Another Side of Bob Dylan is one of my favorites. This album came out in 1964 and includes Chimes of Freedom, My Back Pages, and It Ain't Me Babe. Nobody was putting out songs like these in '64. But they would soon be covering them. In my top 5.
Visions of Johanna is possibly the best Dylan song ever. I would have included Street Legal. It's a bit over-produced but all of the songs are so strong and with such great lyrics. This is one of the great overlooked Dylan albums.
I also think Street Legal is underrated. "Journey Through White Heat" is an astonishing accomplishment. VOJ, It's all Right Ma, Desolation Row three greatest songs in any order. As good as Blood on the Tracks is, no one song is as great as those 3.
Dear Norman, thank you very much for for your most appreciated and pleasing videos. I am born in 1959 and therefore feeling at home with the music you like and talk about. Greetings from the Black Forest in South-West Germany near the borders to Fance and Switzerland. 😎
Romance in Durango would be my personal fav.track .. but I feel the complete first side Is perfect in its entirety.... so ya great song I agree. So many great albums tho tough choices
Every one has a opinion, as someone who thought I had head all of his best albums was happy to discover it afew years ago. Afew great songs on there, but what really made it for me was the violin and the drum sound. The playing and the fills, crispy!
How incredibly grateful and humbled I am to be ALIVE while Bob Dylan is creating new music and still performing live in concert. Many, many, many years from now generations will look back at this moment in time and wish they had the same privilege as we music fans and lovers do.......great video Maslov !!
Greetings from Bharat (India). I tremendously admire Bob Dylan, although It took me over 10 - 15 years to come around to appreciate his music & voice. Ironically, it was through the music of Mark Knopfler that I was introduced to Dylan. Anyone associated with Mark must be REALLY good. Right? I didn't like him in the beginning. I was like, why is he not singing like Sinatra, Neil Diamond, Elton John, Springsteen or Louis Armstrong. Then I listened to Mark Knopfler & Tom Petty whose voice have the shades of Dylan. And then I got to listen to " Like a Rolling Stone " & everything changed. :) Thanks for your wonderful videos. They are very insightful, especially for people like myself from other side of the globe who do not understand American pop culture much.
So nice to read your comment and realise that Indian people hear Bob Dylan and enjoy. I have been a follower of Bob Dylan since around 1965..thanks to him I learned to play guitar and even today I am part of a trio that covers Bob's songs..esp John Wesley Harding album. Can you write some more comments please?
Great list. My number 1 is and will always be Highway 61 Revisited, but as you say, ranking is totally subjective and there are so many great Dylan albums. Love & Theft would probably be in my top 10, as would Another Side. But Highway 61 seems to represent so much of what has always drawn me to him. I remember first playing a copy of the album in my bedroom, aged about 12 in the early 80s, and I knew that was it for me. The lyrics, the voice, the band, the attitude; everything. By the way, the artwork on Blood On The Tracks is not Bob's; both are lithographs by David Oppenheim.
for sure and ever since it came out and I tell my opinion to people they either get snooty or else they have never heard of it, lol...Señor, No Time to Think, Where are you Tonight? Is your Love in Vain? Changing of the Guard, all super songs, I think ....and I like Baby Please Stop Crying and No Time to Think as well
Well said! I would also put Dylan at a close second to The Beatles in my list of favorite artists. The more I've explored his work, the deeper and deeper it gets. I was listening to Tell Tale Signs yesterday and had one of those moments where it all felt so rich, so powerful, so real, such great grooves with the band, that I felt I could be satisfied if it was the only record on my shelf. And so much of his work can evoke that same response. What an artist.
I'll second this. cuz Feel My Love, Not Dark Yet, and that moment when he's listening to Neil Young and gotta turn up the sound (Highlands) ... otherwise this list is on point (imho, ymmv)
I started listening in '75 as a high school junior, and have listened to everything released and not released ever since, and I agree that TIME OUT OF MIND is the best album he has ever done.
I agree, it would be number 2 for me behind Blood on the tracks, but that's one of the great things about Dylan, there can be many different opinions, but they are all valid.
Fair enough, but your one major omission for me is 'The Basement Tapes'. An extraordinary piece of work, also probably his funniest ever, and one that I think really doesn't get the appreciation it so richly deserves.
It got the appreciation it deserved in 1975, Steve. It was number one on both the Pazz and Jop Poll and Christgau's List beating out Blood on the Tracks.
@@dannymoulton4829They released the complete tapes a few years ago. I bought it even though I had already downloaded one of the famous bootlegs of it. Who knew that dicking around in the basement could lead to some great music.
Rick Nelson was a huge Dylan fan and covered several of his songs. Rick's version of "She belongs to me" is one of the best covers ever! Dylan paid tribute to Rick (after his death) by doing "Poor Little Fool" live. Great artists - so much wonderful music.
I love Dylan since nearly 50 years - my all time favorite is still "Desire", followed by "Freewheelin'". I also think that "Street Legal" is underrated (I really love "Senòr")
Desire my number one then blood on the tracks and third blonde on blonde.can't believe it only made number 9 on your favourites.have the UK reissue and no problems with the sound on that,clear as a bell.great video mazzi
Great video, great list. Bob Dylan, as important, and influential an artist as there has ever been or will ever be. Incredible how the years go by & he has continued to release great music. Blonde On Blonde would definitely be my # 1 as well, I absolutely love Bringing It All Back Home, that would have to be in my top 3. You had a few in your list that I haven't gotten yet, but intend to, like you said, there are SOOO many Dylan albums. A couple of favorites that wasn't in your list--- definitely The Basement Tapes, &, not sure that it would rank that high but, I always liked Infidels. The box set Biograph is outstanding, dammit I need to get that out again......thanks, Mazzy.....
Great video. I have been on a Bob Dylan resurgence this past year. So I really appreciate hearing your take on these recordings. One point I will add that I'm sure you would agree is just how successful he has been surrounding himself with great musicians. Its really quite something.
Great choices! My most listened to Dylan albums now (changes a lot) are: Love and Theft, Oh Mercy, Time Out of Mind, Shadows in the Night and Bootleg vol 1.
Time out of mind, yes, certainly should be there, but a great listing anyway. Thank you! My 1st encounter with Highway 61 Revisited was at 14 years of age, alone in a house where everyone had gone out. I must have played it right through more than 3 times. Impact: immeasurable.
_Time Out of Mind_ is about a #5 for me. He wrote it on his *3rd North Node Return.* Knowing what this means in astrology and seeing this aspect manifest in just about every song is incredible. A perfect study of the human condition as decribed by astrology.
I know next to nothing regarding Bob Dylan but to hear you talk about a subject that you so obviously love, is time well spent in my book. And to hear you heap praise to Jimi Hendrix for his "definitive version of "All along the Watchtower" was pure class. A great video Mazzy, always a wonderful watch.
I love John Wesley Harding but it's hard to penetrate which makes it even more interesting.The mood is so deep and profound that there are times it crosses in to the deeply spiritual and moments where it's beyond words.The harmonica on wicked messenger right at the start carries so much.It's like the calm in the eye of the storm that was 1967.
Great list man! Thank you! Rough and Rawdy, was indeed a very nice surprise, because his previous 2-3 albums, I didn't like. It is a contender, but I will have to give it more spins and time in order to allow it to displace any other top 15 Dylan record. I would only add Street legal on your list, and place higher Oh mercy, with "What was it you wanted" which is one of my fav songs of all time with its sparse timeless sound.Definitely higher than any album that came after. Also John Wesley Harding is a bit higher for me, probably no.2 . Also love slow train. Gotta serve somebody won a Grammy for Dylan! By the way, I would love to see your take on Knopfler and Dire straits records.
Enjoyed your list. Know it takes awhile to put together a list when an artist has so many to choose from. I have most of the ones from your list but there are a few I definitely need to check out! Thank you Mazzy, take care.
Bob Dylan is my favorite. I really discovered his songs in 1977. But earlier than that, in grade school in Rootstown, Ohio, our music teacher taught us to sing "Blowin' in the Wind" - and she told us it was written by a guy who was "kind of a hippie"... Ooh. As fourth graders, were intrigued....
