BOB DYLAN

The Best of the Original Mono Recordings

2010-12-07

Review by Steven “Nick” Nickelson of The Best of the Original Mono Recordings by Bob Dylan: Recommended: All (this is, after all, a “best of”) It is said that everything old is new again and Bob Dylan is bringing back the monoraul Folk sounds of the 60’s and 70’s with a vengeance. Most of the tracks on this disc were originally recorded 40-50 years ago, but the man who was originally born Robert Zimmerman brings them back to life through the magic of remastering, and makes them sound as fresh as the day they were recoded. Many artists of the day opted for mono over the new-fangled stereo because it seemed truer to the actual music being played – and in fact it was for folk singers whose audiences were (generally) in smaller venues like coffee houses. Is mono better? No, it is just different - the way the music was originally supposed to be heard. The way Dylan wanted it heard. For someone wanting to hear what all the hoopla is about concerning Dylan's albums in mono, this will give you a tasty sampler of the wonderful sounding albums in the box set. The tracks are judiciously chosen, but by virtue of being a sampler "best of", many, many songs aren't here. If this grouping whets your appetite for the whole collection of (arguably) Dylan's best work, you'll need to hear all the albums in glorious monophonic sound. I particularly like the full-bodied sound of “Subterranean Homesick Blues”. Once again, I have to emphatically state that these songs take me back to the wonder years of my youth – of protests, psychedelics, free love, and the promise of eternal hope for mankind! Oops, I better get off the memory train before I fall off and hurt myself. ----Nick

Quick Links:

• Bob Dylan's Website