Revisiting Old Tunes

Bob Dylan is a lot of things. He is a folk icon whose success is undeniable and whose legacy is untouchable. He is the voice of the counterculture movement. He is a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee. He is the recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Nobel Prize in Literature. He is a music legend.

But, above all, Bob Dylan is a songwriter. And, in many respects, he is the greatest songwriter of all time.

Through his spellbinding lyrics, Dylan produces wistful tales of fallible heroes and dastardly villains with complex motivations. In addition, magical realism, social unrest, nostalgic wanderlust, and existential contemplation define Dylan’s pantheon of eclectic songwriting themes. Dylan’s songwriting prowess has allowed him to effortlessly switch between distinct genres like folk, blues, country, gospel, rock, and jazz. In short, Dylan’s tunes – including noteworthy classics like “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall” and “Blowin’ in the Wind” – possess some of the greatest lyrics ever written.

As such, it comes as an unexpected move that Dylan’s new studio release is composed of covers of songs written by other artists. And, it is even more of a surprise that these renditions are some of the best work of Dylan’s career.

Triplicate is the singer-songwriter’s first triple-length set of his storied career. Dylan’s 38^th studio effort is divided into three discs, each featuring ten songs that are connected thematically.  These songs are all Sinatra-era tunes derived from the Great American Songbook. The three discs are titled And the Sun Goes Down, Devil Dolls, and Comin’ Home Late. Released on March 31^st, Triplicate finds Dylan delivering his best vocal performances in years on folk-tinged covers of classics by Hoagy Carmichael, Herman Hupfeld, and Irving Berlin. The project represents Dylan’s first collection of new music since 2016’s Grammy-nominated hit Fallen Angels, which achieved Top Ten debuts in over a dozen countries.

To promote his new collection, Dylan will embark on a new phase of his Never Ending Tour, which originally began in 1988. After a handful of dates in the United States, Dylan and his band will head north for a whopping 18 Canadian concerts. Dylan will perform at venues such as Montreal’s Bell Centre, Toronto’s Air Canada Centre, Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Centre, Kingston’s Rogers K-Rock Centre, Barrie’s Molson Centre, Oshawa’s Tribute Communities Centre, London’s Budweiser Gardens, Winnipeg’s MTS Centre, Saskatoon’s SaskTel Centre, Moose Jaw’s Mosaic Place, Calgary’s Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium, Medicine Hat’s Canalta Centre, Edmonton’s Rogers Place, Dawson Creek’s EnCana Events Centre, Prince George’s CN Centre, Kelowna’s Prospera Place, Vancouver’s Rogers Arena, and Victoria’s Save on Foods Memorial Centre.

In his mid-70s, Dylan remains a force to be reckoned with in concert. Indeed, he approaches each performance with a different musical arrangement, thereby imbuing an aura of unpredictability to his tours. What does the greatest songwriter of all time have up his sleeve this time around? Get your Bob Dylan tickets to find out!