More than anything, kudos are deserved for your ability to compile such a list. I have, on more than one occasion, thought I would “rank” Bob’s albums, according to my preference, of course. However, I was unable to do so as I kept changing my mind. Every single time I put a record on I’d say to myself, “but this one is so good”. I finally gave up. I am a very enthusiastic Bob fan. No list is ever wrong. His words and music hit us differently at different times. I enjoyed this video very much, Mazzy.
Same here. I've got that boxed set that Mazzy showed and I decided to listen to it from beginning to end during the lockdown last year. I was very familiar with his mid/late 60s albums and some of the others, but not, for example the 3 during his "Christian" period. The more I listened, the more I got confused in trying to think through a "Top 10" list. So, I really glad Maz did it.
Very well-reasoned rankings. I largely agree with you, though somehow I'm not quite as high on Blood On the Tracks as most Dylan fans. I wouldn't have put them on the best-of list either, but I really love Street Legal and the 1975 release of The Basement Tapes with The Band. Like you, I'm a huge Beatles fan, and I didn't fully dive into Dylan until the '80s, but in my opinion Dylan stands above the Beatles -- and everybody else.
Kudos for attempting to pick “the best” 15 Bob Dylan - an impossible task - totally appreciate your choices & love your insight - but whose kidding who? there is a glimpse of brilliance on EVERY Bob album with some brilliant from start to finish - you did a great job - (btw my oldest son (24) is named Dylan mainly because Garcia was completely out of the question - his mother “we’re not naming pets”) - I’m a bit of a fanatic & completist. My first concert ever was Dylan @ MSG 9/30/78 - Thanks bother!!! I thoroughly enjoyed your video - although I didn’t completely agree - i can completely relate - in Bob we trust! ✌🏼💙🎼
Many thanks! So many illuminating insights peaking with Blonde on Blonde (You are so right!), and (IMO) just one oversight in not putting Time Out of Mind at least in the top 10. Anyway, excellent time spent well and looking forward to watching more of your videos!
I started listening to Bob Dylan when Highway 61 Revisited came out, and then bought all of his earlier releases. I'm still a big fan, and listen to his music regularly.. I agree with you on John Wesley Harden, and I like Highway 61 Revisited the best. Like you said, it's very subjected. I think Bob Dylan was a master in the studio, but I never cared for his live performances. I really enjoy how you bring music from my era back to life.
Just an addition to what you said - Mostly agree. I went to see Bob Dylan just before COVID hit. I am a huge fan of his songwriting. Before I went I was warned by a couple of Dylan fans that his live performances varied a lot. I must have copped him on a bad night. He was truly awful - probably the worst live concert I have seen (and I've seen a few). We were ready for the fact that he didn't interact with the audience - that's par for the course. He played the piano and did adaptations of a lot of his songs - that's OK except his voice was terrible. People walked out - a fair bit of yelling out from the audience. I'm still glad I saw him before I die. An interesting experience. BTW Mazza - great video.
Great video Mazzy - Time Out Of Mind would have to be in/around the top 5 for me along with Blood On The Tracks, Highway 61, Blonde On Blonde - Rough & Rowdy Ways only improving over time as well and may sneak in ahead of Bringing It All Back Home..
Mazzy, you and I both hold Dylan in the same regard..Beatles/Dylan..glad to see Rough and Rowdy Ways make your list..what a friggin great record..I play it and then I play it again..and again..Modern Times, Love and Theft👍👍👍can’t argue with your list because I love every record on it..your top two are my choices as well..Geez..next thing you are going to say is Ry Cooder is your favourite guitarist😛😛😛😛Really enjoyed this..thanks Mazzy👍👍❤️❤️🍸🍸glen
Thanks, always fun to watch to watch other music lovers rank albums by your favourite artists. And as usual I don't agree. And as usual both are right. That's the beauty of music. My number 1 is Highway 61. My "forgotten" Dylan album is Street Legal, I love that album, the songs, the sound, Dylan's singing, the background vocals, Changing of the Guards, Señor (Tales of Yankee Power) and I'll stop now. Keep up the good work!
Hi Mazzy, I like coming back to your ranking whenever my rankings change, some albums have gone up, some down, not much on the top 3 but quite a lot behind it. Street legal, Nashville skyline, Slow train coming have made it into the top 10, Desire has managed to climb up to 5th place. I've recently bought "world gone wrong" I think it is really good too. I'm with you about "new morning" I love it!
Thank you for the way you touched on Dylan’s religious views. My father who just passed away, was a Southern Baptist minister for over 60 years. I’ve been pleasantly surprised how the vinyl community did the same thing for Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens.
I just discovered these videos. I like Mazzy. I’ve watched Miles, Dylan and the end of the Stones (not a fan beyond their late 60s stuff). I listened to In a Silent Way three times yesterday. Thanks for that! Otherwise, ignore the people who complain. Yes, it is just your opinion man. Good enough.
Beatles are a close second to Dylan. 2022 Dylan still making great music with mind-blowing lyrics. No one compares! He leaves better stuff on the floor than most release !
You can't compare, Beatles wrote different stuff to Dylan and was a folkie when he came out, a continuation, I think the Beatles changed the culture of the western world.Sure a brilliant songwriter, better than anyone around, but the they are totally different acts
who could argue....what an amazing catalog....the fact that there can even be ones not mentioned is extraordinary by any means.....down in the groove, tempest, time out of mind, world gone wrong, and you mentioned pat garrett....what do you change..what do you choose..what does it matter...all brilliant in their own write....what a great way to spend a half-hour...peace my friend...rocky
Damn Mazzy, you’ve got me trying to choose between Love and Theft & Modern Times. They’re both such perfect records and now I’m battling in my head which I like more.
Great list...Blood on the Tracks and Blonde on Blonde are 1 and 1A . I like Infidels (Jokerman/Knopfler's great guitar work) and Street Legal is very underrated. Enjoyed this episode!!!
Agree with you completely! You have to kick something off to include his great work in the new millennium. It made me happy to see Oh, Mercy included which includes my favorite song: 'Most of the Time.'
1. Bring It All Back Home 2.Highway 61 3. Blonde on Blonde 4. Blood on the Tracks 5. Desire 6. Time out of Mind 7. Street Legal 8. Oh, Mercy 9. Love and Theft 10. Infidels
I agreed with every word you said...maybe not the order of albums but pretty close. I share your Dylan passion. Blonde on Blonde is a masterpiece. Sad Eyed Lady was written for wife Sara. This video was awesome...thanks (Yes I'm a Dylan fan)
Thanks, Mazzy, really enjoyed this. Apologies for the nerd out, but I can’t see that anyone has yet mentioned this spot of Dylan trivia. The consensus (I think) is that Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands was written for his first wife, Sara Lownds (a name which even sounds a little like the song title). Dylan himself later sang in the song Sara (from Desire), ‘Staying up for days in the Chelsea Hotel, writing Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands for you.’
#1 Highway 61 Revisited #2 Blonde on Blonde #3 Bringing it all back Home. I bought Highway 61 Revisited in 1965 when I was 12 because of 'Like a Rolling Stone' so I may be a bit biased. I've had many copies of it over the years and finally went back and bought an original mono LP because it sounds the best, thank you Norman.
