Dylan (1973)

Call him drunken Ira Hayes

He won't answer anymore

Not the whiskey drinking Indian

Or the marine who went to war

1. Lily of the West [traditional] (3:48)

2. Can't Help Falling in Love [Weiss/Peretti/Creatore] (4:20)

3. Sarah Jane [traditional] (2:51)

4. The Ballad of Ira Hayes [Peter LaFarge] (5:10)

5. Mr. Bojangles [Jerry Jeff Walker] (5:35)

6. Mary Ann [traditional] (2:44)

7. Big Yellow Taxi [Joni Mitchell] (2:13)

8. A Fool Such as I [Bill Trader] (2:45)

9. Spanish is the Loving Tongue [Charles Badger Clark] (4:13)

Review: Bob Dylan's 1962 debut album was simply named 'Bob Dylan.'  Then he released an album called 'Self Portrait' in 1970.  Thus, the release of 'Dylan' in 1973 completes a trilogy of sorts: three albums named or quasi-named after the man himself (that the albums are three of his very worst from this otherwise extremely fruitful and productive phase of his career is a different story...).  But whereas the first two albums were Bob's own doing, 'Dylan' was a release by Columbia Records with no input from Bob.  In fact, Columbia released the album knowing that Bob would disapprove - the material is entirely outtakes from his prior two releases - as an act of revenge against Bob for leaving Columbia for Asylum Records.  The album is notorious for being one of the worst released of Dylan's career.

The album starts promisingly enough.  'Lily of the West' is a traditional love-gone-wrong old west ballad, full of revenge and murder.  Dylan does it justice here,  It is a sign of many of the great traditional songs he would cover in acoustic fashion during his Never Ending Tour, especially the early years.  The female choir in the background is a bit much, but overall, a strong start.  Well, only one way to go from here...

'Can't Help Falling in Love' is a song made famous by Elvis Presley.  But Bob Dylan is not Elvis.  This might be a likable goofy sort of take had it remained unreleased.  But it is pretty much a disaster as released.  Bob never quite finds the key throughout the whole song, try as he might.  The female choir doesn't do much to help, nor does the shaky harmonica that leads off the song.  I am not the biggest fan of Elvis, but take it from me: stick to The King here.  Bob's crooning here brings to mind his recent releases of 'Shadows in the Night' and 'Fallen Angels', where he covers tunes made famous by Sinatra.  He does it better in his 70s, with a voice torn to shreds, than he did here.  

'Sarah Jane' is more immediately catchy and soundly within Bob's vocal range.  Sounding very "New Morningish," having fun, and even singing about his family, the song would not have been out of place on that release.  2 out of 3 ain't bad, right?

'The Ballad of Ira Hayes.'  I can't help but think of Johnny Cash's version every time I hear this.  I'm sure Bob got the idea from Johnny too.  Bob speaks the verse and only sings the chorus, straining to reach the notes.  Still, this is not a 'Can't Help Falling in Love' situation where Bob sounds wildly off key.  Here, his straining lends itself well to the bitter, melancholy words about a drunken Indian who fought at war for the United States but was betrayed by the government he protected.

'Mr. Bojangles.'  Seems more fit for the Grateful Dead crowd.  I don't have anything nice to say about this song, so I won't say anything at all.  Unless you are on drugs.  Then you might like this thing. Otherwise its a 5 minute and a half train wreck.  

'Mary Ann' features Bob off key again, but its not a bad song.  I think this is the rare instance on the album where the female choir helps the song, at least during the chorus.  Still, there is just not much here to be interested about.  

'Big Yellow Taxi' is a song we all know.  If not from Joni Mitchell, then from Janet Jackson or Counting Crows.  Certainly an odd choice - Bob would never have released this on his own - Bob gives it a good go here.  

'A Fool Such as I' is another un-Bob-like song.  There's so much going on between the production, the drums, the lead guitar and that constant choir of background singers, it is kind of a mess.  At its best it recalls some of the sillier 'Basement Tapes' numbers, but mostly its just a cacophony.  Again, its obvious why Bob didn't want to release this stuff.

