what's the deal w/ this some enchanted evening cover? we know what it sounds like from one of the greatest bass voices ever so let's now hear it in dylan's scratchy mumble?
― Mordy, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 18:16 (nine years ago) link
bob felt like doing it
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 18:22 (nine years ago) link
i mean i also love singing some enchanted evening [tho only in the shower] so i understand
― Mordy, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 18:23 (nine years ago) link
i mean i'm not being flip it's just asking "what's the deal with [something bob dylan did]" that's p much the answer
anyway i'm digging the album on the whole even though i don't really dig sinatra type stuff that much
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 18:24 (nine years ago) link
whether you like it or not, isn't the whole concept of the "standard" based on how a song changes in the hands of different interpreters?
― tylerw, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 18:24 (nine years ago) link
i've been listening to a lot of nina simone interpreting the old standards recently (she made some great choices) and i'm really in love with the simple but solid as a brick house lyrics. they're just these perfectly formed things.
― Heez, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 19:18 (nine years ago) link
Mordy a partisan for Il Divo, who knew
― droit au butt (Euler), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 19:31 (nine years ago) link
lol had no idea they covered enchanted
― Mordy, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 19:42 (nine years ago) link
wonder if Dylan is referencing this album, which also leads off w/ "I'm A Fool To Want You"...? http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/8/86/LadyInSatin.jpg
― tylerw, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:13 (nine years ago) link
I wish our copy of AARP mag would show up -- maybe I got one of the 50,000 free copies.
― it takes 14 to make a baby (WilliamC), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:16 (nine years ago) link
Seriously, though, Dylan is 73. Springsteen is 65 and plays shows twice as long with three times as much yelling. Macca is 72 and we're really just starting to hear the cracks, and he goes long and loud, too. Only voice I can think of worse than Dylan's is Leonard Cohen, and he is 80, but he owns his croak a bit better than Bob. Also, Cohen could never really sing to begin with, imo.
This is all wrong, except the bit about Springsteen. Macca's voice may not be technically worse than any of the others but given the range he aims for it's now embarrassingly quavery and weak, as anyone who heard live version of the songs from his last album will be able to tell you. Cohen could never sing in the first place but there's so much more richness and depth to his voice than there used to be, it's such an undeniable presence on his newer records.
― Matt DC, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:17 (nine years ago) link
Dylan also smoked consistently since at least the early 60s, but cut back considerably in preparation for this record (I remember reading somewhere).
Springsteen never smoked, and McCartney stopped smoking cigarettes in the 60s, I believe (though continued to smoke weed like a chimney). Paul figures that hitting the note is more important than the quality of said note when hit, but still has a fairly impressive range for his age.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:45 (nine years ago) link
Paul should switch to vape
― Mordy, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:46 (nine years ago) link
cool i that was my theory
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:56 (nine years ago) link
suffering for his art
― j., Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:57 (nine years ago) link
unfair to compare him w/ springsteen since that dude has clearly found some kind of fountain of youth
― tylerw, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 20:58 (nine years ago) link
Bruce has always been a health/fitness nut, though. Never smoked, never drank to excess, few (if any) late night post-show crazy parties.
Though rumor has it his upcoming autobiography reveals his rampant mid-90s crack addiction.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:02 (nine years ago) link
i was shocked at how good willie sounded considering his weed intake + lung issues.
― Heez, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:04 (nine years ago) link
Willie's voice is a miracle
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:07 (nine years ago) link
It's never shocked me that Dylan's voice has been croaky, the point I was making was that even compared to his peers (even those forces of nature) it's dramatically croaky. Is there anyone else whose voice has fallen so far over the years? Marianne Faithfull? Is smoking the evil secret? Surely others have smoked for decades.
Tom Waits claims he quit smoking before Swordfishtrombones or Rain Dogs and his voice actually got worse!
― Josh in Chicago, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:26 (nine years ago) link
Is there anyone else whose voice has fallen so far over the years?
I hate to say it but from all accounts: Joni Mitchell (and tbf her voice had much farther to fall)
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:27 (nine years ago) link
yeah joni is a real shame....
marianne's got "bad" in a more cool way imo kinda like dylan/cohen/waits
but joni was just, man, what a singer :(
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:29 (nine years ago) link
yeah
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:30 (nine years ago) link
Kurt Wagner was always a croaker, but the last time I paid attention to any Lambchop he sounded much, much worse than on their first couple of records.
― it takes 14 to make a baby (WilliamC), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:31 (nine years ago) link
also marianne's "ruined" voice is kind of the whole crux of her breakout album (broken english)
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:32 (nine years ago) link
Marianne's ruin, period.
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:33 (nine years ago) link
Dylan's voice is an interesting topic for sure, but maybe it needs to go a bit further than good/bad improve/deteriorate. This Lanois quote is interesting to me:
I’ve heard Bob have several voices over the decades and I like them all. I liked the Nashville Skyline era a lot. There was a particular tone that he adopted. The thing about Bob’s voice is that he has very dense print. The microphone loves his voice. He’s got about a 20 dB advantage over other singers – in the sense that he’s got that mid-range in his print. To we record-makers, that means that you get to turn the microphone down 20 dB, because he’s delivering an extra 20, which means you then get a 20dB improvement on your signal to noise ratio. So the bleeding into Bob’s mike is not a problem, it’s an enhancement. But if a quieter singer was in the room, with a lesser print, you could not get away with that recording that we did on Time Out Of Mind cos it would just be junky and mumbo-jumbo.
