Bob Dylan & the Band - The Basement Tapes

The Basement Tapes can be heard as a manifesto for the '90s' underlying Americana agenda or as the greatest album never intended for commercial release. Homegrown 1967 recordings taped in the Band's fabled Big Pink hermitage in Saugerties, New York, many of the 24 songs resonated across American and English rock and folk long before their belated 1975 release through studio interpretations by the Byrds, Fairport Convention, Manfred Mann, Peter, Paul & Mary, and numerous other acolytes, as well as through myriad unauthorized bootlegs. Good as the covers were, Dylan and the Band rolled their own with an extraordinary coherence that sounds only more authentic in these rough-hewn, intimate, always musical performances, which dovetail with Dylan's stark John Wesley Harding and the Band's stunning debut, Music from Big Pink as well as the presciently lo-fi The Band. At a time when most rock culture was entranced with its post-atomic origins, these songs sounded timeless, plunging into pre-industrial folk, turn of the (20th) century barrelhouse and blues, and crackling, vintage rock & roll excursions with offhand verve and a thrilling disregard for what was hip. Time has only reinforced their visionary power. --Sam Sutherland Amazon.com essential recording

Eavesdropping on the creative process

Fascinating double-album of the legendary basement sessions with Dylan and The Band. One has the distinct feeling of eavesdropping on the creative process rather than listening to a fully realised album. Like a master sculptor's workshop - there are plenty of off-cuts "Please, Mrs Henry", "Apple Suckling Tree", works in progress "Katie's Been Gone", "Goin' to Acapulco" and the odd fully realised masterpiece "Tears of Rage", "This Wheel's on Fire".

An absolute must have for all fans of Dylan and/or The Band. July 8, 2008

'67 > '65 [and that's saying something]

As quickly as I can, the missing material being replaced by throwaway songs from The Band is not primarily a historical issue. It definitely is a historical issue, but the primary concern is of quality.

For those interested, here's a list of some [emphasis on some] of the best stuff missing from this collection:

All You Have to Do is Dream [version one is the better of the two]--one of Dylan's finest. Understated lyrics with an underlying depth that leave you second guessing each reading of the song. Beautifully performed by all involved.

Rock, Salt, and Nails--beautiful Utah Phillips' song. I've never heard a better vocal from Dylan or a more delicate performance from The Band.

Get Your Rocks Off--filthy lyrics, filthy performance. The lyrics remind me a bit of "Rainy Day Women" in that they front as a series of naughty puns but carry a greater weight. The song is just ideal. Dylan at his bluesy best.

Quinn the Eskimo--very fun song. And the two best versions of the song [un]available.

I'm not There (1956)--now available on the otherwise poor soundtrack for the film of the same title, many say it's the best song of all the Basement material. I don't, but it is beautiful and haunting.

Don't Ya Tell Henry--Dylan's version. Supremely better than The Band's. The lyrics remind me of "Ballad of a Thin Man," except, Dylan is having a poke at his own perceptions. I like to think of it as "Ballad of a Thin Man" ran through a deeply religious experience. The quirky brass reminds me a bit of some of Tom Waits' 80's material.

Too Much of Nothing V2--better than the version here. Great song either way.

I Shall Be Released--available on the Bootleg volume's 1-3 [disc 2], one of Dylan's greatest songs and greatest performances [the ultimate performance of the song].

Santa Fe--like "I'm not There," the lyrics are a bit difficult to make out at times, and like "I'm not There," the beautiful performance makes the lyrics almost unnecessary.

Silent Weekend--not my favorite, but a good number of people rate it as one of the better songs from the sessions. It's a good song.

Sing on the Cross--brilliant song. Dylan never wrote a more haunting chorus. It's very strange in that the verses and the drunken rant seem to be a good deal of nonsense swirling around that very pointed chorus, but it definitely works together.

I'm a Fool for You--starts beautifully and falls apart. Still worth hearing for said start.

Next Time on the Highway--great bluesy rock song. Clever lyrics, great performance by all involved.

See You Later, Allen Ginsberg--worth mentioning for its silliness.

Big River--after a warm up, Dylan out-man's Cash and out-sneers Lou Reed and Iggy Pop.

Ol' Roison Le Beau--beautiful drinking song. The distortion doesn't hurt any.

. . .

I'm stilling giving this poorly-selected collection five stars for the great songs it does have, but I have to believe that they'll eventually release the rest of the real basement tapes.
May 13, 2008

Great Stuff, but Some Important Songs are Missing

I first heard some of the songs on this record years before the record was finally released. I think everybody who was into Dylan back then had. Some of them appeared on that first Dylan bootleg Great White Wonder, and more on the Troubled Troubadour boot. Still it was nice getting the real deal. But why oh why did they leave off "The Mighty Quinn" and "I Shall Be Released". That made absolutely now sense at all. However, putting on the wonderful "Going to Acapulco" which was a complete shocker, as no one I knew had ever heard it. That song clued us all into the fact that there was more stuff from these sessions out there and boy was there ever. If you look you can find scads of it.

However, that said, I must say that as much as I enjoy these sessions I prefer the work Dylan did with the band on Planet Waves. Recorded differently I know, it's just my preference. Still, this is a must have for any Dylan fan. Great Stuff on this record, there is, you won't be disappointed.

Ken Douglas, author of Dead Ringer, Desperation Moon & Running Scared. April 10, 2008

subterranean apotheosis

For me, the greatest commercial Bob Dylan album of all time. Full of his wanderful, wonderful, irrational soaring young imagination at its greatest, backed up by the Band at its youthful best. Not that, after 32 years with it, I have any better idea what Lo and Behold; Apple Suckling Tree; and Tears of Rage really mean. But I am happy to spend the rest of my life trying to figure them all out. January 12, 2008

Some of 'em, not all of 'em

The poetry of this album is in its humor, its casualness, and a compassion that never takes itself seriously. Of all his albums, this one is Dylan's at his least provocative, and for that very reason it may be one of his most timeless. There is no social statement here, no Mr. Jones, no Slow Train, not even an Idiot Wind. There is, however, a Clothesline Saga, a hero in his own mind who calls himself, ironically, Tiny Montgomery, and a barmaid, one Mrs. Henry, who is less generous with the tap than one would like. December 2, 2007

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