'Spanish is the Loving Tongue.'  Well, we opened on a strong note, perhaps we can end on one too.  Eh ... Decent song, Bob gives it his best, works out not great but OK.  What I find most notable is that this is the one song from the album that Bob played live, during the Rolling Thunder Tour on 1976.  I find those versions superior to this one.  Bob kind of loses the melody, and doesn't quite sing with enough force.  

I'm just proud of myself for finishing this thing.  Lets not dwell on the past but look forward to good things to come: Bob's 1974 through 1976 renaissance, including what in my opinion is his best album of them all!   Stay tuned ... and if you are still wondering, skip this release.  

Rating: 1 / 10 * / **********

Best 3 song run: The first 3.

Song I am most likely to skip: Mr. Bojangles and A Fool Such as I (BOTH)

Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid Soundtrack (1973)

Mama, put my guns in the ground I can’t shoot them anymore
 That long black cloud is comin’ down I feel like I’m knockin’ on heaven’s door

1. Main Title Theme (Billy) (6:05)

2. Cantina Theme (Workin' for the Law) (2:56)

3. Billy 1 (3:55)

4. Bunkhouse Theme (2:15)

5. River Theme (1:28)

6. Turkey Chase (3:34)

7. Knockin' on Heaven's Door (2:32)

8. Final Theme (5:23)

9. Billy 4 (5:03)

10. Billy 7 (2:08)

Review: Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid is a soundtrack album released by Bob Dylan to go along with the Sam Peckinpah film of the same name.  Its unlike any other Dylan album in that it is mostly instrumental, with only 'Billy' 1, 4 and 7, and 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' having lyrics.  The rest of the song functions as background music and little more.  As such, the album cannot be fairly compared with the rest of Bob's catalog.  But, I will attempt to write about the album as per my normal process, because that is what I do here.

'Main Title Theme' is a 'Billy' song without any words (you'll know what that means when you here the other 'Billy's').  It's a fine introduction to the album, and certainly one of the better instrumentals, but the other Billy songs must be judged superior because Bob sings on them.  The song introduces the album themes of acoustic guitars leading the way, backed up by drums and bass.

'Cantina Theme' is a light continuation of the same elements introduced in the first track.  Pleasant country-western background music.

Finally, we get to 'Billy 1.'  Bob is unmistakable on the harp from the beginning of the track, blowing out the melody we will come to know so well on the rest of the album.  The song is 4 minutes long, but it takes nearly halfway through until Bob starts singing.  "There's guns across the river aimin' atcha' ... Billy they don't like ya to be so free."  The song is a forlorn tale of a doomed gunslinger.  Classic Dylan, really.  It's over practically before you know it.

'Bunkhouse Theme' is a slight little ditty, and 'River Theme' is more of the same although on this one we at least get some humming by Bob and background vocalists.  Its a good melody, but its not expanded on much in the context on an album like this one.

'Turkey Chase' features fast fiddling and banjo.  The speed and aggressiveness of the song make it seem a bit out of place amongst the other numbers.

Next we get the legendary 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door.'  The original version too, in all its glory.  Its probably one of the most covered songs in all of rock, with Guns N Roses, Eric Clapton, and Roger Waters among those who have performed it.  What more can be said about it?  The ghostly background vocals, Bob approaching his peak vocally ... it truly is a legendary record.  Bob would go on to perform this song often throughout his years on the road.  It was one of the few recent songs to land on 1974's 'Before the Flood.'  It found its way onto 'Budokan' in a reggae version, and was one of the highlights of 'Unplugged.'  It has since crept in and out of Bob's NET sets.  It is the only song on the album, aside from 1 memorable performance of 'Billy 4' in 2009, that Bob ever played live.

'Final Theme' echoes 'Knockin' on Heaven's Door' but without the lyrics.  A flute creeps out to play lead mid-song.  Not especially memorable.

The song closes with 2 more performances of Billy.  They are different enough that the different versions are warranted in my opinion.  'Billy 4' changes the key from 'Billy 1' and opens with Bob singing the first verse, rather than harp.  Bob's voice is front and center and the backing instruments are kept more in the back compared with 'Billy 1.'  "Billy you're so far away from home" is repeated at the end of the song.  'Billy 7' sounds deliberately slow and lower than the other versions.  The full band comes in just in time to start the closing fade out.

