Bob Dylan - 3 Pak Blonde Blood on Tracks Time Out Mind (35 tracks) +Album Reviews

Maybe his three best albums, all in one place, but...

Bill R. Moore | New York, USA | 12/04/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This collection houses three incredible albums that, even in Bob Dylan's uncomparable catalog, ranks as perhaps his three best. The first of these, the huge, sprawling masterpiece Blonde On Blonde was rock's first ever double album, in 1966. Containing masterpieces such as Visions of Johanna, Stuck Inside of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again, and Sad-Eyed Lady of The Lowlands, it is truly one of the greatest albums ever recorded. Blood On The Tracks, the second album, is considered by many people, rather myself included, to be Dylan's finest. It's about as close to heart-on-sleeve as he ever got, and is an undisputed major masterpiece, containing perhaps my favorite Dylan composition ever, Idiot Wind. The last of these is his 1997 Grammy Award-winning Album of The Year (and deserving, too), Time Out of Mind. A dark, incredible, and immensely rewarding album, his best, indeed, since Blood On The Tracks. Still, even though this contains what is possibly Dylan's three greatest albums (with all that that entails), this is not a necessary package for everyone. Here's what I suggest:If you don't have these three albums already (shame on you!), go out and buy this package RIGHT NOW. Don't delay; don't even hesitate... run; don't walk. This is your chance to own three of the greatest albums in the history of recorded music. It's better to buy them this way if you don't already have them, as it's convenient, and cheaper to boot.On the other hand, though, if you already have them (which you should), there are no incentives for you to purchase this collection. There's no extensive re-packaging, re-mastering, or added tracks to warrant its purchase.Follow this advice, and your wealth of music catalog will increase immensely."

Perfect for newcomers to Dylan

G. Wachman | Minneapolis, MN United States | 10/12/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As a newcomer to Bob Dylan's vast and highly regarded discography, I was looking for an introduction to his best material. I was expecting some kind of cheap packaging deal, and was surprised to find that these are identical to the CDs you would get if you bought them individually. This is really a good deal...This collection plucks three of his best albums from three distinctly different periods of Dylan's career: "Blonde on Blonde" from 1966, "Blood on the Tracks" from 1975, and "Time out of Mind", his "comeback" album from 1997. I'm sure you'll find plenty of adequate reviews of these albums on their respective pages, but if you want to save some time, take my (and several others') word for it, and just buy this now. It is my understanding that there are a couple more similar package deals like this available, but for the broadest range of material, I think this is your best bet."

IF YOU DO NOT OWN THIS,BUY IT.The summit of American Music

A. Hogan | Brooklyn, NY USA | 02/12/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After some interesting couplings, columbia has gotten it right and packaged three of the greatest albums of the past 40 years. Period. first of all, the almost incomperable BLONDE ON BLONDE, Rocks first multi-album {it predated the White album by a couple of years.}From the opening strains of Rainy Day woman# 12&35,to Visions of Johana to the amazing,haunting masterpiece SAD EYED LADY OF THE LOWLANDS,Dyaln never, I mean never missed on this album. the do this once in a career is extraordinary. It was follwed in 1974,after some good[Nasville Skyline,Planet Waves} some not so{New Morning, and Self Portrait] by BLOOD ON THE TRACKS,for many people Dylans masterpiece.Tangled up in BLUE, the overwhelming IDIOT WIND{listen to this after you listen to SAD EYED LADY OF THE LOWLANDS},Your gonna make me lonesome When you Go, and the crushing SHELTER FROM THE STORM, Written is resonse to his failing marriage,9 cuts of pain,agony,exhaustion, and hope{one cut LILY ROSEMARY and the JACK OF HEARTS is an exception,and terrific}. By the 90's Dylan was on the never ending tour, and he had doen some very underrated work{Infidels,OH Mercy,} but many folks though he had become a cultural curiosity,destroying the myth of poet,prophet to be a song and dance man. then came a near fatal illness, and TIME OUT OF MIND,his grammy winning "comeback". No longer the self assured trickster,he is now a man aging,trying to make sense of it all,and he does so. In many ways,this is my favorite dylan ,form Love Sick to tryin' to get to Heaven, to the simply wonderful NOT DARK YET,Dylan is still the master. If you do not own any Dyaln,my goodness this is manna from heaven. three of his greatest albums from three different periods, each graceful,poetic and beautiful.Maybe the greatest ameican poet of the last 50 years{yeah, i know that is quite a statement],the most influetial musician in the past 50 years,and here are three of his greatest,waiting for you. MAGNIFICENT!"

