Bob Dylan
I am terrified of those horrible creatures on /talk so I thought I'd come to you LOVELY qotw creatures you, with one of these semi-regular AQA type questions that sometimes appear.

So..

Where do I start with Bob Dylan. My good flatmate has almost everything but erm I don't trust him! I need some opinions of where to start with the so called legend that is Bob Dylan.

Or should I go and masturbate in a light room with the curtains open?
( whenanimalsattackhumans clad in global hypercolour, Tue 19 Aug 2008, 20:32, 11 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

Start at the beginning.
I always find that's the best place.

Seriously, I'm no Dylan expert but try some compilation albums of his earlier work. I have a couple but can't remember the name of them.
( girlinthehole, Tue 19 Aug 2008, 20:41, Reply)

I'm not a Dylan fan
so I can't really speak with a lot of authority, but it seems that every one of his songs I've heard and liked came from his early work. (A quick glance through Wikipedia shows that they're all from the first six albums, for what that may be worth.)

I prefer Tom Waits for twisted beauty, myself...
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Tue 19 Aug 2008, 20:51, Reply)

I'm not a massive Dylan fan but...
Highway 61 Revisited is brilliant. It's got Like A Rolling Stone on it.

Can't say much more than that.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Highway_61_Revisited
(scentless_apprentice takes two bottles into the shower!, Tue 19 Aug 2008, 20:58, Reply)

Stand aside people
big Dylan fan entering. Try this:

www.howtolistentodylan.com/
( St. Defenestration The REAL one, Tue 19 Aug 2008, 21:11, Reply)

love and theft and time out of mind take a little getting used to
my tip is just have them on in the background whilst you do something else, after a few plays through you absorb them and realise that actually theyre also amazing.
( St. Defenestration The REAL one, Tue 19 Aug 2008, 22:30, Reply)

listen to the Travelling Wilburys
then you get him watered down with Tom Petty, Roy Orbison and George Harrison

can't beat that

Tweeter and the Monkey Man FTW!
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Wed 20 Aug 2008, 8:13, Reply)

I would then move onto both "Blood on the Tracks" and "Desire"
I would say he peaked on these two. Nashville Skyline and Highway 61 are good records two. Any more than that and you're officially obsessed and not really listening anymore for my 2 cents.
(bazmorningstar efil4nat3b, Wed 20 Aug 2008, 9:41, Reply)

My favorite BD song is
"Lay Lady lay"
(The Empress it seems you CAN polish a turd!, Wed 20 Aug 2008, 10:32, Reply)

Beginers only...
I only came to Dylan late in life, and as a result of watching "Bringing it all back home" - the two-part film of his life. I'd advise finding that somewhere, watching it and jotting down the songs you really like. I confess to only having a couple of best of's - a 2-discer of 'early' and 'later called "The Ultimate collection" & "The Essential Bob Dylan" (according to my iPod). I love the early stuff like "It ain't me babe" but also lots of the later stuff like "Forever young" or "Shelter from the storm" - both real classics.

And I've also got a brilliant album which EVERYONE should buy called: "Is it Rollin' Bob?" which is a collection of Dylan covers by Reggae artists! You have to listen to Gregory Isaac's version of "Mr Tambourine Man" it's hilarious!!

Perservere - it's worth it.
(Che Grimsdale Best before:, Wed 20 Aug 2008, 11:49, Reply)

Simple
Buy "Blood on the Tracks" and "Blonde on Blonde". Listen to em and if you don't like em then Bob Dylan is not for you!
(Fredz A graveyard of hopes, a dump of ambition, Wed 20 Aug 2008, 15:10, Reply)