Bob Dylan : John Wesley Harding	Related Readings:
Genre: Country Rock	Dates: 1967

While Dylan was holed up in Woodstock recovering from a near-fatal motorcycle accident, the world of American music changed. The Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, the Rolling Stones' Their Satanic Majesties' Request, and the flowering of the San Francisco Sound left stunned listeners wondering how (or if) Dylan would be able to top their barrage of studio wizardry, psychedelia, and hall-of-mirrors gamesmanship. This record was his answer: a set of spare, country rock parables that seemed indebted not just to the Bible, but Zen Buddhism, the kaballa, and Franz Kafka. Just Dylan's acoustic guitar, harmonica, and occasional piano and two Nashville cats' bass and drums, with some steel guitar dabbed on—but the metaphorical power of "All Along the Watchtower," "Dear Landlord," and "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine" have aged far better than the above competition. Lest the listener get in over his head, he tops the records off with two charming paeans to full-blooded…romance.

Playlist:

1. John Wesley Harding
2. As I Went Out One Morning
3. I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine
4. All Along The Watchtower
5. Ballad Of Frankie Lee And Judas Priest, The
6. Drifter's Escape
7. Dear Landlord
8. I Am A Lonesome Hobo
9. I Pity The Poor Immigrant
10. Wicked Messenger, The
11. Down Along The Cove
12. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight