Chiming For Freedom

I think I'm right in saying that today marks the release of the latest studio album from His Bobness. Despite my fanboy status on this one I'm not desperate to get hold of Tempest, though it is, of course, on autobuy, as there's so much great stuff to be going on with anyway. This includes one of my more recent purchases, Chimes of Freedom, The Songs of Bob Dylan, which has been receiving frequent air-time both at home and in the car. There're four packed CDs to savour and although the great man features only once (with Chimes itself, in the original recording) his spirit is everywhere.

It's astonishing to realise just how many utterly wonderful songs Dylan has been responsible for. And when you hear other people do them you realise afresh just how great they are as pieces in themselves as opposed to hearing them as vehicles for the Bobster's astonishing performances. (I suppose equally stunning is the attendant realisation of how much has had to be left off. No one, for example, had the temerity to cover Tangled Up In Blue, hardly surprisingly.)

Even though there are a few clunkers on board in terms of lacklustre performances - no names, no packdrill, I'm far too charitable for that - even these are somehow acceptable since, at the very least, you can run through the original in your mind as they are being wrecked, with a better understanding of why they worked originally. But I reckon at least half the cuts are downright inspired, whilst most are more than acceptable. For example, to my delighted surprise Miley Cyrus does a nice job on You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go, reminding me (as if I needed it) of just how fragilely perfect the lyric is.

I'd be jabbering on forever if I tried to do justice to the inspired stuff, but I'll just mention one two three wonderful tracks: Rise Against (never heard of them before, but great players) absolutely revitalise The Ballad of Hollis Brown; Love Sick gets a fabulously off-beat Mexican reading from Mariachi El Bronx; and Eric Burdon's Gotta Serve Somebody would make any right-minded open-eared individual serve the lord in the funkiest way imaginable.

And just think, by buying the set you're donating to everybody's favourite human rights group. Blimey.