RIP Bob Johnston

only thing that turns me off is that you had to suck his dick in order to get a good production. at least if you were a woman.
 
I had a feeling that somebody would come up with something like that... AGAIN! I guess I should never call somebody a cool guy again, unless I know him personally...:%: So, anyway, who were the ladies in question (and is dick-sucking meant literally or metaphorically)?
 
not metaphorically, the real deal.

you gotta give the man credit for pretty much making blonde on blonde possible by getting dylan to nashville and hooking him up with the session players. and also for the fab "highway 61". but then, he had to be kept away from ruining "john wesley harding" by overdubbing shit instruments. and then "self portrait"... as a producer, he did everything wrong that was possible.

here's some info on his career as a sexual predator:
http://njnnetwork.com/2014/12/carly-simon-bob-dylans-manager-and-producer-were-sexual-predators/
 
I read the article. Well, yeah, but is it really necessary to know stuff like that? The record and film industry are packed with stories like that. The Sixties were totally chauvinist. And the Seventies weren't much better. But I don't really need to know every filthy story behind the products of the time.

I don't know the exact story behind "John Wesley Harding", but production-wise it's a very dull affair. A little more production would have served it very well. You might call it stripped-down, or minimalist, but in fact it's really under-produced. Good songs, but a clueless production. A touch of "Highway 61" would have made it a much better album.
As for "Selfportrait"- as far as I know, Dylan tried all he could to destroy his messiah-like status with that album. I don't remember the exact words, but he described it as something like "throwing all shit against the wall, and see what happens". The whole album is a joke. Can "Wigwam" as a single be anything else than a joke? I even think it's quite funny. It's really not about Bob Johnston doing a bad production. On the contrary, the album contains some of the best recordings Dylan ever did: "Little Sadie" and "Days Of 49", which I prefer to anything on "John Wesley Harding".

The genius of Bob Johnston, and I do think he had genius, is to let things sound as if they were free and flying. His productions, in many cases, are extremely vibrant. Very atmospheric with the best and full sound possible, without destroying the vitality of the playing.
The reason why I think he was a cool guy, is because there are some funny scenes in a documentary about a European tour of Leonard Cohen, "Bird On A Wire". Bob Johnston played keyboard on the tour and behind the stage he is constantly trying to smooth out Leonard Cohen's emotional breakdowns. Compared to Cohen he comes across as a very laid-back and humorous character.
 
you don't have to defend the guy, the blow job thing was only a silly remark.:icon_lol:

we both have the same vision for john wesley harding. i find it underproduced too. but the songs would never have survived the nashville treatment. as for blonde on blonde, it was a perfect solution. i would love to have more musical depth with the john wesley songs, but i wouldn't know how it could be achieved. and then, the sparse-ness really kinda develops its own life.

self portrait: generally, many overdubs here make the whole thing even worse. most songs have a syrup-y quality that is interesting, but i still think the production is dead wrong. if you check out the bootleg series release, there are songs from those sessions that are terrific. none of them has strings or oboe or other shit instruments stacked on them. the two songs you mentioned sound better without the overdubs, i believe.

we will never know, but i think seeing self portrait as a joke that dylan played on us is revisionism. the record is everything he was able to deliver at this point, in all its directionless and weak glory. the man had no inspiration to write. and when he did, all that comes out is a bored song. little sadie, living the blues, belle isle, alberta,... these are hack jobs. and giving them the syrup treatment did no good.

johnston is to blame because he was responsible for the overdubs (6 sessions/full days!). the damage he was about to do can be seen if you compare if not for you, new morning and sign on the window, released versions versus the johnston overdubs.

(sorry for turning g45 into a dylan board)
 
captainsalty said:
we will never know, but i think seeing self portrait as a joke that dylan played on us is revisionism. the record is everything he was able to deliver at this point, in all its directionless and weak glory. the man had no inspiration to write.
Click to expand...
This is not true as you can hear on the bootleg series release. Also there is loads of great material on the Basement Tapes which he could have just recorded as a proper album. And with the right production it might probably have been the best Dylan album of all time. Imagine "This Wheel's On Fire" with a sound like "Ballad Of A Thin Man". He was not worn out, he was just tired of fame, or rather of his status as the spokesman for the whole generation (that's what he says at least; and I can't see why he should be lying about it). And even that couldn't stop him from constantly writing and playing. Sorry, but I'm just so totally in awe of that man's creativity.
 
captainsalty said:
strings or oboe or other shit instruments
Click to expand...
Oboe is one of my favourite instruments in pop music! :lol: But I don't remember ever hearing one on a Bob Dylan record. Oboes are not often used. Maybe that's why I'm always pleased when I hear one. Usually they add a wonderful feeling of yearning and melancholy to the music. Sorry for this highly un-garagey remark.
Generally speaking: there are no shit instruments. It's only your ears or your taste. I remember that I hated gospelly backing vocals when I was young. Now I love it when it makes sense in the production (like "River Song" by Dennis Wilson, which is an extreme example, but great).
 
ok, i checked, he really never used an oboe:nope: (self portrait among others does feature horns, trombone, cello, strings, clarinet, sax)

and of course i don't want to put down these instruments. my only point being dylan's late 1960s/early 1970s music is so much better without them. new morning says it all.

last few cents on s.p.: my 25 years of digging bob dylan have shown me one thing: if you want to know how things have NOT been, check out bob's version of things. he still lives in that parallel universe where "shot of love" is his best record and self portrait was intentionally made bad to piss off fans and critics.

re: charlie mccoy: if i remember well, there was even a quite big feature on him in one of those teen rags of 1966. that 45rpm is pretty cool!
 
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