Supplanting Beach House as my “must listen every day” music is Bob Dylan's album John Wesley Harding. I came across this album when I heard the song “The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest” on XM radio, driving across the country with my dad. This song really struck me when I first heard it, because it sounds just like a Fall song – it’s just one simple measure played over and over from beginning to end. This is a song I’ll never skip. If only it were longer!
Bob Dylan - The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest [John Wesley Harding LP, 1967]
This album came after Dylan’s most electric ones (Highway 61, Bringing It All Back Home, Blonde on Blonde), but it has a comparatively stripped down sound. On most of the songs he’s backed only by a drummer and a bassist. It works really well for me, as this setup places his voice high in the mix. He gets away with a lot of Yoda-like phrasing in the lyrics, and even though this medieval speak is a little affected at times (“I spied the fairest damsel/that ever did walk in chains”) I still find it compelling.
The album ends with “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight,” a slow jam if Bob Dylan ever knew how to kick one out. “Do not fear/bring that bottle over here,” he sings in his best lecherous voice. Not quite Gainsbourg, but close enough.
Bob Dylan - John Wesley Harding LP, 1967
Track listing:
1. John Wesley Harding
2. As I Went Out One Morning
3. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine
4. All Along the Watchtower
5. The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest
6. Drifter's Escape
7. Dear Landlord
8. I Am a Lonesome Hobo
9. I Pity the Poor Immigrant
10. The Wicked Messenger
11. Down Along the Cove
12. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
