Bob Dylan's "Street Legal" - Classic or Dud?

trust me, it will be a disappointment

Anyway, "Street Legal" - it's also one of my favorites... I don't know much about Neil Diamond or Leonard Cohen, so I can't speak to Alfred's interesting points about middle-aged singer/songwriters. I will say that I think that the lyrics are fascinating - the album as a whole presents this image of Dylan at the end of the '70s, looking back at all the heavy trips and changes he's been through - fame, relationships, etc. - which are worked up into this quasi-mystical lather - "There's a white diamond gloom on the dark side of this room, and a pathway that leads up to the stars / If you don't believe there's a price for this sweet paradise, remind me to show you the scars" (I love that line!).

Ultimately, he seems to keep concluding that love is his way forward (though he doesn't seem to fully believe this). The album climaxes (and sums itself up) terrifically in the final verse - "I can't believe it, I can't believe I'm alive! But without you, it just doesn't seem right..."

(Of course, knowing what comes soon afterward in Dylan's real life makes it even more juicy - as if Christianity is what he actually ends up seizing on to cut through all the mumbo jumbo. But that's just having fun and fooling around with his image and history - not something I usually do or care about, though the way this album itself engages with his personal mythology seems to make it OK to keep playing along.)

I also think the songs are just so pleasurable to listen to; they're really neat structurally, the way they keep repeating - most of them are just long series of verses, punctuated by those horn figures - and the way his voice and the portentous lyrics interact with the swelling of the music (I guess it is pretty Neil Diamond-y).

Some of the lines are corny ("A full-blooded Cherokee, he predicted it to me, the time and the place that the trouble would start"), but in a way that "works" - the whole thing is kind of a swaggering, chutzpah-y concept album about one dude and his ego at some kind of self-inflated mythic crossroads.

(I do think "Is Your Love in Vain" is a big dud, musically and lyrically - it's a too straightforward and silly iteration of the album's themes).

"Street Legal" also has a great title and cover photo!

One more thing - I was disappointed with the florid remixed CD that come out five or so years ago (this was before those remastered CDs came out; I assume the new "SL" also uses the new mix). I like the orig. mix a lot more - it's minimal and tense, and fits the album better.

I'm nobody's audiophile, but this is one of the few albums I've dismissed partly because of the shite recording quality. Maybe the remaster addresses that, but wow, the original vinyl sounded like it was recorded in Dylan's ass.

Also I am terrified that my good friend grimly fiendish will see me talking about Bob Dylan because he hates Dylan with a passion.

1. I realize I'm too drunk to drive to the CD shop to get the two Dylan CD's my heart desires.

2. I realize that the only way is to actually walk there, despite it possibly being as much as an hour away on foot and they close in 45 minutes.

3. I run part of the way, hoping to catch them before they close.

4. When I get there, they are playing Bob Dylan in the shop.

5. But I filter that out as insanity and assume I am only imagining that they are playing Bob Dylan.

6. When I get to the register with my CD's the guy asks me "so what do you think of THIS Bob Dylan?". I say it's weird that he's playing, that I'd been thinking of him more and more over the last month and the guy tells me that what is playing is a new Dylan album that is out on Tuesday. I say I didn't know he was having anything new out.

I remember a live video for Tangled Up In Blue, though - does anyone remember that? He had sweat on his forehead, and a great big hat. It was on MTV. That was actually the first time I liked him ever, was that song/video. But I'm telling you he's really not been a big part of my life at all until now. Even when I saw the ads on the busses here in town advertising a Dylan exhibition at the local Art Museum, that was about 6 months ago, and I didn't blink an eye. "oh Dylan" I thought "how boring". !!!

Maybe he's not as good as The Stooges or Velvet Underground, but

there's no reason not to rejoice in Bob Dylan.

Leopard Skin Pill Box Hat, etc.

What was the name of that goddamn movie?

Don't Look Back! I FOUND IT! OH MY GOD I FOUND IT!

So is it any good??! What say you ILXORS?

That's weird, I don't really know, though I've seen the movie and read the book. Can anyone confirm this??