So this is an album of 2 songs, Billy and Knockin' on Heavens Door, and a whole lot of instrumental filler.  Still, there is nothing that can be called "bad" on the album, assuming you are OK with 'Turkey Chase' - its just not really a Bob Dylan album like all the rest.  Its tough to compare any Bob Dylan album with another, but in this case its really tough because of how few original lyrical rock songs there are.  Its not an album I find myself reaching for often, but I always find it very listenable.  On 'Billy 1' I find myself especially impressed with Bob's singing and harping.

Rating: 5 / 10 ***** / **********

Best 3 song run: Knockin' on Heaven's Door - Final Theme - Billy 4

New Morning (1970)

So happy just to see you smile
Underneath the sky of blue
On this new morning, new morning
On this new morning with you.

1. If Not For You (2:39)

2. Day of the Locusts (3:57)

3. Time Passes Slowly (2:33)

4. Went to See the Gypsy (2:49)

5. Winterlude (2:21)

6. If Dogs Run Free (3:37)

7. New Morning (3:56)

8. Sign on the Window (3:39)

9. One More Weekend (3:09)

10. The Man in Me (3:07)

11. Three Angels (2:07)

12. Father of Night (1:27)

Review: Right now, at this moment in time, New Morning is an album that I can relate to.  I am 34 years old, I've been married for nearly 3 years, and I have a 15 month old son.  Bob was a bit younger than me when he wrote the album (29), but the album speaks to Bob's maturing out of bachelorhood, getting married, and spending his free time with his wife and kids.  

The opening song is also the most famous of the album, 'If Not For You.'  Its probably the only song that non-Dylan diehards may recognize.  George Harrison did a very good version of it on his 3LP of the same year, All Things Must Pass.  Its a straightforward lovesong with a beautiful melody and well sung by Bob.  At 2:39, its an almost too-brisk slice of Bob's heart.  Its also the only song on the album to get significant live play from Bob over a long period of time.

'Day of the Locusts' follows up, with the lead piano informing us that this is going to be a piano + guitar, bass and drums kind of album.  Not a bad second song.  Apparently the song is about Bob reluctantly accepting an honorary degree, and apparently David Crosby was the guy whose "head was exploding" in one of the lyrics.  One of the better songs on the album.

'Time Passes Slowly' opens on piano again.  It seems like a half-finished song that needed more melody.  Bob strains to hit some of the notes.  The steel guitar solo halfway through almost breaks down for a few moments,

'Went to See the Gypsy' is a song most Dylanologists agree is about Bob meeting Elvis, or at least imagining to.  Its a decent song, if more touching in my opinion on the solo piano outtake found on Another Self Portrait.  Bringing the full band in for the album cut diminishes some of the power of that beautiful, melancholy last line: "So I watched the sun come rising from that little Minnesota town / from that little Minnesota town."  A rare reference by Bob to his hometown!

'Winterlude.'  More Bob + piano to begin the song.  This is a piano album if there ever was once!  This song begins a slate of 2 of Bob's more unusual songs.  'Winterlude' is a waltz, with love song lyrics. At a brief 2:21, it doesn't overstay its welcome.  The follow up is even stranger.  'If Dogs Run Free' is one of Bob's worst songs to its detractors.  Its jazzy and features a female vocalist doing scat vocals in the back, while Bob speak-sings throughout the song stuff like "If dogs run free, why not we.." and "To each his own, its all unknown ... if dogs run free."  Theres a walking bassline while the piano again features highly in the mix on lead.  A love it or hate it if there ever was one.  Bob resurrected the song to befuddled/amused audiences in 2004.

Luckily we next get one of the best songs on the album, the title track 'New Morning.'  Bob is a bit raspy (for 1970) but overall in fine form as he delivers this love song that takes us out to rural Americana.  "So happy just to be alive, underneath that sky of blue / on this new morning with you." As noted in my introduction, Bob is settling into family life.  This one also got some live play throughout the years - not as much as 'If Not For You' - but it made a welcome resurgence in Bob's live sets in 2005-2006.

