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The Bootleg Series, Vol. 17: Fragments - Time Out of Mind Sessions 1996-1997 Image
Metascore
87

Universal acclaim - based on 13 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.8

Universal acclaim- based on 6 Ratings

  • Summary: The latest in Bob Dylan's Bootleg Series features a new remix of the 1997 album Time Out Of Mind as well as 12 previously unreleased outtakes and alternate versions. A deluxe edition includes an additional disc of outtakes and alternate versions; a disc of live performances from 1998-2001;The latest in Bob Dylan's Bootleg Series features a new remix of the 1997 album Time Out Of Mind as well as 12 previously unreleased outtakes and alternate versions. A deluxe edition includes an additional disc of outtakes and alternate versions; a disc of live performances from 1998-2001; and 12 tracks previously available on The Bootleg Series Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs. Expand
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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 13
  2. Negative: 0 out of 13
  1. Jan 27, 2023
    100
    The joy here is in basking in the creative process, how Dylan chipped away at differing tempos, alternate arrangements and revised lyrics for each composition, ultimately to arrive at the final 11 tracks.
  2. Jan 31, 2023
    100
    Fragments: Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997) serves the showman well, making this era sing, one of The Bootleg Series’ most intriguing investigations so far into Bob Dylan’s working practices and mindset.
  3. Jan 26, 2023
    90
    It contains some of his finest work, and this lengthy package is a profound expansion on the sessions, live shows, and experimentation that took him there. A terrific piece of Dylan lore, for casual fans and Dylanologists alike.
  4. Mar 22, 2023
    90
    It showcases the entire process and in doing so furthers one’s appreciation of a work of art that is so consequential as it already is. Along with a book of essays and ephemera to further instruct and illuminate, Fragments is as essential to the Dylan catalog as Time Out of Mind itself.
  5. Jan 30, 2023
    86
    Disc One gives us the final studio album, remixed and scrubbed fresh so we can avail ourselves once more of its glorious shadows and submerge ourselves in its delicious mood. The remaining four discs—two of unreleased outtakes, one previously available, and a live set—repositions Time Out of Mind as a rebirth rather than a farewell.
  6. 80
    Michael Brauer’s interpretation – same songs, different mix – alters the texture of familiar songs like Love Sick, the spectral Cold Irons Bound and Make You Feel My Love, now something of a standard thanks to Adele, Michael Bublé and, er, Nick Knowles. ... The live pieces are more informative, with songs performed between 1998 and 2001.
  7. Jan 26, 2023
    60
    It's a lot of samey-sounding material to wade through just to find a slightly different version of "Mississippi." While the remix is instructive, offering insight into Dylan's intentions and making Time Out of Mind seem less like an outlier in his discography, this set is ultimately for the hardcore heads, who don't mind hearing minute variations on familiar themes.

See all 13 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Feb 1, 2023
    10
    There is no other album in my musical journey that has had an impact deeply as Time Out of Mind did back in 2013 when I first listened to it.There is no other album in my musical journey that has had an impact deeply as Time Out of Mind did back in 2013 when I first listened to it. I was going through a very dark period in my life and the only form of joy was coming from listening to this sonically complex and lyrically raw album.

    Tracks such as Lovesick and Make you feel my love still ring in my head. I love this bootleg series that invokes a feeling of joyful revision of a true masterpiece.
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  2. Feb 18, 2023
    10
    Although it's impossible (and extremely foolish), to select one Dylan album as his definitive best, I'll settle for it just being myAlthough it's impossible (and extremely foolish), to select one Dylan album as his definitive best, I'll settle for it just being my favourite. What 'Fragments' shows is that despite its protracted creation these songs were worth fighting over, they are the ones that mark a new chapter in Dylan's writing.

    If there was one criticism frequently levelled at ‘Time Out of Mind’ upon release it was that Daniel Lanois’ production was a little too smooth for a supposedly blues-inspired record. t appears that Dylan wasn’t that in awe of the finished product either (I won’t go into the accounts of how Lanois and Dylan fought during the creation of the record – you can read that elsewhere), and thus the first disc of ‘Fragments’ is not only a new remix of the entire album, but Lanois’ production credits have also been quietly removed. Those amends are subtle but effective, Dylan’s voice feels crisper, you can identify the individual instruments of the stellar ensemble of musicians. Although you may strain to hear some of the alterations, the clearness of the new mix of ‘Can’t Wait’ reveals a gritty and, yes, bluesy song it is. The new mix of the aforementioned ‘Not Dark Yet’ may be the most striking of all the new versions, although the de-hazed ‘Make You Feel My Love’ seems unfinished in its new state.

    Full review available at www.outsideleft.com
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