I didn't get into Bob Dylan, until after I got into the Beatles as a freshman in high school thanks to radio stations, my sister's ex-fiance, and someone's limited Beatle CD collection. I heard "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" and have never been the same since. I was like: "What is this?" My intrigue into the Beatles became an infatuation and I began buying all their CDs and every book about them I could find. I constantly read of their great songs and the people who influenced them, and the name that came up more times than anyone else was Bob Dylan.

While I was finishing my collection of Beatle CDs, I began my collection of Dylan albums. First I had to see if I liked him. I chose the only two CDs that were on sale from my Columbia House CD club catalog: Blonde on Blonde and Blood on the Tracks. I was extremely lucky, because those are two of his best albums ever (overlooking Oh Mercy and Time Out of Mind, of course).

Naturally, I didn't like Dylan at first: his singing was horrible, I didn't like the music, and his harmonica hurt my ears. After several times of listening to Blonde on Blonde, two songs caught my attention. The most inappropriately named rock song would have to be "Rainy Day #12 & 35," which anyone normal would have named "Everybody Must Get Stoned." The song captures the 60s drug movement intelligently drawing on the double-metaphor of being stoned in the Biblical-sense and being stoned in the marijuana-sense. The other song that caught my attention is naturally "Just like a Woman," which is probably the most beautifully written, sung, and performed Dylan song ever. It's the only rock song that I ever memorized all the lryics to.

My junior English teacher was my only Dylan supporter at the time, but I have yet to meet anyone, personally, that comes close to liking him as much as I do. Most people love to tell me their opinion, "I hate his voice." That happens to be one of the many things I love about him: his originality.

He's not getting any younger (nor is his voice), but he still puts on a great, rocking show. Some people say he puts on dry shows and hardly moves on stage, but he tends to reflect his audience. I have seen him in concert three times and am going to see him twice this September. I look forward to seeing what new tricks he has up his sleeves and which song will be next that I haven't heard him perform from his fourty albums.

Bob Dylan has one of the largest bootleg collections on the black market for two simple facts: he's always touring and he's the most prolific song writer. He has been re-sung and praised by many great rock bands: The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, David Bowie, Bob Marley, Jeff Lynne of Electric Light Orchestra, The Band, Kiss, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Paul Simon, The Pretenders, Guns & Roses, Pearl Jam, Stevie Wonder, etc. Definately a musician's musician.



[ Back | AdamNa+ion ]
1