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Editorial Reviews
Review
Grade: A
Ten remarkable new songs, tackling topics like the Titanic disaster (the epic title track) and the assassination of John Lennon (the deeply felt ''Roll On John''). Thirty-five albums in, Dylan remains as magical and mysterious as ever.
Rob Brunner --Entertainment Weekly
5 out of 5
Blood, shipwrecks, bad memories....Dylan now stands virtually alone among his 1960s peers. His own final act, meanwhile, rolls on. It s a thing to behold .
Will Hermes --Rolling Stone
5 out of 5
Dylan sets sail on his finest album of this century....[He is] is a most remarkable survivor: still standing, working and confounding.
David Fricke --Mojo
Ten remarkable new songs, tackling topics like the Titanic disaster (the epic title track) and the assassination of John Lennon (the deeply felt ''Roll On John''). Thirty-five albums in, Dylan remains as magical and mysterious as ever.
Rob Brunner --Entertainment Weekly
5 out of 5
Blood, shipwrecks, bad memories....Dylan now stands virtually alone among his 1960s peers. His own final act, meanwhile, rolls on. It s a thing to behold .
Will Hermes --Rolling Stone
5 out of 5
Dylan sets sail on his finest album of this century....[He is] is a most remarkable survivor: still standing, working and confounding.
David Fricke --Mojo
Product Description
Tempest is Bob Dylan's highly-anticipated 35th studio album and coincides with the 50th anniversary of his 1962 eponymous debut album. Produced by Jack Frost and recorded with the members of Dylan's touring band and Los Lobos' David Hidalgo, Tempest has received worldwide critical acclaim and has been firmly anchored at the top of Amazon's Best Sellers in Music chart since it became available for pre-orders in July 2012.
In its five-star review, Rolling Stone calls Tempest, ''musically varied and full of curveballs....Dylan now stand virtually alone among his 1960s peers.''
Entertainment Weekly gives it a ''Grade: A'' and writes, ''Dylan remains as magical and mysterious as ever.'' Associated Press calls it , ''One of the best discs you ll hear by anyone this year.'' Mojo also gives the album five stars, writing, ''Dylan sets sail on his finest album of this century.''
New Yorker says Tempest is ''as spirited and vigorous an album as he's made.'' The Washington Post writes that Dylan ''has delivered his most compelling release in more than a decade.''
Bob Dylan's four previous studio albums have been universally hailed as among the best of his storied career, achieving new levels of commercial success and critical acclaim for the artist. This year, Bob Dylan was also the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honor.
In its five-star review, Rolling Stone calls Tempest, ''musically varied and full of curveballs....Dylan now stand virtually alone among his 1960s peers.''
Entertainment Weekly gives it a ''Grade: A'' and writes, ''Dylan remains as magical and mysterious as ever.'' Associated Press calls it , ''One of the best discs you ll hear by anyone this year.'' Mojo also gives the album five stars, writing, ''Dylan sets sail on his finest album of this century.''
New Yorker says Tempest is ''as spirited and vigorous an album as he's made.'' The Washington Post writes that Dylan ''has delivered his most compelling release in more than a decade.''
Bob Dylan's four previous studio albums have been universally hailed as among the best of his storied career, achieving new levels of commercial success and critical acclaim for the artist. This year, Bob Dylan was also the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country's highest civilian honor.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
161 of 178 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Dylan's roadhouse blues--dark, rowdy, haunting, and among his latter-day best
September 11, 2012
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
There's been no singer-songwriter in the near 60-year history of rock music who's a better storyteller than Bob Dylan. He proved it with his (now legendary) humble folk beginnings, and he continues to prove it today, as evidenced by the very dark, very epic 'Tempest,' an album that can proudly stand next to the best of his post-'Blood on the Tracks' repertoire.
After a somewhat lean 1980's and even leaner early-mid 90's as far as quality output from Dylan, he's now in the midst of a pretty remarkable 15-year renaissance beginning with 1997's near-perfect 'Time Out of Mind.' Every album in that span has been extremely well-received and critically-acclaimed--with only '09's 'Together Through Life' receiving even the mildest of criticisms--and I have a pretty strong feeling this trend will continue with his latest. As someone who's been slightly burnt-out on Dylan over the past few years, I think it's safe to say he won't be coming out of my rotation anytime in the foreseeable future.
Right out of the gate his larynx sounds utterly destroyed on the swingin,' country-jukebox dance-floor number, "Duquesne Whistle," but that doesn't take anything away from the song. In fact, it adds a certain kind of charm, giving Dylan a swagger that's been wholly earned through his 50 years of musical storytelling and lessons. His voice is one that demands to be listened to--now as much as ever. And I dare you to stay still in your seat during this track.