Hey Maz, Another great overview from you dear friend (I’ve been a subscriber since CZcams first prompted me with your hilarious “Clapton/wanker” textbook quality rant!)… I’m totally down with at least your top 5, but am a confused “deer in the headlights” with most of the more recent stuff, in spite of the efforts of my nephew to bring me up to speed (being too busy shaking my fist and saying, “You kids…”). I’m greatly in agreement in regard to the “lost albums” “JWH” and “New Morning,” and I might say “Self Portrait” is also greatly overlooked! Bob’s incredible sense of humor is so often below the radar of the casual fan, or those of late arrival. Why there should be a house gypsy fortune teller in a “big hotel” in a “little Minnesota town” is of no consequence in the greater “Dylan-verse!” And that leads me to mention his wonderful “Christmas Album,” whereby Mr. Zimmerman leaves “no turn unstoned!” A quick personal anecdote. The youngest of five brothers and a total mama’s boy, I had always craved my father’s approval (he being a total Johnny Cash fan!). When Bob brought out “Nashville Skyline,” I ran to the local furniture store and invested my meager lunch money, happy and full of enthusiasm! That evening, with baited breath, I played the opening track with high hopes. My father listened stone faced throughout this historic duet, and as I lifted the stylus from the groove and looked up in most hopeful expectation, he tersely observed, “Johnny Cash is a WAY better singer!” Thanks Mazzy, always love your posts! Best, Glenn “They call me a bummer and a gin-sot too, but what cares I for praise…” “Days of ‘49”
I’m 22 years old. Absolutely love the 60’s and early 70’s music. Hate the 80’s lol. The byrds are one of my favourite bands. Love bob dylan also. Great review bud
Great video. The only change I'd make is to switch "Blood on the Tracks" with "Bringing It All Back Home" with "Blonde on Blonde" as No. 1. To think that he created those 3 albums in one 15-month period is almost beyond belief. I grew up in the 1960s (b. 1954) and my 3 favorites also included Dylan and The Beatles, but my third was The Beach Boys. So, been listening to Dylan since the mid-60s. Thanks again for a great video.
15. Oh Mercy 14. Love & Theft 13. Slow Train Coming 12. Rough and Rowdy Ways 11. Modern Times 10. Nashville Skyline 9. Desire 8. New Morning 7. Freewheeling 6. John Wesley Harding 5. Bringing it All Back Home 4. Times they are changin' 3. Highway 61 Revisited 2. Blood on the Tracks 1. Blonde on Blonde
15. Self Portrait 14. John Wesley Harding 13. Nashville Skyline12. Times they are Changin' 11. New Morning 10. Highway 61 Revisited 9. Street Legal 8. Slow Train Coming 7. Saved 6. Freewheelin' Bob Dylan 5. Bringing It All Back Home 4. Rough and Rowdy Ways 3. Modern Times 2. Blonde on Blonde 1. Blood on the Tracks ~Marjet
Great records all 15! And I guess you need a top 30 list to include all favourites. Thanks for mentioning "Any Day Now". I love Joan Baez and that record. I think you mentioned it was a Dylan painting on the cover, but I think it's her sketches on my copy? I can recommend her book "And a voice to sing with". I'm so impressed of this woman.
I don't know how I missed this a year ago. Brilliant selection. Yes, I may have re-ordered some of them and it's all subjective. When it came down to the top two, you selected them in the same order as me! BOTT and BOB are both sublime in completely different ways. Heartache, brilliantly articulated and 'that thin wild mercury sound'. Perfect.
Nice list Mazzy! People need to lighten up with these types of videos. They are subjective and they are your opinion. That's the idea. It gets the blood moving. lol. I really enjoy your insights. I especially like those videos where you reminisce about a specific time and place in your life when discussing the music. Not a bad listing at all. I would have put "Freewheelin'" higher on my list simply because "Hard Rains a-gonna-fall" is the song that got me to love Dylan. As soon as I heard that song, my world changed. I just listened to music in a different way after first hearing that song. Still is my favorite song of his along with "Rolling Stone". Glad you recognized his most recent work but kind of surprised that "Time out of Mind" was not included. Still remember picking up "Love and Theft" when it was released on Sept 11, 2001. I was the only customer in the store. Getting home and just immersing myself in that album got me thru that terrible day and time. Anyway, an enjoyable video Mazzy.
Murder most foul was definitely very haunting when it came out, still is! Really enjoyed the video my friend!! The stones the dead and Dylan are my top three
Great ranking man. Not only is the Dylan Archive here in my town of Tulsa, but I was born on the day Bob crashes his Triumph Tiger, July 29th, 1966, just 5 weeks after the release of Blonde on Blonde.
Great list! Only thing i woulda definitely put up in there aswell is Planet Waves, such great work also sonically with The Band. Also deserved shoutout for Pat Garret and Billy the Kid.
Aloha Mazzy Awesome ratings of your 15 best Bob Dylan record albums. Enjoy watching all your videos. Looking forward to seeing your next video. Mahalo Ed
I have listened , rabidly to Dylan for 30 years. Recently I bought a copy of “Good as I been to you” Did not even come across in the 90’s. I love it. I would advise any Bob Dylan fan to listen intently I don’t believe the contractual obligation myth Excellent production and performance. Not recorded on cassette. Tape, perhaps
Pretty hard to argue with #1. There have been times when BIABH has been my favorite, but I always come back to Blonde on Blonde. Love & Theft is such a great album, it's in my top 5 Dylan records.
I have been planning, for a very long time, to give a deep dive into my 60s Dylan box set. Like the Beatles I know his music but don’t really know his music. One of these day. I will agree with your ranking! Well done! What do I really know. Steve
For me it has to be Highway 61 Revisited . This is the album that turned me on to Dylan in 1965 when I was 15. Not only is it my favourite Dylan album, it's my favourite album of all time. It kicks off with the best single ever, then goes through Tombstone Blues, Thin Man and ends with the magnificent Desolation Row. No wonder this album had such an effect on a 15 year old boy living in a little Devonshire village
Got to say, you got it just about right. Blonde on Blonde may be my favorite album by any artist. Have never seen that other back cover of Blood, just the one with the liner notes. Thanks for sharing
What a wonderful presentation and ranking of all time best recording artist. My no 1. Desire nicely included. Rough and Rowdy also👍 . So very good video. thanks.
Loved this ranking video. Been a Dylan fan since the early 70s, my eldest brother got me into him. Used to have about 30 LPs but like a complete twot got rid of them when CDs became the thing! I would have Blood on The Tracks at one (don’t think it’s a generational thing - I’m 60) and at one point in my late teens used to play it every night before going to sleep! New to your channel but will be checking out your other video. Cheers from the UK 🇬🇧
Wonderful list. I’m not big on rankings but this works quite well. Was taken by you side comment on Joan Baez beautiful version of Love Minus Zero / No Limit. That brought to mind another quite precious version from the 1971 Rudy The Fifth album by Rick Nelson. As you know Dylan was a Nelson fan, even paying him tribute doing Rick’s Lonesome Town on tour when Rick died. If you haven’t heard it in awhile, or ever, give it a listen. Rick covered several Dylan songs, all worth hearing but that one creates such a gentle peaceful mood.
That was a great review. I should be more familiar with these records. Have a few and a couple of my local record store bins are stacked with some of these titles. I did forecast the Blonde on Blonde Lol. Thank You
Great ranking Norman. Hard to argue with your picks, although like some others, I’d have to include Time Out Of Mind - ah, but what to omit??? Pouring rain in Sydney as I type this. A perfect afternoon to dip into my Dylan box set - Infidels, Nashville Skyline and Slow Train are today’s picks..
Thanks Norman for a moving tribute to the singer-songwriter of genius, Bob Dylan in rock and folk music. Liked your choices and reason s for those choices. I think John Wesley Harding (of which you brilliantly describe) is Dylan's no 1 album. This album followed perhaps his most frenetic period of drug-fueled psychedelic rock in Highway '61 and Blonde on Blonde, perhaps his peak rock records. But all great artists have to land back on their feet to restore their spiritual energy, and this he did with JWH, a quiet folk-rock album of inner strength: the perfect summation of his genius. So I place JWH as no.1, Blood on the Tracks as no. 2, Blonde on Blonde as no.3, Highway'61 as no.4.
he has tons of albums and a lot of people say that some of these records are actually pretty bad but i couldn't see someone who commented on these unwanted (?) records, I wish you will make a video about it one day. great video
YES! I've been waiting for a ranking video from you. Love rankings because they makes you think - when doing them yourself - and hearing the ones done by others. And yes, music isn't a sport or a competition, but music is something that happens in the moment when you listen to it. Being alert and reflective can enhance that experience.
As much as I don't really care for 80s pop I just love Falco's version of Baby Blue.I like your ranking with one exception I cold never get into Blood On The Tracks for some reason I don't know why but great vid.- Keep it going Mazzy.
