An album released by legendary musician Bob Dylan gave him “his Americana sound” he still uses today, according to fans.
Listeners took to the r/BobDylan subreddit and shared their thoughts on where Dylan found this style. A fan asked: “What is Bob Dylan’s most pop-sounding album? Easy/pleasant listening, on the shorter side. One thing I love about Bob is that he doesn’t really do much pop stuff. Whatever he’s playing, you know it has a deeper meaning than what it’s letting on (Must Be Santa, for example, just kidding). If you were asked, what would you say?” While fans would suggest the likes of New Morning and Nashville Skyline gave Dylan a lighter sound, others took the chance to sound out the Americana sound which had become prevalent in the 1990s. Some listeners believe the sound appeared most prominently on Time Out of Mind, and that Dylan has continued with that tone ever since.
A fan wrote: “I’m going to change this a bit and answer when and why Bob stopped making poppy albums. I think much of the ’80s material took on a more deliberate poppy sound as a way to generate more commercial success.
“It started to some extent with Infidels (drum machines), then went a little sideways with his follow-up 80s albums. Daniel Lanois had the golden touch and helped get Bob back on track with his production of Oh Mercy (similar soundscapes to what Lanois produced with Peter Gabriel’s So, Neville Brothers’ Yellow Moon, U2’s The Joshua Tree, and Willie Nelson’s Teatro). Maybe these aren’t poppy, but you can’t deny the commercial success.
“My understanding is Bob was ever thrilled with the Oh Mercy sound, but I think he absorbed quite a bit from Lanois. He fiddled with the sound in the early ’90s, then paired up again with Lanois for Time Out of Mind (though this time around, it’s much less a signature Lanois sound and more a collaboration between the two).
“By the time Bob emerged from the mid-80s through the late 90s, he had finally found his Americana sound that has been with him, more or less, through today.” Another fan has suggested Nashville Skyline is the most accessible of Dylan’s albums, because of that pop sound.
The listener wrote: “I’d say Nashville Skyline is his most accessible album, and ‘accessible’ is really what pop music is, so if I had to pick one, I’d go with Nashville Skyline. It’s short, the songs are catchy and easy to listen to, and it has two of his most popular songs: his duet with Johnny Cash on Girl From the North Country, and Lay Lady Lay.”
Another added: “For the time it came out, Empire Burlesque sounds very much like the pop music of the era. That seems to be one of the reasons a lot of people hate it. Not necessarily easy/pleasant themes, and it does clock in at 46:55, so not short. But lots of synths and echo on the drums!
“I also haven’t seen anyone mention Under the Red Sky. Maybe his most breezy album lyrically, especially for the time. He dedicated it to his new daughter, and several songs are based on nursery rhymes. Then there’s Wiggle Wiggle…”
