Tag Archives: Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan video, List, Video

Bob Dylan videos

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bob dylan

This is a collection of published posts @ JV including videos of Bob Dylan.
It will be updated along the way..

If you like what you see… please consider a “like” at our FP page:

Concerts:

Single videos & Other:

Other:

-Egil

Blues, Music Calendar

Today: The late Blind Willie McTell was born in 1898 – 115 years ago

blind willie mctell

And I know no one can sing the blues
Like Blind Willie McTell
~Bob Dylan (“Blind Willie McTell”)

He was a songster of wide repertoire and as fine a 12-string guitarist as ever lived. The dexterity of his playing was extraordinary, and his voice was an unusually smooth tenor. The interplay between voice and guitar also brought into the equation McTell’s intelligence and wit, and it was the fusion of all these elements that led Bob Dylan to write in his 1983 tribute song that ‘no-one can sing the blues like Blind Willie McTell.’
~Michael Gray (BD Encyclopedia)

Willie Samuel McTell was one of the blues’ greatest guitarists, and also one of the finest singers ever to work in blues.
~Bruce Eder (allmusic.com)

Statesboro Blues:

Wikipedia:

Birth name William Samuel McTier
Also known as Blind Sammie, Georgia Bill, Hot Shot Willie, Blind Willie, Barrelhouse Sammy, Pig & Whistle Red, Blind Doogie, Red Hot Willie Glaze, Red Hot Willie, Eddie McTier
Born May 5, 1898
Thomson, Georgia, U.S.
Origin Statesboro, Georgia, U.S.
Died August 19, 1959 (aged 61)
Milledgeville, Georgia, U.S.
Genres Country blues, Piedmont blues, ragtime, Delta blues, gospel
Occupations Musician, songwriter, songster, accompanist, preacher
Instruments Vocals, guitar, harmonica, accordion, kazoo, violin
Years active 1927–1956

Blind Willie McTell (born William Samuel McTier May 5, 1898 – August 19, 1959), was a Piedmont and ragtime blues singer and guitarist. He played with a fluid, syncopated fingerstyle guitar technique, common among many exponents of Piedmont blues, although, unlike his contemporaries, he came to use twelve-string guitars exclusively. McTell was also an adept slide guitarist, unusual among ragtime bluesmen. His vocal style, a smooth and often laid-back tenor, differed greatly from many of the harsher voice types employed by Delta bluesmen, such as Charley Patton. McTell embodied a variety of musical styles, including blues, ragtime, religious music and hokum.

blind willie mctell & Kate McTellBlind Willie and Kate McTell in Atlanta, 1930s

 Travelin’ Blues:

Born blind in the town of Thomson, Georgia, McTell learned how to play guitar in his early teens. He soon became a street performer around several Georgia cities including Atlanta and Augusta, and first recorded in 1927 for Victor Records. Although he never produced a major hit record, McTell’s recording career was prolific, recording for different labels under different names throughout the 1920s and 30s. In 1940, he was recorded by John Lomax for the Library of Congress’s folk song archive. He would remain active throughout the 1940s and 50s, playing on the streets of Atlanta, often with his longtime associate, Curley Weaver. Twice more he recorded professionally. McTell’s last recordings originated during an impromptu session recorded by an Atlanta record store owner in 1956. McTell would die three years later after suffering for years from diabetes and alcoholism. Despite his mainly failed releases, McTell was one of the few archaic blues musicians that would actively play and record during the 1940s and 50s. However, McTell never lived to be “rediscovered” during the imminent American folk music revival, as many other bluesmen would.

