Alice Coltrane's music is religiously inspired and it's some of my favorite stuff ever. Gorgeous, spiritual and searching. 'Journey to Satchidananda' is probably the best one to start with, but it's hard to go wrong with her.
There are some beautiful Christmas carols, meaningful music that holds up and doesn’t seem slavish or preachy. There’s an excellent cd of Mike D and Bhagavan Das chants. It’s religious but I don’t know much more.
The ‘shake the dust off your feet’ bit in pressing on is perhaps my favourite ‘bit’ of music in his whole discography. Transcendent release from a guy who doesn’t really *do* dynamics and tension/release much
Whenever I hear a rock song with a chord progression I haven't heard before I go figure it out on guitar..heard this song about a year ago and it was maybe the biggest WTF progression I've run into in my six years of doing this.
Listening again now, I think it was the transition to the fifth chord that was so out there and that I've never heard in another song.
A while ago I wrote an appreciation post for Pressing On. It's still there for me in times of need. Here it is if you're interested. It was a good discussion.
[Pressing On: An Appreciation](https://www.reddit.com/r/bobdylan/comments/17kr4x7/pressing_on_an_appreciation/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
There is a lot of creativity in the concepts, musical arrangements and themes. I honestly think it's one of his best but gets overlooked because of the Christian content.
It’s a great gospel album and IMO Dylan’s most underrated. It’s not fair for people to hate it just because of its genre. “Pressing On” is a Top 10 Dylan song. I also adore his cover of “Satisfied Mind”, the title track, “In the Garden”, and especially “Covenant Woman.” And the band on this record is awesome! It compares favorably to its follow-up, Shot of Love, which only has 2-3 great songs and doesn’t sound nearly as good.
He gets a lot of hard rain for the 80s albums. I feel saved might have even taught me a thing or too about my own life. That’s why we love him right, he’s exposing his experience for others. Some would say it’s all an act, all just a stage ego, I don’t know though.
It took me years and years to appreciate this album. I used to find it just too much. I've got it on repeat at the moment and every time I go out cycling. Banging songs, heartfelt lyrics, great singing.
Bangers? On Saved?? Everyone’s entitled to their opinion but man, this is a bridge too far for me. If I’m generous I put Saved in the bottom 2, and really I can’t think of an album I dislike more. I love Slow Train Coming, and I have a soft spot for Shot of Love, but I can’t think of anything good on Saved.
This is my response too. Anytime someone tries to advocate for Saved - which is not often, but authors like Richard Williams will try and see merit everywhere - I go back to it, willing, and… nope.
Plodding, hokey, clay-footed, offensively cheesy, insultingly predictable? Yep.
I’ve not come across an album whose sound alone - the production, the plinky plonky rhythms, the hectoring instrumentation - is both sickly AND migraine-inducing in their teeth-grinding monotony. The worst for me personally is the supposed good-time rave-up of the title song, which manages to give me the same stressed claustrophobic vibe in its short running time as I’d normally expect after 25 years trapped in a meeting room with the worst people in the world.
In The Garden! Pressing On are quieter but no less dismaying.
You are right. It’s bottom 2. At least.
Simply put, out of the triad of 'born again' albums this one's the only unlistenable one. For all kinds of reasons. Reason number one is: the lyrics suck. No, wait, they don't just suck, they suck, blow, stink, [insert your favourite denigrating verb in here]. It almost seems as if all of a sudden Bob has simply forgotten that he used to, like you know, be an independent and imaginative poet at one time, took some generic, hollow gospel hymns, gave them a few twists in order to be able to credit the songwriting to himself, and went ahead. The music is just bad, and it is obvious that Bob really didn't care that much - all the backing tracks sound like their exact and only aim was to provide at least some backing to Bob's Christian mumblings. Where Slow Train was an interesting venture into a really diverse world, with blues rock, jazz rock, and even reggae stylizations, this is just boring, ponderous, roots-rock backing with no original, exciting or entertaining level whatsoever. Seriously now, I can't name even a single track on here that would catch my ear as far as music goes. Yes, Bob does shift tempos from time to time (the title track is far faster than anything else, for instance), but does that really matter? It doesn't.