Even more so on the next song, 'Sign on the Window.'  Bob explicitly sings of building and living in a cabin, having a bunch of kids with his wife, concluding "That must be what it's all about! / that must be what it's all about."  I'm not the first to realize this, but there seems to be more than a hint of resignation in the repetition of that line.  As if Bob is first say "That's it!  That's what life is about!"  Then on reflection, his intonation is more of "Well, I guess that's what life is about, can't think of anything else..."  And so settling down with a family is more of a double edged sword.

Bob follows this  up with 'One More Weekend,' which is pretty much 'Leopard Skin Pillbox' but not as bold or clever.

Luckily, we get the great 'The Man In Me' next.  This song will be instantly recognizable by fans of 'The Big Lebowski.'  A fairly straightfoward love song, but with some "Bobified" lyrics (catch the one about not wanting to turn into a machine?), it also features fine organ work and some rare "la la la" melodic singing by Bob.  A solid entry that Bob played live, notably in 1998.

The next 2 songs are Biblical, hymnlike works, especially 'Three Angels.'  A choir is well heard in the background as Bob speak-sings his poem.  The closing 'Father of Night' is like a prayer, Bob quickly rattling off his words and pounding away at the piano as a ghostly choir quietly backs it up.

Overall, its an album that is not Bob's best, but probably in his 2nd tier of albums.  Following the odd, inflated 'Self Portrait,' it was something of a comeback.  It produced 2 classics in the title track and 'If Not For You,' and another legendary song to Big Lebowski fans.  The rest of the album is more of a mixed bag, ranging from listenable to very pleasant.  The album has been mostly forgotten, but its a solid entry in Bob's vast catalog.

Rating: 7 / 10 ******* / **********

Best 3 song run: If Dogs Run Free - New Morning - Sign On The Window (this is actually really tough - the great songs are spread out!)

Self Portrait (1970)

All The Tired Horses in the sun

How'm I supposed to get any ridin' done?

1. All The Tired Horses (Bob Dylan) [3:12]

2. Alberta, No. 1 (Bob Dylan) [2:57]

3. I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know (Cecil A. Null) [2:23]

4. Days of '49 (Alan Lomax / Frank Warner) [5:27]

5. Early Morning Rain (Gordon Lightfoot) [3:34]

6. In Search of Little Sadie (Bob Dylan / Traditional) [2:27]

7. Let It Be Me (Gilbert Becaud / Manny Curtis / Pierre Delanoe) [3:00]

8. Little Sadie (Bob Dylan) [2:00]

9. Woogie Boogie (Bob Dylan) [2:06]

10. Belle Isle (Bob Dylan) [2:30]

11. Living the Blues (Bob Dylan) [2:42]

12. Like A Rolling Stone (Bob Dylan) [5:18]

13. Copper Kettle (Albert Frank Bedoe) [3:34]

14. Gotta Travel On (Clayton et al.) [3:08]

15. Blue Moon (Lorenz Hart / Richard Rodgers) [2:29]

16. The Boxer (Paul Simon) [2:48]

17. The Mighty Quinn (Quinn The Eskimo) (Bob Dylan) [2:48]

18. Take Me as I Am (Or Let Me Go) (Boudleaux Bryant) [3:03]

19. Take A Message To Mary (Bryant/Felice Bryant) [2:46]

20. It Hurts Me Too (Dylan/Elmore James/London) [3:15]

21. Minstrel Boy (Bob Dylan) [3:32]

22. She Belongs To Me (Bob Dylan) [2:43]

23. Wigwam (Bob Dylan) [3:09]

24. Alberta, No. 2 (Bob Dylan) [3:12]

Review: Self Portrait is an album that sent shockwaves through the Dylan community.  As covered in recent previous blog entries, Bob went electric, then he went soft country, then he went really country.  But Self Portrait is different in a fundamenatal way from these other records.  When Bob went electric in 1965, the hardcore folkies may have disapproved, but at least most grew to understand  that Bob wanted to go down a new direction.  And if the sound was different, the songwriting and performing was as strong as ever, with 'Like A Rolling Stone' becoming one of the biggest songs in rock history.  With John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline, Bob still seemed like he was trying, he just sounded different, and his song structures and lyrics were less complex.  At worse, they were largely successful genre experiments.  But the release of Self Portrait in 1970 brought about a whiff of "Does Bob really even give a shit?  Does he even care about his music?"

