A Look Back at Bob Dylan’s “Blood on the Tracks”
This feature originally appeared on BestClassicBands.
By the time of 1975’s Blood on the Tracks, Bob Dylan had moved through a succession of distinct musical personae. Beginning his career as a Woody Guthrie acolyte, Dylan soon established his own voice, singing and writing original folk protest songs. After famously “going electric,” Dylan bent the rock aesthetic toward his own musical ends, and soon crafted the sublime double-LP Blonde on Blonde (1966).
From there, Dylan shifted radically toward a back-to-the-roots vibe with 1967’s John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline in 1969. His commercial and critical fortunes took a hit as the quality of his work seemed to flag somewhat with a succession of albums in the early 1970s. But in 1975 he roared back with his fifteenth album of new material, one which would come to be recognized among his finest: Blood on the Tracks.
Whereas during Dylan’s folk-protest period he wrote lyrics that commented (if obliquely) upon social concerns, the collection of songs that make up Blood on the Tracks are decidedly inward-looking and personal. While his writing continues to be filled with metaphors and obscure turns of phrase, with these songs Dylan is often chronicling the disintegration of his marriage (he and Sara Lownds Dylan would divorce in 1977).
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About the Author
Bill Kopp
With a background in marketing and advertising, Bill Kopp got his professional start writing for Trouser Press. After a stint as Editor-in-chief for a national music magazine, Bill launched Musoscribe in 2009, and has published new content every business day since then (and every single day since 2018). The 4000-plus interviews, essays, and reviews on Musoscribe reflect Bill's keen interest in American musical forms, most notably rock, jazz, and soul. His work features a special emphasis on reissues and vinyl. Bill's work also appears in many other outlets both online and in print. He regularly hosts lecture/discussions on artists and albums of historical importance (including monthly events Music to Your Ears and Music Movie Mondays), and is a frequent guest on music-focused radio programs and podcasts. In Spring 2023 he is co-teaching a history of Rock 'n' Roll at UNC Asheville's College for Seniors. He also researches and authors liner notes for album reissues -- more than 30 to date -- and co-produced a reissue of jazz legend Julian "Cannonball" Adderley's final album. His first book, Reinventing Pink Floyd: From Syd Barrett to The Dark Side of the Moon was published by Rowman & Littlefield in 2018, and in paperback in 2019. His second book, Disturbing the Peace: 415 Records and the Rise of New Wave, was published in 2021 by HoZac Books. His third book, What's the Big Idea: 40 Great Concept Albums will be published in 2024. Read even more about him here.