Yeah, but I also listened to Skip James, Robert Johnson, Rev. Gary Davis and other rough & raggedy voices expressing eloquence thoughts and intense emotions in their singing. Dylan fits right in with them.
oh this is bollocks.. just plain rubbish...his voice sounds like a kazoo? really? He's evolved and you got off the train cause you don't like it..that is totally fine OF COURSE..but to say that objectively he can't sing...ludicrous.. the voice itself is not the "singing".. its the "sound" . the "singing" part is how you use that voice.. and at doing that Dylan has never been better... its just the "sound" he is working with - how his voice sounds- that is the problem for you. a friend of mine talked about how much he hated his modern voice.. i took her to a show in 1997 in waltham.. she literally started crying during Don't Think Twice... despite his croaking voice it was that intense and well sung (which is why it resonated so much)...
I guess most people I meet have that reaction when I mention or listen to Bob Dylan. I think the average person may not have heard all his work if they are not a fan. That's why I said that. I like his songs and him in general and of course, he has better years for his voice. But there is no one else like him and for me it's not so much about how his voice changed but his songs. I understand your point of view just stating my experience.
Yeah. Remember "that screeching fool," from folkies who wanted the purity and sweetness of Joan Baez' voice from all their singers?
I've finally been able to delve into this set. Forgive me if this has already been spoken about--I can't stop listening to The Best Is Yet To Come. It's in my top Sinatra songs, so I was very interested to hear his version. I'm wondering if this track is one of my favorites on this album because he really starts to sound "rock and roll" in the second half of the song.
Interesting take on Bob and Empire Burlesque from producer Arthur Baker 'Rolling Stone Music Now' Podcast: Making of Dylan's 'Empire Burlesque'
Thanks for the link. The way this was recorded, no wonder the LP has such great vibes. Dylan sure knows how to hire talented people to play on his albums. This has been proven many times over the decades. Sign of a good leader!
This CD sounds pretty damn good to me! I've been getting into this album over the last couple of weeks and there's a lot to go through. I really like it a lot! I enjoy it at night; that's when it sounds best to me. Some of these songs are new to me, but some I knew as my Dad has some Sinatra in his collection and I've heard much of it over the years. Highlights for me so far are: I Could Have Told You; Once Upon A Time; That Old Feeling; My One And Only Love; Braggin'; P S I Love You; September Of My Years...to name a few. However, I quite like the whole thing. As my friend said to me after she heard it, "he sings those songs really well". I agree. This is a labour of love for sure. You have to be receptive of it and in the mood for it but if you liked "Shadows In The Night" and "Fallen Angels" like I did, this one you're bound to like as well. I think this should be the final word in this series of Sinatra themed albums. It's better than I thought it would be but any more of this type of thing and Bob's pushing it. Now I really want to hear a new album of original songs with this "new" lovely voice of his that he's displayed over these last 3 albums. This is deep stuff indeed. Now that I'm 57, these songs are somehow really resonating with me. Even though I had no connection to them when I was younger (save 2 or 3), they really make me reflect and think back on my past. "Once Upon A Time" is breathtakingly gorgeous and really makes me think back to a time about 25 years ago or so. Rolling Stone gave this a nice, fitting review and I'd have to live with this sprawling set a bit longer to really give it a detailed review but for now, that old Bob has knocked one out of the park (and the band is just superb on this, as you'd expect) **** out of 5 Can't wait to see Dylan this July! (As an aside, Wal Mart had 2 copies of this on the Sunday after it came out and they were selling it for $8.00 less than our indie store here that stocks new releases on CD; I'm glad I found it there!)
Greil Marcus Bob Dylan's Book of Love: Thirty Standards That Map a World Sweeter Than We Will Ever Know His writing is somewhat too opaque and elliptical for my tastes. Still, some nuggets in there.
Once upon a time Marcus wrote an indelible, if somewhat misleading, opening line in a review of a set of (mostly) Dylan covers. Now he's written the strangest of last lines for this one..... I suppose he's trying to make a point about what others have praised on these tracks, and that that they haven't paid enough attention to what he takes to be the heart of the matter. Some nice bits in the middle here. As usual, he gets at the unusual affect, the odd persona, Dylan brings to the table. L.
Me too. I agree. Funny and out of nowhere. I'm just guessing he meant it as a little jab at the way some people have tended to praise the arrangements (and the steel guitar in particular) at (I guess he feels) the expanse of the vocal performances. L.
Another "gem" in this collection is the song "Here's That Rainy Day" I just love those chords in it at the beginning of the song. Beautiful and haunting.
I would like an answer on this very question please..I'm considering the vinyl route myself and could prove quite expensive.
This album is such an ear worm. So warm, human, haunting. I keep thinking, am I just being a fanboy? Will I grow out of it? That's a possibility, but, at the moment, I find it profoundly absorbing.
I feel the same - my records sound great. In nice black poly sleeves... It's like if Tom Waits went back to his early 70's schtick and did an American Songbook songlist.
