Customer Reviews

Gotta Serve Somebody: Gospel Songs Bob Dylan

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As reviewers have rightfully observed, Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan is not merely another Dylan "tribute." Its 55 minutes and 11 songs are on a different plane entirely. And the curious fact of the Minnesota native himself participating should not go unnoticed.

It took some kind of courage to pay homage to this particular period of Bob Dylan's career, a period that still can evoke a scoff or dismissive chuckle from even the most diehard fan. Because this project had humble beginnings and likely had its fair share of painful moments, it must have given executive producer Jeff Gaskill tremendous joy when it was birthed...and an outside world could finally see it and feel it and think it and breathe it.

Although Shirley Caesar kicks off the CD with a pre-song rap which includes these words--"I wanna share Bob Dylan's song with you"--it may well be the case that she's done to "Gotta Serve Somebody" what Jimi Hendrix did to "All Along the Watchtower." Like Hendrix, she wasted no time in making it her own (she recorded the song in 1980); Dylan even said, way back in 1985, that he liked her version better than his. Caesar, in this take, makes heartfelt and emotional declarations that seem anything but weak, alludes to the Hebrew scriptures at the beginning of the song (Joshua) and at the end (Chronicles) while her backup singers--with their occasional "Serve my Jesus!"--serve as an antidote to phony baloney revisionist history, i.e., Dylan really wasn't/isn't singing about Jesus, or if he was/is, that somehow he cannot claim his Jewish heritage.

When Dylan recently sang "I Believe in You" in concert, one observer noted how it still retains the original passion and power of its '79-'80 airings. Dottie People's version on this CD makes a valiant run at the original, with a strong, convincing voice. The Fairfield Four's stab at "Are You Ready?" easily works since the medicine of Dylan's words--words like "heaven or hell," "destruction," "judgment," "swift sword," and "Armageddon"--go down smoother through the conduit of a legendary gospel group (instead of, say, a "spokesman" for the 1960s). Dylan friend Aaron Neville gives "Saving Grace," a song Dylan has recently sung, wonderful treatment. Its line, "Wherever I am welcome is where I will be" may apply not only to Dylan's destiny in eternity, but also to the earthy locations of his gigs in recent years (before U.S. presidents, rabbis, and the Pope, in gambling casinos and at outdoor fairs in the mud...wherever he is welcome).

Regina McCrary's handling of "Pressing On," with the able support of the Chicago Mass Choir, must have sent shivers up the spines of those who heard her open Dylan's concerts back in 1979-1980 (what may have seemed like a chore at the time--an obstacle to Dylan taking the stage--turned out to be a privilege). As has been said, Dylan's performance with Mavis Staples on the final track, "Gonna Change My Way of Thinking," must be experienced. One reviewer has noted its blues orientation (very true), but also said the song is "only vaguely religious." Although we know how Dylan would react to a label like "religious," this is still wonderfully ironic. In this final track, I distinctly hear Dylan growling out lines--that he penned in 2002--that relate to, why, daily prayer ("Every day you got to pray for guidance / Every day you got to give yourself a chance"); a personal relationship with God ("Oh, Lord, you know I have no friend without you"); and the Second Coming ("Jesus is coming / He's coming back to gather His jewels"). You get the feeling that Dylan wasn't just whistling Dixie during those infamous stage raps in 1979-1980. We also get the corny humor at the beginning of this rewritten song too, so it's alright, we can also smile.

"When he was doing the previous album, Slow Train Coming, in Muscle Shoals, he'd had this vision of Jesus, of the hand coming down and these hands reaching up. And he said at the same time he had this vision, he saw the whole album too--all the songs, everything, the whole thing was there. And he said, 'What you've drawn here was exactly what I saw'." These were the words that the late John Bauldie heard from Tony Wright, the artist who Dylan hired to paint the original cover to the Saved album. Now, over two decades later, this personal vision of Dylan's has been interpreted--through Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan--with passion and respect by a formidable group of artists. The results are pleasing to the ear and soul.

Do yourself a favor in this New Year of 2004...spend ten or fifteen dollars and get this collection of songs. It has recently been recognized by the Grammy folks in two categories: nominated for "Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album" and "Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals" (the Dylan/Staples duet). So there you have it, "traditional," "soul," "gospel," and "pop," a few labels one could arguably apply to Dylan without even uttering the ubiquitous "folk" or "rock"; or the "blues" that were instilled into the revamped version of "Gonna Change My Way of Thinking" on this CD. Incidentally, this same song is a surefire home remedy for the blues, insomnia, and/or reading SnoozeWeek (inside chatter for those who've heard it).

Scott Marshall

author of "Bob Dylan's Unshakeable Monotheism" located at http://www.jewsweek.com (2003-2004)

author of Restless Pilgrim: The Spiritual Journey of Bob Dylan (2002, with Marcia Ford)

Bob Dylan's voice and songs are so uniquely his own that it's a rare artist who can cover the man without inviting unflattering comparisons. But on "Gotta Serve Somebody," that's not a problem. The bright lights of gospel music assembled to interpret the songs Dylan wrote for 1979's "Slow Train Coming" and 1980's "Saved" make themselves right at home. This is THEIR turf more than Dylan's, and the performances only prove what many of us knew all along: that Dylan's controversial "born-again" period was among his most fertile. The best songs from Dylan's collaboration with the Lord not only stand comfortably beside the best work in his canon, but also hold their own in the entire gospel genre.

