Album Reviews

Bob Dylan. Under The Red Sky. 1990.

‘Under The Red Sky’ got a stormy reception upon release and endured it for a good decade or more. Well, this album is lyrically unambitious, musically fairly simple and the production and mixing bordering on synthetic. Still, Dylan is joined here by Don Was, George Harrison, David Crosby, Slash, Bruce Hornsby and the legendary Al Kooper. So, ‘Under The Red Sky’ musically is pretty solid and often actually impressive, particularly Bruce Hornsby, I have to say. Dylan’s vocals are slightly thin, but his voice holds up pretty well, lending the songs that edge, a sense of foreboding. This is quite in contrast with many of the actual lyrics, seemingly preoccupied with childhood nursery rhymes. To accompany these lyrics, the music is often relaxed, laid back. That’s not to say this is an album of ballads, yet even the rockers sound slightly constrained within the Don Was production. It seems that ‘Under The Red Sky’ is content to be what it is without having to live upto any kind of reputation. That may seem a strange thing to say about a Dylan album, yet doesn’t Dylan invite us to listen without predjudice? There’s not so much difference between ‘Cats In The Well’ and several songs from ‘Modern Times’ or ‘Love And Theft’. The big difference is the actual sound acheived in the studio. There’s a nice accordian mixed in here, but sonically, ‘Under The Red Sky’ as a whole sounds rather anemic. It just doesn’t impress on that level. Perhaps ‘Under The Red Sky’ is Dylan writing pop songs of a kind, dumbing down, trying to find space artistically?

The title track is nearly stirring, ‘Unbelievable’ a fun little rocker and album highlight ‘Born In Time’ seemingly the most serious composition here and also the best. David Crosby’s voice sits under Dylan’s, harmonising so quietly as if to be a whisper, it works very well. Al Kooper can clearly be heard on ‘Handy Dandy’, a musically pleasing track that’s needed, because by the second half of the record, a listener gets tired. There’s not enough finesse on display here yet also no particular rough edges. Don Was has tried to make a professional Dylan album, yet the result isn’t exactly as pleasing as it could have been.

Tracks:
1. Wiggle Wiggle
2. Under the Red Sky
3. Unbelievable
4. Born in Time
5. T.V.Talkin’ Song
6. 10,000 Men
7. 2 x 2
8. God Knows
9. Handy Dandy
10. Cat’s in The Well

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