Three Powerful Records

Tiffany Ann | Black Diamond Bay | 04/02/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Stuck Inside a Masterpiece. "Blonde on Blonde" builds on the excellent "Highway 61 Revisited" enhancing not only Dylan's musical genius, but his mystique as well. What is he here? I mean what did they think of him back then, back when this record came out. Rock and Roll star, sure. Poet, sure. No longer involved in the politics of the day, but involved in so much more. Mr. Jones didn't get it on the last record and he's probably not getting it now. However lots of folks did get it, or thought they got it. I like to think I would've, but I don't know if I understand this record even now, after all this time, but I plan on listening to it over and over till I do finally understand this musical masterpiece, because I know it's important and it is just so very good, so wonderful.

One of the Six Best Records Ever Made. I must have worn out a dozen copies of "Blood on the Tracks" before I got the CD and I've gone through a couple of those. "Blood On the Tracks" simply never gets old. It's as fresh now as the day Bob Dylan recorded it. It sends chills up my spine every time I hear it and I can't hear it enough. I play it in the car, at home, have it on my iPod and on my iBook. This is the kind of record that sets the standards for all the rest. It's on the top of the heap, rivaled only by Dylan's own "Highway 61 Revisited", "Blonde on Blonde," the Rolling Stones powerful bootleg "LiveR Than You'll Ever Be and the Beatles' two wonderful records, "The White Album" and "Abbey Road." That's a pretty powerful group of records. You should own them all, "Blood On the Tracks" especially.

Riddles and Enigmas Abound in "Time Out of Mind." Eight years since "Oh Mercy," and once again Bob Dylan calls on Daniel Lanois to produce a record. This one wins a Grammy and shows the world Bob Dylan is still a force to be reckoned with. This is an eerie, kind of psychedelic and very dark record. Dylan's voice even sounds dark, as dark and bare as the lyrics. Songs of no hope and a lot of hope, dreary, dank, dark, but seemingly always with a ray of hope shining through. "It's not dark yet, but it's getting there." Yeah, it's getting there. Riddles and enigmas abound in this record that won a Grammy and if you give it a listen, you'll find Bob Dylan's riddles both easy and impossible to decipher, but such is the nature of the man."

Folk Rock, Heart Pumping Rock & the Dark Side

Stephanie Sane | from the Asylum | 10/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There three super records are Four of Mr. D's Best. Well "Blonde on Blonde" was a double record, but it's a single CD. This is just an outstanding collection. You can't go wrong here. Read on.

"Blonde on Blonde" originally came out in 1966 as a double album with the long "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" taking up one whole side. My dad says this was one of the records that hippies and antiwar protesters used to listen to while they smoked the peace pipe. I've got this good friend, Jack Priest, who writes horror stories and he tells me that they still do that, but you don't need whatever it is they're smoking to know that this is a wonderful work, a wonderful collection of music. I can only imagine what it must have been like back then, listening to stuff like this, and the Beatle's "Sgt. Pepper" when they were new, when they were fresh.

If you had to pick out a number one Dylan record, one that shines above the rest, and that's very hard to do, but if you had to do it, you'd half to pick, "Blood on the Tracks." Recorded shortly after Mr. D's divorce, you can feel his pain. These songs are full of hurt, rage, confusion and so much else. This album starts the heart pounding with "Tangled up in Blue," and doesn't let you go till the last note of "Buckets of Rain." "Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts," is a haunting cowboy ballad and I'm still waiting for the movie. "Shelter from the Storm," "You're a Big Girl Now," songs that speak to the soul. This record is classy, beautiful, original and one you should play till you wear out your CD (if that's possible). Five stars, would that I could give it a hundred.

"Time Out of Mind" is considered a comeback album by many. These people think that just because Bob Dylan put out a couple Christian Records, or A couple records with a gang of Gospel singers, or a couple records of old blues and public domain songs, that he'd lost it, forgotten how to do rock and roll, forgotten how to write. So when these so called comeback albums come out, they raise their hands, look to the heavens and shout out "Praise the Lord, Dylan's back." How silly, Mr. D's always been around and God willing will still be giving us these comeback records every three years or so thirty years from now. That said, "Time Out of Mind," has a dark feel to it. It pulls you in with a combination of Dylan's mournful voice and mournful lyrics. It's different than anything he's done before. It's hard to wrap words around this record other than to say, you'll not be disappointed if you buy it. This is a five star piece of work that belongs in any serious music lover's collection.

Reviewed by Stephanie Sane"

Search - Bob Dylan :: 3 Pak: Blonde / Blood on Tracks / Time Out Mind

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