Off The Tracks

Off The Tracks
  • Blog
    • Interviews
    • Miscellany
    • Special Guests
    • Reviews
  • Podcasts
  • The Vinyl Countdown
  • Back Catalogue
  • About
    • About
    • About the banner image
    • On Song
July 18, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

Joan Osborne: Songs of Bob Dylan

Joan Osborne

Songs of Bob Dylan

WOMANLY HIP RECORDS

People have often voiced an opinion around the likes of Dylan and Leonard Cohen – Lou Reed and Neil Young too, perhaps – that they like the songs, just not when the writer in question is singing them. But that would surely miss the point. Yes, Dylan songs (can) cover well – there are thousands of them. And the right sort of song interpreter – Nina Simone, for instance – could have a way with it that would run close to beating the original, or might even become a definitive version. There are a small handful of Dylan songs where his recorded ‘original’ is merely an afterthought.

Enter Joan Osborne. The latest – she won’t be the last – to tackle Bob for a full-album project.

Actually, more recently Bettye LaVette did a great job; largely due to picking obscure songs – oh and also due to being a fucking kickarse singer with a shit-hot band.

Osborne, by contrast, seems to be merely asking What if Bob was one of us?

And we know that answer.

He’s fucking not!

So we get polite versions of songs like Buckets of Rain and – quite (unintentionally) comically – Masters of War.

We get Sunday Drive-styled renditions of songs that need Dylan’s voice – like the opening Tangled Up In Blue. And a sultry, bluesy vamp of Rainy Day Women seems to want to transcend the silliness, which, again, would miss the point.

There’s almost something in the version of Highway 61 Revisited, an intelligent recast. But that’s one of the songs from Bob you never want reworked. Unless it’s Johnny Winter whipping it harder.

From God-botherer, to Bob-botherer. Osborne will only ever remain a one-hit-wonder after this. No matter how well-intentioned this is, moreover it’s precisely because of that.
You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron

Posted in Blog, Reviews and tagged with Album Review, Bob Dylan, Covers, Dylan, Joan Osborne, Songs of Bob Dylan, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron. RSS 2.0 feed.
« Wellington Film Society: Preview – Fidelio: Alice’s Journey (July 16)
Sweetman Podcast: Episode 125 – Russell Self »

Popular

  • The Best Guitarist in The World: # 8 – Mark Knopfler
  • Janna Lapidus Leblanc: Four Years In Pictures
  • The Sad Story of Bob Welch: Fleetwood Mac’s Most Undervalued Member
  • Prince: Tokyo Dome 1990
  • The Best Guitarist in The World: # 11 – Lindsey Buckingham
  • Everything Must Go: My Last Time At The Record Fair
  • Time Casts Its Spell: When Silver Springs Became The Secret Weapon It Had Always Threatened To Be
  • Bono’s Book
  • On: Neil Young’s Decade
  • My Pink Floyd Tapes

Archives

Tags

Album Review Auckland Blog Book Book Review Chat Compilation DJ DVD DVD Review EP Film Film Review Gig Gig Review Guest Blog Guitar Interview Jazz Live Live Gig LP Movie Music NZ Podcast Poem Poetry Record Records Simon Sweetman Soundtrack Spines Spotify Stub Stubs Sweetman Podcast The Vinyl Countdown Vinyl Want more? Check out my Substack You can also support Off The Tracks via PressPatron Wellington Wgtn Writing You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron [OST]

Categories

  • Back Catalogue
  • Blog
  • Interviews
  • Miscellany
  • Mixtapes
  • Playlists
  • Podcasts
  • Reviews
  • Scene Of The Day
  • Special Guests
  • The Vinyl Countdown

Off The Tracks is the home of Sweetman Podcast, a weekly interview/chat-based pod. It's also home to my reviews across film, TV, music and books and some creative writing as well.

Off The Tracks aims to provide quality reviews and essays, regular blog updates about the shows, albums, books and movies you should be experiencing.

It's a passion project. Your support will help to keep Off The Tracks online.

All content © 2022 by Off The Tracks. WordPress Themes by Graph Paper Press