Despite the above warning, Self Portrait is an enjoyable, if uneven, album.  The album is dominated by Bob covering standards written decades earlier (I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know, Let It Be Me, Days of '49, Blue Moon, and Copper Kettle, among many others).  It also contains live performances from the 1969 Isle of Wight festival of Like a Rolling Stone, She Belongs to Me, The Mighty Quinn, and Minstrel Boy.  There are also somewhat bizarre Dylan originals (Wigwam, Woogie Boogie) and adaptations of classic blues songs (Alberta, Little Sadie).  Finally, the album is rounded out with 2 covers of contemporary singer-songwriters (Early Morning Rain and The Boxer).  This is, essentially, a cover album.  The title was either intentional misdirection from Bob to his legion of followers, or a genuine indication of some of his musical influences.

If the album is compared to Bob's previous output, it is obvious the song quality will not match Bob's 60s albums.  So instead, let's examine the album on it's own turns, as it's own entity.

The album opens with female voices singing "All The Tired Horses," refraining the same 2 lines over the same 4 chords for 3 minutes, with string overdubs.  Bob doesn't sing on the track at all.  If you didn't know already, listener, you are not in for your usual Dylan album.

We then get a nice little run of songs, maybe the best on the album even, with the bluesy 'Alberta' giving way to the crooning 'I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know,' the bold 'Days of '49' and a fine reading of Gordon Lightfoot's 'Early Morning Rain.'  'I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know' was resurrected in 1986 as a duet with Tom Petty, one of the few songs first featured on this album to get significant live play from Bob.  'Days of '49' is an adventurous minor key ballad of the days of the gold rush, sung with gusto by Mr. Dylan.  Bob sings on this album in 2 distinct voices: the Nashville Skyline country croon and Bob's "standard" voice in 1970, the New Morning voice that would take over on Bob's next album.

'In Search of Little Sadie' is played and sung pleasantly, but the chord changes border on the obscene.  Bob was certainly in search of something.  On 'Let It Be Me' Bob returns to his Nashville Skyline crooner voice, and the result is a beautiful cover of a love ballad.  This song was also resurrected, in 1981, as a duet with Clydie King on Bob's gospel tour of that year.  'Little Sadie' finds more conventional chords for the tune.  'Woogie Boogie' is a bizarre jam that sounds like it could have come from the Basement Tapes sessions with The Band.  'Belle Isle' and 'Living the Blues' find Bob back on track, singing ballads and blues in varying voices.

Following a countryish 'Like a Rolling Stone' version that can best be described as "tedious," we get one of the finest songs on the album, the moonshine ballad "Copper Kettle."  Another strong, beautiful performance by Bob, backed by lush orchestration.  The folk standard 'Gotta Travel On' follows, a track he would revive with the Rolling Thunder Review 5 years later.  Next we get ... 'Blue Moon.'  Yeah.  Sung in his country croon and played straight by Bob, with backing vocals and string solos.  More interesting is 'The Boxer' as a duet between his 2 voices.  Its one of the more fascinating tracks he's ever released, with its interplay between the 1969 country crooner and the rather weary, "Dylanish" sounding New Morning rocker.

'The Mighty Quinn,' first recorded and made a hit by Manfred Mann, but written by Dylan, is presented here live from the Isle of Wight.  Its a spirited performance, despite a few sound issues, and is one of the few enduring performances on the album.  Next we get 3 sob story covers, the best of which is probably 'Take a Message to Mary,' kind of a variation on the story told in 'Give My Love to Rose.'  'Minstrel Boy' and 'She Belongs to Me' are both from the Isle of Wight Festival as well, and the latter is much more of a crowd pleaser, unsurprisingly, though its not a particularly inspired performance.  'Wigwam' is a weird mash up of brass and humming that is probably a love it or hate it track.  I find it quite charming myself, its got an enjoyable melody if nothing else.  And things are wrapped up with Alberta #2, not all that different from #1, but a good track all the same.

