Three friends and I had gone to a concert in Louisville. The concert was fun, but nothing special. On the way back to Lexington someone remembered that it was time for one of the local FM stations to present the "album of the week." This was 1975 and at that time it was difficult to get a preview of upcoming releases so we were happy that our timing was so lucky. The radio was tuned and shortly it was announced that Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks would be played in its entirety.
I have a direct impression of sitting in the back seat of the car as we travelled east letting the songs wash through me. My body was relaxed and very still. Everyone was silent. We were all rapt. Time slowed. I was amazed as each song seemed to be better than the last. The quality of the album was so high, there were so many impressions, that as Lily, Rosemary And The Jack Of Hearts ended I was sure the album was over. It had already been an incredible "meal", and dessert was still in the offing. There were still three more songs!
We arrived at our dorm in Lexington right after Buckets of Rain was over. I don't remember anyone speaking. Maybe a few words to affirm how great the album was. Bob was definitely back. We went to our rooms. The concert had vanished. Blood on the Tracks was imprinted. "And every one of them words rang true and glowed like burnin’ coal"
Thanks. My favorite line from the album, among a multitude of great lines, is "We always did feel the same, we just saw it from a different point of view" but I didn't think it fit the context as well as the other quote.
Posted by: David | 11 May 2010 at 04:49 PM
Nicely said. My first listening experience to Blood had different circumstances but as Dylan said "We always did feel the same, just started from a different point of view"
Posted by: Zorba the Bomb | 11 May 2010 at 01:47 PM