After bringing it down a notch with the tender ballad, "Soon After Midnight," Dylan kicks it back into first with the rowdy Chicago blues stomp of "Narrow Way," and when his weary, gravelly voice spouts "It's a long road, it's a long and narrow way," you believe him wholeheartedly. And later, when he sings "I pay in blood, but not my own" on "Pay in Blood," you almost wish you didn't believe, so convincing are his words. "Scarlet Town" is one of Dylan's most haunting, most beautifully hypnotic songs of his career, and even at seven-plus minutes, it feels too short.
"Early Roman Kings" is another blues number, copping the oft-used and instantly recognizable "Mannish Boy" riff that Muddy Waters made famous six decades ago, and to good effect, but the centerpiece of the album is undoubtedly the 14-minute title track, a 45-verse waltz recounting, in Dylan's inimitable way, the Titanic disaster of 1912. He does justice to the victims of that tragedy, putting his heart and soul into each and every verse, even while slyly dropping "Leo" and "Rose" into the song, obvious references to James Cameron's 1997 blockbuster. The first time I heard it, I thought it ran a bit long, and had to control my urge to skip ahead. The next time I just drifted off and let Dylan bring me into his world, into HIS version of the event, and the result was powerful--even moving.
The album, while mostly filled with revenge and redemption-themed songs, closes on a much prettier note with "Roll On John," a loving tribute to John Lennon. Being the last of three straight epic, somewhat meandering tracks, one would think the listener would grow weary by this point, but that could not be further from the truth. This was another one that had to grow on me--as it initially seemed directionless and weirdly sung--but I soon viewed it to be one of the most beautiful, touching moments of Dylan's entire oeuvre, even quoting Lennon himself with "I heard the news today, oh boy," referring to his 1980 assassination.
It's a fitting, perfect end to what could be argued is his most impressive and consistent effort since 2001's 'Love and Theft,' possibly even since 'Time Out of Mind' from four years prior, though not quite on the level of that, or his 60's and 70's classics, imo. But that would be asking too much. There aren't many artists who've remained as relevant as he has for fifty years and thirty-five albums, while at the same time continually putting out such strikingly original work.
My hope is that he'll continue to do so for another decade, at least. But I count myself--and the world at large--as fortunate to have had him around for any length of time at all.
4.5 out of 5
After a somewhat lean 1980's and even leaner early-mid 90's as far as quality output from Dylan, he's now in the midst of a pretty remarkable 15-year renaissance beginning with 1997's near-perfect 'Time Out of Mind.' Every album in that span has been extremely well-received and critically-acclaimed--with only '09's 'Together Through Life' receiving even the mildest of criticisms--and I have a pretty strong feeling this trend will continue with his latest. As someone who's been slightly burnt-out on Dylan over the past few years, I think it's safe to say he won't be coming out of my rotation anytime in the foreseeable future.
Right out of the gate his larynx sounds utterly destroyed on the swingin,' country-jukebox dance-floor number, "Duquesne Whistle," but that doesn't take anything away from the song. In fact, it adds a certain kind of charm, giving Dylan a swagger that's been wholly earned through his 50 years of musical storytelling and lessons. His voice is one that demands to be listened to--now as much as ever. And I dare you to stay still in your seat during this track.
After bringing it down a notch with the tender ballad, "Soon After Midnight," Dylan kicks it back into first with the rowdy Chicago blues stomp of "Narrow Way," and when his weary, gravelly voice spouts "It's a long road, it's a long and narrow way," you believe him wholeheartedly. And later, when he sings "I pay in blood, but not my own" on "Pay in Blood," you almost wish you didn't believe, so convincing are his words. "Scarlet Town" is one of Dylan's most haunting, most beautifully hypnotic songs of his career, and even at seven-plus minutes, it feels too short.
"Early Roman Kings" is another blues number, copping the oft-used and instantly recognizable "Mannish Boy" riff that Muddy Waters made famous six decades ago, and to good effect, but the centerpiece of the album is undoubtedly the 14-minute title track, a 45-verse waltz recounting, in Dylan's inimitable way, the Titanic disaster of 1912. He does justice to the victims of that tragedy, putting his heart and soul into each and every verse, even while slyly dropping "Leo" and "Rose" into the song, obvious references to James Cameron's 1997 blockbuster. The first time I heard it, I thought it ran a bit long, and had to control my urge to skip ahead. The next time I just drifted off and let Dylan bring me into his world, into HIS version of the event, and the result was powerful--even moving.
The album, while mostly filled with revenge and redemption-themed songs, closes on a much prettier note with "Roll On John," a loving tribute to John Lennon. Being the last of three straight epic, somewhat meandering tracks, one would think the listener would grow weary by this point, but that could not be further from the truth. This was another one that had to grow on me--as it initially seemed directionless and weirdly sung--but I soon viewed it to be one of the most beautiful, touching moments of Dylan's entire oeuvre, even quoting Lennon himself with "I heard the news today, oh boy," referring to his 1980 assassination.
