Striking single sleeves…
2 July 2020
‘Series Of Dreams’ by BOB DYLAN
From the album The Bootleg Series Volumes 1 – 3 [Rare & Unreleased] 1961-1991
Released as a single in 1991 – one of his best songs ever!
Awesome video too…
BOB DYLAN: Website
This year’s best tracks (so far)…
Yes, we have already reached the middle of 2020. A surreal year we will never forget.
Fortunately, the music – on record that is – kept most of us alive and kicking.
Here are Turn Up The Volume’s 15 best tracks of 2020, so far…
‘I Found Out’ by OFFWORLD (UK)
Hard-Fi‘s frontman Richard Archer and imposing vox Krysten Cummings have the right human mindset and rad songs to confirm that. ‘I Found Out’ is a high-powered soul tour
de force. An epic heart and soul explosion from their upcoming album. Top stroke!
‘Hot Slick’ by PINS (Manchester, UK)
A hot stuff disco stomper that should be played in all discotheques around the globe,
from one of the coolest gangs on the planet. These bad girls forever also made one of
the best party albums of the year (so far) with eponymous longplayer Hot Slick. Bingo!
‘Ultra Plus Ultra’ by ELEFANT(Belgium)
The Belgian sound-exploring motherrockers unleashed their second stupefying album Behajung early this year with Ultra Plus Ultra‘ as one of the dazzling highlights.
A schizophrenic sonic uppercut with balls. Abso-fucking-lutely mental! You betcha!
‘Dark Blue’ by THROWING MUSES (Boston, US)
A firm banger driven by a solid beat with a pounding guitar groove, Kristin Hersh‘s characteristic sensual voice, and a catchy polyphonic chorus. Throwing Muses rocks!
The band’s brand new longplayer SUN RACKET hits the street on 4th September.
‘Never Ever Ever’ by BOA Vs COBRA (Belgium)
Don’t mess with charismatic frontwoman Sandy Fee who rants unambiguously about a toxic relationship from the crystal clear start when ‘Bad bad bad boy‘ bursts out of your speakers. Don’t forget to turn up the decibels, even more, when the ablaze chorus kicks in.
‘Man Of Chaos’ by FLIGHT ATTENDANT (Nashville, US)
A feverish cracker and jaw-dropping power slam. The sensual, magnetic, and spellbinding vocals create a sort of delirious trance. And when, unexpectedly, bouncy strings kick in as a harbinger for a vibrant finale you’ll reach a sonic orgasm. Heated stuff from Nashville!
‘Mr. Motivator’ by IDLES (Bristol, UK)
A riff-roaring ripper made to start crowded moshpits at gigs (for you only can pirouette yourself bananas at home). A red-hot-blooded corker that does your head it. Hell’s Bells!
‘Crossbow’ by TAMAR APHEK (Israel)
A shattering juggernaut, dynamized by a rattling machine-gun drum, mind-blowing bass vibrancy and a thunder and lighting guitar force. This is a cutting crackerjack rolling over you like an unstoppable high-speed train, with a fiery and exploding finale. Yeah!
‘Control‘ by AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS
This Australian tornado – the new Stooges fronted by head-spinning punkette AMYL – woke up the dead with their boiling debut LP last year. To keep up the heat they dropped a live EP recently with ‘Control‘ as the brain-breaking standout. Go nuts, right here right now…
‘Sweet’ by PORRIDGE RADIO (UK)
A towering loudQUIETloud haymaker with Margolin‘s repeating magnetically ‘I’m charming, I’m sweet and she will love me when she meets me‘. Passionate belter from their excellent album Every Bad. Porridge Radio is on its way to world domination! Capeesh??
‘Downer Surrounded By Uppers’ by MRS. PISS (US)
Bloodcurdling shrieks from hell. Goth hysteria by gloom and doom sisters in crime Chelsea Wolfe and Jess Gowrie. More bone-chilling screams on their pitch-black LP Self Surgery.
‘Home Thru Hell’ by DEAP LIPS (CA, US)
When led zep blues-rock duo Deap Vally and symphonic fairy-tale eccentrics
The Flaming Lips team up you can expect firework like on this Yahama motor highlight from their self-titled debut album. One of the best longplayers of 2020 (so far).
