Bob Dylan 1962-64: The pre-electric albums poll

all pretty great, even the debut, but Freewheelin' I think is the only real masterpiece here. Something perfect about that record. The outtakes bootleg from that era is fantastic as well ....

probably Freewheelin, but i do have a long-standing affinity for s/t.

Never heard the full debut, but my vote is Another Side. Seems like the songwriting really started to open up there, get even more surreal.

Easily the debut. I think it's wildly underrated, probably because people tend to rate Dylan on his songwriting rather than on his performances. But his singing here is wild: the opening "You're No Good" is an incredible opener (what a career "first song"!), and while I could usually do without his talking blues, it's a series of highs thereafter.

After the debut, I'd take Another Side, though I think the songs are better on various live shows at the time, and then Freewheeling (ditto re. live versions). I pretty much hate Times, though: his worst singing ever. It's got good songs like "One Too Many Mornings" and "When the Ship Comes In" but uggh @ the "protest songs". "Hattie Carroll" is probably my least favorite Dylan song.

re: debut "But his singing here is wild"

OTM!

definitely otm. it may get my vote.

another side/ freewheelin / self titled / times

these are all great, even the underrated s/t LP

Another Side has some of my favorite Bob moments, also some of the most personal of "intimate" Bob songs ever such as "Ballad In Plain D,"
about which Dylan said in 1985 "I must have been a real schmuck to write that."
But that LP is brought down a bit by sloppy/drunken playing & the goofy "I Shall Be Free No. 10"

Freewheelin' easy; then Another Side; then the other two.

I dig Hattie Carroll, I think it's one of his better protest numbers. With God on Our Side, otoh, kinda hurts my ears...

For me, it's between Freewheelin' and Another Side. I think Freewheelin' is more consistent, just about everything works- the protest songs, the love tunes, the humorous talking blues. Another Side may have higher peaks though (Spanish Harlem Incident, To Ramona, I Don't Believe You, etc.) but is dragged down by some real boring cuts (Ballad in Plain D for one, not to mention My Back Pages and Chimes of Freedom, which were both improved on by the Byrds.) I suppose I'll vote for Freewheelin'.

Admittedly, I need to listen to the first album some more...

I think of these four Freewheelin' is the most essential. Most iconic cover, most consistent, and also contains the biggest songs "Masters of War" "Hard Rain" "Blowin' in the Wind" for gods sake

Re: Dylan going electric

It seems to me very convenient to retrospectively cackle at the puritanism of folkies who spurned electric Bob, but I can see why they were upset. Looking back, I can digest early folk Dylan, country Dylan, 90's Dylan etc all at once, they are not incongruous, but in the context of a quiet Newport festival with hushed performances of "Candyman" by John Hurt & stuff, Dylan screaming out "Maggie's Farm" must have been pretty jarring.

As much as I love Blonde on Blonde and Highway 61It's hard to deny that something was lost once Dylan went electric (the intimacy of his early performances, the subtlety of his post-Guthrie vocal phrasings) even if other important elements were gained. I can understand why certain folkies balked. For one thing, I think Seeger & the other People's Song commies expected Bob to be next in line to carry on the Guthrie lefy / humanist folksong banner & were really hurt when he just wanted to be a pop star after coming to their festival & holding hands singing kumaya with the SNCC glee club

but to Bobby it was always just about writing songs & singing them

That's a good perspective. And I agree, the real problem lay with those who had expectations of him that he never ever planned on meeting. I was trying to find an analogous figure in modern times, and the only thing I could come up with is Bob Mould making electronic music (but who ever really put as much stock in Mould's (admittedly good) songwriting as they did Dylan's?).

"Freewheelin'"

One interesting thing about going electric that isn't discussed much is that, esp. w/ stuff like "Maggie's Farm" and "Subterranean Homesick", that stuff is ABRASIVE, it's not like it was some pop move. Super trebly guitars, all of a sudden his singing was less disciplined, the whole thing sounds very sloppy (in a great way, of course). I wonder if in some cases it was just the sound of that stuff on a purely aesthetic level. Even compared to the Stones or something it seems challenging.

If Another Side wins by a vote, it's my fault--I instinctively clicked the one that was closest to the electric LPs chronologically, then I remembered that Freewheelin' was definitely the best. My pressing (bought sometime during the '80s) is old enough to list "Talkin' John Birch Society Blues," "Solid Road," and "Gamblin' Willie" on the cover, but unfortunately they're not on the album itself.

Do you think this little apology just erases what you've done?

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JUDAS

another side for moi

Another Side is a cool record, even if there are probably better versions of the major songs elsewhere, either by Dylan himself or you know, the Byrds ... But as far as vibe goes, this one probably should've been called Freewheelin'! Recorded in a couple hours, fueled by red wine and weed ...

This is not the right thread for this, but fuck it: Biograph disk 1 is a mellow record, in a good way.

