From: Dylanbase
Submitter:Dino
When Added: 3/26/2000
"A
wonderful collection of rare traditional tunes from some of Bob's most
adventurous years of song selections. Of course, this adventurous
spirit occasionally led to Bob falling on his face, but when he got it
right, WOW. Several of these songs were performed only once, and all
but a few were performed no more than a handful of times. Things get
going with a strange, but lovely, version of The Roving Blade (aka
Newry Highwayman, Newry Town, Wild & Wicked Youth, etc), which has
some very unusual vocal phrasings and intonations that turn the song on
its ear. Then we move on to Girl On The Greenbriar Shore, which opens
with "Twas in the year of '92"--gosh, what a comedian that Bob Dylan
is.
The ubiqitous Little Moses follows.
it's a cool enough song the
first few times you ehar it, but this was the default acoustic song
through the whole of 1992 and 1993; there are 96 renditions of the
song, and they're all pretty much the same, except when Bob has a
memory slip. Golden Vanity is the same verion that appears in
soundboard quality on "Paradise Hawaiian Style;" again, Golden Vanity
was a very common song, and this early 1992 version is easily the worst
one I've ever heard. Bob completely mangles the lyrics in several
spots, and his singing varies from excellent to abominable. Thank God
for John Jackson, whose lead guitar work almost salvages the song. To
hear how this one should have sounded, check out the drop-dead gorgeous
rendition from Wichita, KS 10/31/91.
Then we come to the first 1-off of
the disc--20/20 Vision from Austin, TX 10/25/91. This cut has the
poorest sound quality of any on this disc, but the performance is
positively electric. It's a full-band acoustic number, and you get
pounding drums, impressive bass work from Tony Garnier, and first rate
singing from old BD. When he goes down to hit those bass notes, it's
spine-tingle time. And then along comes Barbara Allen, with a very loud
audience and lackluster singing. So we move along the When First Unto
This Country (performed only twice, one electric back in '89, and this
acoustic performnace from 1991). It's a charming performance of a song
you're not likely to hear anywhere else. Next up is Roving Gambler. It
opens with a sloppy harmonica bit, and then Bob comes in and spits the
lyric out as if he's trying to get through the song so he can run to
the bathroom or something. That said, it does have more charm than the
cookie-cutter versions we got of this one in 1997.
Lucky Old Sun, in
superb quality, follows. It's a gorgeous performance, 10 times nicer
than the crap version he did at The Edge in 1995. Two Soldiers is nice,
but comes nowhere near the perfection of the one from Boston '94. The
sound leaves a bit to be desired, and one can barely hear the band over
the echo and Bob's harsh acoustic guitar. Additionally, the end of the
song is clipped. Then, off to the mines for a lovely Dark As A Dungeon.
If you've heard only the ones from Rolling Thunder with Joan Baez and
the one from Melbourne '98, you're in for a treat. While this is a very
idiosyncratic performance, the vocals have more fire and conviction
than the later version, and it's not forced into some pretty little
tune the way it was in 1975. I hope when I'm dead, and the ages do
roll, I've got a copy of this recording to keep me company.
Then we're
out on the range with those damned old buffalo. Now, Bob had several
ways of doing this one. The stangest of which was the pounding, punkish
full-band electric version from the 1989 tour, and the rest were either
acoustic duo or acoustic w/ full band. The duo versions, like this one,
were hit-or miss. The one I've heard from 1988 was unspeakbly dreadful,
in part because Bob was falling down drunk at the show. This one is
pleasing, but I'd never rank it up there as one of Bob's greatest
musical triumphs. And then we flip to the other side of the world
(Perth, Australia) for one of the two versions of Female Rambling
Sailor. The sound is acceptable, though it could be better. The
performance is a stunner, though, even though Bob stumbles near the end
and leaves out half of a verse (the bit about willows waving around her
grave and her soul being in glory). And the story, about a woman who
dresses up as a man and joins the Navy (like Handsome Cabin Boy,
Canadee-I-O, and Jack-A-Roe) is not one you'll soon forget.
Next we get
what is certainly the strangest song on the album. It's Man Of Constant
Sorrow (yeah, like on the debut album, but with the original lyrics)
presented at a 90MPH tempo and with some very high, nasal singing. I
honestly had no idea what the hell it was the first time I listened to
it, and I had to look at the CD case to find out. Even then, I thought
it was a typo. If you thought It Ain't Me Babe at the Isle of Wight was
just too strange, you ain't heard nothin' yet. Tight edits maul both
ends of the song. Oh, but now it's time for Eileen Aroon. This is, IMO,
one of the most beautiful songs Bob has ever sung. Hearing him sing
"Castles are lost in war
Cheiftans are scattered far
Truth is a fixed star
Eileen Aroon"
in
that parched, lonesome '88 voice is about as moving an experience as
one is likely to get from a CD. We then get a wretched Wild Mountain
Thyme, in lackluster quality, with half the first line cut off by
another rough edit. Next comes a muddy-sounding Wagoner's Lad from fall
'88. The performance is nice enough (it's the same one as on Critics
Choice Vol 8, FWIW), but coming as it does after such a parade of
riches, it's disappointing. We end up down in Lousisiana, with
hospitable creole girls, lovers away at sea, and hungry alligators
who'd like to eat Bob ("If it weren't for the alligators/ I'd sleep out
in the wood"). This is an awfully good performance, but you should also
check out the one from Wantaugh 6/30/88, which is available on a very
good soundboard recording (on "Blown Out On The Trail", among others)
for a version with a slightly different mood about it.
All in all, a very enjoyable disc.
Despite the typical Wanted Man editing disasters and occasionally
lackluster sound quality, this is one you'll find yourself spinning a
lot. Someone should do a 2CD set of this stuff, since there are plenty
more choice traditional acoustic rarities out there to be enjoyed."
Dino
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