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MUSIC<br />
VPI Classic Direct<br />
THE ULTIMATE AMERICAN-MADE<br />
REFERENCE TURNTABLE<br />
Ra<strong>the</strong>r, <strong>the</strong> collection pertains to<br />
<strong>the</strong> bigger picture—illuminating not<br />
just Dylan’s fervid originality, tireless<br />
spirit, and faculty to get each song<br />
right in scant few takes, but also<br />
those same characteristics of <strong>the</strong><br />
musicians that helped fashion <strong>the</strong><br />
foundations and feel of tunes that<br />
continue to inspire, engage, and<br />
energize. Chief among <strong>the</strong>se players<br />
are <strong>the</strong> Nashville virtuosos that,<br />
in teaming with <strong>the</strong> singer, changed<br />
history on multiple levels. Their<br />
capacity to shade, complement,<br />
adapt, and play any type of music—<br />
blues, pop, country, R&B, boogie,<br />
carnival included—in practically any<br />
mood and setting arguably towers<br />
over any similar feat, even those<br />
achieved by <strong>the</strong> Wrecking Crew.<br />
Few albums, and far fewer box<br />
sets, hold such promise and sway.<br />
As a fur<strong>the</strong>r credit to <strong>the</strong> producers,<br />
a pair of digestible essays by<br />
Bill Flanagan and Sean Wilentz,<br />
respectively, provides context.<br />
Even more useful are track-bytrack<br />
notes expounding on what<br />
happens in <strong>the</strong> sessions. They<br />
function as cues and annotations,<br />
both spotlighting what to listen for<br />
and underlining interesting historical<br />
tidbits. A handsome 120-page<br />
hardcover book with rare photography<br />
and memorabilia adds<br />
to <strong>the</strong> comprehensive feel and<br />
suggestion that between January<br />
1965 and March 1966, Bob Dylan<br />
invented soundscapes of transformative<br />
music and transmogrifying<br />
poetry that cast an even greater<br />
shadow than what most experts<br />
have acknowledged.<br />
Given that all-time-best al-<br />
bum lists never seem to lose <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
conversation-starting currency, The<br />
Cutting Edge 1965-1966 strongly<br />
hints <strong>the</strong>se inventories need be reconsidered—and<br />
that, specifically,<br />
<strong>the</strong> performances that led to Highway<br />
61 Revisited and Blonde and<br />
Blonde merit a loftier status that<br />
once and for all knocks beloved<br />
albeit flawed perennial picks (i.e.,<br />
<strong>the</strong> Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely<br />
Hearts Club Band) down a few<br />
pegs. And when you’re listening to<br />
Dylan mold <strong>the</strong> likes of “Desolation<br />
Row” and “One of Us Must Know<br />
(Sooner or Later),” heed <strong>the</strong> advice<br />
he uttered onstage to <strong>the</strong> Hawks<br />
on May 17, 1966—a command audible<br />
on Bob Dylan Live 1966, The<br />
“Royal Albert Hall” Concert. Namely,<br />
play this brilliant set fucking loud.<br />
—Bob Gendron<br />
CLEARAUDIO Concept<br />
PROJECT Debut Carbon<br />
VPI Classic 3<br />
MUSIC HALL USB-1<br />
AVID Acutus<br />
REGA RP40<br />
60 TONE AUDIO NO.75<br />
800.449.8333 | musicdirect.com
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