Highway 61 Revisited (Reis)

Highway 61 Revisited is a landmark -- recorded in 1965, during the same tumultuous summer that had seen him plugging in his electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival, Highway 61 Revisited is Bob Dylan diving head-first into the rock and roll maelstrom, backed by the studio prowess of Al Kooper, Michael Bloomfield and others on such devastating classics as the epochal "Like A Rolling Stone." This Sundazed edition is an exact reproduction of the rare original 1965 mono album, featuring the original sleeve-notes and photos, and all-analog mastering from the absolute original source tapes.

Dylan was virtually gushing great songs when this masterpiece arrived in the summer of 1965. From the epochal opening of "Like a Rolling Stone" through the absurdly apocalyptic closer, "Desolation Row," his command of surrealistic language was daring and amazing. As a vocalist, he was rewriting the rules of the game. Jimi Hendrix made note of Mr. Z's technically suspect pitch and decided that he too was a singer. And the backing, though ragged, is precisely right. Is this the essential Dylan album? It's certainly one of them. --Steven Stolder

Dylan was virtually gushing great songs when this masterpiece arrived in the summer of 1965. From the epochal opening of "Like a Rolling Stone" through the absurdly apocalyptic closer, "Desolation Row," his command of surrealistic language was daring and amazing. As a vocalist, he was rewriting the rules of the game. Jimi Hendrix made note of Mr. Z's technically suspect pitch and decided that he too was a singer. And the backing, though ragged, is precisely right. Is this the essential Dylan album? It's certainly one of them. --Steven Stolder