IT'S A GAS, GAS, GAS!!
MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVES/WEEKLY ROCK POLL POST
Return to Gasx3/Poll Post Board Homepage
Name: Travellin' Man
E-Mail:
Subject: A word or two (or 500) about Bob Dylan nsc
Date: Friday, February 20, 2015
Time: 12:37:58 AM
Remote Address: 71.171.25.83
Message ID: 292173
Parent ID: 0
Thread ID: 292173
At the extremes there are those who think Dylan is Godlike as a songwriter and lyricist, and those who have no use for him because they feel he simply cannot sing. For what it is worth, here is my take on Robert Zimmerman, after studying his music and sometimes, Bob and his band, up close, since 2004. (Keep in mind I have a local friend I hang out with, who says with a smile, "Bob is God." So I have heard his career spanning music almost as much as the Stones in the time period between 2004 to the present.)
Bob Dylan is an odd fellow. As unique as a black diamond. He is mysterious, partly by design, and largely due to the fact he is in his own world, and in that world, and our world, he is a fiercely independent thinker.
He never stands pat and even to this day he will change the arrangement and pace of some of his best known songs when he plays them live. Is he trying to improve those songs? I don't think that is the point. (Though sometimes these changes have delicious results musically.) I think he is simply a creative person who can never stop creating. He is the walking definition of the word, "prolific". His body of work in the studio alone is testimony to that fact.
His tours are called, "The Never Ending Tour".
Yet prolific does not mean every song he ever wrote was brilliant and full of profound meaning. I don't hear that from Dylan at all in many of his songs. In fact, the majority of Dylan songs overall do not truly appeal to my senses or my mind. (Please remember he has recorded as many songs as our Stones.) It is rare I hate a Dylan song but the majority of his songs are not anything special to me. (Please remember 51% is all required for a majority. Though regarding Dylan, about 60% of his songs are to me, worth listening to but not worthy of high praise. Yet here is the thing about this guy. When he hits it he hits it like nobody else regarding lyrics. His words are poetic and powerful. He has something profound to say. And sometimes the song as a whole works magnificently. I wish the studio version of 'Masters Of War' had turned out better musically. For the lyrics are not limited to an era, in this case the Vietnam War. It is a timeless masterpiece on War regarding nearly all wars, with some exceptions, which have been fought, why they were fought and who fought them. Rich, powerful men sending young men of modest households to fight and possibly die in a War which is not directly for the freedom of the country, yet it is slanted as such. His greatest songs share that same timelessness regardless of the topic. Songs about every topic imaginable it often seems. And Dylan has been a master of writing songs which mean different things to different people too. He invites you to use your own imagination to complete the story of the song.
Songs like 'Forever Young', 'It Ain't Me Babe', 'Shelter From The Storm', and a hundred more have that timeless quality so often missing in other artists songs.
I think Dylan sang just fine from the early '60s through the '70s. My favorite album is 'Blood On The Tracks', from '74, I believe. It has it all including his best singing.
No Frank Sinatra for sure, he could punch a word or a syllable to give extra meaning to the words he sang, and in my mind, make up for notes or range he lacked. Not crazy about his singing in the majority of the '80s but along the late '90s his voice became consistently deeper and very interesting. It gained an authoritative quality which it had previously lacked.
Bob Dylan, in general, is interesting, and thankfully quite often had something unique to say through song. Yet he remains, and will likely always remain, something of a mystery to even his most devout fans.
Everybody should have some Bob Dylan in their collection. 'The Essential Bob Dylan' which has many of those timeless songs on it, would be a good place to start. But his greatest album is, 'Blood On the Tracks'.
Your thoughts are welcome.
Note: Do not hit the "Post Message" button more than once, even if it is taking a long time to post your message. Doing so may cause a double post to appear and could slow down your posting time even more.
Download your free, customizable Burton Networks Message Board now!
© 1998 - 2022 by Keno Internet Services, except where otherwise noted. All rights reserved.