Overall, the album is not as bad as the naysayers would have you believe.  But its not particularly good either.  It fits smack dab in Bob's lower-middle output of albums, above the dregs of Dylan (1970) and Down in the Groove, but lower than the likes of Infidels, Empire Burlesque, and Slow Train Coming for instance.  Its worth a listen.  Then you'll probably want to shelve it for a while.

Rating: 5 / 10 ***** / **********

Best 3 song run: I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know / Days of '49 / Early Morning Rain

Song I am most likely to skip: Like A Rolling Stone (it's the live version from 1969, NOT the original!!!)

Nashville Skyline (1969)

I'll always thank the Lord

When my working day is through

I get my sweet reward

To be alone with you

1. Girl from the North Country (3:44) [featuring Johnny Cash]

2. Nashville Skyline Rag (3:14)

3. To Be Alone With You (2:10)

4. I Threw It All Away (2:26)

5. Peggy Day (2:05)

6. Lay Lady Lay (3:21)

7. One More Night (2:25)

8. Tell Me That It Isn't True (2:43)

9. Country Pie (1:39)

10. Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You (3:23)

Bob Dylan's followup to the barebones, countryish John Wesley Harding was the even more countryish, lightweight Nashville Skyline.  Immediately Bob's voice grabs the listener.  He sings with a honey sweet tone, a radical departure from the nasal whine and sneer he was famous for during much of the 60s.

The album itself is a very pleasant country rock hybrid.  The songs are short and sweet, the whole album clocks in under 30 minutes, and Johnny Cash duets with Bob on the first track.  There may not be many "classics" here in the conventional sense, but the songs are consistently very good.  'Lay Lady Lay' has made it onto many of Bob's greatest hits collections.  Most of the rest of the songs, save the instrumental and 'Peggy Day,' have gotten consistent play from Bob throughout his live tours.  'I Threw It All Away' and 'Lay Lady Lay' both appeared at the Isle of Wight festival in 1969 and on the Hard Rain album of 1976, with 'Lay Lady Lay' also appearing on 1974's Before The Flood.  Many of the other songs would come and go in Bob's "Never Ending Tour" Setlists.

It is a tough album to compare to the rest of his catalogue.  The song lyrics are simple and straightforward love songs.  Gone is the Biblical language and fables as heard on John Wesley Harding, and way gone is the dense surrealism Bob made famous in the mid 60s.  All this coming after a rare year off in 1968 (Bob recorded at least one album, sometimes two, every year from 1962 through 1967).  But the delay is not without good reason: Bob was in a serious motorcycle accident in 1967, then he recorded 'The Basement Tapes' with The Band, which wouldn't be officially released for years to come.

So its not complicated, but that doesn't mean it's not good.  These are great country rock songs performed by professionals (the studio musicians are thankfully given a bit more to do than on John Wesley Harding - an intro here, a fill there).  Bob's voice may shock at first, but its much easier on the Dylan novice than ever before.  He sounds ... normal.  In a career that suddenly began taking a number of left turns, this is one of the most successful.

Rating: 9/10 ********* / **********

Best 3 song run: Lay Lady Lay - One More Night - Tell Me That It Isn't True

Song I'm most likely to skip: None.  The album is 27 minutes!

Song Tiers:

A: Lay Lady Lay, Girl of the North Country
A-: To Be Alone With You, I Threw It All Away, One More Night, Tell Me That It Isn't True
B+: Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You, Country Pie
B-: Peggy Day
C+: Nashville Skyline Rag

John Wesley Harding (1967)

"No reason to get excited,"

The thief, he kindly spoke

"There are many here among us

Who feel that life is but a joke

But you and I, we've been through that,

And this is not our fate

So let us not talk falsely now,

The hour is getting late"

1. John Wesley Harding (2:58)
2. As I Went Out One Morning (2:49)
3. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine (3:53)
4. All Along The Watchtower (2:31)
5. The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest (5:35)
6. Drifter's Escape (2:52)
7. Dear Landlord (3:16)
8. I Am A Lonesome Hobo (3:19)
9. I Pity the Poor Immigrant (4:12)
10. The Wicked Messenger (2:02)
11. Down Along the Cove (2:23)
12. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight (2:34)


Review: Following the trilogy of Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde, which contained many of Bob's most well known, complex, and adored songs he ever wrote, Bob retreated from public view to record his follow up a year later.  Following a famous motorcycle crash (and the recording of The Basement Tapes with The Band, which wouldn't be officially released until 1975), Bob recorded John Wesley Harding in Nashville, Tennessee.