McTell’s influence extended over a wide variety of artists, including The Allman Brothers Band, who famously covered McTell’s “Statesboro Blues”, and Bob Dylan, who paid tribute to McTell in his 1983 song “Blind Willie McTell”; the refrain of which is, “And I know no one can sing the blues, like Blind Willie McTell”. Other artists influenced by McTell include Taj Mahal, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Ralph McTell, Chris Smither and The White Stripes.

blind willie mctell 2lBlind Willie McTell, circa 1950

 Pal of Mine:

Bob Dylan has paid tribute to McTell on at least four occasions:

  • Firstly, in his 1965 song “Highway 61 Revisited“, the second verse begins with “Georgia Sam he had a bloody nose”, referring to one of Blind Willie McTell’s many recording names
  • later in his song “Blind Willie McTell“, recorded in 1983 but released in 1991 on The Bootleg Series Volumes 1-3
  • then with covers of McTell’s “Broke Down Engine” and “Delia” on his 1993 album, World Gone Wrong
  • in his song “Po’ Boy“, on 2001’s “Love & Theft”, which contains the lyric, “had to go to Florida dodging them Georgia laws”, which comes from McTell’s “Kill It Kid”

Bob Dylan – Blind Willie McTell – Hollywood Palladium Theater, Los Angeles, California – 12 January 2012:

Check out this great post @ jasobrecht.com:

Playlist of the day:

Other May-05:

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James Brown, Music Calendar, Soul

Today: The late James Brown was born in 1933 – 80 years ago

JB

When I’m on stage, I’m trying to do one thing: bring people joy. Just like church does. People don’t go to church to find trouble, they go there to lose it.
~James Brown

The one thing that can solve most of our problems is dancing.
~James Brown

“Soul Brother Number One,” “the Godfather of Soul,” “the Hardest Working Man in Show Business,” “Mr. Dynamite” — those are mighty titles, but no one can question that James Brown earned them more than any other performer. Other singers were more popular, others were equally skilled, but few other African-American musicians were so influential over the course of popular music. And no other musician, pop or otherwise, put on a more exciting, exhilarating stage show: Brown’s performances were marvels of athletic stamina and split-second timing.
~Richie Unterberger (allmusic.com)

Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag – Live at Montreux:

James Brown tribute youtube playlist:

From Wikipedia:

Birth name James Joseph Brown, Jr.
Born May 3, 1933
Barnwell, South Carolina, United States
Origin Toccoa, Georgia
Died December 25, 2006 (aged 73)
Atlanta, Georgia
Genres R&B, soul, funk, doo-wop, rock ‘n’ roll, blues, jazz
Occupations Musician, songwriter, dancer, bandleader, record producer, actor
Instruments Vocals, drums, percussion, piano, keyboards, organ
Years active 1954–2006

James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is one of the founding fathers of funk music and is a major figure of 20th century popular music and dance. In a career that spanned six decades, Brown profoundly influenced the development of many different musical genres.

james brown

 

I Feel Good:

Brown moved on a continuum of blues and gospel-based forms and styles to a profoundly “Africanized” approach to music making. First coming to national public attention in the mid 1950s as a member of the R&B singing group The Famous Flames, Brown performed in concerts, first making his rounds across the Chitlin’ Circuit, and then across the country and later around the world, along with appearing in shows on television and in movies. Although he contributed much to the music world through his hitmaking, Brown holds the record as the artist who charted the most singles on the Billboard Hot 100 without ever hitting number one on that chart.

james-brown

For many years, Brown’s touring show was one of the most extravagant productions in American popular music. At the time of Brown’s death, his band included three guitarists, two bass guitar players, two drummers, three horns and a percussionist. The bands that he maintained during the late 1960s and 1970s were of comparable size, and the bands also included a three-piece amplified string section that played during ballads. Brown employed between 40 and 50 people for the James Brown Revue, and members of the revue traveled with him in a bus to cities and towns all over the country, performing upwards of 330 shows a year with almost all of the shows as one-nighters. In 1986, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in 2000 into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Brown died on Christmas Day 2006 from heart failure after becoming ill two days earlier and being hospitalized for hours. He is buried in Beech Island, South Carolina.

