Bob Dylan: A Spiritual Life Kindle Edition by Scott Marshall (WND Books )

Very patchy. There is some fascinating source material, but this is woven together in a way that leaves rather large holes. It would have been nice if the author had stepped in and attempted to fill these more often. Also there is a lot of repetition, giving the impression of a book that has not been re-read by the author or sub-editor (if such people still exist) and tidied up.In a way the unevenness could be seen in the spirit of Dylan - not a man noted for being methodical - but this is not an excuse for (for instance) totally different treatments of different Dylan albums, some looked at in detail, others hardly mentioned and digressions into material that has little to do with the thesis of the book, however interesting. A couple of (random) examples of strange omissions. Blood on the tracks was hardly mentioned, yet it is liberally scattered with Biblical allusions - not least Dylan's identification with Christ in Shelter From the Storm, which I do not remember being even mentioned as a song. Brownsville Girl is another example. Why did Bob Dylan describe it as one of his two least appreciated works (afterword) when he himself has only performed it once? And why pair it with In the Garden? The Brownsville Revival in Florida didn't start until 10 years after the song came out, but the Assemblies of God church was already well established there - and the original song - an Empire Burlesque out-take - was entitled New Danville Girl (a nod to Woody Guthrie's Danville Girl) - so why the change? Was it significant? A bit of digging would have been much more interesting than a summary of the lyrics. I would also have liked so hear more about the quasi-mephistophelean pact that Bob seems to believe that he has entered with his maker regarding the connection between success and promulgation of the Gospel - again alluded to in a quote from an interview, but not pursued. Or the fact that Bob's lifestyle has been far from conventionally Christian - that the ideas that buzz around his head don't seem to greatly influence his behaviour - which is a bit of an expectation in Christian circles. I'm personally glad that they don't, but it is an interesting area to explore, and not explored.

So, good in parts - an interesting but frustrating read.