacy and is where he began to gain some recognition. His main haunt was Café Wha!, where the likes of Hendrix also played early in their career. From this he was seen and recommended for a recording contract by John Hammond of Columbia records. His first album named simply Bob Dylan was greeted with rather poor sales, and by some accounts sold less than one copy for every record store that stocked it. But due to Hammond's successes in the past, Dylan was kept on and was given the backing for a second album when the lyricism of Dylan was fully realised. His first album was made up mainly of covers of traditional songs, with only two self-penned songs, Song to Woodie Guthrie and Talkin' New York, both of which are good songs in themselves but only hint at what was yet to come.
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, his second album was a far greater success both commercially and critically, gaining recognition from the likes of the Beatles, who are said to have had it on a constant loop for many days. This produced a number of big songs, namely Blowin' in the Wind, Masters Of War and A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall, all of which are now seen as some of his best works of his 'folk stage'. For me, this is a truly monumental album and really set the bar for political song writing and the civil rights movement. And it is from this that he was hooked up with Joan Baez, another famous folk singer of the time, and began to tour with her throughout America.
His next album was to be his last truly political outing and showed a more mature, less humorous side of himself, with the majority of the song s involving events of the time that struck a cord for the civil rights movement and were seen as the main evils of the current America. Thus The Times They Are A'-Changin' is Dylan at his most political and finger pointing, writing songs that would go on to boost the protest movement and become anthems for the oppressed youth. In a world were everything seemed to be going to pot, Dylan was seen as the spear head and the leader of this great youth movement. But this is something that Dylan could never cope with and is something that has come up in a number of times in his career and sparked some of the more eventful chapters in his life. This can be first seen in his next album Another Side of Bob Dylan, the title of which he thought was too much of stating the obvious, where he dropped the political slant and penned songs that were more personal and related more to relationships, a theme that would dominant his career. The album was greeted with mixed reviews, as some feared that his move away from a political conscience would be a ruinous blow for the folk movement, as his songs were now the main backing track for the riotous youth of America.
Following this came his electric period, where he showed the world his roots in blues music and showed that he wasn't just one trick pony. The next three albums were hailed as one of the greatest trilogies of albums ever, consisting of Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. The first of these albums consisted of a side of electric songs and a side of acoustic pieces, which did focus on the political, but took a much more metaphorical and lyrically superior tone to his previous pieces. The electric music was seen as an outrageous turn around by the traditional folk community, with many saying that he was a traitor to folk music, the 'true and pure music'. Despite this, this is one of the best albums he made, although a few of the electric songs would not see proper realisation and refinement until his next outing.
Highway 61 Revisited is often seen as Dylan's best work and I would be entitled to agree with this opinion, consisting of mainly blues based songs that deal in more abstract and obscure lyrics and vocals than the rest of the music community. This album was something new and astounding, and contained a song that was voted by Rolling Stone magazine as the greatest song ever, Like a Rolling Stone, which can't be a bad honour to have. The next album Blonde on Blonde took some of the work from Highway 61 Revisited and took it a step further, delving more into the human consciousness and the nuances of relationships and the female, with such classics as Visions Of Johanna and Just Like A Woman contained with in. It also included his most exploratory piece to date, a song that was longer even than Desolation Row, a classic in its own right, Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands, an eleven minute epic that delves into the heart of the emotions Dylan had for Sara Lownds.
At the same time as releasing these three albums, which came out over a period of one-and-a-half years, Dylan began an epic tour of Europe, where he played a gruelling schedule of concerts, taking in everywhere from Britain to Italy. But after this, Dylan needed time to relax and get back to the world, and he decided to spend his time in New York with Sara, but tragedy struck when he crashed his motorcycle and was required to take a break away from music, which was just as well, as his then manager Albert Grossmann had planned for him to take another tour through America shortly. During this break, he stayed with his touring band, which would become the excellent, The Band, in Woodstock for some jamming and relaxing in the big pink, a house that one of the band members owned. This would result in The Basement Tapes; a collection of tracks from these sessions released in 1976, and is a good listen for anyone interested to see the transition from Blonde on Blonde to John Wesley Harding, which would be his next studio album.
John Wesley Harding, which was not correctly spelt, as the 'R' should not be included, was a complete change in style for Dylan and was the start of Dylan's habit to shock and surprise his audience, going where he wanted to go and not following the crowd. The album was a more country style of album and possibly reflected his retreat away from the limelight in the country with his family. This was then followed up by Nashville Skyline, an album that can comfortably be described as a country album, with Dylan sporting a new vocal style, apparently brought on by a brief spell in which he gave up smoking. This album was not greeted with great aplomb, and the same is true for John Wesley Harding, but both are good albums and show another side to the folk and electric Dylan.
Then comes probably Dylan's most controversial album, Self Portrait, a double album, to which a Rolling Stone Magazine writer wrote, "What is this shit?" This I feel is an over exaggerated response, and the album itself does contain quite a few good songs, and includes a few from his set at the Isle of Wight festival, which are gems. The album was apparently a response to the spokesman for a generation tags that had been flying around and the trouble that he was having with fans invading his privacy. Thus in an effort to try and get them off his back, he decided to make an album that they wouldn't get, something that would show he didn't have all the answers. But whatever the true reason was, the result was not quite that.
