Bob Dylan's first album is a lot like the debut albums by the Beatles and the Rolling Stones -- a sterling effort, outclassing most, if not all, of what came before it in the genre, but similarly eclipsed by the artist's own subsequent efforts. The difference was that not very many people heard Bob Dylan on its original release (originals on the early-'60s Columbia label are choice collectibles) because it was recorded with a much smaller audience and musical arena in mind. At the time of Bob Dylan's release, the folk revival was rolling, and interpretation was considered more important than original composition by most of that audience. A significant portion of the record is possessed by the style and spirit of Woody Guthrie, whose influence as a singer and guitarist hovers over "Man of Constant Sorrow" and "Pretty Peggy-O," as well as the two originals here, the savagely witty "Talkin' New York" and the poignant "Song to Woody"; and it's also hard to believe that he wasn't aware of Jimmie Rodgers and Roy Acuff when he cut "Freight Train Blues." But on other songs, one can also hear the influences of Bukka White, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Blind Willie Johnson, and Furry Lewis, in the playing and singing, and this is where Dylan departed significantly from most of his contemporaries. Other white folksingers of the era, including his older contemporaries Eric Von Schmidt and Dave Van Ronk, had incorporated blues in their work, but Dylan's presentation was more in your face, resembling in some respects (albeit in a more self-conscious way) the work of John Hammond, Jr., the son of the man who signed Dylan to Columbia Records and produced this album, who was just starting out in his own career at the time this record was made. There's a punk-like aggressiveness to the singing and playing here. His raspy-voiced delivery and guitar style were modeled largely on Guthrie's classic '40s and early-'50s recordings, but the assertiveness of the bluesmen he admires also comes out, making this one of the most powerful records to come out of the folk revival of which it was a part. Within a year of its release, Dylan, initially in tandem with young folk/protest singers like Peter, Paul & Mary and Phil Ochs, would alter the boundaries of that revival beyond recognition, but this album marked the pinnacle of that earlier phase, before it was overshadowed by this artist's more ambitious subsequent work. In that regard, the two original songs here serve as the bridge between Dylan's stylistic roots, as delineated on this album, and the more powerful and daringly original work that followed. One myth surrounding this album should also be dispelled here -- his version of "House of the Rising Sun" here is worthwhile, but the version that was the inspiration for the Animals' recording was the one by Josh White.

This one looks interesting to me. I've listened to Dylan a good deal, but mostly just his golden era stuff and a few later works that I found underwhelming. The early days stuff I've been meaning to dig into for years. This may just motivate me.

What are you calling golden era - Bringing It All Back Home? Because Freewheelin' is the first great album in my mind but I'd also call it his early stuff.

I would have loved to be in the room when John Hammond delivered this debut album by his new signing to Columbia execs. I'm pretty sure it was all WTF faces looking back at him. And from what I've read, everyone at Columbia thought this was going to be John Hammond's biggest failure and might cost him his job. You have to credit Hammond for being a visionary.

The two originals, Talkin' New York and Song to Woody (especially Song to Woody) showed the brilliance to come. But mostly, this is really average folk fare. I mean you can tell that Dylan was bigger than the NYC folk scene and the covers display a talent that far exceeds Dave Van Ronk or Peter Paul and Mary. Still, you can't hope but wish Columbia and Dylan would have unleashed more of his natural song writing talent when he was this hungry.

One exception to these covers - Baby Let Me Follow You Down. Dylan has always made this song his own. As a staple of his early touring, there are lots of versions of this song available. My favorite is not here but it's great nonetheless. My favorite version is on Prince Royal Albert Concert when does a rocking mind fuck version of it.

Not so sure I agree with the "display a talent that far exceeds...". I never heard anything on this album beyond workman-like versions of the same songs that every other period folkie was doing in the same workman-like manner. Lastly, as far as unleashing more of his natural song writing talent when he was hungry (i.e., on this record), I'd say that would have been tough sledding, because I don't think he'd found his muse. Granted, he found it and showed the whole damned world 14 months later, but at the time this one was recorded? I'm thinking no. And, he was still pretty hungry after the release of this one.

i don't contribute much, but love these threads.

It's hard to overestimate the importance of The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, the record that firmly established Dylan as an unparalleled songwriter, one of considerable skill, imagination, and vision. At the time, folk had been quite popular on college campuses and bohemian circles, making headway onto the pop charts in diluted form, and while there certainly were a number of gifted songwriters, nobody had transcended the scene as Dylan did with this record. There are a couple (very good) covers, with "Corrina Corrina" and "Honey Just Allow Me One More Chance," but they pale with the originals here. At the time, the social protests received the most attention, and deservedly so, since "Blowin' in the Wind," "Masters of War," and "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" weren't just specific in their targets; they were gracefully executed and even melodic. Although they've proven resilient throughout the years, if that's all Freewheelin' had to offer, it wouldn't have had its seismic impact, but this also revealed a songwriter who could turn out whimsy ("Don't Think Twice, It's All Right"), gorgeous love songs ("Girl From the North Country"), and cheerfully absurdist humor ("Bob Dylan's Blues," "Bob Dylan's Dream") with equal skill. This is rich, imaginative music, capturing the sound and spirit of America as much as that of Louis Armstrong, Hank Williams, or Elvis Presley. Dylan, in many ways, recorded music that equaled this, but he never topped it.

I always thought freewheelin' was pretty overrated.

Also, Fuck Blowin' In The Wind. I hate that fucking song.

Don't Think Twice It's Alright is just fucking awesome. I never tire of it.

Freewheelin isn't overrated. In fact, I think it's on the under side. But Blowin' In the Wind is overrated. I think it's one of the lesser songs on this album. But I can see in the context of the 60s and the zeitgeist of those times, how it was the cornerstone of creating Dylan's reputation in the beginning.