Sunday in Suburbia.

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In the United Kingdom the clocks have just gone forward and we are now in British Summer Time and here in Northern Ireland the weather has warmed up slightly. The chill is still there and the wind is too if it searches you out but a new sound is heard in the road and avenues around here. It is the sound of lawns being mowed and edges being strimmed – the smell of fresh cut grass fills the air, as do the sound of children playing in their back gardens – it is as if the slightly warmer weather and longer evenings have freed them from winter’s grip. Even though, as a nation, we are ‘social isolating’ it is possible to see people you have never seen before walking around, sometimes on their own or in family groups. Bikes appear and some parents pedal vigorously ahead to spur their children on to greater speed along the pavement or the road. It seems like everything is in motion, a delicious irony as we are supposed to be keeping ourselves to ourselves. With the cutting and the strimming and the shovelling it feels like the earth is being opened up to greet the warming sun.

One of the things we have got used to here is the morning and evening congregation of birds on rooftops, chimneys and telephone cables. They fill the sky with their voices as they gather together to move back to their roosts in the nearby forest. Those voices are loud and the birds obviously have a lot to say, their restless communication and seemingly random flight patterns tell of routine and freedom with each wing beat. Even though it looks like a type of aerial chaos they all seem to know where they are going, and how long it will take to get there!

Yesterday we walked on a long beach near here. In all seasons of the year this space can be filled with cars but yesterday it was empty of cars, no exhaust and no tyre tracks to follow. It felt unreal, and at the same time like a scene from any dystopian film from the last 50 years. Some say that the Covid 19 outbreak has seen nature recovering from our passage through it (although the chances are it will go unreported) – silent chimneys, empty skies, and a strange sort of peace. It feels unreal and makes me think of the ideas of James Lovelock (the proponent of the ‘Gaia’ hypothesis) who suggests that left to itself the earth will recover and that in a sense we are the problem.

Perhaps we can hope that whatever comes out of this will be a new appreciation for the world around us and less of an attitude that sees it as a resource to be exploited. A better stewardship of the earth. But for now there is the sabbath activity extended into the everyday, the noise of gardening implements and the cuttings gathered as diligently as possible in the light breeze and the possibility that economic activity for its own sake and at any cost is a thing of the past. Perhaps!!

What sort of God?

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As we enter the second week of isolation, or lockdown here in the United Kingdom I find myself wondering what people are doing with all this time. As for me I am reading more, discovering music I haven’t listened to in ages, walking in the forest and on the beaches (at least those that are still open!) and doing my best not to be anxious all the time!!

Last night we played a game with my daughter and her partner over the internet and while it was great to do it and see them it had the curious effect of magnifying the distance between us and the fact that we cannot be in the same space as them, or touch them. Talking to my son has the same effect, I value these conversations more than ever these days but I think that they are a double edged sword!

One thing I have looked for in vain is a measured theological exploration of what is happening. Perhaps, as Chairman Mao is supposed to have said, it is too soon to say how this will all shake down, yet religion (so often the problem!!) whilst not possessing any real answers, does have resources that are worth exploring. I read recently in an article on a Christian website the contention that God somehow ‘knew’ that this was going to happen, and remains in control; “I don’t know God’s plan and his purposes, but I do know that he has allowed this and foreknew this”. And  yet in the same article the interviewee spoke of the resources found in Christianity’s view of suffering; “We certainly have a theology of suffering — of redemptive suffering — and an understanding that this life is not all there is. And yet at the same time, we have a theology that calls us to reach out, and to do everything we can to support others who are in need, and to warn others about danger. So we have both of these in tension: we are willing to lay down our lives, knowing that they’re not our own, and yet at the same time, to stand up and try to protect others”.

Whilst I would not disagree with much of that, I find myself wondering about this notion that God is ‘in control’ of everything that happens, and what sort of God this conviction illustrates – obviously these are deep waters! It strikes me again and again that the only ‘control’ that God can exert comes from vulnerability and love. If the cross of Christ says anything it speaks of a profound lack of control and a divine vulnerability that takes my breath away! The article ends with this hopeful statement; “But I think we have to remember that God is good, he loves us and he is faithful.  We can cast all our cares and worries on him, because he cares for us. No matter what the future holds, whether this disease ends up causing a lot of destruction, or somehow a cure or vaccine are found quickly — as Christians, our hope and trust is in him”. 

