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Bob Dylan
Self Portrait

(Columbia, 1970)

Finally it can be said: Bob Dylan’s “worst album” is pretty good after all...

Bob Dylan

What is this shit! Greil Marcus said it first in his 1970 Rolling Stone review of Self Portrait but seriously, what is this? MOJO stuck it 6th from bottom in our Top 50 Dylan albums. Worse than Saved! That has to be heard! Coming off the back of the greatest run of albums by a single artist, this double vinyl hodge-podge understandably bamboozled 60s fans but from the dreamy female choir on All The Tired Horses singing “How'm I s'posed to get any ridin' (writin’?) done?” to the euphoric cover of Frank Beddoe’s utopian ballad, Copper Kettle Self Portrait today sounds like a post-crash front-porch kick-back of arcadian inertia, scored by strings, harmonies and slide guitar. True, there’s a Gordon Lightfoot cover and Bob’s tuneless Garfunkelisation of The Boxer but anyone attuned to the old-timey Dylan of “Love And Theft”, Chronicles and Theme Time Radio Hour will fall upon Self Portrait like a new Dylan delight, and one that’s a little bit better than – are we allowed to say this? – Modern Times.

Andrew Male

Posted by Ross_Bennett at 6:04 AM GMT 26/11/2007

Further Listening

Neil Young – Old Ways (Reprise, 1985)

Bob Dylan - New Morning (Columbia, 1970)

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Bob Dylan

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  • What did Greil Marcus really know...nothing! just another self appointed Dylan commentator who thinks he knows more than the man. I loved the album from day one and its gotten better with time. All you gotta do is trust Griel and listen with open ears......

    Posted by Steve Price at 5:57 PM GMT 30/11/2007 Report Abuse

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  • this was the first Dylan album I bought. I was very young and unaffected by critical slant. therefore I just drank it in. I was, I admit, baffled by the opening tune sung by a female chorus but with that out of the way the album proper begins. Alberta #4 was cool, I forgot more than you'll ever know a little schmaltzy but Days of 49 was great, Early Morning Rain very pretty, in search of little sadie very interesting, Let It Be Me a return to the schmaltz theme, little sadie and woogie boogie both cool and Belle Isle romantic. I really loved Livin The Blues and the live like a rolling stone with the band very cool. Love Copper Kettle, love Gotta Travel On, love blue Moon and The Boxer and every song from there out to the conclusion of the album I flat out love, SO, from that tally you can see that Self Portrait is NOT a problem with me. For Greil to exclaim "what's this s...." is simply his noncomprehension that his hero would release a album minus any social commentary.

    Posted by paul at 11:16 PM GMT 30/11/2007 Report Abuse

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  • though like the others I didn't find Self Portrait as offensive as Marcus, to say it is better than Modern Times! Give me a break.
    How is it that if you wait long enough any piece of shit album can become a classic? Like Electric Mud, by "Muddy Waters". i bought that after seeing Scorcese's blues series and reading a review inMojo. Sorry, total crap then. Total crap now.

    Posted by Ajnabi at 8:29 AM GMT 08/08/2008 Report Abuse

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