4 Huge Comeback Albums From Bob Dylan’s Career

Bob Dylan has delivered a remarkable amount of wonderful music in his career. But it isn’t fair to expect a career now spanning more than 60 years of recording to be without a few bumpy stretches now and then.

Luckily, Dylan always possessed a knack for coming up big when he needed it most. These four LPs were great on their own. And they also proved critical in the context of Dylan’s career as slump-breakers.

‘New Morning’

Dylan threw the entire music world into a tizzy with his Self Portrait double album in 1970. The intent was to release something off-the-cuff to temper expectations and defuse some of the “voice of a generation” talk. Unfortunately, the strings-laden, covers-heavy set did its job too well. It caused people to think he’d lost it completely. To stop the bleeding, Dylan rushed New Morning out just a few months later. It’s by no means a masterpiece. But the easygoing nature of it made it one of Dylan’s most enjoyable listens, even while convincing fans and critics that he was once again serious about his art. A few numbers, such as “If Not For You” and “Sign On The Window”, are low-key standouts.

‘Slow Train Coming’

We’re among those who feel that the 1978 Dylan album Street-Legal doesn’t get the credit it deserves as one of his quirkiest, most daring albums. Instead, it took its share of critical slings and arrows at the time of its release. Not long after, Dylan converted to Christianity and brought the intensity of his newfound religious beliefs to the album Slow Train Coming, released in 1979. Some people objected to his decision to narrow the focus of his writing down to essentially one topic. Aside from that, it’s one of the best-sounding albums in Dylan’s career. And the decisiveness of his lyrics couldn’t be denied. Not only that, he came away with a much-needed hit single in “Gotta Serve Somebody”.

‘Oh Mercy’

The 80s didn’t always treat Dylan kindly. Although much of the music that he released during the decade has since been reassessed in a positive light, the one-two punch (or perhaps lack of punch) of Knocked Out Loaded in 1986 and Down In The Groove in 1988 found him sounding adrift. He decided to work with a more hands-on producer in Daniel Lanois in 1989. Lanois helped by focusing Dylan’s sound, imbuing it with a thick, swampy atmosphere. But Oh Mercy mostly succeeds because Dylan had found his A game as a songwriter. From feisty rockers like “Everything Is Broken” to gorgeous heartbreakers like “Most Of The Time”, the LP is consistently brilliant.

‘Time Out Of Mind’

Dylan followed up the highly praised Oh Mercy with the strangely lifeless Under The Red Sky. Then, he kind of went underground for a while. He released two albums of non-originals, all old folk and blues songs, in the early part of the decade. After the fact, he admitted that he was struggling with writer’s block. Returning to those classic songs, those that fueled his work at the beginning of his career, helped cure that. In addition, Dylan reunited with Daniel Lanois, whose production choices added a layer of spookiness to Dylan’s howling vocals. Dylan also overcame a serious illness following the creation of the record, making Time Out Of Mind a comeback in more ways than one.

(Photo by Fiona Adams/Redferns)