Bream - Dylan: Disc by Disc

DISC BY DISC

JON BREAM

INTRODUCTIONS TO THE ALBUMS AND LINER NOTES
BY RICHIE UNTERBERGER

First published in 2015 by Voyageur Press, an imprint of Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc., 400 First Avenue North, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA

2015 Quarto Publishing Group USA Inc. Text 2015 Jon Bream Introductions to the albums and liner notes by Richie Unterberger

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Digital edition: 978-1-6278-8697-0

Hardcover edition: 978-0-7603-4659-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Bream, Jon.

Dylan : disc by disc / Jon Bream ; introductions to the albums and liner notes by Richie Unterberger.

pages cm

Includes index.

ISBN 978-0-7603-4659-4 (hc)

1. Dylan, Bob, 1941---Discography. 2. Dylan, Bob, 1941---Criticism and interpretation. I. Unterberger, Richie, 1962- II. Title.

ML156.7.D97B74 2015

782.42164092--dc23

2015002775

Acquiring Editors: Dennis Pernu and Todd R. Berger

Project Manager: Caitlin Fultz

Art Director: James Kegley

Cover Designer: Amelia LeBarron

Page Designer: Brad Norr

Layout Designer: Erin Fahringer

On the front cover: Bob Dylan by Amelia LeBarron

On the frontis: Posin at the Savoy in London, 1966. Fiona Adams/Redferns/Getty Images

On the title page: Taking musician John Sebastian for a ride in Woodstock, 1964.

Douglas R. Gilbert/Redferns/Getty Images

Eric Andersen

Nicole Atkins

Kevin Barents

Jim Beviglia Lin Brehmer

Jonatha Brooke

David Browne

Marshall Chapman

Robert Christgau

Charles R. Cross

Rodney Crowell

Anthony DeCurtis

Kevin J. H. Dettmar

Daniel Durchholz

Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Jim Fusilli

Holly George-Warren

Janet Gezari

Tony Glover

Gary Graff

Geoffrey Green

Joe Henry

Geoffrey Himes

David Hinckley

Frances Downing Hunter

Jason Isbell

Garland Jeffreys

Peter Jesperson

Joe Levy

Alan Light

Ron Loftus

Alex Lubet

Evelyn McDonnell

William McKeen

Don McLeese

Dennis McNally

Paul Metsa

Tom Moon

Ric Ocasek

Kevin Odegard

Ike Reilly

Kim Ruehl

Robert Santelli

John Schaefer

Joel Selvin

Bill Shapiro

Colleen Sheehy

Wesley Stace

Ahmir Questlove Thompson

Richie Unterberger

George Varga

Suzanne Vega

Dan Wilson

David Yaffe

Paul Zollo

T hanks to

First and foremost, all the commentators for their time, preparation, and insights; Dennis Pernu for helping to conceive this project; Todd R. Berger and Richie Unterberger for helping to see this project through with the publishers new vision; James Kegley for the design, and the rest of the staff at Voyageur/Quarto for their efforts; Lisa Dahlseid and Jeff Day for their efficient, accurate, and tireless transcribing and fact-checking; Randy Alexander, Marshall Chapman, Kevin Daley, Anthony DeCurtis, Holly Gleason, Lorna Graham, Jim Grant, Ilona Hmelnicka, Claire Jeffreys, Peter Jesperson, David Kinney, Alan Light, Dennis McNally, Steve Morse, Amber Newton, Carol Rothman, Bob Santelli, Colleen Sheehy, Traci Thomas, Alan Wolmark, David Yaffe, and Zarah Zohlman for helping to connect with the commentators; Don Sullivan for concerts; Dick Cohn and Marc Percansky for the stories; my Star Tribune colleagues Kate Parry, Tim Campbell, and Chris Riemenschneider for their support; Nancy Barnes for the Minnesota Profile; Ken Abdo for his counsel; Jan for her tolerance, advice, love, and muffins; Andrew for web mastery, tech support, tolerance, advice, love, and making me proud of him; Shookie for listening to every Dylan album and quietly sitting on my lap for parts of most of the discussions; and last and certainly most important, to Bob Dylan for the words and music that we cant stop listening to and talking about.

Performing on BBC-TV, 1965. Val Wilmer/Redferns

INTRODUCTION

T hirty-six studio albums. 406 songs. Fifty-five opinionated experts. And me.

People have been debating Bob Dylan for decades. Is he the voice of a generation or an unlistenable voice? Theres no question that he is the most revered and influential American songwriter to emerge since 1960. There is not a bigger giant in the history of American music, President Barack Obama said when presenting Dylan the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012. But Dylans singing voice is another storyat times raspy, nasally, unpolished, and, more recently, ragged, gravelly, and croaky. For better or worse, the sound of his voice has been as distinctive as his songs. Admirers embrace his voice as wise and knowing, with phrasing that can be either studied or freewheeling depending on his mood. Detractors complain that, especially in concert, hes undisciplined in his enunciation, unconcerned about melodies, and unwilling to warm up to clear his phlegmatic throat before he takes the stage.