Dylan had Mavis Staples singing with his band for a while around the time of Slow Train Coming. He married one of his gospel backup singers and got heavily involved in going to church. Dylan stopped smoking before Nashville Skyline, hence the desire for a voice change. I saw Dylan on the World Gone Wrong tour, the Time Out of Mind tour (with Paul Simon!), the Love and Theft tour, after the release of Together Through Life, and after the release of Shadows in the Night (the best performance I saw from him). Technically these were all during the Never-ending Tour. I had another ticket to see him for the 6th time when Covid messed that up. I'm just a baby compared to the old Dylan-heads. He had already been a star for 35 years when I first got into his music, lol. Man is a giant artist of our lifetimes.
I don't do New Year's resolutions, but I have decided to listen to a different Bob Dylan album every day, give or take, this year to really get to grips with him. I have always admired his music but not always liked it. In fact, I have always used Bob Dylan as an example of the difference between liking somebody and recognizing their greatness. I started randomly with 'Rough and Rowdy Ways' and 'Love and Theft' - about a 30% hit rate of interesting songs to phone-it-in songs on those two, I reckon. Now I am in the Nashville period. Did 'Blonde on Blonde' yesterday. The musicianship on that is stunning. There are a couple of phone-it-in twelve bar blues songs, but the rest are wonderful. I am now listening to 'John Wesley Harding,' which is more subdued but charming. I was really surprised, though, by how short 'All Along the Watchtower' is. I have always loved 'Blood on the Tracks' and have also always really liked 'Desire' too. Ditto 'Street Legal' - 'Senor' is a match for 'Knocking on Heaven's Door,' in my opinion. I'll take your advice on what to listen to next after Nashville hits the rearview mirror. Dylan fans seem to really like 'Modern Times,' which I remember as execrable, unless I am confusing it with something else. At some point, I fear I will be tearing my hair out and skipping tracks after about thirty seconds, but for the moment I am loving the journey.
One of my favorite things in life has long been to go to a town that's either familiar or unfamiliar to me with someone who has spent a lot of time there and to get their personal tour of the place, to see it through their eyes. That's what you do with these lists, so I thank you for the Mazzy Tours. But, of course, "Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid" was a Sam Peckinpah movie. You were probably thinking of Altman's "McCabe & Mrs. Miller" from a couple years earlier, which had a Leonard Cohen soundtrack. The use of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" as Slim Pickens' riverside death dirge is one of the most beautiful onscreen tributes any actor has ever received. So, Slim has two of the greatest exits in movie history: riding the bomb in "Dr. Strangelove," and sitting by the river at sunset in "Pat Garrett" -- a scene, by the way, that was echoed in the death scene of Mike Ehrmantraut in "Breaking Bad" many years later.
Thanks for sharing! Really enjoyed your thoughts despite how silly it is to try and rank Dylan records. I have to agree with Blonde no Blonde at #1. Sad eyed lady of the lowlands is hard to top
Mazzy love your list that Blonde on Blonde is Number 1 is my tops too . I need to give Love & Theft another listen it’s one I heard the least . Time Out of Mind is one I really dug it would make my top 5 easily great stuff Mazzy. Lovellandrew
GREAT list. One slight problem with it -- no Time Out of Mind. I think that the heart issues Bob was dealing with at the time of the that album produced some of his most intimate songs. Really enjoy your channel; please keep up the good work.
Yeah that seems to be the one I missed based on the comments. I do love it but just didn’t feel it was in this list of 15. If I try again in a year , who knows 🤷🏻♂️
Great video and list, Norman. I personally would've reversed your no. 1 & 2 choices. I think BOTT is thee best Dylan ever because it's so personal. Love Blonde on Blonde as well, so so much. As you say, it's difficult to pinpoint the truly best Dylan albums precisely because it's so subjective to his millions of fans. I'm surprised you didn't choose his debut album. But I understand that most of that album was covers and his intro into professional recording. One person that doesn't get enough praise nowadays is John Hammond, who introduced him to the world. A great talent scout if there ever was one. I still think his televised version of Man of Constant Sorrow (as featured in No Direction Home) on the show Folk Songs and More Folk Songs is my favorite version of that standard after listening to so many others. Amazing how just guitar, harp and his vocals do to transform it into a live classic.
I've just finished listening to all Bob Dylan's 39 studio albums. Blood on the Tracks is my favourite album. My favourite Dylan song is Tangled up in Blue, but I also love The Tempest and Like a Rolling Stone. Great video.
Bob Dylan has put out so many albums that while there is some general consensus at is best and worst, there is a huge mishmash of how you get from best to worst depending on what era and style of Dylan you like. Which is what makes it interesting.
Was kind of hoping to hear a shout-out to 'Good As I Been to You' , his acoustic album of folk covers. His interpretations, his singing, his guitar playing, just magical. Probably my most-played Dylan record. And I think it is a good idea to balance the whole concept of Dylan the auteur/genius with Dylan the Entertainer, which seems a key element of his self-definition.
Awesome video.. We share the same top 5, just in a slightly different order. There are so many Dylan albums to collect. I own 13 of the 15 you showed. Need to pick up New Morning and John Wesley Harding. Really enjoyed watching you talk about these amazing albums.
1. Highway 61 Revisited 2. Bringing It All Back Home 3. Blood on the Tracks 4. Blonde on Blonde 5. Time Out of Mind 6. The Time They A-Changin' 7. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan 8. Another Side of Bob Dylan 9. John Wesley Harding 10. Desire 11. Oh Mercy 12. Love and Theft 13. Rough and Rowdy Ways 14. Infidels 15. Nashville Skyline Devoting 11 minutes on Desire to Joey instead of including Abandoned Love is a bit puzzling but hey it is Bob's album! Broke the tie between Nashville Skyline and New Morning for No. 15 because of I Threw It All Away. Another compelling post! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions.
You tell me what other artist could ever make a masterpiece like Love and Theft and still only have it be his 14th best album! Dude is damn living legend. His failures are better than most songwriters' successes.
Another Side of Bob Dylan is one of my favorites. This album came out in 1964 and includes Chimes of Freedom, My Back Pages, and It Ain't Me Babe. Nobody was putting out songs like these in '64. But they would soon be covering them. In my top 5.
Visions of Johanna is possibly the best Dylan song ever.
I would have included Street Legal. It's a bit over-produced but all of the songs are so strong and with such great lyrics. This is one of the great overlooked Dylan albums.
Street Legal easily top 10 for me, too. But Highway 61 has been my favorite since it came out and nothing has changed that in nearly 60 years.
@@avlisk Highway 61 Revisited is probably my favourite overall Dylan album, too.
Trouble is, he's done so many great ones!
I also think Street Legal is underrated. "Journey Through White Heat" is an astonishing accomplishment. VOJ, It's all Right Ma, Desolation Row three greatest songs in any order. As good as Blood on the Tracks is, no one song is as great as those 3.
Dear Norman, thank you very much for for your most appreciated and pleasing videos. I am born in 1959 and therefore feeling at home with the music you like and talk about. Greetings from the Black Forest in South-West Germany near the borders to Fance and Switzerland. 😎
Desire is Bob's best album. "Black Diamond Bay" is such a great track. A treasure.
Romance in Durango would be my personal fav.track .. but I feel the complete first side Is perfect in its entirety.... so ya great song I agree. So many great albums tho tough choices
Isis.
Every one has a opinion, as someone who thought I had head all of his best albums was happy to discover it afew years ago. Afew great songs on there, but what really made it for me was the violin and the drum sound. The playing and the fills, crispy!
How incredibly grateful and humbled I am to be ALIVE while Bob Dylan is creating new music and still performing live in concert. Many, many, many years from now generations will look back at this moment in time and wish they had the same privilege as we music fans and lovers do.......great video Maslov !!
Greetings from Bharat (India). I tremendously admire Bob Dylan, although It took me over 10 - 15 years to come around to appreciate his music & voice. Ironically, it was through the music of Mark Knopfler that I was introduced to Dylan. Anyone associated with Mark must be REALLY good. Right?