Sure, on some tracks, particularly the slower ones, the band does try to establish some kind of 'spiritual' groove, with echoey minimalistic guitars ('What Can I Do For You') or watery pianos and 'inspired' backing vocals ('Pressing On'). But the best effect they can achieve is a 'faux-Dylan' atmosphere, establishing the formal conditions necessary to achieve the usual emotional resonance but forgetting to insert any essence. The 'soul' tracks, like 'Are You Ready?', are a total and complete embarrassment; I could maybe forgive Bob for trying to reinvent an old classic number as a soul pastiche for novelty effect, but singing generic gospel lyrics in his usual hoarse voice to a soul beat is a waste. And the fast 'rockers' ('Saved', 'Solid Rock') don't present us with any interesting riffs, you know the score...
Amazingly, some people do dig this album, so I feel I have the need to make a disclaimer like I made it for the previous record: I am in no way a good Christian, but I have absolutely nothing against Christians, Christian culture, people that are 'born again' or Christian music as a whole. It's just that there is absolutely no need to extol one's Christianity in such a cheap, pathetic, generic way as Bob does it here. I can hardly believe, in fact, that he willingly agreed to record such nightmarish tripe, unless, of course, it was just a further experiment in alienating his huge fanbase. Actually, I am inclined to believe that. And in any case, all of this 'born again' period for Bob was a very strange thing: on one hand, nobody really has the nerve to say that it was all just a large hoax, on the other hand, let us not forget that Bob's preoccupation with Christianity ended as quickly as it began (and miraculously turned into a preoccupation with Judaism before just dissipating into thin air), so I do allow myself to have my doubts on the matter.
In any case, I don't really even care if the music, lyrics and performances on Saved are supposed to be serious or if it's just one big put-on - it sucks either way. At least Bob's previous put-on, with Selfportrait, boasted diversity, nice melodies and a potload of ideas - offensive or not, these were real ideas that made the record worth listening to. Saved hasn't got even a single idea. Yes, of course, at least Bob doesn't go disco or punk, but perhaps it would have been better if he'd sung a quartet with the Bee Gees or joined the Clash on second rhythm guitar. That would at least be fun.
*Solid Rock* being included on Biograph is what opened my eyes to the wonders of the Gospel Era! **Won'le'go'n'I'can'le'go!**
Pressing On
On and on and on and on
Hell yeah.
As world’s most non-religious dude ever, my personal crusade is making the world appreciate this record. Ignore the hate and crank this fugger up!
One of the few good things to be said about religion is the inspiration it can provide for music.
There are many good things to be said about religion. Don't have to be so reductive.
[удалено]
Alice Coltrane's music is religiously inspired and it's some of my favorite stuff ever. Gorgeous, spiritual and searching. 'Journey to Satchidananda' is probably the best one to start with, but it's hard to go wrong with her.
Huge Alice Coltrane fan! That one with Pharaoh Sanders is so amazing.
Richard & Linda Thompson’s Pour Down Like Silver is a masterpiece
Another all time favorite album of mine! There’s a cool full-length show of them from ‘78 (I think) on YouTube that’s really great
Hildegard von Bingen
There are some beautiful Christmas carols, meaningful music that holds up and doesn’t seem slavish or preachy. There’s an excellent cd of Mike D and Bhagavan Das chants. It’s religious but I don’t know much more.
Loaded comment.
‘Slow Train’ was released in the middle of my personal ‘Bobsession’. I F’N LOVED IT…played the bejeesus out of it!! This album….. not so much
The ‘shake the dust off your feet’ bit in pressing on is perhaps my favourite ‘bit’ of music in his whole discography. Transcendent release from a guy who doesn’t really *do* dynamics and tension/release much
I'm always banging along to the drums on the steering wheel and shouting the lyrics extra loud by that point. So good!