It seems to me that this current crisis asks people of faith a difficult question; ‘What sort of God do you believe in?’. Nick Cave has a song on his album ‘The Boatman’s Call’ called ‘Into My Arms’ which begins with the line; “I don’t believe in an interventionist God/ But I know darling that you do”. I have believed for a long time that God sees multiple possibilities, takes human free will seriously and that Godself is always intervening. Christians speak of the Jesus story as a major intervention, as Charles Wesley put it so well in one of his beautiful hymns about the Incarnation;

“He laid his glory by,

He wrapped him in our clay;

Unmarked by human eye,

The latent Godhead lay;

Infant of days he here became,

And bore the mild Immanuel’s name”

But then, what about the countless acts of kindness that take place regardless of religious allegiance? These are happening all the time, and especially at this time of anxiety and crisis – and are a useful counter to some of the horrible selfishness it is impossible to ignore these days! Are these not interventions – perhaps not on the scale of the story of Jesus Christ – but they could be understood as flashes of grace that reveal the ‘everyday’ goodness of God and that Godself is right here with us, in the almost unmarked acts of kindness and grace that surround us all the time. And in the midst of our anxiety and sadness. A few posts ago I quoted the prophet Isaiah, and these words seem worth repeating for the truth about that they reveal;

“Fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name, thou art Mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee…..For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour….Fear not; for I am with thee” (Isaiah 43; verses 1 -3, 5).

It is too soon to say how this crisis will work itself out, and what sort of world will remain. As for me I hope and pray it will make us more aware of the mystery of life, our stewardship of this good earth, and of the love that shapes and forms us, even when we are busy with a host of other things!

******

(As with all my meanderings here this is very much a work in progress!! The Wesley hymn is ‘Let Earth and Heaven Combine’. The quotations come from an interview I read with a medical doctor called Lisa Gilbert on the ‘Journey with Jesus’ website). 

The Jester Sings Again!

“Now for ten years we’ve been on our own,

And moss grows fat on a rolling stone

But that’s now how it used to be,

When the jester sang for the king and queen

In a coat he borrowed from James Dean

And a voice that came from you and me”

Don McLean ‘American Pie’.

A few weeks ago I wrote a post about my frustration at Bob Dylan’s journey though The Great American Songbook – I loved the first of the records ‘Shadow in the Night’ but found the following two sets ‘Fallen Angels’ and the far too long ‘Triplicate’ too much. In the post I wondered how long it would be before Dylan was doing a season in Las Vegas, and I ended with the thought that he maybe had it him to surprise us again, and last night (around midnight I think) Dylan posted a new track on YouTube and his website – he describes it as a “song we recorded some time ago that you might find interesting”, a 17 minute meditation on the death of John Kennedy called ‘Murder Most Foul’ – I have listened to it a couple of times so far and it is an amazing piece of music – a long poem about Kennedy’s death and its cultural impact set to the backing of piano, violin, drums  and Dylan’s voice in remarkably good form – the images jostle together from Woodstock to Altamont, Dealey Plaza to the New Frontier, Parkland Hospital and Love Field, Jack Ruby, Lee Oswald and Lyndon Johnson being “sworn in at 2.38 (am)” – there are a lot of references to records too from blues to rock and roll, jazz, Shakespeare and even hymns, and of course Dylan’s own songs.

Of course I want to know who is playing the rolling piano (is it Dylan himself?), and the beautiful drums (which sound to me like Brian Blade?), there is so much about this song that I want to know, but all I can do is to wait for further light and keep listening. For it is a song that will repay repeated hearings, there are layers on layers of meaning here, and, well, he’s done it again, surprised us all with a song that is about the past but it also strikes a chord for these strange and difficult times. Dylan concludes his note to accompany the song with these words; “Stay safe, stay observant and may God be with you”.

And the same to you, you surprising jester!

 

Faith in Testing Times.

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There is a popular stereotype of the Christian believer that is all teeth and smiles and a relentless enthusiasm that believes it can save the world all alone. Then there is another where a person’s religious faith is an excuse to be an all-purpose wet blanket, judgemental of the world in general and people in particular. Then there are the ordinary believers seeking to understand a strange and hostile world in the light of the faith they have.

