Bob Dylan

 

My history with Bob Dylan begins with only a vague knowledge of him in the 1960s. I was brought up largely on British chart pop, so Dylan sort of passed me by, unlike The Tremeloes or Manfred Mann. 

I first became aware of him properly with the 1973 single Knockin' On Heaven's Door which I bought aged fourteen. Next up for me was On A Night Like This from Planet Waves. Thus began an exploration into his back catalogue that found me seeking out the single releases of Like A Rolling Stone and The Times They Are A-Changin'. I was hooked, line and sinker. Lucky was I that Dylan's next release was Blood On The Tracks. You can't ask for much better for my proper introduction into Dylan's albums. 

Thereafter followed a wonderful journey into the great sixties albums, and Desire, Street Legal and Slow Train Coming. Pretty soon I had everything he had released to date and subsequently bought the new releases as they appeared. I have stuck with him all those years, not as long as some have, of course, but it still seems like a long time. 

There have, as anyone will tell you, been ups and downs along the way, but I can honestly say that on every album, there are always one or two tracks that really do it. It has been a great journey. The man's music has provided a recurring soundtrack in my life Dylan may let one down here and there but let's be honest, the man is a genius, possibly the greatest lyricist popular music has ever known, certainly one of the most innovative, thoughtful, expressive and poetic. 

I can't actually find the words to do him and his work justice. It speaks for itself. I am certainly no Dylanologist, or would ever claim to be. Most of what I say about Dylan is probably horse shit, to be honest. None of us really know what went on in his head, it is endless fun trying to figure it out through his words and music. 

Click on the individual images for in-depth reviews -
Bob Dylan
Freewheelin'
Times/Changin'
Another Side
Bringing/Back Home
Highway 61
Blonde On Blonde
John Wesley Harding
Nashville Skyline
Self Portrait
New Morning
Pat Garrett
Dylan
Planet Waves
Blood On The Tracks
Desire
Street-Legal
Slow Train Coming
Saved
Shot Of Love
Infidels
Empire Burlesque
Knocked Out Loaded
Down In The Groove
Oh Mercy
Under The Red Sky
Good/Been To You
World Gone Wrong
Time Out Of Mind
Love And Theft
Modern Times
Together Through Life
Tempest
Christmas/Heart
Shadows/Night
Fallen Angels
Triplicate
Rough/Rowdy Ways
Basement Tapes
The Band
Before The Flood
Hard Rain
Rolling Thunder
Live at Budokan
Dylan & The Dead
Unplugged
Travelin' Thru'
Trouble No More
Dylan In Mono
The Cutting Edge
More Blood/Tracks 
Tell Tale Signs
Springtime In NY
Fragments
Basement Complete
Another Self Portrait

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