Cut Triplicate into its equal sections and what you have are three differing interpretations of the great American Songbook from the great American Artist. Bob Dylan tries is hand at cover songs once more – no surprise to those aware of his previous studio offerings around this time. They are welcome reworkings of classic tracks which can trace their way back to the greats. Dylan can stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Frank Sinatra when it comes to the quality and range of his covers, easily. Their jazz and swing time differences come to life through Comin’ Home Late, the third and final piece of the simpler Triplicate puzzle. Crack it down into three half-hour pieces. This is the way Triplicate was meant to be experienced.
Dylan may be hammered by devoted fans for not opening himself through his own words, but these cover collections are as clear as it gets for the great songwriter. He is as open here as ever before. Just listen in to the likes of I Couldn’t Sleep a Wink Last Night and Sentimental Journey. Swift and shimmering covers are given an extra leg up by their placement on this record. Comin’ Home Late develops the chance for Dylan to break down his highs and lows through the voices of those who guided him through the stormy weather and calmer seas. Face value provides a further collection of Dylan covers produced under his Jack Frost moniker, though scratch the surface and the details of haunting recollections. One listen of When the World Was Young is enough to see the relief and reflection of those days in good company, drinking away the light and listening, attentively, to the stories of old.
With an inviting double bass and smooth guitar work from longstanding collaborator Charlie Sexton, Comin’ Home Late is given the chance to expand and answer all the big questions. Sinatra and Billie Holiday covers be damned – they are not the master himself worried for the future once he has shuffled off the mortal coil. Flickers of fun come through on These Foolish Things, a chance to hear Dylan remind us all not to take it all too seriously. Whatever all is must be decided by the listener. This is not the place to romanticise this theme from the works of Dylan or that approach made in the studio – Comin’ Home Late has tenderness oozing from it and it is because of these pencilled-in details of pianos decorating the home of a neighbour, fairgrounds and the tinges of strong and assured iconography.
Let it go to your head – have an honest half-hour of reflection here. Dylan allows for it on this laid-back approach to mixing through the American Songbook. It is more an exercise in learning studio stylings and getting a firmer grip on how he hopes for original material to sound in the future more than anything. But those experiments of Dylan’s are his best bits at times – and while Triplicate never bounces through the finest works of either the classics or the class act championing them, the exceptionally listenable period of works here is a real treat for the ears. Perhaps too tough to tackle in its full form, but the likes of Stardust and album closer Why Was I Born strike through as touching, meditative and earnest attempts at honing a craft which has far exceeded its expectations over the decades.
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