Bob Dylan is an artist like no other. While some spend months or even years working on and crafting an album, some of his have been cut over a long weekend.
Some have been great, some are near misses - some seem awful at the time and then come into their own a decade later.
The mistique around the man has always driven demand for his music especially the rarer unreleased recordings. The original bootleg album was "The Basement Tapes" recorded with the Band after his motorcycle accident of the late 60's. It was rough but the record company eventually recognised the demand and satisfied it by releasing an official album. Hidden in the vaults though were many more hours of recordings, buried away forever ...
About 20 years ago they started releasing more and more of the rare recordings - sometimes rehersals, sometimes songs that just didn't make it onto albums. They have been a great addition to the official studio albums and filled in missing gaps with some great new songs. You have a better appreciation for the way his music developed and just how many great songs he wrote and seemed to discard.
Some of my favourite Bob Dylan tracks are off the bootleg series of albums and the live concert recordings have been great for those of us too young to have been able to see him at his peak.
The latest in the series is The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11. Finally, it's time for all those other basement tape recordings to be aired, the ones that gave them the original name.
There's a complete version, a 6 CD box set, or a cut down sampler single CD. Right now I've only listened to the sampler on Google Music and hope they get the complete set otherwise I may just have to buy it.
Initial listening of a few of the tracks was "OMG, this sounds like a bunch of drunk guys that found some instruments!" but it improved with a second hearing and I'm starting to like it more. It may still be more for the hardcore Dylan fans though. Most are just before my favourite period of 67 - 70'ish. I guess the favourite period changes based on the mood I'm in though.
The songs were never meant for release - this is an artist and band who's tour was cut short through the accident and he was writing songs to be covered by others to earn a living. You will already have heard some of the tracks as hits that other people had recording.
There's something magical about how Bob sings his own songs though and the raw music with the Band is always special.
The only thing that makes me sad is that one day this vault of material is going to come to an end. Until then though, enjoy !