It's a fitting, perfect end to what could be argued is his most impressive and consistent effort since 2001's 'Love and Theft,' possibly even since 'Time Out of Mind' from four years prior, though not quite on the level of that, or his 60's and 70's classics, imo. But that would be asking too much. There aren't many artists who've remained as relevant as he has for fifty years and thirty-five albums, while at the same time continually putting out such strikingly original work.
My hope is that he'll continue to do so for another decade, at least. But I count myself--and the world at large--as fortunate to have had him around for any length of time at all.
4.5 out of 5
39 of 42 people found the following review helpful
By Lost John
Format:Audio CD
It seems possible that Bob Dylan will gain new fans with this album. Roll on John, the last track, is a highly accessible tribute to John Lennon, mixing-in some lines closely associated with John both as a solo artist and as one of the Beatles. The tune too, and Bob's rendering of it on piano are reminiscent of John's style. The track before that, Tempest, about the sinking of the Titanic, also has easy appeal through its theme and a tune that reflects the triumph of "All the lords and ladies heading for the eternal shore". The tune of course also serves to counterpoint the tragedy of those who "drowned upon the staircase of brass and polished gold" and the "dead bodies floating in the double bottomed hull".
Now you've got a taste for it, start the CD from the beginning and enjoy Duquesne Whistle, with its distinctive old-style intro and an absolutely first rate shuffle arrangement that clearly the musicians themselves found a lot of fun. Continue to Soon After Midnight, a gentle ballad with some truly beautiful words, and some that might puzzle at first ("I've been down on the killing floors" and "I'll drag his corpse through the mud"). Explanation (maybe): Bob's in the Deep South; New Orleans, perhaps, or Atlanta? Both these tunes pass the old grey whistle test - i.e. are catchy enough for the old chap on the door to be heard whistling them.
While we're picking out the pretty tunes, let's try the descending scale of Long and Wasted Years. As ever, though, beware of the pretty tune. Behind this one is as bleak a picture of failed marriage as was ever put in song.
There are two twelve bar blues songs on the album, Narrow Way and Early Roman Kings. The key to Early Roman Kings is not Romulus and his 8th to 6th Century BCE successors, but a 1960's New York City gang. The words of Narrow Way remind me of From a Buick 6 on the Highway 61 Revisited album; Bob seems to have hit on another junkyard angel. The words at first seem inconsequential - not a lot more than something to fit the music - but then they coalesce and do after all have meaning.
Scarlet Town again has a very full and interesting instrumental backing, even including an instrumental break, which most of the songs here do not. The words describe a place that certainly isn't heaven, "The streets have names that you can't pronounce. Gold is down to a quarter of an ounce", but it doesn't seem to be Hell either, just another wretched place here on earth. This is the song in which the lyric police have found lines that owe something to the 19th Century 'Fireside' poet John Greenleaf Whittier. I have no argument with that; it adds to the richness of Bob's work and the experience of not only listening to it but following-up the many leads to other music and literature. (In amongst the Lennon quotes in Roll on John, by the way, is some William Blake.)
I have left Pay in Blood and Tin Angel until last. In Pay in Blood, Bob has come to bury, not to praise:-
"How I made it back home, nobody knows
Or how I survived so many blows.
I've been through hell, what good did it do?
You bastard! I'm suppose to respect you?
I'll give you justice, I'll fatten your purse,
Show me your moral virtues first."
Those are mighty tough words, and yet "I pay in blood, but it's not my own" and more than a few other lines are surely Christian New Testament references (with a renewed visit to Bob's earlier theme - in Foot of Pride - of the uncertain or mixed parentage of Jesus). It's deep, very deep.
And so, as a total verbal and musical experience, is Tin Angel. Again Bob is dredging the depths of human experience; this time betrayal in love, confrontation, murder and suicide. When the curtain falls, all on the stage lie dead.
I won't go down the road of comparison with other Bob Dylan albums. All are different, and in my view he never yet made a bad one (Yes, really!). Tempest stands on its own, and it most certainly does stand, not fall. Some may be easier to get in to, but, as I have written, there is much here that will be attractive to those who have not previously been touched by Dylan. There is also an absolute feast for those of us who have already travelled a very long way with him.
Now you've got a taste for it, start the CD from the beginning and enjoy Duquesne Whistle, with its distinctive old-style intro and an absolutely first rate shuffle arrangement that clearly the musicians themselves found a lot of fun. Continue to Soon After Midnight, a gentle ballad with some truly beautiful words, and some that might puzzle at first ("I've been down on the killing floors" and "I'll drag his corpse through the mud"). Explanation (maybe): Bob's in the Deep South; New Orleans, perhaps, or Atlanta? Both these tunes pass the old grey whistle test - i.e. are catchy enough for the old chap on the door to be heard whistling them.