It's from http://www.uncut.co.uk/bob-dylan/bob-dylan-tell-tale-signs-special-part-ten-interview
Also the p4k quote abt Bobologists scrutinizing lyrics must be from the 60s. Anyway, will see my local record store tomorrow, psyched for this from reading all the posts!
― niels, Tuesday, 3 February 2015 21:49 (nine years ago) link
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, February 3, 2015 4:27 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
Another heavy smoker, too.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat), Tuesday, 3 February 2015 23:28 (nine years ago) link
has p4k really been behind any dylan album in the last howevermany? i still occasionally remember, who is it, the one they got douglas wolk in for, sniffing at how 'if this were not by dylan people would think it was meh', and then get irked
― j., Wednesday, 4 February 2015 00:59 (nine years ago) link
personally the last one i legit loved was love + theft, and maybe 30% of modern times
― Mordy, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 01:01 (nine years ago) link
same
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 01:15 (nine years ago) link
and i get the point of a covers / standards album but like --
do u know like when ppl are singing songs in the voice of a particularly recognizable singing voice? like axel rose sings X, scott stapp sings Y, bob dylan, etc. this album just sounds like a bunch of friends singing popular songs in "dylan" voice except not as funny. and it's especially egregious on songs that are notable particularly bc of famous/exciting vocal performances. u know what it's really missing is dylan singing old man river.
― Mordy, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 01:17 (nine years ago) link
I absolutely love Gravelly Bob. Easily my favorite Bob voice/approach after the live 1966 stuff.
― Montgomery Burns' Jazz (Tarfumes The Escape Goat),
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 01:18 (nine years ago) link
i LOVE his nashville skyline voice
what is wrong w/ people?
― I dunno. (amateurist), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:13 (nine years ago) link
I dunno, what do you think is wrong with people?
― it takes 14 to make a baby (WilliamC), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:17 (nine years ago) link
too many opinions
― Mordy, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:19 (nine years ago) link
Pat Benatar cover!
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn),
― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:24 (nine years ago) link
when i saw him in november he still sounded like a gremlin burning in the pits of hell
― brimstead, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:31 (nine years ago) link
― it takes 14 to make a baby (WilliamC), Tuesday, February 3, 2015 8:17 PM (14 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
everything IIRC
― I dunno. (amateurist), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 02:32 (nine years ago) link
― brimstead, Tuesday, February 3, 2015 10:31 PM (45 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
this is killing me
― tender is the late-night daypart (schlump), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 03:22 (nine years ago) link
paul young takes the cake. the poor fella just can't hold a note anymore and we're talking about a former "golden voice" who's only in his 50s. shocking!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2hzLpZftLQ
― cock chirea, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 03:44 (nine years ago) link
i watched about one minute of a video of a recent "comeback" concert by shirley collins (english folk singer) and she can't stay on pitch at all, her voice is extremely weak, it's basically shot to hell. worse than paul young IMO. very sad. i do wonder whether these people realize how they sound and wonder why people are listening to them.
― I dunno. (amateurist), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 03:52 (nine years ago) link
i mean in paul young's case i guess he has to make a living.
in shirley's case i think people sort of coaxed her to come out of retirement.
if people get some enjoyment about of listening to them even now, i guess who am i to stand in their way, right? but it's sad.
― I dunno. (amateurist), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 03:54 (nine years ago) link
We're running with the shadows in the nightSo baby take my hand, it'll be all rightSurrender all your dreams to me tonightThey'll come true in the end
-B. Dylan
― salthigh, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 04:00 (nine years ago) link
can we get stet to code 'shadows' to change to stadows' the way the hatcat pops up
― j., Wednesday, 4 February 2015 04:15 (nine years ago) link
Cliff's voice is still holding up pretty well, shame about the material tho.
― Mark G, Wednesday, 4 February 2015 08:00 (nine years ago) link
OMG the tinymixtapes review
Bob Dylan plays the basic totems of the 20th century's repressed occult psychehttp://www.tinymixtapes.com/music-review/bob-dylan-shadows-in-the-night
― when is the new Jim O'Rourke album coming out (spazzmatazz), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 08:21 (nine years ago) link
watched about one minute of a video of a recent "comeback" concert by shirley collins (english folk singer) and she can't stay on pitch at all, her voice is extremely weak, it's basically shot to hell.
Shirley Collins stopped singing altogether in 1978 because she suffers from dysphonia (inability to sing, basically – Linda Thompson suffered from the same condition). The "comeback" you refer to was not a concert but an unannounced guest slot at a Current 93 gig – David Tibet has been championing her for years and she said she would not have sung onstage again for anyone except him.
― anthony braxton diamond geezer (anagram), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 08:44 (nine years ago) link
I thought she sounded pretty good
Linda sounds great now at least on her last album
― kurt kobaïan (upper mississippi sh@kedown), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 14:02 (nine years ago) link
i'm well aware of that, anagram. it was still sad because she had almost no voice, and couldn't stay on pitch at all.
if you think she "sounds great"... wow.
― I dunno. (amateurist), Wednesday, 4 February 2015 14:50 (nine years ago) link