Dylan.
The mere name conjures up so much that I can't imagine I'll be able to do it justice, let alone to the man and his music. He's a poet and icon. He's the voice of a generation. A magician. A mystic. An enigma. A mystery. He is quite possibly the greatest songwriter of the last 100 years.
And that's just the beginning.
When I first started writing these columns (rare as they are these days) I knew I was going to have to do Dylan. He's one of my favorite musicians. He has been recorded countless times in countless forms. He's huge on the bootleg circuit (he's even got a whole collection of official live albums dubbed The Bootleg Series.) And I personally own many of his concert recordings.
Yet I never could quite get the courage up to write the darn thing. I never got close. In fact I never listened to the music that I could write about. Dylan looms so large, his fans are so...fanatic, that I was nervous to put something out there about him.
I'm not really sure why I'm doing it now, except that it's time.
There isn't really a time when I became a fan of Bob Dylan. He's seems to have always been here, playing his songs. Sometimes he was in the background, strumming softly to himself while I filled my ears with something else. Sometimes I ignored him and labeled him as music for “fogies.” Mostly though, he has been my muse. My poet. My friend.
My first concrete memory of Dylan is playing “Greatest Hits” on my little compact stereo when I was about 16. It was sweet revelation coming out of those speakers. I had never heard music like this. Not really anyways. I mean I had heard most of those songs before – on the radio, in movies and I'm sure my mother had played that record before. But I had finally hit the age where I was paying attention to music. I was beginning to understand what art was, and meant, and this was it.
Dylan was beyond different. He wrote words that had real meaning. He said something real. Something divine. And the music. That music was out of this world. The guitar. The harmonica. And that voice. That Voice! It aint beautiful, but it was magic.
Article comments
1 - Glen Boyd
Great review Mat. As one of those Dylan "hardcores" you reference, I'd only take issue with one thing, and I quote:
Bob's voice is rarely a highlight of his performances...
I have to disagree. What many miss about Dylan's voice when they focus in on its tonal qualities, is the man's sense of phrasing. Absolutely unmatched anywhere in music for my money.
-Glen
2 - Mat Brewster
Fair enough Glen. I'm actually not one of those guys who hates Dylan's voice. It often suits the songs, or at least his performance of his songs, but on certain shows it really irritates me.
I'll stand by what I said as the voice is rarely the highlight of a performance (as opposed to song choice, or the backing band which are often the highlights) but I admit I was taking a bit of a cheap shot.
3 - Glen Boyd
The next time you listen to Dylan Mat, just take note of the way he wraps around a phrase...especially in live performances where he was really "on" (which I'll be the first to admit can be a 50-50 proposition with Dylan). Its as unique in its own way as somebody like Tony Bennett.
Anyway, I still thought it was a great article Mat. Very passionate.
-Glen
4 - Mat Brewster
Thanks. Like I said, Dylan is a guy I knew I had to write about, but struggled trying to get it just right.
Glad you liked it.
5 - Mark Saleski
great stuff mat. dang, maybe i gotta figure out this bootleg stuff.
6 - Mat Brewster
Thanks Mark. It is easy to figure out and I'd be happy to show you the ropes. I warn you though, this stuff creates obsessions, and for a guy like you that might mean the end ;)
7 - Mark of SF
Well the thing is, Dylan always HAS had a lousy voice, but it's always been WHAT he is saying and the way(HOW)he puts it across (yes, his "phrasing") that makes the difference between mediocrity and genius. Obviously! Ohherwise he might have been left back at the gate in 1962 and shot down before he ever began.
8 - save
Good Stuff! I'm also a big Dylan fan and and a possessor of a few of his unofficial bootlegs. I think you did well choosing an era to critique. The early Nineties saw Bob coming out oh his creative hibernation with what amounted to his finest band-I was not real keen on GE Smith et al. Also, when Garcia passed away I think it had a real profound effect on Bob and it showed in a bunch of his shows. Remember he did Friend of the Devil a lot back then as a sort of tribute. I always felt the Dead and Garcia channeled Dylan with a great deal of alacrity and style, go back and listen to those live versions on Cold Irons Bound-almost as if Jerry were standing next to Larry Campbell with a pedal steel up on stage...eerie. Good job, look forward to more of the same.
9 - Mat Brewster
Yeah I was really surprised listening to these disks. In preparation for this post I was listening to a lot of Dylan but kind of skipping over the '90s stuff as I didn't figure it would be any good. Then I just sort of let my ipod play and dug a couple of songs, then went 'oh this is 90s Dylan." And that was that.
10 - Tom Grasty
Matt--
I got a couple bootlegs, too. But it sounds like you guys got me beat on quantity. But listen to this....
I just wrote a novel that I think you are going to dig. It's called BLOOD ON THE TRACKS.
It's a murder-mystery. But not just any rock superstar is knocking on heaven's door. The murdered rock legend is none other than Bob Dorian, an enigmatic, obtuse, inscrutable, well, you get the picture...
Suspects? Tons of them. The only problem is they're all characters in Bob's songs.
You can get a copy on Amazon.com or go "behind the tracks" at www.bloodonthetracksnovel.com to learn more about the book.
And let's stay in touch.