While we're picking out the pretty tunes, let's try the descending scale of Long and Wasted Years. As ever, though, beware of the pretty tune. Behind this one is as bleak a picture of failed marriage as was ever put in song.
There are two twelve bar blues songs on the album, Narrow Way and Early Roman Kings. The key to Early Roman Kings is not Romulus and his 8th to 6th Century BCE successors, but a 1960's New York City gang. The words of Narrow Way remind me of From a Buick 6 on the Highway 61 Revisited album; Bob seems to have hit on another junkyard angel. The words at first seem inconsequential - not a lot more than something to fit the music - but then they coalesce and do after all have meaning.
Scarlet Town again has a very full and interesting instrumental backing, even including an instrumental break, which most of the songs here do not. The words describe a place that certainly isn't heaven, "The streets have names that you can't pronounce. Gold is down to a quarter of an ounce", but it doesn't seem to be Hell either, just another wretched place here on earth. This is the song in which the lyric police have found lines that owe something to the 19th Century 'Fireside' poet John Greenleaf Whittier. I have no argument with that; it adds to the richness of Bob's work and the experience of not only listening to it but following-up the many leads to other music and literature. (In amongst the Lennon quotes in Roll on John, by the way, is some William Blake.)
I have left Pay in Blood and Tin Angel until last. In Pay in Blood, Bob has come to bury, not to praise:-
"How I made it back home, nobody knows
Or how I survived so many blows.
I've been through hell, what good did it do?
You bastard! I'm suppose to respect you?
I'll give you justice, I'll fatten your purse,
Show me your moral virtues first."
Those are mighty tough words, and yet "I pay in blood, but it's not my own" and more than a few other lines are surely Christian New Testament references (with a renewed visit to Bob's earlier theme - in Foot of Pride - of the uncertain or mixed parentage of Jesus). It's deep, very deep.
And so, as a total verbal and musical experience, is Tin Angel. Again Bob is dredging the depths of human experience; this time betrayal in love, confrontation, murder and suicide. When the curtain falls, all on the stage lie dead.
I won't go down the road of comparison with other Bob Dylan albums. All are different, and in my view he never yet made a bad one (Yes, really!). Tempest stands on its own, and it most certainly does stand, not fall. Some may be easier to get in to, but, as I have written, there is much here that will be attractive to those who have not previously been touched by Dylan. There is also an absolute feast for those of us who have already travelled a very long way with him.
124 of 147 people found the following review helpful
By BruBz
Format:Audio CD
Great Music but don't waste your money on the "Limited Edition" All you get for the extra $7.00
is a cheesy booklet.Not even glossy photos.
Buy the basic CD. If you like Dylan you will like it.
is a cheesy booklet.Not even glossy photos.
Buy the basic CD. If you like Dylan you will like it.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointment
I don't find this to be a representative Dylan album. Then again what is a typical album from Mr. Bob. i would rather spend the money on Time out of Mind..
Published 33 minutes ago by R. Holen
4.0 out of 5 stars
Okay for dylan
Okay for Dylan, Different song more mature as should be expected, but if your Dylan fan you should like, if you have never heard of him check it out!
Published 4 days ago by Tomf
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bob Dylan's Tempest
Added this to my son's extensive Dylan album collection. He and I both like the album. Any Dylan fan needs this for their collection.
Published 7 days ago by D. A. White
5.0 out of 5 stars
Always great
My husband is a huge fan. He loves Bob Dylan and his music and he was extremely happy to receive this cd. Keep them coming Bob!
Published 9 days ago by maggiejw
5.0 out of 5 stars
Dylan, Dylan, Dylan
I love it. He is making music for his pure enjoyment. Wonderful Dylan with such a great band of musicians. Read more
Published 9 days ago by paula humphrey
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's Dylan
What can you say? It's Dylan. He's been around forever but still has a lot to say. He's a national treasure.
Published 10 days ago by Susan C. Zelenal
5.0 out of 5 stars
Going Strong.
Bob Dylan did it again with this one. It's a real pleasure listening to Bob's raspy voice crooning out the latest in his immortal repertoire of songs that still delight after all... Read more
Published 14 days ago by Daniel L. Sweet
5.0 out of 5 stars
HE'S STILL GOT IT!
Listen to it almost every day, and am still enjoying it. Attended Dylan's show in April at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA and have to say, he's an old guy but he's still... Read more
Published 14 days ago by CCINPA
4.0 out of 5 stars
There's no one quite like Bob
I was just talking with a friend about how William Shakespeare and Bob are the two greatest literary figures we knew. Read more
Published 22 days ago by Christopher Pike
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tempest
Folk singer, through and through. Great combination of simplicity and complexity. Folk. Time may have made the voice crazy craggily, but the heart and mind shows through.
Published 1 month ago by Joan
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