Aside from an utterly mystifying article by Greil Marcus in last Sunday’s New York Times, there’s been very little in the local media about the new Bob Dylan album, Love and Theft, due in stores on Tuesday, Sept. 11.
Today’s Daily News gives it a rave review, saying that, in contrast to the dour and apocalyptic Time Out of Mind of 1997, this one’s romantic and bluesy, witty and sexy, with Bob in good, albeit wrecked, voice and a real drive to the rhythm. Lots of trad folk feel to the music, and the best lyrics Dylan’s done since the '60s.
I see in the full-page ad that Rolling Stone gave it five stars, and that there was a nice piece about it in the L.A. Times.
So. What are YOU guys hearing about it? Anyone going to be lined up at the record shop on Tuesday morning?
I wouldn’t trust a review that didn’t like “Time Out of Mind”, and was eager to favor something by saying it constrasted with it. IMO, TOoM proved Dylan could still deliver, and was the best thing he’d done in years (possibly going back to “Blood on the Tracks” and “Desire”. I’d rate BotT as his best work, with, perhaps, “Bringing it All Back Home” or “Highway 61 Revisited” next).
Heard a couple of tunes off of it on the local “Roots” radio. (WRNR for MD natives) I can say that I WILL have this album tomorrow evening! The songs I heard are not as contemplative as “Time” in terms of focusing on love gone bad, mortality, all the issues on Time. These were more up beat. Of course, two songs doesn’t give great insight into the entire album, but Dylan’s albums are more thematic than most artists.
All of the buzz about it is excellent. It got the highest rating in my local paper, the San Fran Chronicle. All of the people who have heard it and are talking about it on the newgroups are raving about it.
Dylan, in a typically cryptic utterance, said it sounded like his greatest hits album except none of the songs were hits yets.