That Bob Dylan -- is there anything he can't do? After distinguishing himself as a songwriter, recording artist, concert attraction, author, filmmaker, and actor, Dylan added "disc jockey" to his résumé in 2006 when he began hosting Theme Time Radio Hour on XM Satellite Radio. Dylan's show quickly gained a passionate following, as much for Dylan's witty and insightful commentary about music as for the rich variety of tunes he unearthed for his broadcasts, dating from the '30s to the present day and representing a ...
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That Bob Dylan -- is there anything he can't do? After distinguishing himself as a songwriter, recording artist, concert attraction, author, filmmaker, and actor, Dylan added "disc jockey" to his résumé in 2006 when he began hosting Theme Time Radio Hour on XM Satellite Radio. Dylan's show quickly gained a passionate following, as much for Dylan's witty and insightful commentary about music as for the rich variety of tunes he unearthed for his broadcasts, dating from the '30s to the present day and representing a startling array of styles and genres. Given that Dylan is one of the most bootlegged performers of the rock era, it was all but inevitable that pirate discs of Dylan's radio shows would start circulating, but Dylan, his radio producer Eddie Gorodetsky, and the folks at Ace Records have offered fans an authorized alternative with this two-disc set containing 50 songs that have appeared on Theme Time Radio Hour . Unfortunately, Dylan himself is largely absent from this album; his introductions and between-song patter don't make the cut, and his astute commentary hasn't been included in the accompanying 48-page booklet, though each song does merit a well-written paragraph focusing on the tune, its artist, and its background. Also, while each episode of Dylan's radio show focuses on a different topic -- "Luck," "Drink," "Flowers," "Jail," "Mother," and the like -- this set doesn't attempt to follow such a thematic continuity, instead pulling random songs from various broadcasts, though at least listeners are informed which episode featured what song. Still, this set leaves no doubt that Bob Dylan knows a great song when he hears one, and there are 50 thoroughly enjoyable and often rare recordings collected on the Theme Time Radio Hour album. Dylan's knowledge and appreciation of popular music is deep, and there are wonderfully idiosyncratic examples of jazz (Charles Mingus' "Eat That Chicken"), rhythm & blues ("Buddy, Stay Off the Wine" by Betty Hall Jones), country (Eddie Noack's "Take It Away Lucky"), soul (an amazing alternate take of Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools"), pop ("Black Coffee" performed by Bobby Darin), reggae ("Gun Fever" by the Valentines), rock ("Bottle and a Bible" by the Yayhoos), and a few destinations that defy convenient categorization ("Beatnik's Wish" by Patsy Raye & the Beatniks). This only scratches the surface of what's to be found in this set, just as Theme Time Radio Hour only offers a relatively brief overview of what Dylan has uncovered for his radio audience, but what's here is all fine and fascinating stuff, and with any luck this will be the first of several albums devoted to the cream of Bob Dylan's record collection and the riches to be found within. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
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