Bob Dylan - Nashville Skyline (1969/2003)

Released in 1969, Nashville Skyline features ten tracks that dance on a cloud of country charm and homespun, roots-tinged warmth. Dylan’s crooner vocals—controversial, but said to be the result of having given up smoking—are ladled on like gravy over biscuits. The album kicks off with Johnny Cash joining Dylan in a clunky but engaging duet of Dylan’s “Girl from The North Country,” followed by an instrumental interlude that sets the stage for the Southern-fried journey to come. Standouts include “I Threw It All Away,” “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You,” and the classic “Lay Lady Lay.” MoFi’s remastering is exquisitely packaged in a heavy gatefold; pressing is by RTI, and the surfaces are immaculate. Compared with the veiled, compressed Legacy CD reissue a few years ago, the vinyl is brighter and faster, and there’s more room for the spare arrangements to breathe. While the recording isn’t a standout in terms of dimension and depth, there’s now far more atmosphere and sense of place and time. Vocal quarrels aside, Dylan’s Nashville persona worked, and the album became one of the Nobel Laureate’s best-selling efforts.