Night Train:

Playlist of the day:

Other May-03:

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Blues, Music Calendar

Today: The late Little Walter was born in 1930 – 83 years ago

little walter

..king of all post-war blues harpists,…. The fiery harmonica wizard took the humble mouth organ in dazzling amplified directions that were unimaginable prior to his ascendancy.
~Bill Dahl (allmusic.com)

Induction of Little Walter into R&R Hall of Fame in 2008:

Walter’s Jump – Live @ American Folk Blues Festival 1967, Germany:

Wikipedia:

Little Walter, born Marion Walter Jacobs (May 1, 1930 – February 15, 1968), was an American blues harmonica player, whose revolutionary approach to his instrument has earned him comparisons to Charlie Parker and Jimi Hendrix, for innovation and impact on succeeding generations. His virtuosity and musical innovations fundamentally altered many listeners’ expectations of what was possible on blues harmonica. Little Walter was inducted to the The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2008 in the “sideman” category making him the first and only artist ever to be inducted specifically for his work as a harmonica player.

little walter

Juke:

His legacy has been enormous: he is widely credited by blues historians as the artist primarily responsible for establishing the standard vocabulary for modern blues and blues rock harmonica players. His influence can be heard in varying degrees in virtually every modern blues harp player who came along in his wake, from blues greats such as Junior Wells, James Cotton, George “Harmonica” Smith, Carey Bell, and Big Walter Horton, through modern-day masters Sugar Blue, Billy Branch, Kim Wilson, Rod Piazza, William Clarke, and Charlie Musselwhite, in addition to blues-rock crossover artists such as Paul Butterfield and John Popper of the band Blues Traveler. Little Walter was portrayed in the 2008 film, Cadillac Records, by Columbus Short.

Awards & recognition: 

  • 1986 – Blues Hall of Fame: “Juke” (Classics of Blues Recordings – Singles or Album Tracks category)
  • 1991 – Blues Hall of Fame: Best of Little Walter (Classics of Blues Recordings – Albums category)
  • 1995 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: “Juke” (500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll)
  • 2003 – Rolling Stone: Best of Little Walter (#198 on list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time)
  • 2008 – Grammy Awards: “Juke” (Grammy Hall of Fame Award)
  • 2008 – Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Little Walter inducted (Sideman category)
  • 2008 – Blues Hall of Fame: “My Babe” (Classics of Blues Recordings – Singles or Album Tracks category)
  • 2009 – Grammy Awards The Complete Chess Masters: 1950–1967 (Best Historical Album Winner)

The Best Of Little Walter (full album):

Playlist of the day:

Other May-01:

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Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan albums

Today: Bob Dylan released Together Through Life in 2009 – 4 years ago

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bob dylan Together Through Life

…Sure, I try to stick to the rules. Sometimes I might shift paradigms within the same song, but then that structure also has its own rules. And I combine them both, see what works and what doesn’t. My range is limited. Some formulas are too complex and I don’t want anything to do with them.
~Bob Dylan (to Bill Flanagan, in 2009)

“Dylan, who turns 68 in May, has never sounded as ravaged, pissed off and lusty”
~David Fricke (rollingstone.com)

bob dylan Together Through Life back

Together Through Life is an album that gets its hooks in early and refuses to let go. It’s dark yet comforting, with a big tough sound, booming slightly like a band grooving at a soundcheck in an empty theatre. And at its heart there is a haunting refrain. Because above everything this is a record about love, its absence and its remembrance.
~Danny Eccleston (mojo4music.com)

Beyond Here Lies Nothin’

I’m listening to Billy Joe Shaver
And I’m reading James Joyce
Some people they tell me
I got the blood of the land in my voice
~Bob Dylan (I Feel A Change Comin’ On)

Wikipedia:

Released April 28, 2009
Recorded December 2008
Genre Folk rock, blues rock, Americana
Length 45:33
Language English
Label Columbia
Producer Jack Frost (Bob Dylan pseudonym)

Together Through Life is the thirty-third studio album by singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released in April 2009 by Columbia Records. The album debuted at number one in several countries, including the U.S.  and the UK. It is Dylan’s first number one in Britain since New Morning in 1970.

Dylan wrote all but one of the album’s songs with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, with whom he had previously co-written two songs on his 1988 album Down in the Groove. In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Dylan commented on the collaboration:

“Hunter is an old buddy, we could probably write a hundred songs together if we thought it was important or the right reasons were there… He’s got a way with words and I do too. We both write a different type of song than what passes today for songwriting.”

