Together Through Life

A few months ago Bob Dylan surprised everyone—including his record company—with the announcement that he had recorded a new album, and last month Together Through Life was released, to the jubilance of Dylan cronies like me everywhere. At nearly 68 years of age, the great rock bard is nearing the end of his extraordinary career. So each new album is a yet more precious gift. What is most remarkable is that late-period Dylan is arguably his very best. The most recent trio of albums—including Love and Theft, Modern Times, and Together Through Life—form what I have begun calling Dylan’s Americana Trilogy, all having been produced by Jack Frost (Dylan’s pseudonym as record producer) and showcasing a rootsy, relaxed kind of energy to match consistently strong compositions. However many more albums he records, the first decade of the 21st century will surely go down as a peak Dylan period.

Dylan’s voice is now a gravelly rasp but still quite capable of delivering powerful emotions, startling metaphors, and home truths. Dylan smartly surrounds his vocals with equally raw instrumentation, including David Hidalgo’s accordion which graces most of the songs on the album. What no one seems to have noticed is the prominence of guitar work on this album, thanks especially to Mike Campbell (of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers fame). No other Dylan album (among the 30+ he has recorded) features so many guitar solos. In fact, there are multiple solos on most of the songs—gritty but melodic stuff that richly accents the lyrics.

Here’s a quick survey of the tracks, most of which Dylan co-wrote with Grateful Dead wordsmith, Robert Hunter:

by Jim Spiegel read the rest