If it was anyone but dylan, Joker! Hysterical! Face!, i'd be worried that you were building this up a bit too much. but if you like him, the catalogue goes on forever. your next two purchases should be the freewheelin' bob dylan, and bringin it all back home, imo.

anyway I'm playing Kate Bush now so things have got very complicated, I'm afraid. But I will rent the Bob Dylan video of Don't Look Back. Is there any Donovan in the video????!

BTW, guess it was in the High Fidelity movie, too:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0146882/quotes
Barry: Don't tell anyone you don't own "Blonde on Blonde". It's gonna be okay.

sorry, anyway, High Fidelity, yeah. I should probably own that on DVD. They talk about Stereolab in that don't they? And Beta Band too.

It's all good.

Remember Joy Division loves your mother.

Sorry this is a Bob Dylan thread. I understand that. Sorry.

Not sure! Nothing blatant, I don't think. She's in the film an awful lot, though. I think there's a scene where she's singing Love is Just a Four-Letter Word and he's ignoring her, typing away. That could be interpreted as something. I need to watch my DVD again ASAP.

i was trying to sort that out. i actually thought momentarily of dylan crossed with gingivitis.

anyway I'm playing Kate Bush now so things have got very complicated, I'm afraid. But I will rent the Bob Dylan video of Don't Look Back. Is there any Donovan in the video????!

Basically the Donovan thing in Don't Look Back goes like this. The whole first part of the movie Bob keeps hearing about Donovan in the papers and such. "Who's this Donovan?!", he's never heard of him before. Eventually they meet in a hotel room and Donovan plays "To Sing For You". Bob goes, "That's a good song, man!" and then Donovan asks him to play "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue". Bob throws down a searing version, occasionaly throwing Donovan a glance that seems to say "I'm eating you alive", but he kind of always looks like that so I'm not sure if it's intentional. So, whether or not Donovan just got pwned is up to you, most people say yes.

I smile a little and say: "Yeah."

found here:
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/music/features/article314344.ece

He certainly didn't try to humiliate Donovan, but singing "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" after Donovan's forgettable little ditty did the trick.

great sentence
In 1979 he recorded the album No Overdubs with the Danish Blues/rock band Delta Blues Band

"New Pony" is half the reason I pull this record out, y'all are crazy. Not for any of the same reasons I pull out Highway 61 or Blood on the Tracks but it's cool.

why do dylan records from mid-late 70s through 90s /sound/ so awful? like, who was producing/mastering his records? some of the worst-sounding major-label records of all time, IMO.

haha yeah, that is great. i bet nick cave likes street legal.

― tylerw, Monday, May 11, 2015 3:05 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

"New Pony" (which is awesome btw) feels very proto-Grinderman to me, even some of Dylan's phrasing I think Nick lifted.

Great record! LEGAL HASSLE!!

And speaking of the back-up singers on ""No Time to Think" every time they get to the "huuuu-mility!!" line I want them to sing "Hu-midity!!!"

Not sure of the exact source on this but from a Will Oldham fan site:

Nick Cave and Will Oldham met at Lollapalooza 1994 and talked about music. Will recalls: "We then regularly played "New Pony" from Bob Dylan's Street-Legal album. The pattern of Jack The Ripper from Cave's Henry's Dream is based on that of "New Pony", and he has some other songs which borrow extensively from "Street-Legal". Cave apparently saw one of our shows, came to me later on and said "Street-Legal" was his favorite Dylan album. To which I said: `I Know` [Will grins]"

why do dylan records from mid-late 70s through 90s /sound/ so awful? like, who was producing/mastering his records? some of the worst-sounding major-label records of all time, IMO.

― he quipped with heat (amateurist), Tuesday, May 12, 2015 12:19 AM (9 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

agree w/ this except for 'slow train coming' i think that album sounds amazing

Great record! LEGAL HASSLE!!

― chr1sb3singer, Tuesday, May 12, 2015 7:46 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

haha Legal Hassle: The Tribute Band That Only Plays Songs off Street Legal and Street Hassle needs to happen. Tyler, all you need to do is relocate your family and life Minneapolis, let us know the timeframe on that.

