The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Are you looking to buy The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence? Here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence. Check out the link below:

>> Click Here to See Compare Prices and Get the Best Offers

The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence ReviewI've overdosed on Bob Dylan books (have read over 50 of them) to the point where I haven't read one in a couple years. Most discuss interpretations of Dylan's songs from the author's viewpoint (no better than yours when it comes to Dylan), others rehash biographical information that's been around for years. So I almost passed on this excellent book by Derek Barker; I sure am glad I didn't. What pushed me into buying it that I have a great interest in Bob's live performances of traditional and folk covers that he did in the late 80's and early 90's, like the songs from "Good As I Been To You" and "World Gone Wrong", but not limited to just those on the albums. In what is arguably the nadir of Dylan's live shows (where he often butchered his own songs) he would throw in these amazing chestnuts like "Lakes Of Pontchartrain", "Trail Of The Buffalo", "Eileen Aroon", "Barbara Allen" and many others. Many of these covers were only performed once or a few times. If you listen to the live recordings from this half decade you can find this gold amid much other dross. What this book did for me is illuminate the history of all these songs, and every other cover song Dylan recorded or played live. It tells who wrote the original song, where Bob probably heard them and when he played the song live (or at least the first and most recent time). For the hardcore fan this is completely fascinating. It had me pulling out my spindles of live cd's hoping that I had some of these recordings. Quite a lot of us like Dylan for his voice, not in spite of it. Bob Dylan is a great singer and, amazingly enough, these non-Dylan songs are a big part of Bob's legacy. The work in this book is meticulous and obviously a labor of love. It covers almost 50 years! Only someone who has lived and breathed Bob Dylan for decades would care or dare to take on this project and Derek Barker does it admirably.The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence OverviewEncyclopedic and exhaustive, this guide to the more than500 songs Bob Dylan has covered, in concert or on record, details the history of each song and offersan explanation of how he came to perform them. His masterful interpretations range from the more obvious blues, country, folk, and gospel recordings to contemporary writers such as Warren Zevon and John Hiatt. In addition to the listing of these covered songs, this compendium also includes a lengthy section detailing all of the remaining tracks that Dylan has written for others, but which remain unrecorded by the man himself.

Want to learn more information about The Songs He Didn't Write: Bob Dylan Under the Influence?

>> Click Here to See All Customer Reviews & Ratings Now

Read More...

Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Are you looking to buy Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited? Here is the right place to find the great deals. we can offer discounts of up to 90% on Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited. Check out the link below:

>> Click Here to See Compare Prices and Get the Best Offers

Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited ReviewClinton Heylin's revised edition of Behind the Shades is, at this point, the definitive Dylan biography, and is not likely to be surpassed anytime soon. In spite of it's comparative neglect in relation to Sounes' Down the Highway (published almost simultaneously, to coincide with Dylan's 60th birthday), Heylin's book is a more informative and rewarding book.
In tone, Heylin's writing is not as journalistic as Sounes', and more judgmental of Dylan as artist and musician. It draws heavily on interview material with associates and friends of Dylan's, and is significant in giving detailed attention to Dylan's career in the 80's and 90's, which is necessary for anyone seeking to understand Dylan's recent critical resurgence.
Based on his knowledge as the world's pre-eminent Dylan scholar, Heylin gives extensive commentary on Dylan's albums and their recording, a process he has given even greater attention to in his companion book Bob Dylan: The Recording Sessions (1994). This is one of the major differences between Heylin's book and Sounes'. Sounes does not focus so much on Dylan as a musician or even Dylan as a lyricist. Sounes' biography is more, well, biographical, providing tons of anecdotal accounts of Dylan's life and travels, while missing the point - Dylan matters because of his music and his lyrics above all else. His life, so cloaked in mystery and seclusion, is a mystery, and will remain so. A recording artist is ultimately most communicative through their recordings - through what they are, what they're not, and how they are presented to the artist's audience. Sounes attempts to fill in the mystery of Dylan's life, which is ultimately an impossible task, at the expense of communicating any real understanding of his music.
Heylin's biography is also superior in that it draws on an extensive knowledge of Dylan's unreleased recordings. When dealing with a subject whose own officially released canon is so often poorly representative of his recording career, Heylin's knowledge is wide-ranging and intensely critical. An informed and considered discussion of Dylan's unreleased recordings, which are in many cases superior to those he has chosen to issue, is especially important when examining Dylan's 1980's output, a series of albums sometimes marred primarily by the choices of which songs and takes of songs to include on the released albums. Sounes barely acknowledges the existence of important unreleased recordings, and that diminishes the importance of his biography considerably.
Sounes' one trump over Heylin's biography is the much-publicized revelation of Dylan's second marriage. How important this biographical detail is to understanding or appreciating Dylan's music, however, is very debatable. If you are looking for an easily-readable, readily-digestable account of Dylan's life with little detailed discussion of his music, go for the Sounes bio. Otherwise, Heylin's Behind the Shades, especially in its new revised edition, is the real deal and is the preeminant Dylan bio. Highly recommended.Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited Overview

Want to learn more information about Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades Revisited?

>> Click Here to See All Customer Reviews & Ratings Now

Read More...