Tag Archives: Bob Johnston

August 14: Legendary producer Bob Johnston died 2015 – R.I.P.

August 14, 2016 Hallgeir 4 Comments

August 14: Legendary producer Bob Johnston died 2015 – Rest in Peace

“Is it rolling, Bob?”
– Bob Dylan at the beginning of To Be Alone With You (Nashville Skyline)

“Johnston had fire in his eyes. He had that thing that some people call ‘Momentum.’ You could see it in his face and he shared that fire, that spirit. Columbia’s leading folk and country producer, he was born one hundred years too late. He should have been wearing a wide cape, a plumed hat, and riding with his sword held high. Johnston disregarded any warning that might get in his way. … Johnston lived on low country barbecue, and he was all charm.”
– Bob Dylan, Chronicles: Volume One

“I had the best in the world in my hand – there was no place I couldn’t go with him, so that’s where I went. I think Blonde On Blonde is the best record Dylan ever cut… Blonde On Blonde was the first symphony cut in Nashville!”
– Bob Johnston (Uncut magazine)

Donald William ‘Bob’ Johnston (born May 14, 1932, Hillsboro, Texas – died August 14, 2015) was an American record producer, best known for his work with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen, and Simon and Garfunkel.

Great interview from youtube (by Harper Simon):

Continue reading August 14: Legendary producer Bob Johnston died 2015 – R.I.P. →

Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen, Paul Simon

May 14: Legendary producer the late Bob Johnston was born in 1932

May 14, 2016 Hallgeir 3 Comments

May 14: Legendary producer the late great Bob Johnston was born in 1932

“Is it rolling, Bob?”
– Bob Dylan at the beginning of To Be Alone With You (Nashville Skyline)

“Johnston had fire in his eyes. He had that thing that some people call ‘Momentum.’ You could see it in his face and he shared that fire, that spirit. Columbia’s leading folk and country producer, he was born one hundred years too late. He should have been wearing a wide cape, a plumed hat, and riding with his sword held high. Johnston disregarded any warning that might get in his way. … Johnston lived on low country barbecue, and he was all charm.”
– Bob Dylan, Chronicles: Volume One

“I had the best in the world in my hand – there was no place I couldn’t go with him, so that’s where I went. I think Blonde On Blonde is the best record Dylan ever cut… Blonde On Blonde was the first symphony cut in Nashville!”
– Bob Johnston (Uncut magazine)

Donald William ‘Bob’ Johnston (born May 14, 1932, Hillsboro, Texas, died August 14, 2015) was an American record producer, best known for his work with Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen, and Simon and Garfunkel.

Great interview from youtube (by Harper Simon):

Continue reading May 14: Legendary producer the late Bob Johnston was born in 1932 →

Bob Dylan, Bob Dylan recording sessions

Feb 13: Bob Dylan – 2nd Nashville Skyline session in 1969

February 13, 2016 Egil 9 Comments

Well, Jann, I’ll tell you something. There’s not too much of a change in my singing style, but I’ll tell you something which is true… I stopped smoking. When I stopped smoking my voice changed… So drastically, I couldn’t believe it myself. That’s true. I tell you, you stop smoking those cigarettes (laughter)… and you’ll be able to sing like Caruso.
~Bob Dylan (to Jann Wenner Nov 1969)

Anyway, on Nashville Skyline you had to read between the lines. I was trying to grasp something that would lead me on to where I thought I should be, and it didn’t go nowhere – it just went down, down, down.
~Bob Dylan (to Jonathan Cott, Sept 1978)

The first recording session for “Nashville Skyline” was held on February 12, 1969 – but no recordings sheets are available from this session. The second session took place the day after – February 13, 1969. Dylan landed 3 master versions this evening.

Continue reading Feb 13: Bob Dylan – 2nd Nashville Skyline session in 1969 →

Bob Dylan, Bob Dylans's best songs, The Best Songs

Bob Dylan’s best songs: Positively 4th Street #13 (Audio & Video)

September 6, 2014 Egil 2 Comments

You got a lotta nerve
To say you are my friend
When I was down
You just stood there grinning

–

… I was gonna put Positively 4th Street on the other side, but, uh… I didn’t figure anybody could understand it so…
~Bob Dylan (Bob Fass/WBAI Interview, 26 Jan 1966)

Outside of a song like Positively 4th Street, which is extremely one-dimensional, which I like, I don’t usually purge myself by writing anything about any type of quote, so-called,
relationships. I don’t have the kinds of relationships that are built on any kind of false pretense, not to say that I haven’t.
~Bob Dylan (Scott Cohen, Sept 1985)

This masterpiece would have fitted nicely on “Highway 61 Revisited”.. where it did belong.

original version:

Continue reading Bob Dylan’s best songs: Positively 4th Street #13 (Audio & Video) →

Music Calendar

May 14 in music history

May 14, 2014 Egil


Today: Legendary producer Bob Johnston was born in 1932 Happy Birthday (read more) “Johnston had fire in his eyes. He had that thing that some people call ‘Momentum.’ You could see it in his face and he shared that fire, that spirit. Columbia’s leading folk and country producer, he was born one hundred years too late. He should have been wearing a wide cape, a plumed hat, and riding with his sword held high. Johnston disregarded any warning that might get in his way. … Johnston lived on low country barbecue, and he was all charm.” – Bob Dylan, Chronicles: Volume One	Photo by Al Clayton
Bob Dylan: Vancouver, British Columbia 14 May 1998 (read more)
Sidney Bechet (May 14, 1897 – May 14, 1959) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer.A brilliant soprano saxophonist and clarinetist with a wide vibrato that listeners either loved or hated, Bechet’s style did not evolve much through the years but he never lost his enthusiasm or creativity. A master at both individual and collective improvisation within the genre of New Orleans jazz, Bechet was such a dominant player that trumpeters found it very difficult to play with him. Bechet wanted to play lead and it was up to the other horns to stay out of his way. ~Scott Yanow (allmusic.com)
David Byrne (born May 14, 1952) is a Scottish-born musician permanently residing in the United States, and was a founding member and principal songwriter of the American New Wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography, opera, and non-fiction. He has received Grammy, Oscar, and Golden Globe awards and been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Francis Albert “Frank” Sinatra, (December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and film actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the “bobby soxers”, he released his first album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra in 1946. His professional career had stalled by the 1950s, but it was reborn in 1954 after he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in From Here to Eternity.
“Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” – released 14 May 1969 – is the second studio album by Canadian musician Neil Young, released on Reprise Records catalogue RS 6349. His first with backing band Crazy Horse, it peaked at #34 on the Billboard 200 and has been certified a platinum album by the RIAA.
Spotify Playlist – May 14

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