The topper, for me, is "Pressing On," and the Chicago Mass Choir give it the epic performance it deserves, one at least equal to Dylan's own version on "Saved." The Sound of Blackness do right by the same album's "Solid Rock," and Aaron Neville lends his admirable pipes to a lovely rendition of "Saving Grace." One of Dylan's overly preachy and arrogant Christian tracts, "When You Gonna Wake Up" from "Slow Train Coming," gets a dramatic overhaul from Lee Williams and the Spiritual QCs that is one of the album's highlights.

Of course, Dylan also wrote some clinkers during this period. The title track of "Saved" never gave off sparks and it doesn't do it here despite a valiant effort from the Mighty Clouds of Joy. The provocative lyrics and an energetic performance made "Gonna Change My Way of Thinking" a highlight of "Slow Train Coming," but the monotonous song didn't merit a revival and Dylan's noisy duet with Mavis Staples on the new version is saved only by the brief conversation between the two during the intro. It has a delightfully loony quality that one wishes had found its way into Dylan's film "Masked and Anonymous."

The main quibble I have with this disc is what was not included. Where's "Every Grain of Sand," the one unquestioned masterpiece from this period? Its absence doesn't detract from the excellence of what is here, but if any song has earned a place in this lineup, it's that one.

If you buy this cd and ONLY listen to the Chicago Mass Choir absolutely tear into "Pressing On", you will have gotten more than your money's worth. Absolutely stunning version. I had previously bought another "Gospel Tribute To Bob Dylan" cd, and was not moved at all. I cannot say the same about this one. Highly recommended.

Your opinion of "Gotta Serve Somebody" will probably hinge on your opinion of Bob Dylan's foray into gospel music with his albums "Slow Train Coming" and "Saved," from which these songs are taken. For me, it was one of the most exciting periods of his post-60s career, full of the same fire and conviction that fueled his change from folkie to rocker 10+ years earlier. So I had high expectations for this album, wanting to hear what the songs would be like performed by true gospel singers. It was worth the wait! Without getting into any philosophical discussion of the songs, they were great gospel inspired rock & roll, and now they are proven to be great pure gospel as well. The added bonus of Bob rewriting and performing "Gonna Change My Way Of Thinking" with Mavis Staples makes this CD a must have.

Essential-Powerful-Fresh-Soulful-Raw - - - Not a trite tribute but an excellent gospel CD (Even for those who think they don't like gospel).

This is one of the best albums I have heard in a long while. It brings out a dimension of Bob Dylan's "religious" songs that I had been only vaguely aware of.

Kudos to Jeff Gaskill, who spent some years hatching this tribute to Dylan's born again music after being impressed by Dylan's concert presentation of the songs. I remember one of those incendiary shows and I'm happy to know others were as blown away as I was. He convinced a terrific list of gospel singers to record the tribute and even convinced the principal to add some icing to the cake. Happily, a majority of the touring band also has a hand in this tribute. Nice to hear Regina McCrary, who was such a big contributor to Dylan's gospel records and tours. Probably Shirley Caesar and Aaron Neville get my vote for best performances after the first couple listens, but the whole project and package are worthwhile.

A teriffic album of contemporary gospel artists paying tribute to one of Dylan's most underappreciated periods. All of the songs are great and the performances jubilant and inspired but it is Dylan himself who steals the show with a killer hard-rocking duet with Mavis Staples on a re-written version of Gonna Change My Way of Thinking.
A must have for fans of Dylan or great gospel music.

Anyone who listened to Saved, the Dylan album that followed Slow Train Coming, immediately noticed two things: one, that it was perhaps his most full-on rock album, and two, that it was an unmistakeable tribute to Black Gospel and the Gospel Church. While Jan Wenner had written at length in Rolling Stone about Slow Train, Saved didn't garner such champions; it was soon forgotten, having fallen into obscurity and having been critically dismissed. When Columbia finally reissued the CD, the cover of a hand reaching down with other hands reaching up, which distinctively marked it as "Gospel" as much as the title, had been replaced by an impressionistic painting of Dylan which came inside the original edition.

Yet many who heard Saved ranked it among Dylan's best, and found in the album ample evidence that Dylan still had his old songwriting skill. Regardless of what the press might say about what he did or did not believe, there was no denying he had written some great gospel songs. But Gospel is all about delivery--how would great Gospel singers sing these songs? Shirley Caesar handles "Gotta Serve Somebody" in her own inimitable style--sliding between talking, preaching, joking, relating a story as well as moving dynamically across her singing range. Mighty Clouds of Joy tackle "Saved," which a lot of listeners know from Third Day's Offerings album. Aaron Neville, who recently offered his own Gospel album, turns in with "Saving Grace." Because this CD includes well-known artists whose styles are so distinctive, we hear how Dylan's songs stand up simply as songs. "Saved" turns out to be an extraordinarily wonderful song. Beginning with the line, "I was blinded by the devil, born already ruined, stone-cold dead as I stepped out of the womb," you'd think it would be a nihilistic, life-denying rant, but it's not at all. The insistent beat drives the stacatto delivery of the lyrics to the joyful affirmation of the rocked-up gospel piano chorus: "I've been saved." Listening to Dylan's Saved album, brilliant as it seems, it's easy to overlook the merits of the songs themselves because they are so Dylan. Yet only because they are strong and well-crafted songs can these stylists render them so powerfully distinctive, and I smile listening to "Gotta Serve Somebody," --that's so Shirley Caesar.

Now, we know Bob Dylan is a classical gospel songwriter (too). This is not the usual tribute album; the great artists that perform the songs actually love Dylan's music, and everybody can feel it. This record really makes me cry. I love every track, but my favourites are "I believe in you" and "Pressing on" (I think the last one is a masterpiece like "Happy day" or "Amazing grace"!)