Sometimes this is simply a matter of a personality type exaggerated by the influence of religion yet all of us know people who belong to these groups. The pernicious influence of bad religion in all world faiths is plain for everyone to see – in itself the present health crisis can easily become an excuse for all sorts of toxic religious talk that no faith really gives licence for. We all know how people of all faiths lose their nerve and fall prey to harsh fundamentalism as they are tested by the times in which we live. For example what does the extreme violence we use in the name of God to solve our problems say about him? What do the appalling consequences of a natural disaster or the present health crisis say to those who believe God is in control of everything that happens in the world? What does religious faith say to those who must watch a loved one’s life ebb away through illness or senility? And what do we tell our children when the gospel of love that Jesus embodied becomes a license for genocide? These are uncomfortable questions without easy answers. Yet each of the types listed earlier on will have their answers to these questions. One may say “keep smiling, the Lord will provide!” Another will forcefully pronounce divine judgement on an evil world and while the ordinary Christian might search for value in both positions each may feel a little short changed by the whole experience.

Perhaps I am an ordinary, middle of the road believer because I know how easily relentless enthusiasm can pall when faith becomes demanding. I also know how easy it is to judge those around me without standing in their shoes for a while. But most of all I aspire to ordinariness because I believe that God is active in the ordinary world. I believe that Godself is working for shalom through all those of good heart however they name the ultimate. And I believe that whether I go through exhilarating joy or deep sadness those are the places where I must look for God’s compassionate love. Religion tells me God is there but discernment is a matter of faith. This is the faith – ful, wish – ful thinking that in my experience makes sense of the world. It also has the great virtue of pointing all of us to the One who is at work in many places and who speaks in many languages but who said to us in Jesus Christ; “I will never leave you or forsake you”.

Comforting Words for Testing Times.

Without stating the blindly obvious these are indeed testing times. Like many around me I decided to turn off the TV news and the various news feeds that pop up on my ‘phone and concentrate on something else. Also like others I have been turning to things like reading with renewed vigour. I think that these times are also testing for people of faith, raising deep questions about God’s purposes and human freewill. But wherever you look for solace, it is possible (like the chair in Waldemar Nowak’s photo) to feel very small in the face of the tide of present affairs. I was feeling a little like that when I came across this in Leslie Weatherhead’s little book ‘A Private House of Prayer’;

“Fear not, for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name, thou art Mine. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee…..For I am the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour….Fear not; for I am with thee” (Isaiah 43; verses 1 -3, 5).

And this is Weatherhead’s comment to go with the reading; “God does not say, “I will excuse you from the waters; I will show you a shortcut by which you may escape the rivers”. If He did, what an insurance religion would be, and how men would rush to pay the premium of a spurious piety!

God does say, “In all the experiences through which you have to pass, I shall be there too.”

Thus shall even the experiences which cannot be called anything but evl, the experiences I have hated and from which I have shrunk, be woven into a pattern of good and made to serve the purposes of a holy, loving, wise, omnipotent God”. (The emphasis is mine).

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(I adapted the title of this post from the title of an album by saxophonist Joshua Redman called ‘Timeless Tales for Changing Times’. Leslie Weatherhead’s little book was published in 1958 and is worth seeking out. It is a bit old fashioned in some senses but is still an attractive book and, like Weatherhead’s many other books, full of insight, faith and wisdom).

Look after one another and stay well.

A Pilgrim’s Notes continued….

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I recently read E. M. Blaiklock’s translation of ‘The Practice of the Presence of God’ by Brother Lawrence, and in the introduction he writes this; “I had been a Christian for two years and knew all the stress and hard thinking which academic life imposes on an honest young man, seeking to integrate faith, life and learning“.

In bringing this extended reflection to a close I am reminded of that last sentence because it reminds of my experience and goal. That integration is what I have sought throughout my life of faith – through everything those qualities have come through and as I write this I am tempted to ask where I am in my faith journey today. In a sense it is a ridiculous question as though faith could be pinned down or captured like a fly in amber. Because of its very nature faith is a dynamic thing that changes and adapts as life itself changes. But the essential nature and challenge of faith stays the same, defined many times yet tantalizingly beyond definition. Many will quote the first verse of Hebrews 11 (I like the translation offered by the Jerusalem Bible);

“Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of the realities that at present remain unseen”.

And St. Augustine’s definition (which takes some thinking about);

“Faith is to believe what you do not yet see, the reward for this faith is to see what you believe”.

And in my more radical moods I like the words of Richard Holloway;

“I ended up with this funny existentialism – that there may be no God in the universe but let’s live as though there is, and even if we are wrong, it will be a glorious way to be proved wrong”.

I think that what he is talking about is a sort of agnosticism, we may not know the ends or the ultimate truth but if we live as though we do, it will make a great difference!!

