Bob Dylan (USA) - The Philosophy of Modern Song [Selected Songs] (2022)

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StevieFan13
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Bob Dylan (USA) - The Philosophy of Modern Song [Selected Songs] (2022)

Post by StevieFan13 »

https://parade.com/books/bob-dylan-pop-songs-book

So...what do we think of this one? I haven't read the book yet (although I've heard plenty about it) and it's hard to tell if ol' Bob is both praising the songs and/or discussing them. But in any case, here are (some of) the selected songs, which he named the most influential in the history of pop music:

Incomplete (so far):
“Jesse James” (1928), Harry McClintock
“Whiffenpoof Song” (1947), Bing Crosby
“Come on-a My House” (1951), Rosemary Clooney
“Your Cheatin’ Heart” (1953), Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys
“I Got a Woman” (1954), Ray Charles
“Tutti Frutti” (1955), Little Richard
“Volare (Nel blu, dipinto di blu)” (1958), Domenico Modugno
“Beyond the Sea” (1959), Bobby Darin
“Blue Bayou” (1963), Roy Orbison
“Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” (1964), Nina Simone
“My Generation” (1965), The Who
“Truckin’” (1970), Grateful Dead
“Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves” (1971), Cher
“London Calling” (1979), The Clash
“On the Road Again” (1980), Willie Nelson
Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand - Sir Duke (1976)
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Rob
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Re: Bob Dylan (USA) - The Philosophy of Modern Song [Selected Songs] (2022)

Post by Rob »

I own the book. This is the complete line-up of 66 songs, in order of appearance in the book (which is unranked):

Bobby Bare - Detroit City (1963)
Elvis Costello - Pump It Up (1978)
Perry Como - Without a Song (1951)
Jimmy Wages - Take Me from This Garden of Evil (1956)
Webb Pierce - There Stands the Glass (1953)
Billy Joe Shaver - Willy the Wandering Gyspy and Me (1973)
Little Richard - Tutti Frutti (1955)
Elvis Presley - Money Honey (1956)
The Who - My Generation (1965)
Harry McClinktock - Jesse James (1928)
Ricky Nelson - Poor Little Fool (1958)
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard - Pancho and Lefty (1983)
Jackson Browne - The Pretender (1976)
Bobby Darin - Mack the Knife (1959)
Bing Crosby - Whiffenpoof Song (1947)
Eddy Arnold - You Don't Know Me (1956)
The Temptations - Ball of Confusion (1970)
Johnnie and Jack - Poison Love (1950)
Bobby Darin - Beyond the Sea (1958)
Willie Nelson - On the Road Again (1980)
Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes - If You Don't Know Me By Now (1972)
Johnnie Ray - The Little White Cloud That Cried (1951)
Marty Robbins - El Paso (1959)
Alvin Youngblood Hart - Nelly Was a Lady (2004)
Johnnie Taylor - Cheaper to Keep Her (1973)
Ray Charles - I Got a Woman (1954)
The Fugs - CIA Man (1967)
Vic Damone - On the Street Where You live (1956)
The Grateful Dead - Truckin' (1970)
Osborne Brothers - Ruby, Are You Mad? (1956)
Johnny Payckeck - Old Violin (1986)
Domenico Modugno - Volare (Nel Blu, Dipinto di Blu) (1958)
The Clash - London Calling (1979)
Hank Williams and His Drifting Cowboys - Your Cheatin' Heart (1953)
Roy Orbison - Blue Bayou (1963)
The Allman Brothers - Midnight Rider (1970)
Carl Perkins - Blue Suede Shoes (1956)
The Platters - My Prayer (1956)
Warren Zevon - Dirty Life and Times (2003)
John Trudell - Doesn't Hurt Anymore (2001)
Little Walter - Key to the Highway (1958)
Mose Allison - Everybody Cryin' Mercy (1968)
Edwin Starr - War (1970)
Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two - Big River (1957)
Sonny Burgess - Feel So Good (1957/1958 - unreleased)
Dean Martin - Blue Moon (1964)
Cher - Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves (1971)
Uncle Dave Macon - Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy (1924)
Tommy Edwards - It's All in the Game (1958)
Ernie K-Doe - A Certain Girl (1961)
Waylon Jenning - I've Always Been Crazy (1978)
Eagles - Witchy Woman (1972)
Jimmy Reed - Big Boss Man (1960)
Little Richard - Long Tall Sally (1956)
Charlie poole - Old and Only in the Way (1928)
Santana - Black Magic Woman (1970)
Jimmy Webb - By the Time I Get to Phoenix (1996)
Rosemary Clooney - Come On-A My house (1951)
Johnny Cash - Don't Take Your Guns to Town (1958)
Judy Garland - Come Rain or Come Shine (1956)
Nina Simone - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood (1964)
Frank Sinatra - Strangers in the Night (1966)
Elvis Presley - Viva Las Vegas (1964)
The Drifters - Saturday Night at the Movies (1964)
Pete Seeger - Waist Deep in the Big Muddy (1967)
Dion - Where or When (1959)

Unsurprisingly, someone already made a playlist:



It's certainly a unique list. There are the odd standards like Tutti Frutti, My Generation or London Calling, but most of these are lesser-known. Quite a lot of them aren't on Acclaimed Music at all, including several of the artists. From the sixties onward all the songs have an old-timey feel, meaning even old-timey for those decades. This should be no surprise to anyone who ever heard Dylan's radio show.

As fun as this list is and even though it would definitely add something to AM, I sadly don't think it should be included. It is not a best-of list. I guess Dylan likes and perhaps loves the songs, but that isn't really the point of the book. Dylan uses each song as a sort of springboard to wax philosophical about themes found in each of them. In some entries he barely mentions the song at all and he only rarely passes any form of judgement on them. Why specifically only these songs are there only Dylan himself knows. It's a very odd book to read, though a lot of fun too. Plus it introduced me to the Jimmy Wages' Take Me from This Garden of Evil, which sure is an overlooked gem.
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Re: Bob Dylan (USA) - The Philosophy of Modern Song [Selected Songs] (2022)

Post by StevieFan13 »

Thank you so much Rob! And yeah, I kinda figured that was the intent behind the book. That’s why I wasn’t sure about it to begin with. But I still want to read it!
Music is a world within itself, with a language we all understand - Sir Duke (1976)
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Rob
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Re: Bob Dylan (USA) - The Philosophy of Modern Song [Selected Songs] (2022)

Post by Rob »

StevieFan13 wrote: Thu Dec 29, 2022 12:30 pm But I still want to read it!
Based on the first 15 chapters/ entries, I recommend it! It's a very strange book at first, especially if you simply expect a book about music, but once I got what Dylan was going for I started to enjoy it a lot.
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