Blood on the Tracks

The unsustainable generation of bob dylan albums from this list continues for me. I think I’m about to enter a long Dylan desert for the next 700 or so days.

One of these I’ll give less than 5 stars for a Bob Dylan album….

Not today though.

I thought this was a more subdued Dylan, although there were a few great tracks on first listen this might need some time to sit with me given the lyrical depth

Dylan’s best post 60s record.

Is this a breakup album? Because his lyrics are still poetic but also more direct so I understand the emotion behind the songs. I also probably spoiled myself on the themes of this record by going on a Wikipedia rabbit hole of Bob's discography.

I do like the folk-rock production on this album compared to his older works. His only non-negotiable was probably that damn harmonica 😭. "Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts" gave me whiplash when I heard those beats (3.5).

I'll have to take your word for it.

My old friend Bob Dylan... It's nice to see you back. It's been a few months since I last listened to your albums. As for this one, it sounds exactly like you expect it to sound. Lyrics here are as good as ever, though they are distinctly more personal than either Freewheelin' or Highway 61. The voice is more bearable here than on Highway 61, but only slightly. Either way, this is a Bob Dylan album. I respect Dylan more than I like him, and I personally believe that Leonard Cohen is better at crafting albums rather than just poems as Dylan writes them. Compounding this is the fact that Dylan's songs are always at least two verses longer than they have any right to be, which does make them drag on. In short, I can respect his influence without actually wanting to listen to his albums.

Even me, a person who's not super in 60s music and Dylan in general can appreciate this one is a bang-er.

Blood on the Tracks sounds so different from early Bob Dylan. These songs do not have traditional beginnings or endings. He using his guitar to create long form canvases to sing stories over. Once the story is finished the track stops. I’d be surprised if these generally came in at a set length or if he’d play a song in the same way twice. Yet things don’t sound loose because he is playing the guitar with such purpose, and the lyrics sound particularly personal. A phenomenal record which I’ve underrated compared to his mid-60s classics.

This is the most Bob Dylan-esque of the Bob Dylan albums I've heard, and by that I mean the vocal style, the harmonica vamping on the outro of nearly every tune, the poetic somng structure. Very nice. An acquired taste (Ithink I've said that before) but an entertainingan intimate album. An amusement park, all the rides are different. You don't like them all but you can see how some folks think they're fun.

This is my favorite Bob Dylan’s album so far (let’s see how many more we get lol) “Tangled up in blue,” “You’re a big girl now,” and “Idiot wind” are so beautiful, and “If you see her, say hello” got me emotional.

dosta dobro! na razini blonde on blonde, dakle jače od ostalih albuma koje sam slušao. najbolja stvar "if you see her, say hello"

Bob Dylan is not my usual cup of tea, and yet this first listen left me wanting to revisit and dig deeper into a few of these stories in the future. He's obviously a great storyteller, but in a very uniquely personal and charming way, as if every song is recounting something that happened to him just last week. I was engaged the whole way through! Very pleasantly surprised by this Folk pull!

Standouts: Idiot Wind • Meet Me in the Morning • Lily, Rosemary and the Jack Of Hearts • Buckets of Rain

I respect Bob Dylan, but I don't seem to connect with much his music. I thought this album got better in the back half (from "Meet Me In The Morning" on) but still just not my thing. Maybe with a few more listens I'd learn to like it but we'll never know.

Was reading the Wiki notes - how was this already his 15th album. People really did churn out the music "back in the day" huh.

Dylan will always be forever linked with the old man (thanks Dad!) so enjoyed this greatly. I'm not sure I enjoy it as much as, say, Highway or Blonde, but at least you can still *vaguely* hear what he's trying to sing.

For the longest time I just didn’t get Bob Dylan.

Blood on the tracks was the first time I could finally see what everyone was banging on about.

He’s still a better songwriter than a singer, but this album was when I could see beyond the awful singing and somehow it all clicked for me.

Worth it for Tangled Up In Blue alone. Rest of the album just gets better with repeated listening.

Solid 4

Stone cold classic top to bottom. Stands with Bob’s 60s classics.

Blood On The Tracks has always been one of my favourite Dylan albums, and every time I come back to it I’m reminded why.

This is Dylan at his absolute best: great tunes, simple arrangements, and some of the most unbelievable storytelling he ever committed to tape. It feels raw, personal and honest without ever tipping into self-indulgent. Tangled Up in Blue has always been a standout for me – it’s one of those songs that changes slightly every time you hear it, depending on your mood and where you are in life.

There’s not much fat on this record. The songs are strong, the melodies stick, and the lyrics do the heavy lifting. It’s an album you can sit with, properly listen to, or just let play and absorb.

Favourite tracks: Tangled Up in Blue, Shelter from the Storm, If You See Her, Say Hello and Twist of Fate – all beautiful songs, each for different reasons.
Least favourite tracks: None. Everything on this album earns its place.
Album artwork: An iconic Dylan cover that perfectly matches the mood of the music.

I'm slowly learning how to appreciate Dylan. And with this, I'm learning that he really makes music that demands to be visited and revisited, again and again. Which kind of makes his stuff difficult for a project like this (for me at least). And I say this even though I've heard a lot of this album before, more than once too (with various levels of success). But after really sitting with it, it's clicking more and more. And I'm starting to see the rare magic that occurs in his best songs in the space between his immaculate, winding poetry, simplistic songs, and organic, almost sloppy execution. I'm realizing what I've long suspected, that his "controversial" delivery is as essential to his songs as his incredible pen. And Blood On The Tracks sees Dylan in a unique place. This is often cited as his breakup album, and it manages to capture, at various points, the warmth of love, the bitterness of the break-up, and the maturity in his ability to see his own flaws. Even if I haven't gotten *quite* to the bottom of this album, it's clear that it's pretty amazing. I will say, I think this album is at it's best in the first four songs. The full emotional spectrum is laid bare here: from Tangled Up In Blue, which sounds wistful to me, to Idiot Wind, which sounds *furious*. Although, I would also like to shout out Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts, which is a fascinating, sprawling narrative. That being said, I do like a lot of the other material here, but I've not quite gotten all the way there, at least not yet. I will say that while checking this out, I re-listened to Highway 61 and realized that it's *probably* a 5. And I can see myself returning here. Blood On The Tracks is complex and beautiful and remarkable, and even if I'm still giving it time, I can tell it's remarkable.

Yeah Bob Dylan's good at what he does. Who knew!