Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2000 21:30:45 EDT"I WAS SO MUCH YOUNGER THEN" (Dandelion 075-078) 4-CD BOX SET of Early Recordings 1958-1965 Tracks: 116 Time: Approx 5 hours Source: Various live/home/reel/b'cast Quality: Varies from excellent to "archival" An archival collection of mostly scarce and elusive early recordings of Dylan, from the 1958 Bucklen tape to the full Feb '65 Les Crane radio show. Approximately 90% of this material is new to silver disk and is presented in the best circulating quality. "Best" in some cases is not optimum....... the nature of some of the home recordings and the technology used to record it was, apparently, crude...... we can only hope that better quality recordings exist of this important material and that it will someday see the light of day. On the other hand, I would not characterize some of the "archival" material unlistenable by any means.... only challenging. A cursory listen will not do......... full attention will be required on some of these recordings. As you can see from track listing, the historical importance of the material cannot be understated. If Dylan were a tree, these would be the roots. From all standpoints - fan, collector, music lover - an essential and enlightening look into Dylan's ground floor roots. Originally circulating as a CDR collection, the folks at Dandelion have remastered and cleaned it up a bit, not to mention the packaging for the set. Housed in color glossy slipcase box, each disk is individually sub-titled with a unique cover and a 12 page booklet for each disk. To wit:
DISK ONE: 39 tracks, 72:15 "Ten Million In A Week" Bucklen Tapes 1958: Friendship in Music/Little Richard/Johnny Cash/A Good Place To Leave/Best Kind of Music/Talent Show>Buzz Buzz/No Concern to Bob/Jenny>Ten Million A Week/Scotty Moore/Blue Moon/Elvis/Bass Player/ Echo/Underground Folk Music/Bob Dillon Minneapolis, Party Tape, Sept. 1960: 1. Red Rosey Bush/Johnny I Hardly Knew You/Jesus Christ/Streets Of Glory/K.C. Moan (1927 Memphis Jug Band)/ Blues Yodel No 8/ I'm A Gambler/Talking Columbia/Talking Merchant Marine/ Talking Hugh Brown/Talking Lobbyist Gerde's Folk City, Sept 29, 1961: SF Bay Blues/The Great Divide Billy James Interview Nov 1961 Cynthia Gooding Tapes, Spring 1962: Ballad Of Donald White/Wichita (Going To Louisiana)/Acne/Rocks And Gravel/Long Time Man (and various chatter)/ Ranger's Command BBC "Madhouse on Castle Street," Dec 30, 1962: Blowin../Swan on the Lake
DISK TWO: 36 tracks, 73:54 "Ten Million For A Tape" St. Paul, MN Karen Wallace Tapes, May 1960: Two Sisters/Rising Sun comment/ Pastures of Plenty/Muleskinner Blues/Payday at Coal Creek/Karen talk/One Eyed Jacks/Go Down You Murderers/This Land.../Sara Jane/Nobody Knows You When You're Down & Out/Geat Historical Bum/Mary Ann/Sinner Man/Abner Young/Muleskinner Blues/One Eyed Jacks/Columbus Stockade Blues/Go Down You Murderers>This Land... (Note: 7-19 samples tape). St. Paul Tape, cont. Karen Wallace, May 1960: Gotta Travel On/Rovin' Gambler/ Fragment/The Two Sisters//Go Way From My Window/Saro Jane/Nobody Knows You When You're Down And Out/The Great Historical Bum/Mary Ann/ Every Night When The Sun Goes Down/Sinner Man/Abner Young/900 Miles/ Blues Yodel No 8 (Muleskinner Blues)/One Eyed Jacks/Columbus Stockade Blues/Payday At Coal Creek/Wallace Sisters interview (edited)
DISK THREE: 28 tracks, 79:21 "Do It The Old Way" First MacKenzie Tape (edited), Nov 23/Dec 4, 1961, Recorded at the home of Eve and Mac MacKenzie: Hard Times In New York Town/Wayfaring Stranger/A Long Time Man Feel Bad> Lonesome Whistle Blues/Worried Blues/Baby Of Mine/Baby Let Me Follow You Down/San Francisco Bay Blues/You're No Good/House Of The Risin' Sun/ Instrumental/This Land Is Your Land/Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms. Second Mackenzie Tape, April 12, 1963: Instrumental/ See That My Grave Is Kept Clean/Ballad Of Donald White/A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall/ Instrumental/ James Alley Blues/I Rode Out One Morning/Instrumental/ Don't Think Twice/ Instrumental/Long Time Gone/Only A Hobo/ House Of The Risin' Sun/ Cocaine (instrumental).
DISK FOUR: 14 tracks, 73:01 "Columbia Discovered" Indian Neck Folk Festival, Branford, CT, May 6, 1961: Talking Columbia/ Slipknot, Hang Not/Talking Fishing Blues. Oscar Brand's Folksong Fest, Oct 29, 1961: Sally Gal/The Girl I Left Behind Oscar Brand World of Folk Music, March 1963: Intro/Girl From the NC/Only a Hobo. Steve Allen Show, Feb 23, 1964: Intro>Interview/Hattie Carroll Les Crane Show, Feb 17, 1965: Intro/Baby Blue/Interview/It's Alright, Ma