We can also do a mash-up of "Junior Dad" & "Tempest" for the encore

LULU & the Legal Hassles: A Tribue To Street Legal, Street Hassle, and LULU

"a tribute band so specific only the people actually in the band would want to see it - 4 1/2 stars" - Rolling Stone Magazine

"The greatest disappointment. 10.0" - The ghost of Lou Reed.

can my yoko ono tribute band (Three Virgins) open

As long as you have a draw of 6 people or less, then yes

why do dylan records from mid-late 70s through 90s /sound/ so awful? like, who was producing/mastering his records? some of the worst-sounding major-label records of all time, IMO.

― he quipped with heat (amateurist), Tuesday, May 12, 2015 12:19 AM (9 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

agree w/ this except for 'slow train coming' i think that album sounds amazing

― marcos, Tuesday, May 12, 2015 8:45 AM (9 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

well, jerry wexler produced that one, and yeah, it sounds pretty good. but the rest of 'em from the late 70s/80s... ugh.

Infidels sounds great! No complaints about its sound, which is crisp, shaped, and considered. It's the songs that suck.

Yeah. I certainly don't have an audiophile record player (even when it's working), but the last time I heard Empire Burlesque, most of it sounded still sounded good fine (Arthur Bell produced; "Disco Dylan," some snarked---ha, if only). Also Under A Red Sky, the two solo covers albums, and most everything since (though I haven't heard Oh Mercy or the Sinatra album).

"most of it still sounded good," that is.

I'm a fan of Empire Burlesque -- it's his best eighties album -- but the combo of synth chimes and gospel overtones on stuff like "Never Gonna Be the Same Again" makes my skin crawl.

maybe i've only heard shitty CD masters of some of the albums, but they always sounded muddy to me, like the various instruments are unhelpfully invading one another's timbres.

Dylan's voice unhelpfully invades its own timbres.

yeah he does a lot of /yelling/ on those albums. ugh, just count me as someone who thinks his discography after "new morning" is mostly disposable.

/mostly/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B436avtEXzs

Renegade priests
RENEGADE PRIESTS

^^The backing vox on "Changing of The Guard" are hi-larious.

woah funny I was listening to this just a few hours ago. the clunkiest lyrics are really some of dylan's worst but I still love the vibe/sound of the thing. it's not draggy, except maybe "señor."

I just became acquainted with the whole record finally, after many years of changing of the guard being in my top 10 dylans and knowing senor from biograph.

I dig its vibe a whole lot. The nick cave reveal upthread is perfect. Similarly to desire, a lot of the details do not repay closer scrutiny but it has this great addled rambler feeling. I do wish changing of the guard could have been a whole side long though, fucking love it unreasonably

HOW MUCH
HOW MUCH LONGAH

without "new pony" and "changing of the guard" I would never have gotten into this record at all. still prefer to hear it as "I had a pony; her name was Lucy-Poo" tho.

i'm ready when you are.......

....senor

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DCe6JyBUAAAHWF8.jpg

Doctor Casino otm, "New Pony" and "Changing of the Guard" are aces

I even love "Señor" now.

GENTLEMEN, he said, I DON'T NEED YOUR ORGANIZATION!!

THEY SHAVED HER HEAD (shaved her head!!!)

http://images.entertainment.ie/images_content/rectangle/620x372/LeaveBritneyAlone.jpg

I see Robbie Fulks is touring his cover of this album (& putting it out as a 2lp). Only know him vaguely through Bloodshot, has anyone seen this? Love Street Legal and like Fulks cover of Is Your Love in Vain that's up on youtube.

I love the way he channels bo diddley on “new pony”

she could feel my despair
as i climbed up her hair

It's amazing how "Baby Stop Cryin'" was the hit...in Europe.

Renegade priests
RENEGADE PRIESTS

― or at night (Jon not Jon), Monday, July 10, 2017 5:44 PM (five years ago) bookmarkflaglink