******

So it goes without saying that faith remains important and as I have written here before faith is not proof. Often some Christians put so much energy into trying to prove the faith that it is easy to forget the scriptural injunction that reminds us that we ‘walk ‘ by faith and not by sight. Faith remains, as does trust, rationality, intelligence and hope. I believe that faith has to make sense (except when it doesn’t, that’s when trust comes in). Here are some old words from the prophecy of Jeremiah that worked when they were written but still have a lot of juice in them;

“I know the plans I have for you – it is Yahweh who speaks – plans for peace, not disaster, reserving a future full of hope for you. Then when you call to me, and come to plead with me, I will listen to you. When you seek me you shall find me when you seek me with all your heart I will let you find me – it is Yahweh who speaks” (Jeremiah 29; 11- 14).

When you think that that oracle was addressed to people who had lost everything and were far away from home it only makes it all the more powerful!

Faith, trust, rationality, intelligence and hope. I should add to those things the constant of change. My faith has changed over the years (and I take that as a sign of its health) – as have my circumstances. Retirement has been a major change, a loss of context and a general feeling of not being much use is gradually being replaced by a sense of calm as I orientate myself in a different direction. It is more than just a chance to “read all those books I never had a chance to read” as some put it. It is also about discovering a vocation within changed circumstances and that is very much a work in progress! After, all, it occurs to me that monks pray constantly with no other context but the act itself, surely I can maintain my reading and praying simply for its intrinsic value?

Any life of faith is ultimately a pilgrimage, a journey and this metaphor contains within it hidden depths for thought and reflection, as well as being a useful and time honoured way of thinking about religious faith. A pilgrim sets out for a goal but takes the process of reaching that goal seriously (just read John Bunyan’s ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ if you doubt that!). No matter how many preachers, and books, and attitudes to Christianity that make it seem like a ‘quick fix’, there are no such fixes here, there is just the faithful traveller, the road, and the companions you meet on the way. I find it fascinating that before Christians were called by that name (sometime in the first century in Turkey), they were known simply as followers of the Way. I think that Paul described this journey towards truth memorably in his reflection in I Corinthians;

“Now we are seeing a dim reflection in a mirror; but then we shall be seeing face to face. The knowledge that I have now is imperfect; but then I shall know as I am fully known”

Like the people in Trace Hudson’s glorious photograph I have always believed that we are all journeying towards the light. I have believed for years that God is love and that God will not let any part of creation go, and that in good time everything will be renewed – I know that I am flirting with ‘universalism’ which is very controversial in theological circles, but I prefer that to ‘infernalism’ that sees God condemning millions to the darkness and the gnashing of teeth.

In the end everything comes down to God and the most radical statement in the whole Bible; “God is Love” (1 John 4; 16). In the end that conviction is where all journeys begin, continue, and end, and in the words of T. S. Eliot from  his poem ‘Little Gidding’;

“We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time.

Through the unknown, remembered gate

When the last of earth left to discover

Is that which was the beginning;

At the source of the longest river

The voice of the hidden waterfall

And the children in the apple-tree

Not known, because not looked for

But heard, half-heard, in the stillness

Between two waves of the sea.

Quick, now, here, now, always –

A condition of complete simplicity

(Costing not less than everything)

And all shall be well………….”

A Reflection on a Bus Ticket.

I was looking for a particular essay by C.S. Lewis in a collection of his called ‘Fern – Seed and Elephants’ when this bus ticket fell out of the book. Of itself it has almost nothing to recommend itself – it is just a bus ticket. It reminds me that on the date shown I was on the 197 bus from my home into the town of Stockport (and that I was probably late for work!), it also tells me that I was reading this little book at the time. The attraction of these little books published by William Collins was that they would fit into my coat pocket (and that they were ‘anonymous’ at work – I had already had enough barracking by colleagues about my reading and my faith!). Trying to work out one’s faith in the workplace can sometimes be a difficult thing!

But the ticket is also a reminder of something else. My books are full of them, along with theatre and cinema tickets, odd notes and lists that I made in another lifetime – things I kept to keep my place and to remind me of the things I needed to do or the places I had been. On the 11th of November that year I attended a concert in Manchester by Weather Report, a ‘jazz fusion’ group that I thought (and still do!) were the best thing I had ever seen on a concert stage – and I kept the ticket stub for that, another memory sparked off!!

