Brilliant video! At the height of my Dylan peak in the 80s I doubt I could have sung a word perfect rendition of Desolation Row so fair play to this guy driving and singing MMF. Count me impressed!
Interesting hypothetical scene: Murder Most Foul is a song Dylan wrote and planned to perform as his Nobel Prize acceptance. Just for imagination sake.
Without reading through the last 50+ pages that I missed, I have a theory: I think this song was pieced together over multiple sessions. There's two reasons I think this is the case: 1. People "in the know" insist that this is a Tempest outtake, despite the clear (to some of us, anyway) signs that it's a more recent recording 2. After listening multiple times, I can clearly hear two different piano performances in the mix. So if it's indeed a Tempest outtake, I believe that a basic bedrock performance was either recorded during those sessions and overdubbed-upon more recently, or it was re-recorded completely later. Either way, I think there are two piano parts -- one is basic chords (obviously Bob, driving the cues for the song that the band is following -- you can hear chords rushing before certain downbeats), and one more complex, with arpeggios and fills (likely by another player, and added later, as Bob's piano playing tends to be more rudimentary with some missed notes etc.). I believe that the earlier take was used as a framework, to overdub certain elements later, and then some of the earlier elements were taken out. Were the drums original? possibly. But I think the arco bass and violin (viola?) are from a later take, to properly and confidently follow Bob's cues. And the more elaborate piano was added later. Bob's vocals? Possibly original, but also likely swapped out later. I know this seems antithetical to how Bob likes to work, but this is a unique piece of music that required some care to get right. Anyone disagree with my take?
Analysis by poet and critic Jeff Fallis that Expectingrain linked--worth bookmarking: Camelot Revisited: On Bob Dylan, JFK, “Murder Most Foul,” and the Vacuum in America
An extraordinary essay. Thanks. The tears he mentions twice — I still have them on my walks while listening also. Grins too. This song won’t go away any time soon.
Perhaps you are right. But it is a piece of work by a master and just like people know the worst Shakespeare over most playwrights best works before and since it will be poured over for as long as the name is Dylan is revered which looks to be hundreds of years at least. Then again, every master has crap work. And yet its somehow still a little bit interesting. IMO anyway.
When was the last time anyone who’s not a professional Shakespeare scholar read Timon of Athens? In the real world, people don’t know the worst Shakespeare over Hedda Gabler or Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. I agree that a great artist’s bad work can have some interest, but Dylan doesn’t great a free pass just for being Dylan. Although his batting average is far higher than that of most other songwriters, not every song he has ever written is automatically great just because he is Bob Dylan.
A song like Wiggle Wiggle doesn't automatically become great because it's written by Bob Dylan, but it does automatically become interesting (to me at least) because it's a part of his journey
I never said it was remotely great. I said it was the historical definition of a masterpiece. Here is a dictionary entry. Dylan's new song may or may not be the first way of using Masterpiece, but sure as hell is the 2nd. mas·ter·piece /ˈmastərˌpēs/ Learn to pronounce noun a work of outstanding artistry, skill, or workmanship. "a great literary masterpiece" Similar: triumph a triumph of togetherness" data-hw="triumph" data-lb="" data-tae="false" data-te="false" data-tl="en-US" data-tldf="" data-url="/search?client=safari&channel=mac_bm&sxsrf=ALeKk01tDSLwHRLxW0cIgXaf_u4qVYtQvg:1592140636281&q=define+triumph&forcedict=triumph&dictcorpus=en-US"> coup marvelous feat feather in one's cap wonder sensation outstanding example paragon great work showpiece gem prize tour de force hit knockout Opposite: failure HISTORICAL a piece of work by a craftsman accepted as qualification for membership of a guild as an acknowledged master.
Play "Mystery Train" for Mr. Mystery The man who fell down dead like a rootless tree Oof. Tough words about Elvis there.
So not surprising that gatekeeper "historian" Douglas Brinkley got the big "get" to interview him for The New York Times, and asked him about Murder Most Foul without bringing up, you know, what Dylan says about the assassination. New York Times, still covering up sixty years later--good job, Grey Old Bag
Apologies if this has already been discussed up thread but this "number 1 hit record" is a bit of a stretch. It was a #1 digital download. The #2 song was REO Speedwagon's "Time For Me to Fly" - because it was used on an episode of Ozark.
Just now had the chance to really listen to this. Dang it, Dylan proves he's worthy of his status. Wow.
