I'm just trying to see why people like his music. Obviously (excuse me if this is TOO obvious), people don't actually think the music itself is good -- but what am I missing? Clearly it's irony, yes?
I'm just trying to see why people like his music. Obviously (excuse me if this is TOO obvious), people don't actually think the music itself is good -- but what am I missing? Clearly it's irony, yes?
is blowin in the wind.
Clearly you have not listened to enough Bob Dylan to know what the hell you are talking about.
I don't know if it's irony or not, but I do agree with you that his music sucks. It may be intentional. Or not.
Honestly I like Bob Dylan. I don't do it to be cool. In fact if my friends knew I liked Bob Dylan they would think it positively UNcool. I just like chillin out listening to some quality tunes like Hurricane, Catch the Wind, Tambourine Man etc.
To each their own.
My younger brother is one seriously pretentious little pain in the ass, and he listens to Bob Dylan constantly. The music bores me to tears.
Go listen to the Blood on the Tracks album a few times, then come back and let us know what you think.
If Dylan were just a good song writer, there would be a lot of Dylan songs and the most memorable versions would be by others. He's got a large number of memorable songs and I cannot think of one where the most memorable version is by someone else.
I know that you think that tens of millions of people are wrong and you have it all figured out, but the objective evidence seems to indicate elsewise. (and you probably think thte same of Leonard Cohen, or maybe you do not know who he is)
Great post! he made a few good songs in the 60's and has sucked ever since and people treat him like a god of rock and roll...WAY OVERRATED!
26mi235 wrote:
I cannot think of one where the most memorable version is by someone else.
All Along the Watchtower?
My theory about Dylan is that he made so many good songs by way of prolific experimentation. Then people who liked the good songs had to acquire a taste for the "failed experiments" too in order to fully buy into they myth (I count myself among their number).
I'm likely one of the board's biggest Dylan fans. And yes I'm over 40, but I didn't listen to him growing up, and in fact hated him, with the nasally voice and harmonica.
But then in the early 90s I bought Time out of Mind for my wife, who liked a bit of Dylan, and started listening to it. I got pulled in by the interesting lyrics, and tried some other Dylan music, and progressively built my catalogue until I owned all his official releases.
Dylan is an acquired taste that some people will never acquire, and I think that's OK. I love his music to death however and am completely unashamed to admit it. Haha
shsd wrote:
I'm just trying to see why people like his music. Obviously (excuse me if this is TOO obvious), people don't actually think the music itself is good -- but what am I missing? Clearly it's irony, yes?
He is a folk singer. The music is merely a setting for a story or a point. In that respect I think his sound is excellant, but please understand that eventually you will appreciate music for more than it's sound, there is always feeling, emotion and message to be conveyed and that is where the brilliance is; I'm not even a real big Dylan fan, but that is why people like it.
Personally I don't even like his more musically refined albums from more recently; they are too staged. Those first few ablums (partcularly his debut) are where his inner workings really come out.
If it was just about the music every classically trained studio musician would have an awesome album out, but they don't.
Also, nice try. (1.5/10)
26mi235 wrote:
I cannot think of one where the most memorable version is by someone else.
The Byrds' Mr. Tamborine Man
The Band's I Shall Be Released.
Blood on the Tracks, Highway 61 Revisited, and Blonde on Blonde are among my favorite pop music albums.
I have converted an anti-Dylan person or two with this song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JluU4On0XA
The people that don't like Dylan basically compose three camps, 1) "too cool for school" types, 2) people that only like top 40/pop music and 3) people that have only heard a few songs.
It's not easy to dismiss an artist that has classic albums in four genres.
I love love love Bob Dylan and his music and I have a degree in music composition. Just sayin'.
4/10. Just because so many people responded before McGurk gave a rating. One day I hope to be half as good as Dylan is at writing music.
It's the magic, Jimmy. It's the magic.
The music is supposed to convey how bad he feels, thats why it sucks and so does he.
I like tangled up in blues, hurricane, and lay lady lay (maybe my favorite song), but other than that your right they are kind of long and he rambles a lot; plus he doesn't have the ideal voice.
I heard that he started out as a song writer and he couldn't find anybody to sing his songs so he eventually took it upon himself to sing them.
He couldn't find anyone else to sing his songs? Every hear of Joan Baez?
He started out singing other songs. But he found out he could write better ones. So that's what he wound up doing.