That was wonderful, and so affirming that my lonely obsession is not so very lonely after all. I remember seeing him in 2001 or 2, growling through an opener of "I am the Man, Thomas" and thinking "no metal singer is this terrifying." And the first time post-Sinatra that I heard Love Sick, and understood how he had strengthened his voice, his phrasing, and his ironic wit on those songs, and how Love Sick, always a favorite, now slayed me on the spot. Inexhaustible and unimitable. I often have the wish to MAKE people understand and the realization that no one will.
I didn’t know it at the time, but Charlie Sexton was something special.
Somehow I am disallowed from attachments or links but if you go to youtube and search Bob Dylan atlanta 2002 you’ll hear a gorgeous recording of the show he did a week after I saw him.
Great shit here man. I knew your ending line was coming before I got there because Dylan made me an artist at 16. I heard him and that was it, I knew I wanted to write.
I only hope that when American myth dies with Dylan, it is reborn. It will have to be or we won't make it as a nation.
I too love the past 30 years of Dylan as much as any period of his career and this was a wonderful essay. I have a different take on Time Out of Mind, I hear most of it as somewhat tongue in cheek homages to the blues and him leaning into the persona of the grizzled old bluesman with a bit of a wink.
I personally think Lanois overdid the digital swampiness a little bit on Time Out of Mind that dates the album more than his work on Oh Mercy. I suspect that Dylan came to feel the same way because the production on Love and Theft overcompensates in the other direction and not to the service of the songs, great as they are. Modern Times and his subsequent records nailed the right balance, but unfortunately the CD of Modern Times (which I bought at midnight the day it came out and also received a free promotional t-shirt) was badly brickwalled in the mix to goose sales among younger listeners given that Dylan was featured in an Apple commercial at the time. Call me neurotic, but listening to Modern Times on CD gives me a headache so now I only listen to the mix from the vinyl release.
The Lanois sound is otherworldly on the best songs but I agree I think it gets too samey on some of the more generic blues songs and sometimes wish he would turn down the optimus prime voice filter. It's funny I read the chapter in Lanois's memoir on TOOM and he talks about how he heard some demo of "Can't wait" and was convinced it was going to be a huge hit but could never figure it out in the studio. I have no idea what he could have heard in that song bc it's totally forgettable imo. Agree re L&T/Modern Times, he nailed it on Modern Times for sure.
That's interesting, and explains why there are a number of varied takes on Can't Wait in the bootleg series. Not an album highlight but I like it, the version on the album might be the least interesting one. My cubicle at Columbia Journalism School was right next to the office of David Hajdu, the New Yorker's music critic, I have fond memories of finding him MP3s of Tempest a week or two before its release and talking it over with him.
Thank you so much man, that means a lot to read. Honestly for such a great artist most of the writing on him is pretty bad imo, so the goal w/ this one was nothing less than the stratosphere.
That was wonderful, and so affirming that my lonely obsession is not so very lonely after all. I remember seeing him in 2001 or 2, growling through an opener of "I am the Man, Thomas" and thinking "no metal singer is this terrifying." And the first time post-Sinatra that I heard Love Sick, and understood how he had strengthened his voice, his phrasing, and his ironic wit on those songs, and how Love Sick, always a favorite, now slayed me on the spot. Inexhaustible and unimitable. I often have the wish to MAKE people understand and the realization that no one will.
that late 90s-early 00s NET band is sooo good.
I didn’t know it at the time, but Charlie Sexton was something special.
Somehow I am disallowed from attachments or links but if you go to youtube and search Bob Dylan atlanta 2002 you’ll hear a gorgeous recording of the show he did a week after I saw him.
Great shit here man. I knew your ending line was coming before I got there because Dylan made me an artist at 16. I heard him and that was it, I knew I wanted to write.
I only hope that when American myth dies with Dylan, it is reborn. It will have to be or we won't make it as a nation.
I too love the past 30 years of Dylan as much as any period of his career and this was a wonderful essay. I have a different take on Time Out of Mind, I hear most of it as somewhat tongue in cheek homages to the blues and him leaning into the persona of the grizzled old bluesman with a bit of a wink.
I personally think Lanois overdid the digital swampiness a little bit on Time Out of Mind that dates the album more than his work on Oh Mercy. I suspect that Dylan came to feel the same way because the production on Love and Theft overcompensates in the other direction and not to the service of the songs, great as they are. Modern Times and his subsequent records nailed the right balance, but unfortunately the CD of Modern Times (which I bought at midnight the day it came out and also received a free promotional t-shirt) was badly brickwalled in the mix to goose sales among younger listeners given that Dylan was featured in an Apple commercial at the time. Call me neurotic, but listening to Modern Times on CD gives me a headache so now I only listen to the mix from the vinyl release.
The Lanois sound is otherworldly on the best songs but I agree I think it gets too samey on some of the more generic blues songs and sometimes wish he would turn down the optimus prime voice filter. It's funny I read the chapter in Lanois's memoir on TOOM and he talks about how he heard some demo of "Can't wait" and was convinced it was going to be a huge hit but could never figure it out in the studio. I have no idea what he could have heard in that song bc it's totally forgettable imo. Agree re L&T/Modern Times, he nailed it on Modern Times for sure.
That's interesting, and explains why there are a number of varied takes on Can't Wait in the bootleg series. Not an album highlight but I like it, the version on the album might be the least interesting one. My cubicle at Columbia Journalism School was right next to the office of David Hajdu, the New Yorker's music critic, I have fond memories of finding him MP3s of Tempest a week or two before its release and talking it over with him.
this is so so great man. was going back through blonde on blonde and some of those early 60s albums just earlier today.
Thanks, yeah it is so psycho to see him now and be like "that's the guy who sang 'visions of johanna'." How can one guy have done all that??
i think that’s what makes his work so special… 60 years of original work, all kinds of genre, medium, format… i think he’s the ultimate artist
this is incredible. truly one of the best things i've ever read about Dylan. just made my whole day to see this
Thank you so much man, that means a lot to read. Honestly for such a great artist most of the writing on him is pretty bad imo, so the goal w/ this one was nothing less than the stratosphere.
Thanks for writing it! Just sent it on to all the Dylan heads in my life.
Incredible. But who knows, you might be wrong about this: “The world is too fractured for one person to change things the way he did”
Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams are playing in my little town next month. Dylan adjacent and how lucky I am to witness great artists.
Best music writing I’ve seen since Carl Wilson’s Celine Dion book. Thank you.
Fantastic