The only other writer Dylan has ever collaborated with to such a degree is Jacques Levy, with whom he wrote most of the songs on Desire (1976).

bob dylan Together Through Life inlay

Rumors of the album, reported in Rolling Stone magazine, came as a surprise, with no official press release until March 16, 2009 — less than two months before the album’s release date. Dylan produced the record under his pseudonym of Jack Frost, which he used for his previous two studio albums, “Love and Theft” and Modern Times. The album was rumored to contain “struggling love songs” and have little similarity to Modern Times.

In a conversation with music journalist Bill Flanagan, published on Bob Dylan’s official website, Flanagan suggested a similarity of the new record to the sound of Chess Records and Sun Records, which Dylan acknowledged as an effect of “the way the instruments were played.” He said that the genesis of the record was when French film director Olivier Dahan asked him to supply a song for his new road movie, My Own Love Song, which became “Life is Hard” – indeed, ‘according to Dylan, Dahan was keen to get a whole soundtrack’s worth of songs from the man’ – and “then the record sort of took its own direction.” 

Beyond Here Lies Nothin’ live 2011 Tucson, AZ:

Dylan is backed on the album by his regular touring band, plus David Hidalgo of Los Lobos and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Dylan commented on Campbell’s guitar work in his interview with Flanagan: “He’s good with me. He’s been playing with Tom for so long that he hears everything from a songwriter’s point of view and he can play most any style.”

In the interview with Bill Flanagan, Dylan discusses the only known outtake to “Together Through Life”, “Chicago After Dark”. Apparently, this song was in the running to be on the album but was left off the final version, as Flanagan talks about the song as if it is on the album. The song is not circulating among collectors.

“Bill Flanagan: In that song CHICAGO AFTER DARK, were you thinking about the new President?

Bob: Not really. It’s more about State Street and the wind off Lake Michigan and how sometimes we know people and we are no longer what we used to be to them. I was trying to go with some old time feeling that I had.”

—

Described at length in a 2009 interview to promote the album Together Through Life, according to Dylan, it’s about “how sometimes we know people and we are no longer what we used to be to them”. In fact, this song never existed.He made it all up. How fitting.
~Clinton Heylin (telegraph.co.uk)

Forgetful Heart, Memphis, 2011:

  • The album received two Grammy Award nominations in Best Americana Album category and “Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance” category for “Beyond Here Lies Nothin'”.
  • The album also is significant as the only album by Dylan to top the US and UK charts consecutively.
  • The album’s cover photo is the same as that on the cover of American author Larry Brown’s short story collection, Big Bad Love.

Track listing:

  1. “Beyond Here Lies Nothin'” 3:51
  2. “Life Is Hard” 3:39
  3. “My Wife’s Home Town” (Willie Dixon, Dylan, Hunter) 4:15
  4. “If You Ever Go to Houston” 5:49
  5. “Forgetful Heart” 3:42
  6. “Jolene” 3:51
  7. “This Dream of You” (Dylan) 5:54
  8. “Shake Shake Mama” 3:37
  9. “I Feel a Change Comin’ On” 5:25
  10. “It’s All Good” 5:28

My ratings (0-10):

  • I Feel a Change Comin’ On – 9
  • Beyond Here Lies Nothin’ – 8,5
  • Shake Shake Mama – 8
  • My Wife’s Home Town – 7
  • If You Ever Go to Houston – 7
  • Forgetful Heart- 7
  • This Dream of You – 7
  • It’s All Good – 6,5
  • Life is Hard – 6,5
  • Jolene – 6

Personnel:

  • Bob Dylan – guitar, keyboards, vocals, production
Additional musicians
  • Mike Campbell – guitar, mandolin
  • Tony Garnier – bass guitar
  • Donnie Herron – steel guitar, banjo, mandolin, trumpet
  • David Hidalgo – accordion, guitar
  • George Recile – drums
Technical personnel
  • David Bianco – recording, mixing
  • Eddy Schreyer – mastering
  • Bill Lane – assistant engineering
  • Rafael Serrano – engineering
  • David Spreng – engineering
  • Rich Tosti – assistant engineering

Playlist of the day:

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