Bob Dylan
returned from exile with
John Wesley Harding
, a quiet,
country
-tinged album that split dramatically from his previous three. A calm, reflective album,
strips away all of the wilder tendencies of
Dylan
's
rock
albums -- even the then-unreleased
Basement Tapes
he made the previous year -- but it isn't a return to his
folk
roots. If anything, the album is his first serious foray into
, but only a handful of songs, such as
"I'll Be Your Baby Tonight,"
are straight
songs. Instead,
is informed by the rustic sound of
, as well as many rural myths, with seemingly simple songs like
"All Along the Watchtower,"
"I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine,"
and
"The Wicked Messenger"
revealing several layers of meaning with repeated plays. Although the lyrics are somewhat enigmatic, the music is simple, direct, and melodic, providing a touchstone for the
country-rock
revolution that swept through
in the late '60s. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine