Expecting Rain

Ten years from now you'll be surprised you said this.

Very well stated!

Totally agree! I don't know why Time Out of Mind was considered such a milestone in Bob's career. A couple of good songs, but Oh Mercy is full of them. I really like Oh Mercy. Love, Joanna XOXOX

Well, I really only ever listen to my 'Yo! Mercy' version of the album, but even in its inferior form Oh Mercy has melodies that kick TooM's arse. On top of that, Oh Mercy just sounds so much better, and thats a massive plus. I really think Lanois dropped the ball with his production on TooM - either that or Dylan deliberately wanted that mildewed, cobwebbed sound. You can almost smell the fungus growing on the songs.

Can I disagree at this point? The vinyl drop of TOOM is as unfungusy as a plank of elm wood.

Actually, you might be right Stpehen - been ages since I listened to the TOOM vinyl rip.

I do think the CD version is desperately crying out for a remaster though - of all the albums in Dylan's back catalogue it's the one I would select first for such a treatment.

i was thinking the same...it's murk, but it's very clear murk. orchestrated murk if you will. i'd have to go back and decide which sounds more 'full.'

In terms of actual sound, as in listening to it... Time Out of Mind was Bob's best album until Love and Theft.

And the songs were very good too.

Oh. Shut. The. Fucketty. Fuck. Up. UP.

I have a hangover, so my normal tolarance for your insane bollocks is currently less than zero.

Time Out of Mind... a great cure for a hangover. A 1997 - 98 NET show with some of those lovely songs would be even better!

But in a pinch, Oh Mercy would certainly do as well! I'd start with What Good Am I?, What Was It You Wanted?, or Everything Is Broken. Sounds like you've got a rough day ahead of you.

Best wishes...

i misread the initial post - i thought the difficult debate was between Oh Mercy and time Under a Red Sky...., in that case, the victor is clear.

if we were to take it to the vinyl poll, i believe Oh Mercy has no statistical difference for each side, while TOOM has a clear favored side. one scenario suggests weak points, while the other suggests flawlessness...

That is very likely. There was a time when I didn't care for his '80s albums either, and now I listen to his work from that decade the most (I think).

^^^
I hope you feel better soon. I like those BC powders when I have drank too much. I do agree that Oh Mercy IS better. Everybody raves about TOOM and really for me ONLY Not Dark Yet and Highlands (because it is quite an odd song) are worth talking about. Oh Mercy has Most Of The Time and several other gems, but Most Of The Time is one of his best later songs or middle songs or last songs depending upon how you look at it and what you listen to after! I could listen to different versions of that song all day long. It might NOT be Idiot Wind, but it is pretty good! Love, Joanna XOXO P.S. It would have been even better if Lanois was not involved. Benny, make more posts please; they always make me laugh and they are great to see early in the morning! However, we are in a minority I think when it comes to liking Oh Mercy better than TOOM. Hello Troub, Stephen, UP, Gunfighter, et al!

Ugh, I like those guys, but I don't block out 'newer' artists post-1980 either.

Paul's Boutique, 3 Feet High & Rising and Doolittle alone tower over everything in there except Neil Young (who had a better album in Times Square - most of it's on Freedom though).

am liking the look of this track listing Benny, especially the 3 openers from TTS. Personally, I think I would also replace the OM version of Most of the Time with that from TTS.
Out of interest, how is the 2000 remaster of Ring Them Bells different to the original album version, or the SACD release? Also interested in the choice of version of Dignity as I don't have the Dylan comp..what's the thinking on that one too?

My nomination for POST OF THE DAY!

Ok, a few things:

1) The 2000 Oh Mercy remaster is the SACD version - was that 2003? I dunno. All the Oh Mercy tracks were taken from that version, as its the best sounding
2) I just grabbed the Dignity from the Dylan set cos it was available easily and in good sound. There are probably better versions of the song out there - this one has a slightly annoying drum track on it, which I'd nuke if I was remixing it.
3) I love the acoustic 'Most Of The Time' on TTS but I dont think it fits the sonic aesthetic of the rest of the tracks.

Overall, I havent put maximum effort into making this alternative version of the album work the best it could, but even slapping something together like I have has produced an album way better than the officially released version. Its such a shame Dylan or Lanois didnt have enough vision or balls or whatever to fully realise what they had laid down at those sessions. Because here's the thing - the slapdash comp I have put together is the best Bob Dylan album since Desire, and better than anything he did afterwards. It's the last great gasp of the old Bob Dylan I fell in love with, before the fires burned out.

I'm just going to go and listen to my Oh Mercy CD! I don't know which version it is, but I know I like it! I like just looking at your list Benny; and it is actually a GREAT album. I don't know why he ever chose Lanois except he wanted to be in New Orleans and I can understand that totally. I think he sounds very ambivalent about this CD in Chronicles; To me, he doesn't sound like he was real happy with Lanois. Damn that Bono for recommending him!! Love, Joanna XOXOX P.S. At least I found out Bob likes Guinness because he drank them with Bono! Love, Joanna XOXOx

I think we were all thrilled when it came out. Great transparant production, Dylan's voice direct, clear and focused, uncluttered by excessive reverb. Wonderful! But, i must say, in hindsight, apart from 'Man in the long black coat' rather below par in songwriting. No great poetry here: political world, everything is broken, what was it you wanted, most of the time. too preachy in 'disease of conceit' and 'ring them bells', a nice couple of songs 'shooting star' 'where teardrops fall' but no biggies.'what good am i' is ok. Now i no longer consider it a great album. Even the production sounds a tad flat now, even though all the notes are spot on, the instruments well chosen. I don't really know what it is, but it just doesn't move me. It might be too perfect.
It's interesting to compare it to TOOM, which is almost the mirror image in many ways.

Does anybody know what key harmonica he's playing on the album?

Depends what key the song is.

Everything Is Broken - E / A
Man In The Long Black Coat - F#minor / A
What Was It You Wanted - C#minor / E
Shooting Star / E

Tempest would be my favorite album since Oh Mercy rather than Street Legal if it had included Dignity/Series of Dreams/Born in Time. As it is, the album feels incomplete.

That said, Infidels and Shot of Love were even more badly affected by song choice, particularly the former.

Not sure why Dylan insists on keeping good songs off of albums. He often has this ten song rule.

Amazing album full of heartbreaking songs. Love it!

Tempest is like Oh, Mercy for this decade. Eventually, people will begin to pick apart Tempest and bash it for all manner of sins that didn't seem apparent when it came out and everyone was raving over it. While Oh, Mercy will sneak it's way back to recognition as among the richer albums in his catalog, which it is.