By James Calemine
Bob Dylan produced Together Through Life, his 33rd studio album. Dylan employs Tony Garnier on bass, George Recile on drums, and multi-instrumentalist Donnie Herron as his band. Tom Petty’s guitarist Mike Campbell and Los Lobos’ David Hidalgo contribute accordion and guitar on these sessions.
Dylan wrote all of these songs except one with Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter. The album cover of Together Through Life is the exact same cover of Larry Brown’s (one of Dylan’s favorite writers) Big Bad Love.
It’s a laid back collection. There’s a Chess Blues sound running through these songs. Hidalgo’s accordion gives certain numbers a Tex-Mex flavor. The opening track on this 45-minute album, “Beyond Here Lies Nothing” classifies as swinging blues exploring Zydeco and jazzy terrain. This tune emits a heavy-lidded groove.
“Life Is Hard” sounds like a soundtrack at an outdoor cantina in the middle of the afternoon. Dylan sings in his gravel-voice: “I’m always on my guard/Admitting life is hard,” a tune reflecting on lost love. “My Wife’s Hometown” serves up a hybrid mix of Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf and Willie Dixon where Dylan sings: “She’s got stuff more potent than a gypsy’s curse”.
“If You Ever Go To Houston” stands as a simple tune evoking Dylan’s romantic Nashville Skyline. “Jolene” contains a T-Bone Walker feel. You have to give it to Dylan’s band—they can morph into any genre or style at the drop of a high-hat.
“This Dream of You” sounds like a Cajun waltz played at some backwater fish fry where lovers gather to smell the swamp lilies. “Shake Shake Mama” returns to the old blues groove and would sound best in some juke joint where beer is sold out of a cooler. Dylan ruminates on changes looming in “I Feel A Change Coming On” where he sings “I’m listening to Billy Joe Shaver/I’m reading James Joyce/Some people they tell me/I’ve got the blood of the land in my voice.”
The final cut, another blues ditty, “It’s All Good”, retains a damn the torpedoes sentiment where one must forge on, not sweating the small stuff and never looking back. The album also comes with a CD containing 14 songs from Dylan’s Theme Time Radio. Together Through Life advances Dylan’s ongoing musical journey. It’s worth the trip…
RELATED CONTENT
Bob Dylan’s Buried Film Renaldo & Clara