I didn't like him in the beginning. I was like, why is he not singing like Sinatra, Neil Diamond, Elton John, Springsteen or Louis Armstrong. Then I listened to Mark Knopfler & Tom Petty whose voice have the shades of Dylan. And then I got to listen to " Like a Rolling Stone " & everything changed. :) Thanks for your wonderful videos. They are very insightful, especially for people like myself from other side of the globe who do not understand American pop culture much.
Thank you for watching and commenting ✌🏻
So nice to read your comment and realise that Indian people hear Bob Dylan and enjoy.
I have been a follower of Bob Dylan since around 1965..thanks to him I learned to play guitar and even today I am part of a trio that covers Bob's songs..esp John Wesley Harding album.
Can you write some more comments please?
Great list. My number 1 is and will always be Highway 61 Revisited, but as you say, ranking is totally subjective and there are so many great Dylan albums. Love & Theft would probably be in my top 10, as would Another Side. But Highway 61 seems to represent so much of what has always drawn me to him. I remember first playing a copy of the album in my bedroom, aged about 12 in the early 80s, and I knew that was it for me. The lyrics, the voice, the band, the attitude; everything. By the way, the artwork on Blood On The Tracks is not Bob's; both are lithographs by David Oppenheim.
I think Street Legal is an amazing album. Definitely in my top 15, probably in my top 10.
for sure and ever since it came out and I tell my opinion to people they either get snooty or else they have never heard of it, lol...Señor, No Time to Think, Where are you Tonight? Is your Love in Vain? Changing of the Guard, all super songs, I think ....and I like Baby Please Stop Crying and No Time to Think as well
Over-produced but such a great album!
I agree. Street Legal is missing is the ranking, but it was one of the best Dylan records
@@beneditoventuroso Baby Stop Crying
Sam Peckinpah directed Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid, not Robert Altman
I did the same with Slow Train Coming and I agree with a lot of what you said. Dylan’s music is such fine wine. A lot of it gets better with age!
Well said! I would also put Dylan at a close second to The Beatles in my list of favorite artists. The more I've explored his work, the deeper and deeper it gets. I was listening to Tell Tale Signs yesterday and had one of those moments where it all felt so rich, so powerful, so real, such great grooves with the band, that I felt I could be satisfied if it was the only record on my shelf. And so much of his work can evoke that same response. What an artist.
I put Dylan, Van Morrison and the Rolling Stones ahead of the Beatles but that's probably because my loves are folk, folk/rock & Blues or blues/rock.
The only one I feel you overlooked was Time Out Of Mind. I'd put that above anything he has come out with since.
I'll second this. cuz Feel My Love, Not Dark Yet, and that moment when he's listening to Neil Young and gotta turn up the sound (Highlands) ... otherwise this list is on point (imho, ymmv)
I agree
My favorite Bob album , and I have them all
I started listening in '75 as a high school junior, and have listened to everything released and not released ever since, and I agree that TIME OUT OF MIND is the best album he has ever done.
I agree, it would be number 2 for me behind Blood on the tracks, but that's one of the great things about Dylan, there can be many different opinions, but they are all valid.
Fair enough, but your one major omission for me is 'The Basement Tapes'. An extraordinary piece of work, also probably his funniest ever, and one that I think really doesn't get the appreciation it so richly deserves.
I love the basement tapes. Just didn’t feel to fit in my list of regular studio albums. But I made the rules so I could have.
It got the appreciation it deserved in 1975, Steve. It was number one on both the Pazz and Jop Poll and Christgau's List beating out Blood on the Tracks.
@@dannymoulton4829They released the complete tapes a few years ago. I bought it even though I had already downloaded one of the famous bootlegs of it. Who knew that dicking around in the basement could lead to some great music.
I really enjoyed the ranking list of Dylan. I’d love to see more of these from your collection! Very informative.
Rick Nelson was a huge Dylan fan and covered several of his songs. Rick's version of "She belongs to me" is one of the best covers ever! Dylan paid tribute to Rick (after his death) by doing "Poor Little Fool" live. Great artists - so much wonderful music.
I love Dylan since nearly 50 years - my all time favorite is still "Desire", followed by "Freewheelin'". I also think that "Street Legal" is underrated (I really love "Senòr")
Desire my number one then blood on the tracks and third blonde on blonde.can't believe it only made number 9 on your favourites.have the UK reissue and no problems with the sound on that,clear as a bell.great video mazzi
Glad to see John Wesley Harding recognized; it is an incredible album.
Great video, great list. Bob Dylan, as important, and influential an artist as there has ever been or will ever be. Incredible how the years go by & he has continued to release great music. Blonde On Blonde would definitely be my # 1 as well, I absolutely love Bringing It All Back Home, that would have to be in my top 3. You had a few in your list that I haven't gotten yet, but intend to, like you said, there are SOOO many Dylan albums. A couple of favorites that wasn't in your list--- definitely The Basement Tapes, &, not sure that it would rank that high but, I always liked Infidels. The box set Biograph is outstanding, dammit I need to get that out again......thanks, Mazzy.....
Great video. I have been on a Bob Dylan resurgence this past year. So I really appreciate hearing your take on these recordings. One point I will add that I'm sure you would agree is just how successful he has been surrounding himself with great musicians. Its really quite something.
Great choices! My most listened to Dylan albums now (changes a lot) are: Love and Theft, Oh Mercy, Time Out of Mind, Shadows in the Night and Bootleg vol 1.
Time out of mind, yes, certainly should be there, but a great listing anyway. Thank you! My 1st encounter with Highway 61 Revisited was at 14 years of age, alone in a house where everyone had gone out. I must have played it right through more than 3 times. Impact: immeasurable.
_Time Out of Mind_ is about a #5 for me.
He wrote it on his *3rd North Node Return.* Knowing what this means in astrology and seeing this aspect manifest in just about every song is incredible.
A perfect study of the human condition as decribed by astrology.
I love that you had to include OH MERCY! It is probably my favorite Lp of his , right now!
I know next to nothing regarding Bob Dylan but to hear you talk about a subject that you so obviously love, is time well spent in my book. And to hear you heap praise to Jimi Hendrix for his "definitive version of "All along the Watchtower" was pure class. A great video Mazzy, always a wonderful watch.
I love John Wesley Harding but it's hard to penetrate which makes it even more interesting.The mood is so deep and profound that there are times it crosses in to the deeply spiritual and moments where it's beyond words.The harmonica on wicked messenger right at the start carries so much.It's like the calm in the eye of the storm that was 1967.
When I listen to it, so of the guitar is mesmerizing, like "Wicked Messenger." The band is tight as a tick.
Great list man! Thank you! Rough and Rawdy, was indeed a very nice surprise, because his previous 2-3 albums, I didn't like. It is a contender, but I will have to give it more spins and time in order to allow it to displace any other top 15 Dylan record. I would only add Street legal on your list, and place higher Oh mercy, with "What was it you wanted" which is one of my fav songs of all time with its sparse timeless sound.Definitely higher than any album that came after. Also John Wesley Harding is a bit higher for me, probably no.2 . Also love slow train. Gotta serve somebody won a Grammy for Dylan! By the way, I would love to see your take on Knopfler and Dire straits records.
Enjoyed your list. Know it takes awhile to put together a list when an artist has so many to choose from. I have most of the ones from your list but there are a few I definitely need to check out! Thank you Mazzy, take care.
What a great video!! Thank you so much and from a die-hard Dylan fan, this video hits the spot no doubt!
Loved this video! Maybe consider the 15 to 25 all-time best covers of Dylan songs by other artists for a future video
Bob Dylan is my favorite.
I really discovered his songs in 1977.
But earlier than that, in grade school in Rootstown, Ohio, our music teacher taught us to sing "Blowin' in the Wind" - and she told us it was written by a guy who was "kind of a hippie"...
Ooh. As fourth graders, were intrigued....
Finally! Someone who appreciates John Wesley Harding - his first release after his 'accident'. Thought we lost him.
But is is highly regarded, at least here in the UK, got to #1.
