Saturday 7th February
Suddenly in 1970 Dylan was back, or so the Music papers told us. A new album with the auspicious title “New Morning” was released only months after the “Self Portrait” debacle. Well, it was a new start of sorts but quite a patchy record really. It started off brilliantly with ‘If Not For You’ a real classic – but too many songs fell short of that. It certainly wasn’t the Dylan we all longed for – a continuation of ‘Blonde on Blonde’ – but it was a new start.
Then there was nothing else and CBS, worried that the expectation created by ‘New Morning’ would fade rushed out a double album “More Greatest Hits” that included five unreleased songs, which compared to anything on his last few records were brilliant. “When I paint my masterpiece” and “I shall be released” would go on to be among his fans favourites and we were all amazed he hadn’t released them earlier.
But for three years he again had nothing to say. Just silence.
It was 1973 when he released his next record, a film soundtrack “Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid”. (He also had a small acting part in the film.) This was mostly instrumental but was quite beautiful, and had the wonderful “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” on it. Suddenly there was hope. If Dylan could still write songs as good as this maybe we only had to wait and the real Dylan would return.
Well another false dawn in 1974; we heard he was going to change labels and make a record with the Band. “Planet Waves” came out on Island Records and was again a disappointment. A few good songs such as “Forever Young” but the whole thing sounded stilted and forced, as if Dylan was still trying to find himself.
Dylan then went out on the road with The Band, and a new live album was also rushed out, which again seemed tentative, not fully committed; Dylan’s voice unsure and the songs sounding almost tired.
He then returned to CBS for his next album, and suddenly the Real Dylan we were all waiting for had returned and with possibly his best record ever “Blood on the Tracks”.
What we hadn’t realized was that Dylan was heartbroken. His marriage to Sara Lowndes was breaking up and he poured his heart out on this record. There was literally his own blood and tears on the tracks. There had never been anything quite like it, every song was exceptional and it was all of a piece, the songs seemed to flow one to the next all in the same mood. I love it and even now find it hard to single out any one song above the others. His voice sounds tortured and true, every word is sung with honesty; it is also full of great melodies and played beautifully. Dylan was in effect writing one last love letter to Sara and he never made a better record. But he did come close a few times….