‘Hopeless Romantic’ by OH BROTHER (UK)
A loud and crystal clear invitation to get out of your straitjacket, to open your windows, and scream at the top of your lungs to ventilate all your rage, frustration, and fury while jumping like a kangaroo on tons of speed. A stone gold 24 Karat rocker. Bang Bang!
‘Lockdown’ by From The Specials – Neville Staple (UK)
Swinging 2Tone lockdown humdinger written in isolation by original Rude Boy Neville Staple and his wonderful wife Sugary. Perfect tune for a safe house-party. Get up, stand up, and fight for your right to do some ska moves in these special(s) times. Shake your booty.
‘United We Stand’ by CONFIDENCE SURVIVAL (Nigeria born, Canadian based) )
Black lives matter. Black music matters. This the official COVID-!9 Victory Song
written by this highly caring Nigerian reggae artist. The only way to survive is by
doing it together in unity. Listen to her excellent full EP Confidence Is Key.
‘Murder Most Foul’ by BOB DYLAN
A 17-minute epos about America in the sixties, centered around the world-changing assassination of president John F. Kennedy on 22 November 1963. Only living legend Bob Dylan (the best singer-songwriter-poet of all time in my book) can write such a compelling, epic story. It sounds like a musical book. Brilliant piece by the Nobel Prize winner.
All together on Spotify…
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Have a great summer, music junkies…
25 June 2020
Artists: Bob Dylan and The Band
Album: The Basement Tapes – a double longplayer
Released: 26 June 1975 – 45 years ago – Dylan’s 16th LP
Artwork: the cover picture was taken by Reid Miles
in the basement of a Los Angeles YMCA
Score: #7 in the USA AND #8 in the UK
Rolling Stone said at the time: “The songs are home music, barroom music played for pleasure and for the hell of it by and for musicians with a shared experience outsiders
may not fully understand… the music and lyrics snarled and spit out of the corners of one’s mouth… these were inspired times, and Dylan and the Band could as well have been singing and playing the telephone book.” Full review here.
Key phrase: this is what happens when icon Bob Dylan and
his phenomenal backing band make Americana great again
Key tracks: too many to name
Full album…
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BOB DYLAN: Facebook
23 June 2020
Artist: Bob Dylan
Album: Rough And Rowdy Ways
Released: 19 June 2020 – his 39th (!) studio album
Pitchfork writes: “Six decades into his career, Bob Dylan delivers a gorgeous and meticulous record. It is the rare Dylan album that asks to be understood and comes down to meet its audience… There are no distractions; he speaks carefully, quietly, earnestly… It results in a gorgeous and meticulous record. The lyrics are striking—dense enough to inspire a curriculum, clever enough to quote like proverbs. Played by his touring band, with understated appearances from Fiona Apple and Blake Mills, the music is a ghostly presence. Its sound is threadbare and hypnotic, backed by small choirs and acoustic instruments, a sharp turn from the raucous blues reenactments of his 21st-century records.” Full review here – Score 9/10
Key phrase: Robert Zimmerman is the best singer-songwriter ever
Singles: False Prophet / Murder Most Foul (the brilliant JFK assassination saga)
– FALSE PROPHET –
– MURDER MOST FOUL –
Album in full…
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BOB DYLAN: Facebook
Great concert posters from the past…
BOB DYLAN
Legendary ‘Judas’ concert
in Manchester 1966
The show was recorded and released
as part of Bob Dylan’s Bootleg Series,
actually wrongly titled ‘The Royal Albert
Hall Concert‘
New sonic impulses…
8 May 2020
I suppose it is a coincidence but this day back in 1911 heroic blues pioneer Robert Johnson was born. The man who died at the young age of 27 (like Kurt Cobain, Janis
Joplin, Brian Jones, Jim Morrison) and influenced tons of artists like Bob Dylan who
released a new blues groove called FALSE PROPHET today.
The third track he shared, from his upcoming album – first in 8 years with original
songs since 2012’s ‘Tempest’ – entitled ROUGH AND ROWDY WAYS, out 19th June.
