Dylan going electric vs. Dylan going back to acoustic

A lot is said about Dylan's "electric controversy." In my opinion, we should be focusing on why Dylan stopped going electric. His only truly great albums were Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited, and Blonde on Blonde. But, for some strange reason after his motorcycle accident in 1966, everything changed. His next album John Wesley Harding was a laid-back, country tinged back porch kind of record – one that contained none of the stream-of-consciousness ramblings that permeated his last three albums. I happen to love those ramblings; they’re what set him apart from his other rock and roll peers. John Wesley Harding changed that. He became just another folk singer again; from this time on instead of socio-political statements (which he never acknowledged were socio-political statements) his records were filled with biblical references, short manageable verses, and quiet strums on an acoustic guitar. Dylan took way too much stock in what Robbie Robertson said – “They're not saying anything much and this is killing me, and you're rambling on for an hour and you're losing me; I mean, I think you're losing the spirit.” After he heard Robertson say this, he never made the same earth-shattering, mind blowing records again. His trilogy of albums before John Wesley Harding was the sort of thing that comes along once in a lifetime. These three albums are the most important American artifact we have. These albums infused the magic of Beat poetry, surrealism, Dada-influenced, punk, blues, folk, psychedelic, and amazingly gifted songwriting into a force that Dylan would never claim again. Albums like John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline, and Desire are good in their one ways, but to listen as an artist turns his back on his genius is a hard pill to swallow. After he stopped “going electric” he did what

JXN

On Why Vocal Jazz Sucks

It has been said that jazz is "musical wanking" (from The Commitments). Since I agree that this statement is true, then I must hate vocal jazz. Nobody talks while masturbating. Let alone sings. For all you freaks out there that talk or sing to themselves while having your "alone time" - vocal jazz is for you. But for all of us normal people, stick to the instrumentals. Vocal Jazz Sucks. 

The Maiden Broadcast From The Interzone (The Blog That Can Also Be A Party If You Want To Bad Enough)

This is a blog presented by JXN A. Caldwell, Christian Craig, Matt Rx Curtis, and hopefully some other supporting characters as well. We are here to pollute the blogspot with our incoherent pathologically philosophical musings on music, life, politics, and anything that fits between the lines of infinite reality. This post is brief because my parents just arrived home and I have a feeling they're gonna make me do something "constructive."

Goodbye.

Namaste.

Fitter. Happier. More Productive.