Slightly more relevant, this is a really cool photo (boot of a show in 1962; not sure if that's a pic from 1962, looks more Planet Waves-ish):

http://www.bobsboots.com/CDs/p-01f.JPG

must just be my mood but even "Hattie Carroll" sounds great on this; the sequencing helps a lot I think.

Biograph is a pretty cool, well-put-together set, but I always found it bizarre that the first track is Lay Lady Lay. I guess maybe it's his biggest hit -- but not exactly representative ...

I know, but it sets up the vibe in an excellent way, if you're looking for a good listen rather than a comprehensive set or a set whose songs make for a coherent narrative besides "notice that I am an excellent pop songwriter rather than the spokesman for my generation".

biograph is great, abandoned love is one of his all time best.

m@tt you ever heard this version? different/better lyrics -- kind of an amazing performance
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkZ-XgF7zpM

Think 'Freewheelin' will walk this one but I'm voting for 'Another Side'. Probably the most underrated out of the early 4.

Not that I disagree, but I'm surprised by the consensus wrt how 'Times' is the weakest of the accoustic ones. Always thought that one had a bit of an undeserved reputation of being a classic. That being said, I still adore "Boots of Spanish Leather".

I love "Boots" but it sounds so similar to "Girl From the North Country" ... not necessarily a bad thing though

"Ballad Of Hollis Brown" is terrific, dark & fatalistic

"When the Ship Comes In" is incredible too

"Boots" and "Girl from North Country" are very similar, but I like that about them. I think there's some show in the 90s where Dylan himself starts singing the wrong one ... Times is full of great songs really, but something about his singing here always rubs me the wrong way a little bit. Too harsh/strident -- kinda the Dylan people would end up parodying. Still a great album though.

I'm a pretty big dylan fan but I *never* listen to these albums. someone should do a dylan-era poll sometime.

I've been thinking of doing a Dylan singing voice poll (yeah yeah, I know), but I've had a hard time "chunking" them so that there are, say, 10 choices, rather than just listing every year or every album. Like, the first album voice is clearly different from the Freewheelin voice which is clearly different from the Times voice, but now that's three albums, three voices. The voice on the 1966 tour is different from the voice on the 1965 albums, but is it different from the Blonde on Blonde voice? I'm willing to say that the Basement Tapes voice is the same as the JWH and even the Blonde on Blonde voice, but clearly different from the Nashville Skyline voice. But now the 70s...you can see why I've not done this yet.

I'm willing to say that the Basement Tapes voice is the same as the JWH and even the Blonde on Blonde voice,

kinda feel like these are three different voices

yeah that's the thing, I can't resolve these mysteries, hence no poll (no need to thank me for that)

It's true Dylan's voice often changes dramatically between consecutive albums. It might be worth trying to come up with some broad eras: Early Acoustic Adolescent Twang, Mid-60s Electric Sneer, Post-Accident Clean-Living Croon, Three-Pack-A-Day Early-70s Rasp, Born-Again Gospel Growl, etc.

I could get with something like add, but I want to make little addenda like the 1966 tour (esp. the acoustic sets, he's never sung in that narcotic haze like that again), and the Nashville Skyline voice is different from the New Morning/Pat Garrett voice. I guess you could add those w/o too much category explosion.

it remains insane how many different Dylan voices/styles there were 1962-1969.

The Times... is a great album. North Country Blues, Hollis Brown, Restless Farewell etc etc. Another Side is another fave of mine. I suppose it mostly benefits, but sometimes suffers, from its rather slapdash recording in one (boozy?) session. Some nice improvisation on songs he'd evidently not fully learnt (My Back Pages), but quite a bit of repetition of style, melodic figures etc.

yeah that's true about Another Side -- but I like that it captures those songs in a rougher form. It's cool that, even though it's just a guitar/vocal (w/ a little piano) album, had he recorded it a month later or a month earlier, it'd sound completely different I think.

can we take over The Church and make it I Love Dylan?

sounds like a good idea ...
always kinda wished he'd resurrect "Black Crow Blues" in a band arrangement some day ... but something tells me he forgot that song as soon as it was laid to tape.

maybe there just needs to be a All Dad Rock Summertime Fun Board and Pickle Bar

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Freewheelin', though it's tough to vote against any album that has Chimes of Freedom on it.

I knew the electric stuff first and didn't hear Freewheelin' till I was 21. I couldn't believe how totally alive it was. I have to think it's THE folk album in some way: all the stuff you want from an album of that type, done as vibrantly as possible. Sequencing is ace as well.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan 29
Another Side of Bob Dylan 17
Bob Dylan 5
The Times They Are a-Changin' 5

Yeah, that seems about right. At least that's how I'd rank them personally.

Side A of The Freewheelin' sounds great. Why does side B sound so muffled? Some of the best songs are on side B, but this has always bothered me. If side B sounded like side A, I would've gone for The Freewheelin' here. Since it does not, I'd go Another Side. I promise this is my last poll thread revive.

happy 60th to the debut album

Another Side is my favorite Dylan album!