TWILIGHT ON THE FROZEN LAKE...

BOB DYLAN & THE BAND PLANET WAVES

In a previous post I commented on how some music is better suited for certain seasons. The subject of that post was the Fall. When it comes to Winter nothing beats this album for me. You almost need insulated gloves to handle it.

With the release of Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side Of The Moon” in May of 1973 the sixties officially came to an end. It was now part of history and all of the music, books, films and sporting events were forever book marked in that decade. As one of the driving forces behind the music of those ten years Dylan now turned his attention to the things that were right in front of him. Gone was the “thin wild mercury music” and “magic swirlin” ship(s).” They had been replaced with a wife, kids and grocery shopping.

Those themes were not new, he had explored them on “New Morning” with mixed results. That album featured domestic bliss emanating from the music room of his home as much as anything. The arrangements and songs were gentle, slight and not always fleshed out. For this January 1974 album though he called on old friends, now known as The Band, to take a swing at these recent songs that he’d been working on.

The result was one of his most anticipated, reviled, under praised, and misunderstood albums. Critics tried hard to like it, but in the end just couldn’t wrap their arms around it. In retrospect it seems they just couldn’t let him age. The ragged edges and seemingly improvised arrangements rival the best Stones outtakes. This album has a beauty all its own and mines the depths of Winter melancholy as well as anything you’ll hear. You can almost feel the temperature drop each time a new song starts.

With an album of Winter songs recorded in November, written and performed by someone living in Woodstock and backed by a Canadian group they naturally headed to L.A. to record. Recorded over three days in November of 1973 they prove that if it feels right then you should just let it stand. They did. Their decision to not go back and tweak it or redo some of the songs made for a timeless statement, warts and all. The next time someone would use this approach and make it work as well was John Hiatt on “Bring The Family.” Less can be so much more in the right hands. Hiatt made the mistake of trying to duplicate the magic and broke the spell with “Little Village.” Dylan never looked back.

Opening with the crackling, smell the wood burning, “On A Night Like This” the theme of the album is firmly established. This ode to a night at home is about as romantic as it gets. Love is the central theme of this album. Love of wife, love of kids, love of where you come from, love of those left behind and more. Unlike “New Morning” the songs here were much more crisp and with a capable group behind him the songs have a lived in, rustic feel. Any video from these recordings would have had woods, deserted farm houses, abandoned streets and so on as the backdrop. The Band meanwhile were doing a test run on the sound they would perfect on “Northern Lights, Southern Cross” the next year. (See below)

Of course the track “Forever Young” has emerged as the classic track from this one. No argument here. Bubbling under are several other unknown outside of the Dylan circle classics like “Something There Is About You,” “Hazel,” You Angel You,” “Going, Going, Gone,” “Never Say Goodbye“ and of course “On A Night Like This.” Hardcore sixties fans struggled to understand that Dylan could be tamed by domestic life. Not unlike Lennon revealed on “Double Fantasy” a few years later. The only misstep for me is the inclusion of a second take of “Forever Young” instead of using the outtake of “Nobody ‘Cept You” which would have fit much better.

No doubt hard line fans struggled with the lines “You’re beautiful beyond words, you’re beautiful to me” from “Never Say Goodbye.” However, being the good guy he is he throws them a bone a couple of lines later with , “My dreams are made of iron and steel, with a big bouquet of roses hanging down, from the heaven’s to the ground.”

Old timers were rewarded with the track “Tough Mama.” It is easily the hidden gem on this album. It’s a grinding, loping tune that sounds like a “Basement Tapes” leftover. It rolls along with some great, if nonsensical lyrics that will put a smile on your face. “Sister’s on the highway with that steel driving crew, Papa‘s in the big house, his working days are through“ anybody? The abrupt ending takes you back to the unfinished tracks we used to find on those vinyl bootlegs we cherished so much.

There are countless lines and images that let the listener know that the setting of these songs is “a deep and dark December.” He invokes the names of childhood friends, locations, his grandmother, the loves of his life, his children and thoughts of cold nights from his youth. While the album seems firmly rooted, underneath it all was a restless spirit that recalled other times and apparently a yearning to hit the road again for the first time in years. He would take The Band with him and try to recapture those halcyon days of the sixties when they all traveled together like a band of gypsies.

Almost a year to the day of the release of this album “Blood On The Tracks” came out and this album would be nearly forgotten. It’s main claim to fame that it was his only studio album not recorded for the Columbia label. He of course returned to Columbia and they would eventually claim ownership of this recording as though it had always been there.

Play “Blood On The Tracks” every chance you get, it’s one of the best albums ever recorded by anyone. But late at night when the windows are iced over, and you know you’re not going to leave the house for the rest of the evening slip this one in the player. Throw another log on the fire and listen to it hiss. Because as the song says, “it sure feels right on a night like this.”

THE BAND - NORTHERN LIGHTS, SOUTHERN CROSS

As long as we’re snowed in for the evening we may as well give this one a spin. For me this is the companion to “Planet Waves.” Dylan doesn’t make an appearance, but his image is visible in the smoke of the driftwood.

Starting with the release date of November 1975 and the cover photo you know Winter has them in its grip. The sonic textures that they debuted on “Planet Waves” were now the perfected ambiance of their own new recording. The songs, all eight of them, can stand alone as classics and near classics anyway you view them. Each one offers something that can be described as essential listening for a variety of reasons.

In addition to the songs, the three singers never sounded better. They eased their voices into the tunes in such a seamless way that others need not attempt to cover any of the songs down the road. Danko stops the show with “It Makes No Difference” and keeps you on the edge of disbelief as the song unfolds over its six minutes plus running time. (While we're on that song notice how the song's structure and Robbie's licks resemble "Going, Going, Gone.") Levon churns out “Ophelia” as though it was a leftover from “Planet Waves.” It recaptures the sound perfectly and until you check the credits you’d swear Dylan wrote it. Manuel graces everything his voice chooses to caress and delivers some of his most poignant vocals ever. The purity of his voice becomes more amazing the more the years pile up.

Sadly, this was pretty much the end of the road for this group. Magic almost always ends with something disappearing no matter how long it lasts. One of the nice things about music is that it is preserved for all time. The music on this album can carry the weight of the word timeless about as easily as anything you’ll ever hear.

Don't forget your coat on when you go out for more wood.