BOB DYLAN TIME OUT OF MIND ARCHIVE
BOB DYLAN TIME OUT OF MIND PLUS

8: Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989–2006 (now out of print), this inclusion of ‘repeats’ functions as a recapitulation of sorts.

BOB DYLAN TIME OUT OF MIND PLUS

Studio recordings of the four Dylan songs omitted from the original LP, plus eight other cuts related to that title that appeared in the lavish edition of The Bootleg Series Vol. The arguably superfluous dozen cuts on the fifth disc, however, have a greater and more purposeful impact. Within those hardcovers, the prose by historian Douglas Brinkley and journalist/podcaster Steven Hyden is worth reading, but neither essay is as illuminating as the plethora of photos: the images are of much greater clarity than the blurry image on the original front cover of Time Out of Mind. The carefully-conceived and executed graphics for the deluxe box set of Vol.17, including that for the enclosed book, are in line with the lavish designs of past deluxe sets.

Fortunately, Larry Campbell’s filigreed guitar on “Can’t Wait” is an exception. The lack of fidelity in what sound in many cases to be audience recordings, however, often muffles their unified action. These often-riveting moments of spontaneity on stage, many of which aren’t much less rowdy than “‘Til I Fell In Love With You,” feature two different but comparably tight quintets. On the contrary, in his mind, they are snapshots of moments in time, perhaps more prolonged in duration, but no less fleeting. Including all the songs from the studio work plus an expansive take on the latter, an assemblage of globe-hopping live performances from 1998-2001, further reaffirms the notion Bob doesn’t see his studio recordings as definitive. As in version two of “Mississippi,” they refuse to opt for the obvious, predictable or conventional. Such experimentation, as well as work on songs such as the Scottish ballad “The Water Is Wide,” suggests the lengths to which Dylan and his collaborators will try multiple avenues to finalize structures of song, arrangement, and production. Bob is nothing less than fastidious in his pursuit of what sounds acceptable to him. Rough edges remain in beats, tunes, and words, all yet to be sculpted into fully-finished form to present to the accompanists (which may explain why lyrics to each song are not included here to complete a fully panoramic view of Time Out Of Mind). The multiplicity of variations is indicative of the breadth of Dylan’s imagination, one that’s mirrored by the versatile talents of the musicians. Hearing the juxtaposition of the preliminary demos like “‘Til I Fell in Love with You” (done in 1996 with a quartet anchored by drummer Jim Keltner) with “Dirt Road Blues” four months later brings a deeper focus to both recordings, not to mention the material itself. Through the inclusion of twenty-five outtakes and alternate versions on the second and third discs, the effect is much the same, albeit from a different angle. For instance, the wan, woeful”Love Sick” is as striking in its own solitary way as the lighthearted, bemused interaction recounted on “Highlands.” Yet, in the context of the overall track sequence of roughly seventy minutes duration, these bookending cuts are nowhere nearly as moving as “Not Dark Yet:” Dylan’s most overt rumination upon mortality is both stately and graceful as befits a certain acceptance regarding its subject matter. In this simplified mix, the music is less dream-like but much more immediate and proportionately more cinematic too. Sans the depth of the effects applied by Lanois–who was much more restrained in his treatment of recordings through his previous collaboration with Dylan on 1989’s Oh Mercy–the rhythmic melodic and lyric nuances of Dylan’s compositions, like “Standing In The Doorway,” become more readily apparent. What is perhaps the most revelatory element of this 5CD box is the remix of the original eleven cuts by Michael Brauer ( at the behest of Dylan in fulfillment of a long-held wish?). On the one hand, Fragments is a perfectly ironic name for a collection of studio and live recordings centered upon one of the most cohesive albums in his discography, 1997’s Time Out of Mind. On the other hand, it is literally a description of how the various components of that set, in the form of both material and musicianship, were forged into a unified whole by Dylan, his producer Daniel Lanois and the roster of musicians who worked with them.

BOB DYLAN TIME OUT OF MIND ARCHIVE

The title of this latest edition in The Bootleg Series, Bob Dylan’s ongoing archive initiative, is certainly in keeping with the often purposeful ambiguity of the Nobel Laureate’s lyrics.

Bob dylan time out of mind