I guess all songs is folk songs. I never heard no horse sing ’em.
~Big Bill Broonzy
Blues is a natural fact, is something that a fellow lives. If you don’t live it you don’t have it. Young people have forgotten to cry the blues. Now they talk and get lawyers and things.
~Big Bill Broonzy
“Worried Man Blues,” “Hey, Hey” and “How You Want It Done.” From the DVD “A Musical Journey”:
He was known for his rendition of “When Did You Leave Heaven?” which Bob Dylan recorded in 1988, and wrote “Key To The Highway” which Bob Dylan performed at The Edge in September 1995.
My father used to play this great record by Roger Miller, “Roger Miller” from 1969. There was one particular song that has always stuck with me. Lately I have been listening to the lyrics more thorough and it has become one of my favourite country songs of all time.
It’s a relatively obscure record, but a great one, so start hunting collectors!
Where Have All the Average People Gone.
The late Dennis Linde wrote “Where Have All the Average People Gone.” Roger Miller recorded it and the song only reached No. 14 on the country chart in 1969, but the lyrics and social commentary still seems relevant. The song is about stereotypes and putting people into categories based on prejudices.
“Funny I don’t fit,
Where have all the average people gone?”
Roger Miller – Where have all the average people gone (audio):
Down The Tracks: Bob Dylan and the Music That Influenced Him (documentary)
Just as Bob Dylan has inspired four decades of musicians, so too was his own musical style influenced by those who came before him. This documentary profiles the folk performers who had the greatest impact on Dylan’s early career. Leadbelly, Pete Seeger, Mississippi John Hurt and other musicians appear in vintage clips, while special focus is given to Woody Guthrie, whose bond with Dylan is reflected in nearly all of Dylan’s music.
While there isn’t a note of Bob Dylan singing in this documentary from 2008, it is still a very worthwhile watch. It gives us a depiction of what influenced Bob Dylan as he grew into the greatest songwriter of all time. There are great and rare clips of Pete Seeger, Leadbelly and many more.
A very interesting addition to all the films about Dylan and the music that influenced (and still influences) him.
10 Good cover versions of Bob Dylan’s Christian songs
I love the “Christian period” in Dylan’s career, always have. In the beginning I felt quite alone in my belief in Dylan, but now he is finally getting recognised for his faith-based songs. The Bob Dylan records from that period are so much better than the critics at the time wrote, they were simply too shocked by his conversion to see the beauty in the songs. I have to say that not all critics were harsh, some recognised quality.
And so what if he’s taken up with the God of Wrath? Since when have you been so crazy about the God of Love? Or any other species of hippie bullshit?
– Robert Christgau
First his live shows from these years got well deserved praise and now finally the albums. They might not be among his best by Dylan’s standard, but by anyone else’s they’re actually quite decent!
Here are evidence that the songs are solid Bob Dylan compositions. I have tried not to only include gospel choirs, there are a lot of performances I could have chosen, but instead I’ve tried to show how the songs work in different styles.
