Ride This Train. Bob Dylan trucking on the road with perfection the next stop.

By Tony Attwood

This 1986 recording, which came at the same time as the wonderful “To fall in love with you” comes from the year which I gave the name “Experiment Experiment Experiment Genius Ignore” for the article on this year.

And indeed when I wrote that little piece I missed “Ride this train” which is as fine a truckin’ beat as you can imagine.  All it needs is the lyrics that give us new insights into the world of the endlessly travellin’ man and it would be there, played at the gigs and everyone bouncing up and down and clapping their hands on the off beats.

Indeed for those of us who like to go “off piste” when it comes to our Dylan listening 1986 is a singularly fascinating year…

• Band of the Hand (It’s hell time man)
• Rock em Dead
• You wanna ramble
• Got my mind made up
• Jammin Me
• Had a dream about you baby
• Ride this train
• To fall in love with you

And indeed I rather think we’ve got two more songs that fit into this period which were also missed as I compiled the chronology files.  If I can find copies on line I’ll do the reviews later.

The song sounds as if it has been going for a while before the tape started, and the one thing that immediately captures the ear is just how Ron Wood, seemingly the bass guitarist in the sessions, really is having a great time driving the train forwards.

As for the lyrics – actually I am not sure there are any that are properly worked out.  Indeed I suspect the whole play through was an attempt to find some.

And the fact is that by the end Bob hadn’t actually got anything that seems to have grabbed his attention enough to keep going.  Which is a shame because it is one hell of a pounding ride.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYtdD2Tdl1Y

It is the sort of song that needs the old fashioned type of lines like

Dont you try playing with fire

You know it can’t get much higher

I am sure I heard that in there somewhere.  But if it is not to your taste you can always go back to “To fall in love with you” which was improvised next, and wonder perhaps not for the first time, how Bob could not have finished this.   Or imagine an album with both songs on it, one after the other.

Ah such dreams are what chronicling Bob is made of.

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