My life is full of these things – G.K. Chesterton (in another context) called them ‘Tremendous Trifles’, the small things that remind us of our humanity. He wrote in his essay of the same name;

“Everything is in an attitude of mind; and at this moment I am in a comfortable attitude. I will sit still and let the marvels and the adventures settle on me like flies. There are plenty of them, I assure you. The world will never starve for want of wonders; but only for want of wonder”.

A bus ticket may not seem like “a marvel and an adventure”, but consider where it might lead, and where all the ‘trifles’ in our lives might lead if we only thought about them for a little while- once I know where I have been I think that I can more clearly where I am going

“Rich Towards God?”

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At the bible study I attend there was much discussion of the phrase “rich towards God – it forms the climax to what is known as The Parable of the Rich Fool’ which appears in Luke 12. There was a question; how do we become rich towards God and someone suggested the first line of the old hymn ‘Trust and Obey’;

“When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”

As I was thinking this over I  came across this poem by George MacDonald, it is called simply ‘Obedience’;

“Trust Him in the common light;

Trust Him in the awesome night;

Trust Him when the earth doth quake;

Trust Him when thy heart doth ache;

Trust Him when thy brain doth reel

And thy friend turns on his heel;

Trust Him when the way is rough,

Cry not yet, It is enough!

But obey with true endeavour,

Else the salt hath lost its savour.”

******

MacDonald’s poetry deserves to be better known. His writing was a great influence on writers as diverse as C.S. Lewis (who regarded MacDonald as ‘the master’) and Oswald Chambers who observed “it is a striking indication of the trend and shallowness of the modern reading public that George MacDonald’s books have been so neglected”.

The poem comes from a collection of MacDonald’s poems called ‘God’s Troubadour’ compiled by Harry Escott and published by Wayside Books in 1940 – my copy is very venerable to say the least!!

 

Welcoming Santana.

As I have written before, one of the musical highlights of a school days was the release of Santana’s debut record in 1969. I remember buying the vinyl copy from a record shop that was just around the corner from the grammar school I attended. There was something about the raw power of this band that was immediately attractive. I think I may have heard a track from the record on one of the many samplers you could buy in those days (I think the sampler was called something like ‘The Rock Machine Turns You On’) but hearing he whole album was a different experience and although I loved the record (and still do) I quickly fastened on ‘Treat’ as my favourite track.

Fast forward to 1973 and the arrival of the fifth album ‘Welcome’ and the sonic landscape (as well as the personnel) had changed, there was still the percussive force but there was also a more jazz oriented flavour to the music that built on the success of its predecessor ‘Caravanserai’. It is there in the very beginning, washes of Hammond organ and Alice Coltrane’s Farfisa usher in a track called ‘Going Home’, Coltrane’s keyboard takes the solo (with a touch of Dvorak for good measure) and the percussion and cymbals roll and thunder in the background. Coltrane’s keyboard has an almost horn like tone (echoes of her late husband John?). The leader’s guitar tentatively explores the start of the next track ‘Love, Devotion and Surrender’ and he, Leon Thomas and Wendy Haas sing the vocal – a perfect example of Latin pop jazz with the whole band ticking over like a well oiled machine. ‘Samba de Sausalito’ follows, percussion and bass leading into a shuffle groove led by keyboards and guitar and Tom Coster’s electric piano solo (the first of many excellent solos on this record by him). Leon Thomas’s yodelling (yes, yodelling!) and Wendy Haas lead into ‘When I Look Into Your Eyes’ another piece of polished pop jazz enlivened by Joe Farrell’s flute solo, and I love the way that Richard Kermode’s electric piano solos behind the voices and the flute, and of course the percussion!! The track ends with a series of funky exchanges between keyboard between the leader’s guitar and Douglas Rodriguez’s rhythm guitar and then ‘Yours Is The Light’ begins with Flora Purim’s voice and Kermode’s piano (which is an excellent presence throughout) and the leader’s guitar for his first substantial solo beginning about 1.50 in – woodwinds, percussion, Thomas’ whistling and Purim’s wordless scatting and Richard Kermode’s piano complete the picture -another excellent track.

Herbie Mann’s ‘Mother Africa’ begins with kalimba (an African thumb piano) and percussion before the groove is establishment by bass, voice and drums, keyboards and percussion dominate – the keyboard solo and the alto saxophone of Jules Broussard echo the motifs in the first track and Tom Coster’s ascending piano solo anchors the track in amongst the percussion and the repeated keyboard line. I always think that the percussion here carries echoes of Santana’s early records (think ‘Jingo’ or ‘Soul Sacrifice’ from the first record). Strings begin ‘Light of Life’ leading into electric piano and drums (echoes of trumpeter Tom Harrell’s arrangement for ‘Every Step Of The Way’ from the end of Caravanserai). The leader’s guitar leads into another excellent solo by pianist Tom Coster.