The result could not be more different from his prior albums.  Bob once again put his electric guitar to rest, along with any gimmicks such as the siren on 'Highway 61' or the salvation army brass on 'Rainy Day Women.'  Gone was the absurdism and surrealism as heard on fan favorite tracks like 'Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again' 'Subterranean Homesick Blues' and 'Desolation Row.'  All this is replaced by a set of 12 musically basic songs played by Bob, his rhythm guitar, a persistent harmonica, and the most basic drums and bass.  10 of the 12 songs consist of three verses with no chorus ('The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest' and 'I'll Be Your Baby Tonight' are the exceptions).  9 of the 12 songs clock in at around 3 minutes or less, with only 'I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine,' 'The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest,' and 'I Pity the Poor Immigrant' exceeding this number by a minute or two.  There is a distinct lack of guitar flourishes or solos of any length.

All this is to say that John Wesley Harding does not seem like it would be a success.  These are not protest songs a la 'Blowin in the Wind' and 'The Times.'  So what is this stuff?  Basic three verse song structures, countryish-folkish rock with Biblical themes often sounding like parables or fables.  The aforementioned harmonica leading the sound during intros and between verses.  'All Along the Watchtower' of course is the most famous song here, thanks to Jimi Hendrix' blistering hard rock take on it.  Bob certainly respected that cut, as can be heard in his myriad live versions of the song.  In fact many of these songs have since gotten the full rock band treatment, notably 'Drifter's Escape,' 'The Wicked Messenger,' and 'As I Went Out One Morning' (the latter for one magical take in 1974, at least).  Others have stayed truer to the album cuts, such as 'Dear Landlord,' 'St. Augustine' and 'Frankie Lee and Judas Priest.'  'I'll Be Your Baby Tonight' has also become something of a fan favorite, somewhat surprising given its straight ahead saccharine sweetness.

Back to the album proper.  Its a fine listen, if a bit simple for the man who gave us 'It's Alright Ma' and 'Like A Rolling Stone' just 2 years earlier.  In this way the album is a sign of things to come for Bob - when you think he's settled down, he changes up his style once again.  My only real complaint about the sound is that the harmonica can be grating.  He could have left it off a few of the tracks in my opinion and let the band add some fills.  The melodies are pleasant.  The lyrics are dense but not as immediately gripping as those on Bringing it All Back Home et al.  Aside from the aforementioned 'Watchtower' and 'I'll Be Your Baby,' the other songs that make a definite impression are 'Drifter's Escape' and 'St. Augustine.'  The song construction itself is repetitive - 'Frankie Lee' makes an impression because it exceeds the 3 verse limit on the rest of the songs by about 15 verses.  'I'll Be Your Baby' is exciting because it contains a bridge in addition to the verses.  The rest of the songs, while not bad, are predictable to a fault after a couple listens.  But still, this is Bob near the top of his powers.  The lyrics and melodies are strong enough to make for a very solid album, which sounds even better considering Bob's next several releases.

Rating: 7 / 10  ******* / **********

Best 3 song run: As I Went Out One Morning - I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine - All Along The Watchtower

Song most likely to skip: I Am A Lonesome Hobo (dishonorable mention: I Pity The Poor Immigrant)

Song Tiers:
A: All Along The Watchtower
A-: I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
B: As I Went Out One Morning, I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine, The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest, Drifter's Escape, The Wicked Messenger
B-: Dear Landlord, John Wesley Harding
C: Down Along the Cove, I Am A Lonesome Hobo, I Pity the Poor Immigrant