More than anything, kudos are deserved for your ability to compile such a list. I have, on more than one occasion, thought I would “rank” Bob’s albums, according to my preference, of course. However, I was unable to do so as I kept changing my mind. Every single time I put a record on I’d say to myself, “but this one is so good”. I finally gave up. I am
a very enthusiastic Bob fan. No list is ever wrong. His words and music hit us differently at different times. I enjoyed this video very much, Mazzy.
Same here. I've got that boxed set that Mazzy showed and I decided to listen to it from beginning to end during the lockdown last year. I was very familiar with his mid/late 60s albums and some of the others, but not, for example the 3 during his "Christian" period. The more I listened, the more I got confused in trying to think through a "Top 10" list. So, I really glad Maz did it.
Very well-reasoned rankings. I largely agree with you, though somehow I'm not quite as high on Blood On the Tracks as most Dylan fans. I wouldn't have put them on the best-of list either, but I really love Street Legal and the 1975 release of The Basement Tapes with The Band. Like you, I'm a huge Beatles fan, and I didn't fully dive into Dylan until the '80s, but in my opinion Dylan stands above the Beatles -- and everybody else.
Kudos for attempting to pick “the best” 15 Bob Dylan - an impossible task - totally appreciate your choices & love your insight - but whose kidding who? there is a glimpse of brilliance on EVERY Bob album with some brilliant from start to finish - you did a great job - (btw my oldest son (24) is named Dylan mainly because Garcia was completely out of the question - his mother “we’re not naming pets”) - I’m a bit of a fanatic & completist. My first concert ever was Dylan @ MSG 9/30/78 - Thanks bother!!! I thoroughly enjoyed your video - although I didn’t completely agree - i can completely relate - in Bob we trust! ✌🏼💙🎼
Many thanks! So many illuminating insights peaking with Blonde on Blonde (You are so right!), and (IMO) just one oversight in not putting Time Out of Mind at least in the top 10. Anyway, excellent time spent well and looking forward to watching more of your videos!
I started listening to Bob Dylan when Highway 61 Revisited came out, and then bought all of his earlier releases. I'm still a big fan, and listen to his music regularly.. I agree with you on John Wesley Harden, and I like Highway 61 Revisited the best. Like you said, it's very subjected. I think Bob Dylan was a master in the studio, but I never cared for his live performances. I really enjoy how you bring music from my era back to life.
Just an addition to what you said - Mostly agree. I went to see Bob Dylan just before COVID hit. I am a huge fan of his songwriting. Before I went I was warned by a couple of Dylan fans that his live performances varied a lot. I must have copped him on a bad night. He was truly awful - probably the worst live concert I have seen (and I've seen a few). We were ready for the fact that he didn't interact with the audience - that's par for the course. He played the piano and did adaptations of a lot of his songs - that's OK except his voice was terrible. People walked out - a fair bit of yelling out from the audience. I'm still glad I saw him before I die. An interesting experience.
BTW Mazza - great video.
ooops - Mazzy
@@allanbriggs9007 A friend of mine saw Dylan a year or two ago, and said the concert was terrible.
Great video Mazzy - Time Out Of Mind would have to be in/around the top 5 for me along with Blood On The Tracks, Highway 61, Blonde On Blonde - Rough & Rowdy Ways only improving over time as well and may sneak in ahead of Bringing It All Back Home..
Mazzy, you and I both hold Dylan in the same regard..Beatles/Dylan..glad to see Rough and Rowdy Ways make your list..what a friggin great record..I play it and then I play it again..and again..Modern Times, Love and Theft👍👍👍can’t argue with your list because I love every record on it..your top two are my choices as well..Geez..next thing you are going to say is Ry Cooder is your favourite guitarist😛😛😛😛Really enjoyed this..thanks Mazzy👍👍❤️❤️🍸🍸glen
Thanks, always fun to watch to watch other music lovers rank albums by your favourite artists. And as usual I don't agree. And as usual both are right. That's the beauty of music. My number 1 is Highway 61. My "forgotten" Dylan album is Street Legal, I love that album, the songs, the sound, Dylan's singing, the background vocals, Changing of the Guards, Señor (Tales of Yankee Power) and I'll stop now. Keep up the good work!
Highway 61 Revisited is my favorite album, by anybody!
Yes I don't get this at #3! Best Rock and Roll album ever.
@@jackoconnell6268 .. sometimes I’ll say it’s Are You Experienced .. or Beggars Banquet .. it was a great time for music!
Hi Mazzy, I like coming back to your ranking whenever my rankings change, some albums have gone up, some down, not much on the top 3 but quite a lot behind it. Street legal, Nashville skyline, Slow train coming have made it into the top 10, Desire has managed to climb up to 5th place. I've recently bought "world gone wrong" I think it is really good too. I'm with you about "new morning" I love it!
Yeah these ranking can change over time ✌🏼
Thank you for the way you touched on Dylan’s religious views. My father who just passed away, was a Southern Baptist minister for over 60 years. I’ve been pleasantly surprised how the vinyl community did the same thing for Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens.
I just discovered these videos. I like Mazzy. I’ve watched Miles, Dylan and the end of the Stones (not a fan beyond their late 60s stuff). I listened to In a Silent Way three times yesterday. Thanks for that! Otherwise, ignore the people who complain. Yes, it is just your opinion man. Good enough.
Beatles are a close second to Dylan. 2022 Dylan still making great music with mind-blowing lyrics. No one compares! He leaves better stuff on the floor than most release !
You can't compare, Beatles wrote different stuff to Dylan and was a folkie when he came out, a continuation, I think the Beatles changed the culture of the western world.Sure a brilliant songwriter, better than anyone around, but the they are totally different acts
who could argue....what an amazing catalog....the fact that there can even be ones not mentioned is extraordinary by any means.....down in the groove, tempest, time out of mind, world gone wrong, and you mentioned pat garrett....what do you change..what do you choose..what does it matter...all brilliant in their own write....what a great way to spend a half-hour...peace my friend...rocky
Damn Mazzy, you’ve got me trying to choose between Love and Theft & Modern Times. They’re both such perfect records and now I’m battling in my head which I like more.
Great list...Blood on the Tracks and Blonde on Blonde are 1 and 1A . I like Infidels (Jokerman/Knopfler's great guitar work) and Street Legal is very underrated. Enjoyed this episode!!!
Agree with you completely! You have to kick something off to include his great work in the new millennium. It made me happy to see Oh, Mercy included which includes my favorite song: 'Most of the Time.'
Whew for a minute there I thought I was the only one who would consider Infidels a top ranking album - thanks!
I'm listening to "Street Legal" right now...by far the best Dylan-Album. So many great songs, a perfect band for them, cool backing vocals!
There are great songs on there but about 4 of them could have been written by Meatloaf.
@@dmellis Meatloaf...cool!
I totally agree with you.
1. Bring It All Back Home
2.Highway 61
3. Blonde on Blonde
4. Blood on the Tracks
5. Desire
6. Time out of Mind
7. Street Legal
8. Oh, Mercy
9. Love and Theft
10. Infidels
I’m not a hard core Dylan fan but you got me excited to listen to these albums ...
I agreed with every word you said...maybe not the order of albums but pretty close. I share your Dylan passion. Blonde on Blonde is a masterpiece. Sad Eyed Lady was written for wife Sara.
This video was awesome...thanks
(Yes I'm a Dylan fan)
A very thoughtful list. I appreciate your views on his catalogue. I’m surprised Time Out of Mind isn’t on there, and Another Side of Bob Dylan.
Thanks, Mazzy, really enjoyed this. Apologies for the nerd out, but I can’t see that anyone has yet mentioned this spot of Dylan trivia. The consensus (I think) is that Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands was written for his first wife, Sara Lownds (a name which even sounds a little like the song title). Dylan himself later sang in the song Sara (from Desire), ‘Staying up for days in the Chelsea Hotel, writing Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands for you.’
