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By the mid-'70s, even Dylan's most ardent supporters began taking his artistic decline for granted. Albums like NEW MORNING and PLANET WAVES were fine works, but lacked the visionary spark of his seminal '60s recordings. At 34 he was already being written off as a has-been. That presumption is what made BLOOD ON THE TRACKS such a glorious sucker-punch of a record.
One of Dylan's most mournful efforts, this album, which easily ranks among his best, is full of stories about lost love and the struggle for peace of mind. With a simple, country-flavored backing somewhat akin to NASHVILLE SKYLINE, he recounts shattered love affairs in heart-breaking detail on songs like "Simple Twist Of Fate" and "If You See Her Say Hello." On the vengeful "Idiot Wind" he rails mercilessly against the ignorant and self-obsessed a la "Like A Rolling Stone." The difference here, and the major breakthrough for Dylan, is that by the end of the song, he's lumping himself in with those he excoriates so vehemently.
Includes liner notes by Pete Hamill.
Personnel: Bob Dylan (vocals, guitar); Kevin Odegard, Chris Weber (guitar); Buddy Cage (steel guitar); Peter Ostroushko (mandolin); Gregg Inhofer (keyboards); Paul Griffin (organ); Tony Brown, Billy Peterson (bass); Bill Berg (drums); Eric Weissberg & Deliverance.
Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.96) - Ranked #16 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time" - "...No one disputes the album's luxuriant tangle of guitars, the gritty directness in Dylan's voice and the magnificent confessional force of his writing..."
Q (1/03, p.69) - Included in Q Magazine's "100 Greatest Albums Ever"
Q (12/93, p.131) - 5 Stars (out of 5) - "...Suddenly Dylan no longer seemed to be straining to recapture the surreal poetic torrents of the '60s....this is probably Dylan's most complete and most unified album--and yes, damnit, his best..."
Alternative Press (5/01, p.104) - Included in AP's "10 Essential Breakup Albums" - "...Dylan has never been so thematically clear....representing a man full of regret and misery, singing through his tears."
Vibe (12/99, p.157) - Included in Vibe's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century
Q (Magazine) (p.110) - "Against the backdrop of his own collapsing marriage, it's as close as he ever got to the confessional school of singer-songwriters..."
NME (Magazine) (10/2/93, p.29) - Ranked #85 in NME's list of the "Greatest Albums Of All Time."
NME (Magazine) (9/18/93, p.19) - Ranked #29 in NME's list of the "Greatest Albums Of The '70s."
NME (Magazine) (8/12/00, p.28) - Ranked #13 in The NME "Top 30 Heartbreak Albums" - "...A bitter, sorrowful eulogy to love and the pain of breaking up."
Blood On The Tracks Music
Bob Dylan - Blood On The Tracks Songs
Blood On The Tracks Music
Blood On The Tracks Music Review
Average Rating: (4.7 out of 5 stars)    List All 20 Reviews wonderful
wonderful album, surely one of Dylan's 5 best ever.
It gives you emotions, dreams and reality, Bob's voice is at its best and the songs go deep, deep in your soul.
A masterpiece, you are never tired of listening to this fantastic music.
Submitted by Daniele (Italy)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 4 of 4 found this helpful.
4th greatest of all time!
I think this is the 4th best album in history - only behind Bob's "Bringing It All Back Home", "Highway 61 Revisited" and "Blonde On Blonde" - Every song on here is a masterpiece and wonderfully put together!! My favorites are "Shelter From The Storm", "Lily, Rosemary", and "Tangled Up In Blue" but all are fantastic!! I definitely recommend this to any rock, country, folk or blues music fan!! It's truly incredible!!
Submitted by Allen (Perryville, AR, USA)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 1 of 1 found this helpful. Timeless Classic!
"Blood On The Tracks" is not only one of Bob Dylan's most definitive and amazing works, but it's an absolutely perfect album, or at least close to it. It is a somewhat dark, but incredible Dylan work revolving around such themes as divorce, lost love, etc. He wrote some of the most heartfelt, bitter lyrics here, and it shows. His singing and performance, along with the songwriting, couldn't have come together in such an almost magical way other than this. "Tangled Up In Blue" and "Shelter From The Storm" have become 2 of his biggest hits. However, there is so much more to it than that. Songs like "Idiot Wind" and its painful theme have to be heard to be believed. Along with the touching acoustic ballads and country-tinged numbers, "Meet Me In The Morning" is a great acoustic blues number with such an unstoppable toe-tapping feel, that it's almost completely shocking. To make a long story short, it's unbelievable how this timeless Dylan album is so unpredictably stunning even after all these years since its release. Words cannot even describe it, either.
Submitted by Ron Haynes, Jr. (Covington/Cornelia, GA, USA)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 1 of 1 found this helpful. This used to be the best album of all-time
The album that tops this is the original September 1974 acetate version. Unfortunately he redid 5 of the songs in December with a different band. On the acetate an acoustic Lily, Rosemary.
Different lyrics to Idiot Wind. Tangled Up and If You See Her are much better. You're A Big Girl Now, breathtaking. Substitute with the original and you'll never look back.
Submitted by mowdamowda (Sydney, Oz)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 1 of 1 found this helpful. My Favorite Dylan
I have listened to "Idiot Wind" handreds of times. As usual, he puts his entire soul into his heartfelt singing. That, combined with his poetry, is deeply moving.
Submitted by Donna (Mankato, MN)
Was This Review Helpful? Yes No 1 of 1 found this helpful. List All Reviews | Have you heard this album? |  |
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