Get the blues right here…
BOB DYLAN: Facebook
(photo: from LP ‘Live Royal Albert Hall)
New sonic impulses…
27 March 2020
After eight years since his magnificent Tempest album living legend BOB DYLAN
shares a new song, a nostalgic 17-minute ballad about the assassination, in suspicious circumstances, of John F. Kennedy on 22 November 1963. The best ever president the
US ever had. A great leader who strove for peace, equality, and solidarity, the total opposite of that ignorant buffoon who’s now in the White House.
The release was accompanied by a message of the iconic singer/songwriter: “Greetings
to my fans and followers with gratitude for all your support and loyalty across the years. This
is an unreleased song we recorded a while back that you might find interesting. Stay safe, stay observant and may God be with you.”
It was a dark day in Dallas, November ’63
A day that will live on in infamy
President Kennedy was a-ridin’ high
Good day to be livin’ and a good day to die
Being led to the slaughter like a sacrificial lamb
He said, ‘Wait a minute, boys, you know who I am?’
‘Of course we do. We know who you are.’
Then they blew off his head while he was still in the car
Shot down like a dog in broad daylight
Lyrics in full here
Song in full here …
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BOB DYLAN: Facebook
22 March 2020
Today 55 years ago, on 22 March 1965, living legend BOB DYLAN released his fifth LP BRING IT ALL BACK HOME. A game-changing album as it was his first longplayer with electric music on, recorded with a rock ‘n’ roll band. Narrow-minded fans experienced
this move as a betrayal of his folk and protest roots.
It was Dylan at its sixties best just doing what he wanted to do and do it brilliantly.
This record is just one of his all-time best in my book, musically and lyrically. All killers,
no fillers. Despite the controversy, it was the living legend’s first top ten album in the US, peaking at #9 and his first No 1 in the UK with monumental lead-single Subterranean Homesick Blues as one of his greatest hits.
AllMusic wrote: “With ‘Another Side of Bob Dylan’, Dylan had begun pushing past folk, and with ‘Bringing It All Back Home’, he exploded the boundaries, producing an album of boundless imagination and skill. And it’s not just that he went electric, either, rocking hard… It’s that he’s exploding with imagination throughout the record… making words mean as much as the music, but making the music an extension of the words. A truly remarkable album.”
Full review here. Score: 5/5.
David Crosby said: “The thing about Bringing It All Back Home was his words. That’s what Bob stunned the world with. Up until then we had ‘oooh, baby’ and ‘I love you, baby.’ Bob changed the map. He gave us really, really good words.”
Top Tracks (actually all of them): Subterranean Homesick Blues / On The Road Again / Maggie’s Farm
– SUBTERRANEAN HOMESICK BLUES –
– ON THE ROAD AGAIN –
– MAGGIE’S FARM –
(Live at Newport Folk Festival 1965)
Album in full…
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BOB DYLAN: Facebook – All Albums
6 March 2020
GREG DULLI who launched his first, fervent solo album Random Desire two weeks ago will release a limited-edition blue vinyl 7″ for RECORD STORE DAY 2020 (18 April) featuring one of the highlights of his LP, the single ‘A GHOST’ and a special b-side with a cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTY’ featuring Dulli‘s long-time collaborator Mark Lanegan.
Here’s ‘A GHOST’…
And here Bob Dylan’s original version of
‘‘GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTY‘ (1963)…
GREG DULLI: Facebook
Old and new albums to make your day…
20 January 2020
Artist: Bob Dylan
Album: Blood On The Tracks
His fifteenth and one of his most memorable longplayers ever. One critic called it “the truest, most honest account of a love affair from tip to stern ever put down on magnetic tape” as several songs dealt with Dylan‘s divorce from his first wife Sara Lownds. In 2003, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked the LP on #16 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Released: 20 January 1975 – 45 years ago today
Score: The LP topped the charts in the US, Canada, New Zealand
and several European countries. In the UK it peaked at #4
Here’s ‘Tangled In Blue‘ the only single from the LP…
Album in full…
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BOB DYLAN: Facebook
Back sleeve