#1 Highway 61 Revisited #2 Blonde on Blonde #3 Bringing it all back Home. I bought Highway 61 Revisited in 1965 when I was 12 because of 'Like a Rolling Stone' so I may be a bit biased. I've had many copies of it over the years and finally went back and bought an original mono LP because it sounds the best, thank you Norman.
Hey Maz,
Another great overview from you dear friend (I’ve been a subscriber since CZcams first prompted me with your hilarious “Clapton/wanker” textbook quality rant!)…
I’m totally down with at least your top 5, but am a confused “deer in the headlights” with most of the more recent stuff, in spite of the efforts of my nephew to bring me up to speed (being too busy shaking my fist and saying, “You kids…”).
I’m greatly in agreement in regard to the “lost albums” “JWH” and “New Morning,” and I might say “Self Portrait” is also greatly overlooked!
Bob’s incredible sense of humor is so often below the radar of the casual fan, or those of late arrival. Why there should be a house gypsy fortune teller in a “big hotel” in a “little Minnesota town” is of no consequence in the greater “Dylan-verse!” And that leads me to mention his wonderful “Christmas Album,” whereby Mr. Zimmerman leaves “no turn unstoned!”
A quick personal anecdote.
The youngest of five brothers and a total mama’s boy, I had always craved my father’s approval (he being a total Johnny Cash fan!). When Bob brought out “Nashville Skyline,” I ran to the local furniture store and invested my meager lunch money, happy and full of enthusiasm! That evening, with baited breath, I played the opening track with high hopes. My father listened stone faced throughout this historic duet, and as I lifted the stylus from the groove and looked up in most hopeful expectation, he tersely observed, “Johnny Cash is a WAY better singer!”
Thanks Mazzy, always love your posts!
Best,
Glenn
“They call me a bummer and a gin-sot too, but what cares I for praise…”
“Days of ‘49”
“He did it in Las Vegas and he can do it here!”
- “Went To See The Gypsy”
I’m 22 years old. Absolutely love the 60’s and early 70’s music. Hate the 80’s lol. The byrds are one of my favourite bands. Love bob dylan also. Great review bud
Great video. The only change I'd make is to switch "Blood on the Tracks" with "Bringing It All Back Home" with "Blonde on Blonde" as No. 1. To think that he created those 3 albums in one 15-month period is almost beyond belief. I grew up in the 1960s (b. 1954) and my 3 favorites also included Dylan and The Beatles, but my third was The Beach Boys. So, been listening to Dylan since the mid-60s. Thanks again for a great video.
15. Oh Mercy
14. Love & Theft
13. Slow Train Coming
12. Rough and Rowdy Ways
11. Modern Times
10. Nashville Skyline
9. Desire
8. New Morning
7. Freewheeling
6. John Wesley Harding
5. Bringing it All Back Home
4. Times they are changin'
3. Highway 61 Revisited
2. Blood on the Tracks
1. Blonde on Blonde
15. Self Portrait 14. John Wesley Harding 13. Nashville Skyline12. Times they are Changin' 11. New Morning 10. Highway 61 Revisited 9. Street Legal 8. Slow Train Coming 7. Saved 6. Freewheelin' Bob Dylan 5. Bringing It All Back Home 4. Rough and Rowdy Ways 3. Modern Times 2. Blonde on Blonde 1. Blood on the Tracks ~Marjet
I would say you nailed that ranking. I can't think of any changes I would make.
Great records all 15! And I guess you need a top 30 list to include all favourites. Thanks for mentioning "Any Day Now". I love Joan Baez and that record. I think you mentioned it was a Dylan painting on the cover, but I think it's her sketches on my copy? I can recommend her book "And a voice to sing with". I'm so impressed of this woman.
Oh Mercy is a brilliant album, it’s in my top 10.
I don't know how I missed this a year ago. Brilliant selection. Yes, I may have re-ordered some of them and it's all subjective. When it came down to the top two, you selected them in the same order as me! BOTT and BOB are both sublime in completely different ways. Heartache, brilliantly articulated and 'that thin wild mercury sound'. Perfect.
Nice list Mazzy! People need to lighten up with these types of videos. They are subjective and they are your opinion. That's the idea. It gets the blood moving. lol. I really enjoy your insights. I especially like those videos where you reminisce about a specific time and place in your life when discussing the music. Not a bad listing at all. I would have put "Freewheelin'" higher on my list simply because "Hard Rains a-gonna-fall" is the song that got me to love Dylan. As soon as I heard that song, my world changed. I just listened to music in a different way after first hearing that song. Still is my favorite song of his along with "Rolling Stone". Glad you recognized his most recent work but kind of surprised that "Time out of Mind" was not included. Still remember picking up "Love and Theft" when it was released on Sept 11, 2001. I was the only customer in the store. Getting home and just immersing myself in that album got me thru that terrible day and time. Anyway, an enjoyable video Mazzy.
Murder most foul was definitely very haunting when it came out, still is! Really enjoyed the video my friend!! The stones the dead and Dylan are my top three
Great ranking man. Not only is the Dylan Archive here in my town of Tulsa, but I was born on the day Bob crashes his Triumph Tiger, July 29th, 1966, just 5 weeks after the release of Blonde on Blonde.
Hey Mazzy , Bob Dylan I need not say more. His name should be The Legend. Thank you for doing this video Dylan is my all time favourite, Cheers Snowy
Great list! Only thing i woulda definitely put up in there aswell is Planet Waves, such great work also sonically with The Band. Also deserved shoutout for Pat Garret and Billy the Kid.
Aloha Mazzy
Awesome ratings of your 15 best Bob Dylan record albums. Enjoy watching all your videos. Looking forward to seeing your next video.
Mahalo Ed
I have listened , rabidly to Dylan for 30 years.
Recently I bought a copy of “Good as I been to you”
Did not even come across in the 90’s.
I love it.
I would advise any Bob Dylan fan to listen intently
I don’t believe the contractual obligation myth
Excellent production and performance.
Not recorded on cassette. Tape, perhaps
Pretty hard to argue with #1. There have been times when BIABH has been my favorite, but I always come back to Blonde on Blonde. Love & Theft is such a great album, it's in my top 5 Dylan records.
I have been planning, for a very long time, to give a deep dive into my 60s Dylan box set. Like the Beatles I know his music but don’t really know his music. One of these day. I will agree with your ranking! Well done! What do I really know. Steve
For me it has to be Highway 61 Revisited . This is the album that turned me on to Dylan in 1965 when I was 15. Not only is it my favourite Dylan album, it's my favourite album of all time. It kicks off with the best single ever, then goes through Tombstone Blues, Thin Man and ends with the magnificent Desolation Row. No wonder this album had such an effect on a 15 year old boy living in a little Devonshire village
Got to say, you got it just about right. Blonde on Blonde may be my favorite album by any artist. Have never seen that other back cover of Blood, just the one with the liner notes. Thanks for sharing
What a wonderful presentation and ranking of all time best recording artist. My no 1. Desire nicely included. Rough and Rowdy also👍 . So very good video. thanks.
Great video. You just can't go wrong with Dylan.
Loved this ranking video. Been a Dylan fan since the early 70s, my eldest brother got me into him. Used to have about 30 LPs but like a complete twot got rid of them when CDs became the thing!
I would have Blood on The Tracks at one (don’t think it’s a generational thing - I’m 60) and at one point in my late teens used to play it every night before going to sleep!
New to your channel but will be checking out your other video. Cheers from the UK 🇬🇧
Wonderful list. I’m not big on rankings but this works quite well. Was taken by you side comment on Joan Baez beautiful version of Love Minus Zero / No Limit. That brought to mind another quite precious version from the 1971 Rudy The Fifth album by Rick Nelson. As you know Dylan was a Nelson fan, even paying him tribute doing Rick’s Lonesome Town on tour when Rick died. If you haven’t heard it in awhile, or ever, give it a listen. Rick covered several Dylan songs, all worth hearing but that one creates such a gentle peaceful mood.
That was a great review. I should be more familiar with these records. Have a few and a couple of my local record store bins are stacked with some of these titles. I did forecast the Blonde on Blonde Lol. Thank You
Great ranking Norman. Hard to argue with your picks, although like some others, I’d have to include Time Out Of Mind - ah, but what to omit???