Which leads into ‘Flame Sky’ where the leader and guest John McLaughlin duet over a bed of percussion and drifting organ figures (Thom Jurek’s review of this album describes this track as a “stunningly beautiful guitar spiritual’). Richard Kermode’s Hammond organ solo leads into the second half of the track and John McLaughlin’s solo which builds under a soaring bed of percussion (I think that is order of guitarists but I remain unsure – a lack of knowledge does not detract from the soaring power of this piece – it always reminds me of ‘Song of the Wind’ from ‘Caravanserai’ where Santana duets with Neal Schon).

The record ends with the title track, ‘Welcome’ is a composition by John Coltrane (very much the presiding spirit over this whole record!), a gentle piece where the leader’s guitar is cradled by rippling keyboards and Michael Shrieve’s shimmering cymbal rolls. Some one I read years ago suggested that after the fire and heat of the preceding track, listening to this was like diving into a pool of clear, cool water, It is a beautiful conclusion to a beautiful record!

Now for the nerd bit; if there is anyone reading this who hasn’t heard this record I hope the forgoing will encourage you to take a listen. Like ‘The Music Aficionado’ whose posts can be found on WordPress, I remain fascinated by who plays what and where. But the main reason for this post is purely listening again to this record after a long time and coming to appreciate its qualities afresh, and if someone discovers this for the first time, then my work is done here!!

Dylan comes to Las Vegas?

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Over the years it has been hard to ignore Bob Dylan, but like Bruce Springsteen, I have to confess that I have never really ‘got’ him. I like some of their records a great deal – for example I don’t think that the Boss has equalled the power of his first four albums – and in my opinion Dylan himself has not really surpassed his earlier stuff – ‘Blonde on Blonde’ (I remember hearing that album in the house of a friend and being amazed at the sheer force of the words and the music), ‘Highway 61’, ‘John Wesley Harding’ and later gems like ‘Time Out of Mind’, but what to make of his latest recordings?

When he came ‘back’ with records like ‘Love and Theft’ and ‘Modern Times’ (which did not include possibly my favourite recent Dylan song ‘Things Have Changed’), I really enjoyed his journey into a jazzy, country blues style, and like many people who have listened to him through the years I was prepared to see where he would go next. But bis embrace of ‘The Great American Songbook’ has left me a little confused – ‘Shadows in the Night’ was (and is) a fine record – for example listen to way he sings ‘Full Moon and Empty Arms’, full of pathos and the slightly cracked vocal suits the song to a tee. In my opinion, the rest of the record is just as good, but then came ‘Fallen Angels’ which I thought was just a retread of the previous record, and then the 30 song set ‘Triplicate’ which I dutifully bought and have struggled through, to little avail. This bloated set sent me back to the Dylan I love; the records mentioned earlier, and gems like ‘Changing of the Guards’ and ‘Senor’ (from ‘Street Legal’), the whole of ‘Slow Train Coming’ (the best of his ‘born again’ output), and songs like ‘Every Grain of Sand’ and ‘Mississippi’. ‘Triplicate’ also sent me back to a record I have mentioned before – Ben Sidran’s great set of Dylan covers ‘Dylan Different’.

There is something about Bob Dylan’s songs that sound even better when others bring their talents and interpretation to his original work, think of Jimi Hendrix’s barnstorming version of ‘All Along the Watchtower’ and many other examples, that list is endless! I think that it is a mark of his stature as an artist that his work is adaptable in that way and, indeed, how careful reinterpretation of his songs reveals new depths and meaning. The enigma of Bob Dylan is beyond the scope of this post, or even of the voluminous literature that has accompanied his work over the years and in the end it is the songs that will endure. But I wonder how long it will be before Dylan, like many of his contemporaries  from Elvis Presley to even Steely Dan, finds himself in a Las Vegas residency?

I think he still has it in him to surprise us all, and maybe the next record will reset everything else again, like the way everything was reset in the final part of the original ‘Matrix’ trilogy, or Roland Deschain’s journey towards the Dark Tower is reset (with the hope of final resolution) in Stephen King’s fantasy cycle of the same name. Given his status and talent, who knows, but one can live in hope!!