Back in the 1960s Bob Dylan was one of the "go-to" guys for all of one's folk music and songwriting needs. Songs like "Blowin' in the Wind" "Masters of War" and "The Times, They Are-A-Changin'", all key musical musical milestones on the highway of American musical folklore, easily asserted his place in music history as a lyrical genius, even though he was never a brilliant singer. But of course, nobody listens to Dylan for his vocal qualities. I could never envision Bob covering other people's songs - writing songs was his forte, singing them certainly wasn't. But as the years went by, his ability to make music got better and better, to the point where his lyrical prowess was merely supplemental, and no longer merely his sole selling point. And then one day, Dylan decided to go electric. Folkies hated it. But it was key developmental point in him expanding upon his generic repertoire, delving into other genres such as country and gospel, as well as blues and jazz. An icon of the sixties, his brilliance didn't stop there - indeed, the timeline of his career is peppered with numerous high points as well as his less stellar efforts. In 1975, Dylan released one of his best, Blood on the Tracks. There's some stellar tracks on this record - opening with the famous "Tangled Up in Blue", the record soon moves on to some of my personal favorites, in particular, "Idiot Wind." "Meet Me in the Morning", "Buckets of Rain", "You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go" and "Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts" also get a good thrashing from yours truly. All up, a great album, one of Bob's best, and an absolute necessity for anybody who fancies taking up collecting Bob Dylan albums. Nobody has it in for you, Bob, except for perhaps the die-hard folkies, but hey, as they should know damn well better, the times they are a-changin'. A
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