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Originally Posted by Taxman
I have no problems with Bob's voice on records but when he plays live, it's awful. Those old songs don't work at all nowadays. I don't know what happened to his voice, he should have done something for it.
Back in the sixties, his voice, contrary to rumors, was great. I can't get the opinion of some folks that he was a bad singer. He stayed usually in tune, he was able to express many different kind of emotions, he could change his tone when needed and he sounded humane. All that a great singer needs. Maybe not technically perfect, but the most important part of music is NOT on the notes and music is not about technical ability, it's about, well, something far greater than that.
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Yes, Taxman, I completely agree; he could write a decent melody, and I feel the same as you about his voice too. I always liked the way he seemed put being passionate above being pretty - given how many peole were singing at the time, that was quite a bold stance, but it really made his material stand out from the crowd.
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Originally Posted by Gavin B.
Nashville Skyline had a huge impact on the direction of popular music when it was released in 1969.
At the time I was in high school playing in a rock band and Dylan was a scheduled guest on The Johnny Cash Show. I can still recall the entire show vividly. We all gathered around a portable black & white television in renovated barn we used as a rehearsal space. Dylan sang two songs from Nashville Skyline: Lay Lady Lay, and Girl From the North Country which was a duet with Johnny Cash.
Dylan had cut off his wild looking hair-do and was dressed like a country gentleman, not in his usual bohemian style of dress. He dressed like he was on his way to an appearance on the Grand Ol' Opry. It was scary but Dylan almost looked like a clone of Johnny Cash, both in appearance and stage manner.
Later in the show a little known folk singer named Joni Mitchell made her national television debut singing a song titled Both Sides Now. We were completely enthralled. Watching that show also got me interested in the music of Johnny Cash, who was completely under the radar for rock and rollers in 1969.
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That`s a great vignette from your younger days, Gavin B ! For me as well, it was Nashville Skyline that introduced me to the name of Johnny Cash. That same summer (when I was listening to Nashville Skyline once a day minimum), they showed
Johnny Cash Live From San Quentin on tv one evening, but I don`t think the Johnny Cash Show ever turned up on British tv, so the clip was very interesting. Bob looks pretty relaxed, though he must have known that thousands of die-hard fans would be watching in disbelief. As you say, he`s like a Cash clone.
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At the time, Dylan & the Los Angeles rock group the Byrds were the only artists experimenting with country music.
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I`m not entirely convinced about this, though. Weren`t plenty of people exploring the border between rock and country? I don`t know for sure, but I think people like Rick Nelson, Roy Orbison, The Holy Modal Rounders had a foot in both camps. Sure, with his talent and charisma, Dylan was able to turn people`s attention to country rock, but my feeling is that it was there already. Dylan gets enough accolades as it is; let`s hear it for some of the lesser talents too.
(PS. Well done St. Loius, for not being outraged at Dylan`s "betrayal". What a concert that must`ve been. Made me think of when I saw Neil Young, who also played a long acoustic set followed by some raise-the-roof rock.)