Due to the poor response to this album, whether intended or otherwise, Dylan's next album was rushed out and New Morning was given out as a new Dylan, throwing off the shackles of his previous work, and making a very laid back album that I feel is one of his happiest, along with Planet Waves. But this is a good album and is oft overlooked in this period of Dylan. Then came a very long period of inactivity, with Dylan waiting two-and-a-half years before his next album, Pat Garret and Billy the Kid, which was in fact a soundtrack to a film. This contained several instrumental pieces and is a beautiful sounding album, containing some great instrumentation from Dylan and his backing group, which also contains the eternal hit Knockin' on Heaven's Door.
Then came a rushed album of outtakes from New Morning and Self Portrait, which was released by Columbia after Dylan moved over to another company for his next true studio album, although after this he returned once his differences with the company were resolved. This is a rag-tag sounding album that should only really be considered for a couple of songs which are highlights, such as Spanish Is the Loving Tongue. Planet Waves though, is a great album and is his reconnection with The Band, for one of his happiest albums, which is mainly filled with love songs. This is a good album and contrasts well with the more sparsely produced and morose next offering.
After a run of only mildly praised albums, Dylan's releases one of his definitive records, Blood on the Tracks, an album which tries to deal with his recent divorce from Sara Lownds. The album is a masterpiece by anyone's standards and contains songs that will stand as song of his best lyrically and musically. I love this album and I would recommend it to anyone that has any vague interest in the man, which I would hope you would after reading this far.
After this, I have always felt that Dylan was confused of his purpose and his constant change of direction musically appears to be a sign of this. His next offering Desire, is a more narrative album, that looks at the stories and lives of other's, but contains another very obvious song about his former partner, Sara, is one of the most endearing and heart wrenching songs ever written and should be listened to by anyone with an interest in the life of this great man. Then comes his 'Las Vegas' album, although I feel that this is a bit demeaning to a great album, Street Legal, which sits as a cross roads in Dylan's career, after his divorce and before his move to the born-again Christian.
Thus, Dylan releases a string o three religious albums, Slow Train Coming, Saved and Shot of Love. These are often overlooked by fans and critics as overtly religious and as such stay away, but this period reveals some of his best lyrics in Every Grain of Sand, I Believe in You and Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar, being but a few examples. But following this, Dylan released the more secular return to form Infidels, which returns to some political and social commentary, including some of his best work since Street Legal, although looking at some of the unreleased songs from the Bootleg Series, this could have been one of the greatest albums ever made, but that's the decision Dylan made and we now have them on other albums instead.
We come to another trilogy in the life of Dylan, the weaker eighties trilogy, Empire Burlesque, Knocked out Loaded and Down in the Groove. In truth, these are perfectly good albums and songs like Brownsville Girl shows some of Dylan's best lyrics and show up as highlights of his entire body of work. But looking at the standard of some of his other works, these are not to be considered his crowning achievements, although I would recommend Empire Burlesque highest among these three simply for its more interesting songs, although the aforementioned song from Knocked Out Loaded is the highlight of the trilogy and it is worth buying the album just for the song.
Oh Mercy brings Dylan back to more common ground and gets rid off some of the horrible synth sounds of the previous album; this murky, swampy album is again hailed as a return to form and contains his best work since infidels. This is no Blonde on Blonde, but it is a very good album in all respects and starts Dylan's revitalisation nearing the new Millennium.
Under The Red Sky though seems to be a step backwards, and I feel is one of his weakest efforts, containing songs that are very much nursery rhymes, and as such this isn't really his best showing, really for completeists only. But then Dylan come sin with his acoustic era, with two back to back solely acoustic albums, Good As I Been To You and World Gone Wrong, which consist entirely of covers of traditional songs. These are beautiful albums and should be considered vital in any respectable Dylan collection, showing off the influences of Dylan and his ability to put songs in a new light.
Then we finally come to Dylan's final trilogy of albums, Time Out Off Mind, "Love and Theft" and Modern Times. These are some of his best works, notably Time Out Of Mind, which is up there with the likes of Blood on the Tracks and Blonde on Blonde. It shows a continuation of the sounds formed in Oh Mercy but taken further and are quite literally mind blowing. This is a must for any Dylan fan and contains the epic Highlands, which is Dylan's longest song at sixteen minutes long, but a humorous and ambling look at Dylan's love of the highlands. "Love and Theft" shows his ability to take ideas and make them his own, taking them from old rock and roll songs, as well as literature and folk music, but despite this, the album has a unique sound. It is often seen as an archaic sound, which is fair, as it takes form older song structures and builds on them. Modern Times is his most recent album and just shows how much Dylan is able to adapt, providing him with a number one, which gives him a record as the oldest person to gain a number one record. It is a great album that continues the sounds and feels of the other two albums.
This has been a whistle-stop tour of Dylan's career thus far, although I have excluded many things, such as the tours, like the Rolling Thunder Revue and the Never Ending Tour, but then his main presentation as an artist is within his studio albums and that is where I have placed my focus. I may expand this later, but at the time of writing, I think I shall leave this here. Thanks for reading and I hope that this either increases your enthusiasm for Dylan or introduces you too him, as he is quite literally the greatest artist ever to live.

Summary: Just Give Him A Listen And Hopefully You Will Understand