Album #19: Slow Train Coming

 Released August 20, 1979


It’s easy to see why so many critics were appalled by this album. Without our knowledge of the years to come, some wondered if this was it - would Bob spend his remaining career playing exclusively Christian music, abandoning his earlier work, and proselytizing from the stage? People were kind of blindsided. But anyone who was paying attention then could see that Dylan had always been fascinated by the Bible. And with his extremely difficult divorce he was struggling to find meaning in life. 

I think this album is very good. Dylan’s voice is strong and the musicians are excellent (they include Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits). The backing singers seem to fit in much better with this type of music. The lyrics aren’t as complex as those of my favorite Dylan songs, but you can’t have everything. There’s even a kind-of-children’s song, “Man Gave Names To All The Animals,” which is a lot better than you might expect. 

“Slow Train” is great, but my favorite song didn’t actually make it onto the album. It was the “B” side to the “Gotta Serve Somebody “ single, “Trouble in Mind.”

https://youtu.be/ZUYbeZn_LA8?si=muUcW4faPbqJe14P


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