The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan - Dylan, Bob (CD 1990)

With the 1962 self-titled release, Bob Dylan established himself as a significant icon within folk circles around New York. The album introduced his unique style of singing and playing, as well as his reoccurring sense of social activism, awareness, humour, and compassion. However, the album was predominantly covers; only two original compositions graced the album. It was only when Dylan came out with the monolithic The Freewheelin Bob Dylan that he established himself as a songwriter.

And how! is my first thought when I consider Freewheelin . This sophomore effort absolutely eclipses his rookie debut so substantially that it is easy to forget that he actually had an album before Freewheelin . It's hard to overestimate the importance of The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, the record that firmly established Dylan as an unparalleled songwriter, one of considerable skill, imagination, and vision, accurately writes critic Steven Thomas Erlewine. This album is so significant to the folk music movement of the time as well as the progression of popular music as we know it that it is impossible to fathom the influence that the album has had on the zeitgeist of the 1960s.

It starts with the ragtag anthem Blowin in the Wind , which still is popular enough to be choraled by antiwar activists and peaceniks today. Although the song s popularity has rather acted as a self-sustaining catalyst people may not actually like it because of the lyrics, music, or message, but simply because it is cool the song is still present today, and does still wield some sway on today s popular culture. After comes the empathetic Girl from the North Country , a less popular track, but maybe more moving than any of Dylan s protest tracks. Although he rerecorded a version for the Nashville Skyline album featuring Johnny Cash, this version remains the quintessential. His delicate fingerpicking combined with his poetically lovely lyrics constructs a moving yet emotionally temperate atmosphere.

This atmosphere shifts with Masters of War , a vicious snap at crooked politicians and warmongers. Dylan becomes strangely out of character for this song, and his lyrics can sometimes be unsettling and vitriolic. It s a great song even so, but it s unusual for Dylan. Dylan himself said, I ve never really written anything like that before. I don t sing songs which hope people will die, but I couldn t help it in this one. The song is a sort of striking out, a reaction to the last straw, a feeling of what can you do?

Following this is the casual and bluesy Down the Highway , which does a good job of dissolving the venomous atmosphere created by Masters of War . It s filler, but it s quality filler. Bob Dylan s Blues is an off-the-cuff blues romp that s just about having fun with fun music. Once again filler, but by no means it subtracts from the overall album. A Hard Rain s A-Gonna Fall comes next, which was written during the Cuban missile crisis of October 1962. It s a desperate kind of song, said Dylan, When I wrote it, I thought I wouldn t have enough time alive to write all those songs so I put all I could into this one . This sort of desperation and paranoia can be felt in the six-minute song, but Dylan handles it a little sarcastically, so it can come off as a happy jaunt to an undiscerning ear. If you listen to the lyrics though, ( I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children , Heard one person starve, heard many people laughin ) it is hard to miss the cynicism.

Don t Thin Twice, It s All Right is the most touching, truthful ballad Dylan made, I reckon. It s not a love song; it s not quite a break up song either. Don t Think Twice is just a mature look at a specific relationship that doesn t give into clich s or melodrama. This is what makes the track so poignant: Dylan maintains his head and keeps the song real. This is my favourite song on the album; it s so touching and open that I find it impossible to ignore.

Bob Dylan s Dream is unlike the subsequent dream songs that Dylan has written. Unlike the crazy rambling tales that are presented in his later dream songs, this one is intimate and warm, drawing the listener into Dylan s personal circle of friends. His words are really touching and kind. Oxford Town is a social statement about the south and racism, but is presented with good music and solid lyrics. It is based on the true story of James Meredith, who was the first African-American to be accepted to and graduate from the University of Mississippi. Talking World War III Blues resembles the rambling story songs that Dylan specialized in later, but this one is laced with paranoia and uneasiness. Most of Dylan s goofy story songs do have an underlying message (sometimes), but the theme here is on top of the song while others have the subject lying underneath the lyrics and the music.

Corrina, Corrina is the first cover on the album, and it is a pleasant glide through the traditional piece. Also for the first time on the album, Dylan is backed by a band, which just features light drums, bass guitar, and another gentle guitar playing around with a nice riff. The second cover comes right after, which is Honey, Just Allow Me One More Chance . A fun and goofy frolic, the song has witty lyrics and joyful harmonica. This song has Dylan having his most fun on the album.

Freewheelin closes with I Shall Be Free , which is just like one of those crazy story songs. The lyrics are brilliantly clever, with social commentary lines like I s out there paintin on the old wood shed, when a can a black paint it fell on my head, I went down to scrub and rub, but I had to sit in the back of the tub , and the bawdy Well my telephone rang it wouldn t stop, It s president Kennedy calling me up, He said my friend, Bob, what do we need to make the country grow? , I said, my friend, John, Brigitte Bardot, Anita Ekberg, Sophia Loren . The song is a nonchalant ending to a momentous album, but it feels right.

Out of Dylan s first four folk albums before he moved into folk-rock, Freewheelin is the best, hands down. Freewheelin is not only the best of Dylan s folk period, but one of the overall best of his career. This is number one of my list of six essential Dylan albums that more or less span his entire career, that all people should know no questions asked. So, have you got to know the reflectively brilliant and passionate The Freewheelin Bob Dylan? If you aren t a Dylan fan, start here. His influence on modern music as we know it as a bricklayer is incalculable, and Freewheelin acts as a major supporting pillar.

**Next up in the Dylan review-athon is The Times They Are A-Changin (1964), which will probably be up by this time next week.**