Desire by Bob Dylan (Columbia cat# PC – 33893).
There has been much written about Bob Dylan. One of my favorite quotes is from Jimi Hendrix, “When I first heard him I thought, you must admire a guy with that much nerve to sing so out of key. Then I listened to the words.” And there it is, the essence of Bob Dylan.
He is many things but a great singer he isn’t. He is a great musician and an amazing poet. When you wrap your head around that you begin to appreciate Bob Dylan.
This album is the 17th studio album produced by Dylan and was released in 1976. It came out to amazing critical acclaim at the time with a fair share of social commentary and some controversy.
Front and center on this album is Hurricane, the song about boxer Rubin “Hurricane” Carter who was arrested and later released after being accused of a triple murder in 1966. By the time of his release any hope of a career was over. This is a great folk tune constructed in traditional Dylan style that takes you with Rubin and his struggles.
The controversy comes with the song Joey which is based on then deceased mobster Joey Gallo who Dylan portrays as a moralistic hood. Aside from its length (11:05), Gallo was not the most beloved figure in NY at the time. But apparently since Woodie Guthrie made “Pretty Boy Floyd,” he seemed bound in kind.
This is one of Dylan’s best efforts and contains some really good music with a lot of backing vocals with Emmy Lou Harris, who syncs up nicely with Dylan’s voice. Which for me tees up the cool song of the album where he and Harris team up for “One More Coffee”.
The hidden gem on this one is “Sara”, a very rare love song that was very personal to Dylan as a tribute to his then wife Sara. To no avail apparently, she filed for divorce the following year.
This is a mood album and easily puts you in your favorite coffee house about 10:00 AM on a overcast Saturday. Poor your second cup of Joe, light your Lucky and kick back and enjoy.