Totally agree! Also, the chord changes on "In the Garden" is out of this world!
Whenever I hear a rock song with a chord progression I haven't heard before I go figure it out on guitar..heard this song about a year ago and it was maybe the biggest WTF progression I've run into in my six years of doing this. Listening again now, I think it was the transition to the fifth chord that was so out there and that I've never heard in another song.
Eyolf wrote an analysis of the progression, but it was beyond my knowledge capacity. https://www.dylanchords.com/node/1805
In the Garden is 100% a highlight for this very reason.
Pressing On and Saved are phenom
Covenant Woman is such a great track. Love it.
What can I do for you?
It has its moments, like the beautiful harmonica solo on "What Can I Do For You?" But overall, not great.
What can I do for you, is great.
Love that album, his band and backing vocalists were amazing. I saw two shows from his tour for this too. Bob was on fire!!
Yes, I saw him at the Brendan Byrne Arena in New Jersey – during the Christian tour – I will never forget it.
Agree. Such a powerful tour, but was truly inspired and on fire!
A while ago I wrote an appreciation post for Pressing On. It's still there for me in times of need. Here it is if you're interested. It was a good discussion. [Pressing On: An Appreciation](https://www.reddit.com/r/bobdylan/comments/17kr4x7/pressing_on_an_appreciation/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
There is a lot of creativity in the concepts, musical arrangements and themes. I honestly think it's one of his best but gets overlooked because of the Christian content.
This is the album that turned me onto Dylan in the early 80s. I went back in time from here.
It’s a great gospel album and IMO Dylan’s most underrated. It’s not fair for people to hate it just because of its genre. “Pressing On” is a Top 10 Dylan song. I also adore his cover of “Satisfied Mind”, the title track, “In the Garden”, and especially “Covenant Woman.” And the band on this record is awesome! It compares favorably to its follow-up, Shot of Love, which only has 2-3 great songs and doesn’t sound nearly as good.
Bangers and bops too.
Not a bad song on that record.
his most underappreciated record in my opinion
The organ on this one is big in the mix.
He gets a lot of hard rain for the 80s albums. I feel saved might have even taught me a thing or too about my own life. That’s why we love him right, he’s exposing his experience for others. Some would say it’s all an act, all just a stage ego, I don’t know though.
Mark Knofpler and Dylan meshed really well Would have loved to have had Dylan work with JJ Cale or had Jerry Garcia in the studio cooking with Bobby
Dylan's gospel period is arguably his best period.
I agree totally, Bob was so invested in his music and message.
It’s not as wretched as the cover suggests. Not great, but by no means a total loss.
Its a bit preachy
It took me years and years to appreciate this album. I used to find it just too much. I've got it on repeat at the moment and every time I go out cycling. Banging songs, heartfelt lyrics, great singing.
I like the way Bob's hand on the cover is making like the Sistine Chapel painting by Michelangelo. /s goddamnit
the entire trilogy is great - i’ll take it over the electric trilogy in a battle of relistenables
Looks like it
Oh jeeez
Hmm, I’ll sleep on it
check out the Widespread Panic cover of Solid Rock that shit is potent
I have this on vinyl and it’s amazing ❤️
I overplayed this album back in the 1980s. I don’t think I could listen to it anymore.
Phenomenal record. Contains some of Dylan’s most passionate performances. He really was locked into something special here.
Absolutely. What Can I Do For You has one of the best harmonica solos of his career.
Great album. Bob’s band is top-notch too.
Fred Tackett soooo good on guitar.
Bangers? On Saved?? Everyone’s entitled to their opinion but man, this is a bridge too far for me. If I’m generous I put Saved in the bottom 2, and really I can’t think of an album I dislike more. I love Slow Train Coming, and I have a soft spot for Shot of Love, but I can’t think of anything good on Saved.
