30. Bringing It All Back Home - Bob Dylan.
Here we go again. The project has been sidelined by Bob Dylan. I am finding it hard to be enthusiastic about this album, so it has taken a while to sit down and start typing. There are eleven songs and the album runs for forty seven minutes and change. I am finding that I am listening to the first three songs and then my attention is diverting to anything else that is available. As I mentioned before, this guy just doesn't do it for me. But that is part of the fun, right? Here we go...
I knew the title "Subterranean Homesick Blues" before putting on the record, and recognized it instantly. The lyrics seem to be stream of consciousness, phrases that rhyme together, sang in a monotone, with the band chugging along behind. I have no inclination to spend any time at all figuring out what the hell he is talking about. The song is relatively inoffensive, but I'm in no rush to hear it again. Actually, I take that back. I just looked up the lyrics and I get what he's talking about, when I see it written down. Perhaps this is why I enjoy the music when someone else performs it.
Next up is "She Belongs To Me". I actually like this one. His voice and the music are subdued and the lyrics make sense without having to look them up on the internet. For a moment, I feel like maybe I haven't given Mr. Dylan enough of a chance, but then he has to put in that harmonica bit that gives me gooseflesh. It's like nails on a chalkboard to my ears, and I can't seem to get past it.
"Maggie's Farm" probably has some profound meaning to it, but I'm sure Maggie and her brother and mother and whomever else he sings about, won't miss the harmonica playing. This is four minutes of a basic rhythm and Bob shouting or singing out the lyrics about how he works on this farm and is heading to greener pastures. "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" is actually a really nice song. I'm listening to it as I type, I like the music, the beat, even the vocals. And there is the harmonica, while it is shrill, it is not as annoying as in some of the other songs. I get the sense that while recording he would listen to the nearly finished tracks and discover that it was missing something. Seconds later he would smile at the sound engineer and produce his harp from his pocket with a knowing wink and nod.
"Outlaw Blues" is just that, a blues tune that moves forward predictably, there is not much to say about that one. "On the Road Again" has a good groove to it. There is a certain instrument used to create fills that I am not going to mention, to give you, dear reader, a break from my complaining about Bob's goddamn harmonica.
"Bob Dylan's 115th Dream" is notable for my favourite moment on the album. They start into it and burst out laughing. Kudos for leaving that in, Bob. It made me smile, and I'm sure a moment of levity is welcome to the serious listener as well. Some of the lyrics are a little on the down side, and there are few sounds better than heartfelt laughter. The rest of the song is pretty good, he sings about something or other, describing dream sequences with a sense of humour, likely there is some deeper meaning to the lyrics that I am missing. But it has an almost rockabilly feel to it, with some harmonica in there to keep us honest.
"Mr. Tambourine Man" is a classic song. I far prefer the Byrds version, but the lyrics are superb, and his voice is not abrasive like it can be on some of the other tracks. The harmonica actually plays a melody as opposed to sounding like something my three year old daughter would play. "Gates of Eden" features more adventurous vocals than the rest of the album, also some interesting chord changes. There are just under fifteen minutes left on the record, and I am very excited at this point that the listen will be over soon. Two songs to go.
"It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" starts out with some guitar that reminded me of some of the bluesy acoustic Led Zeppelin songs. The lyrics seem to be dark, as the title suggests. This is the longest song on the album at seven minutes and thirty four seconds. The harmonica seems to have been tamed into an occasional train whistle. I'm happy I continued to listen to the album instead of throwing in the towel, as this song is actually quite interesting. I can hear the Who in there as well. This one is probably my favourite song on the album.
The final track is "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue". It's a good one. This song immediately made me think of the Rolling Stones. The album is coming up with a strong finish. Without a doubt, the songs on this album were influential; I have mentioned three monster bands in the last two paragraphs who likely added elements that they picked up from this music to their repertoires. Mr. Dylan is a first rate songwriter, that much is undeniable. The impact of these albums on the listeners and the other musicians of the day is part of what makes Dylan so universally respected. I don't have to enjoy the songs (as performed by him) to realize that he is in the upper echelons of rock music. Rolling Stone ranked this album at number 31 on the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
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