Pouring rain in Sydney as I type this. A perfect afternoon to dip into my Dylan box set - Infidels, Nashville Skyline and Slow Train are today’s picks..
Thanks Norman for a moving tribute to the singer-songwriter of genius, Bob Dylan in rock and folk music. Liked your choices and reason s for those choices. I think John Wesley Harding (of which you brilliantly describe) is Dylan's no 1
album. This album followed perhaps his most frenetic period of drug-fueled psychedelic rock in Highway '61 and Blonde on Blonde, perhaps his peak rock records. But all great artists have to land back on their feet to restore their spiritual energy, and this he did with JWH, a quiet folk-rock album of inner strength: the perfect summation of his genius. So I place JWH as no.1, Blood on the Tracks as no. 2, Blonde on Blonde as no.3, Highway'61 as no.4.
he has tons of albums and a lot of people say that some of these records are actually pretty bad but i couldn't see someone who commented on these unwanted (?) records, I wish you will make a video about it one day. great video
YES! I've been waiting for a ranking video from you. Love rankings because they makes you think - when doing them yourself - and hearing the ones done by others. And yes, music isn't a sport or a competition, but music is something that happens in the moment when you listen to it. Being alert and reflective can enhance that experience.
As much as I don't really care for 80s pop I just love Falco's version of Baby Blue.I like your ranking with one exception I cold never get into Blood On The Tracks for some reason I don't know why but great vid.- Keep it going Mazzy.
Dylan had Mavis Staples singing with his band for a while around the time of Slow Train Coming. He married one of his gospel backup singers and got heavily involved in going to church. Dylan stopped smoking before Nashville Skyline, hence the desire for a voice change. I saw Dylan on the World Gone Wrong tour, the Time Out of Mind tour (with Paul Simon!), the Love and Theft tour, after the release of Together Through Life, and after the release of Shadows in the Night (the best performance I saw from him). Technically these were all during the Never-ending Tour. I had another ticket to see him for the 6th time when Covid messed that up. I'm just a baby compared to the old Dylan-heads. He had already been a star for 35 years when I first got into his music, lol. Man is a giant artist of our lifetimes.
Yes he is 🤠
I don't do New Year's resolutions, but I have decided to listen to a different Bob Dylan album every day, give or take, this year to really get to grips with him. I have always admired his music but not always liked it. In fact, I have always used Bob Dylan as an example of the difference between liking somebody and recognizing their greatness.
I started randomly with 'Rough and Rowdy Ways' and 'Love and Theft' - about a 30% hit rate of interesting songs to phone-it-in songs on those two, I reckon.
Now I am in the Nashville period. Did 'Blonde on Blonde' yesterday. The musicianship on that is stunning. There are a couple of phone-it-in twelve bar blues songs, but the rest are wonderful. I am now listening to 'John Wesley Harding,' which is more subdued but charming. I was really surprised, though, by how short 'All Along the Watchtower' is.
I have always loved 'Blood on the Tracks' and have also always really liked 'Desire' too. Ditto 'Street Legal' - 'Senor' is a match for 'Knocking on Heaven's Door,' in my opinion.
I'll take your advice on what to listen to next after Nashville hits the rearview mirror. Dylan fans seem to really like 'Modern Times,' which I remember as execrable, unless I am confusing it with something else. At some point, I fear I will be tearing my hair out and skipping tracks after about thirty seconds, but for the moment I am loving the journey.
One of my favorite things in life has long been to go to a town that's either familiar or unfamiliar to me with someone who has spent a lot of time there and to get their personal tour of the place, to see it through their eyes. That's what you do with these lists, so I thank you for the Mazzy Tours. But, of course, "Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid" was a Sam Peckinpah movie. You were probably thinking of Altman's "McCabe & Mrs. Miller" from a couple years earlier, which had a Leonard Cohen soundtrack. The use of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" as Slim Pickens' riverside death dirge is one of the most beautiful onscreen tributes any actor has ever received. So, Slim has two of the greatest exits in movie history: riding the bomb in "Dr. Strangelove," and sitting by the river at sunset in "Pat Garrett" -- a scene, by the way, that was echoed in the death scene of Mike Ehrmantraut in "Breaking Bad" many years later.
Thanks for sharing! Really enjoyed your thoughts despite how silly it is to try and rank Dylan records. I have to agree with Blonde no Blonde at #1. Sad eyed lady of the lowlands is hard to top
Mazzy love your list that Blonde on Blonde is Number 1 is my tops too . I need to give Love & Theft another listen it’s one I heard the least . Time Out of Mind is one I really dug it would make my top 5 easily great stuff Mazzy. Lovellandrew
I spent my day listening to Bob Dylan for the first time in 2021
GREAT list. One slight problem with it -- no Time Out of Mind. I think that the heart issues Bob was dealing with at the time of the that album produced some of his most intimate songs. Really enjoy your channel; please keep up the good work.
Yeah that seems to be the one I missed based on the comments. I do love it but just didn’t feel it was in this list of 15. If I try again in a year , who knows 🤷🏻♂️
Agree I would have TOOM fourth after 1. H61R 2. BOTT 3. BOB
Great video and list, Norman. I personally would've reversed your no. 1 & 2 choices. I think BOTT is thee best Dylan ever because it's so personal. Love Blonde on Blonde as well, so so much. As you say, it's difficult to pinpoint the truly best Dylan albums precisely because it's so subjective to his millions of fans.
I'm surprised you didn't choose his debut album. But I understand that most of that album was covers and his intro into professional recording. One person that doesn't get enough praise nowadays is John Hammond, who introduced him to the world. A great talent scout if there ever was one. I still think his televised version of Man of Constant Sorrow (as featured in No Direction Home) on the show Folk Songs and More Folk Songs is my favorite version of that standard after listening to so many others. Amazing how just guitar, harp and his vocals do to transform it into a live classic.
Happy to see John Wesley Harding make the cut-that would be in the top 5 for me.
I've just finished listening to all Bob Dylan's 39 studio albums. Blood on the Tracks is my favourite album. My favourite Dylan song is Tangled up in Blue, but I also love The Tempest and Like a Rolling Stone. Great video.
Bob Dylan has put out so many albums that while there is some general consensus at is best and worst, there is a huge mishmash of how you get from best to worst depending on what era and style of Dylan you like. Which is what makes it interesting.
Was kind of hoping to hear a shout-out to 'Good As I Been to You' , his acoustic album of folk covers. His interpretations, his singing, his guitar playing, just magical. Probably my most-played Dylan record. And I think it is a good idea to balance the whole concept of Dylan the auteur/genius with Dylan the Entertainer, which seems a key element of his self-definition.
I love those two back to back acoustic albums. Bubbling under this list this time ✌🏽
“Play fucking loud!”
Great one N.M.!
Awesome video.. We share the same top 5, just in a slightly different order. There are so many Dylan albums to collect. I own 13 of the 15 you showed. Need to pick up New Morning and John Wesley Harding. Really enjoyed watching you talk about these amazing albums.
Nice list. It's probably Highway 61 on top for me, but I agree with a lot of your takes... and liked to hear them. I miss Planet Waves, though. :)
1. Highway 61 Revisited
2. Bringing It All Back Home
3. Blood on the Tracks
4. Blonde on Blonde
5. Time Out of Mind
6. The Time They A-Changin'
7. The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
8. Another Side of Bob Dylan
9. John Wesley Harding
10. Desire
11. Oh Mercy
12. Love and Theft
13. Rough and Rowdy Ways
14. Infidels
15. Nashville Skyline
Devoting 11 minutes on Desire to Joey instead of including Abandoned Love is a bit puzzling but hey it is Bob's album!
Broke the tie between Nashville Skyline and New Morning for No. 15 because of I Threw It All Away.
Another compelling post! Thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions.
You tell me what other artist could ever make a masterpiece like Love and Theft and still only have it be his 14th best album! Dude is damn living legend. His failures are better than most songwriters' successes.
I loved this men....is a legend and after 40 years change my live...forever Young Bob