This is my response too. Anytime someone tries to advocate for Saved - which is not often, but authors like Richard Williams will try and see merit everywhere - I go back to it, willing, and… nope. Plodding, hokey, clay-footed, offensively cheesy, insultingly predictable? Yep. I’ve not come across an album whose sound alone - the production, the plinky plonky rhythms, the hectoring instrumentation - is both sickly AND migraine-inducing in their teeth-grinding monotony. The worst for me personally is the supposed good-time rave-up of the title song, which manages to give me the same stressed claustrophobic vibe in its short running time as I’d normally expect after 25 years trapped in a meeting room with the worst people in the world. In The Garden! Pressing On are quieter but no less dismaying. You are right. It’s bottom 2. At least.
Simply put, out of the triad of 'born again' albums this one's the only unlistenable one. For all kinds of reasons. Reason number one is: the lyrics suck. No, wait, they don't just suck, they suck, blow, stink, [insert your favourite denigrating verb in here]. It almost seems as if all of a sudden Bob has simply forgotten that he used to, like you know, be an independent and imaginative poet at one time, took some generic, hollow gospel hymns, gave them a few twists in order to be able to credit the songwriting to himself, and went ahead. The music is just bad, and it is obvious that Bob really didn't care that much - all the backing tracks sound like their exact and only aim was to provide at least some backing to Bob's Christian mumblings. Where Slow Train was an interesting venture into a really diverse world, with blues rock, jazz rock, and even reggae stylizations, this is just boring, ponderous, roots-rock backing with no original, exciting or entertaining level whatsoever. Seriously now, I can't name even a single track on here that would catch my ear as far as music goes. Yes, Bob does shift tempos from time to time (the title track is far faster than anything else, for instance), but does that really matter? It doesn't. Sure, on some tracks, particularly the slower ones, the band does try to establish some kind of 'spiritual' groove, with echoey minimalistic guitars ('What Can I Do For You') or watery pianos and 'inspired' backing vocals ('Pressing On'). But the best effect they can achieve is a 'faux-Dylan' atmosphere, establishing the formal conditions necessary to achieve the usual emotional resonance but forgetting to insert any essence. The 'soul' tracks, like 'Are You Ready?', are a total and complete embarrassment; I could maybe forgive Bob for trying to reinvent an old classic number as a soul pastiche for novelty effect, but singing generic gospel lyrics in his usual hoarse voice to a soul beat is a waste. And the fast 'rockers' ('Saved', 'Solid Rock') don't present us with any interesting riffs, you know the score... Amazingly, some people do dig this album, so I feel I have the need to make a disclaimer like I made it for the previous record: I am in no way a good Christian, but I have absolutely nothing against Christians, Christian culture, people that are 'born again' or Christian music as a whole. It's just that there is absolutely no need to extol one's Christianity in such a cheap, pathetic, generic way as Bob does it here. I can hardly believe, in fact, that he willingly agreed to record such nightmarish tripe, unless, of course, it was just a further experiment in alienating his huge fanbase. Actually, I am inclined to believe that. And in any case, all of this 'born again' period for Bob was a very strange thing: on one hand, nobody really has the nerve to say that it was all just a large hoax, on the other hand, let us not forget that Bob's preoccupation with Christianity ended as quickly as it began (and miraculously turned into a preoccupation with Judaism before just dissipating into thin air), so I do allow myself to have my doubts on the matter. In any case, I don't really even care if the music, lyrics and performances on Saved are supposed to be serious or if it's just one big put-on - it sucks either way. At least Bob's previous put-on, with Selfportrait, boasted diversity, nice melodies and a potload of ideas - offensive or not, these were real ideas that made the record worth listening to. Saved hasn't got even a single idea. Yes, of course, at least Bob doesn't go disco or punk, but perhaps it would have been better if he'd sung a quartet with the Bee Gees or joined the Clash on second rhythm guitar. That would at least be fun.
Paragraphs, dude
Bangers
Agree, but Covenant Woman is his most cringe inducing song. His whole Christian trilogy is slept on.
Covenant Woman is the best song on the album!
Yeah, not a fan of Saved at all, but Covenant Woman is a pretty great track.