Books on individual Dylan albums proliferating

Book-length studies of individual Dylan albums, as pioneered by Greil Marcus over ten years ago, are proliferating. It’s evidence of a growing recognition of the depth and breadth of Zimmerman’s talent.

The latest addition to the genre is Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited, by British music journalist Colin Irwin (Legendary Sessions series, Billboard Books Jan 2008, 256pp, hardback).

I just bought a copy from The Book Depository, in Gloucester, via Amazon Marketplace, at the giveaway price of £8.83 delivered.

Irwin’s new book joins an expanding shelf of studies of individual Dylan albums, including two competitors:

* Marcus, Greil, Like A Rolling Stone: Bob Dylan at the Crossroads, Faber & Faber, 2005

* Polizzotti, Mark, Highway 61 Revisited, 33 1/3/Continuum, 2006

as well as a trio of other single album studies:

* Griffin, Sid, Million Dollar Bash: Bob Dylan, The Band, and The Basement Tapes, Jawbone Press, Sept 2007

* Marcus, Greil, Invisible Republic, Picador, 1997

* Gill, Andy, and Odegard, Kevin, A Simple Twist of Fate: Bob Dylan and the Making Of Blood On The Tracks, Da Capo, 2004.

You can access Dylan Daily reviews of Polizzotti’s and Griffin’s books via the Archive.





Gerry Smith