The album Bob Dylan thought was in his “blood”
You’re never going to need to look far to find praise for Bob Dylan. His influence can be felt across music, culture and literature, even to this day. He had a way with lyrics that was unlike anybody else, as his words were able to tap into the heart and soul of all those who listened, revealing things both internally and externally to the listener that they had never clocked on to before.
Bruce Springsteen sums up his influence best. Before Bob Dylan came along, we had rock ‘n’ roll, and we had folk; there was music that people could be passionate about, but none so much as what Bob Dylan wound up putting together. His analysis of himself, of those around him and the world at large was equal parts informative and poetic, and it revolutionised the way that people approached songwriting.
“I was very influenced by Dylan,” admitted Springsteen. “I always say he’s the father of my country. He initially provided me with a picture of a country that I recognised. One that feels real, feels like the truth.”
One of the albums in particular that Springsteen was moved by (as well as many others) was Highway 61 Revisited. Springsteen admitted that when he started writing lyrics, he intended to write songs that made people feel the same way he felt when he heard the Bob Dylan classic.
It’s not just Bruce Springsteen who feels this way. While everyone has their own favourite Bob Dylan album, Highway 61 Revisited remains one of his most popular, and when you look at the tracks which feature on it, it’s easy to see why. Classics such as ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ and ‘Tombstone Blues’ shine through from the second the album starts playing, and the songs pierce the veil of time, sounding just as poignant and beautiful today as they did when they were released in 1965.
It begs the question: How does Bob Dylan do it? Well, we can’t simply unpack Bob Dylan’s songwriting; if it were that easy, then everyone would do it, but there is something special about this album in particular that resonates with Dylan, so much so that writing it felt almost like a natural process.
“Highway 61, the main thoroughfare of the country blues, begins about where I began,” he revealed in his book Chronicles: Volume One. “I always felt like I’d started on it, always had been on it and could go anywhere, even down into the deep Delta country. It was the same road, full of the same contradictions, the same one-horse towns, the same spiritual ancestors… It was my place in the universe, always felt like it was in my blood.”
Roads are a very important part of Bob Dylan’s life. He never felt as though he fit in in his hometown, and as a result, felt compelled to make his way to New York in a bid to become a voice on the folk scene. As such, it makes sense that he would feel a connection to the roads that different styles of music travelled down.
As a result, when writing passionately for the Highway 61 Revisited album, it only makes sense that said passion came to him quickly. In other words, that record was well and truly in his blood.
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