So, I received the latest LP, Asleep at Heaven’s Gate, from “current big thing” band (as per Elbo.ws popularity charts) Rogue Wave the other day, fully alongside an intention to write something about it. I’ve listened to it twice now, purely out of devotion to the cause… but, seriously. All I can say is that it sucks. Big time.
This isn’t meant as an attack on our fellow bloggers or the population at large… but seriously - Rogue Wave = Futureheads + Coldplay doing a half-hearted Shins interpretation. Which, to me, is not an interesting combination. So, screw it.
But, now that we are on a bad music kick… Let’s move onto something that one of my professors just exposed me to that is, arguably, just as horrible.
Here is the background: the professor in question is a Dylan fanatic. Such that, a group of us all went over to his place the other night for a night of drinking and visiting each of Bob’s albums in chronological order (needless to say, we only got to the early ’70s by the end of the night). He downloads live shows (in flac) and is constantly reading & discussing everything that is Dylan.
So, this morning, he comes into my work asking if I know Dylan’s “Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine)” and, of course, I said that I did. He followed this with a reference to a remix by a man named Mark Ronson, which is making a stir in the Dylan community because, I guess, Bob doesn’t really allow remixes. But! Mr. Ronson declared that his remix is, at very least, on-par with the original and so, somehow, it has seen the light of day.
Now, I like remixes. I like mash-ups. DJ BC’s Wu-Orleans is still on near-constant rotation around here. But there is just something about this remix that bothers me. The horns sound canned, that screeching noise is just annoying and the most interesting aspect of the song remains Dylan’s voice. The remix adds nothing to the original. I can see the song being played at a club to half-smirks for it’s novelty… but, as compared to the 1966 version, Mark’s better off not pillaging Bob’s library.
the proof is in the sample:
Bob Dylan - Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine).
Mark Ronson’s Remix - Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine).
I’m not sure I can bring myself to download the remix. I really don’t think anyone needs to hear Bob Dylan remixed.
I completely understand the sentiment.
I don’t know why everyone’s making out that this remix is the first of its kind on a Dylan song. Funkstar Deluxe reworked “All Along the Watchtower” back in 2001.
I didn’t say it was the first of its kind… just that it is making a stir. Which it most certainly is.
Probably even moreso due to it’s horridness.
Hi, as far i know Dylan allows and love this remix,the first that he ever admit on one of his songs.The man that you refer as Mark Ronson is a very prestigious DJ and producer from England but very well know in the New York’s club scene.He produced recently the Amy Winehouse album and one for himself “Version” that i recommend,include new versions from classics and not so classic songs.
Bye
I kinda like it. The organ in the Dylan original is far too low on the mix, the horns not nearly punchy enough, and the drums are way too far off to the side. The screeching isn’t great, but all the additional instrumentals (bass, additional horns, shakers) and the locations of them in the mix are way superior, and way more listenable.
i love this remix. i can understand the feeling of not wanting a tainted dylan song, but i’ve heard many dylan songs before, and i feel like this is a great way to (re-)introduce him to new ears… especially now that ronson’s sound is starting to bubble up.
mark ronson remixes = summer 2007
fuck the haters….
Hi…tried to download link but it just get led to another site, then back again to yours…any hints on what I’m doing wrong? I’d LOVE to hear that re-mix!
Many thanks…
and…love the lovers, love the haters
I actually came into this with an open mind because I expected something novel, but this remix is pretty much a paint by numbers affair that sounds like a twelve year old kid fucking around on garage band.
P.S. I am not a Dylan worshipper nor do I suspect that from the majority of the “haters.” Let’s be frank: ask 99% of people 25 or under about Dylan and they’ll say “I love Bob Dylan! That song, ‘Rolling Stone’ is amazing. So is that song he wrote for that movie, I think Guns and Roses remixed it or something. Yeah, Dylan rules.” People in general, myself most certainly included, are simply not familiar enough with his musical legacy to hold a staunch enough bias that would cause the out of hand rejection that many fans of the remix seem to be implying in their smug responses. The remix is bad because it is contrived and disappointing because someone who could satisfactorily remix Dylan into club music is truly a god because this remix from a vaunted DJ and remix specialist seems to further prove that Dylan is truly unremixable.
I think the Dap Kings rock on this track - watch the video it’s fun.
This should be the theme song for “I’m Not There”
Props to Dylan for letting this happen.
Just another twist of the knobs.