Bryan Ferry (sophisticated Brit-pop maestro, formerly of Roxy Music) will join an ever-increasing number of musicians who have recorded albums consisting entirely of songs written by Bob Dylan, with the March 5th release of Dylanesque, according to Uncut magazine.

Ferry has changed the moods and temper of the songs, protest song ‘The Times They Are A-Changin´ is no longer just that. Ferry tells us “The way I do it doesn’t mean it isn’t a protest song … this song can be whatever you want it to be. I grew up with the jazz idea that you could do a song in many different ways.”

Other tracks Ferry has tackled include, ‘Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues,’ ‘Simple Twist of Fate,’ ‘All I Really Want To Do´ and ‘Positively 4th Street.´

Guest musicians also appear on the covers album – Brian Eno provides “sonic enhancements” on ‘If Not For You´ and The Dirty Three´s Warren Ellis brings a string arrangement to ‘Positively 4th Street.´

Ferry also tackles ‘Knocking On Heaven’s Door´ admitting that “[it] was a risky one, because it’s been covered so many times by different people.

Glad to hear that, in Bryan Ferry’s hands, the “protest song”The Times They Are A-Changin’ is “no longer just that,” according to Uncut magazine.

It would be interesting to hear what they think that song was protesting in the first place.

The only was to hear that song as a song of protest is to interpret its message as simply: “you old people get out of the way and let the young people take over.” Is that what it really meant in 1964? Is that what it meant in 1974? And in the 1980s? And now, when Dylan sings it in concert as he did last year and will likely again this year?

Seems kind of dumb, doesn’t it?

Or maybe it’s possible that Uncut magazine is missing the point somehow.

The line it is drawn
The curse it is cast
The slow one now
Will later be fast
As the present now
Will later be past
The order is
Rapidly fadin’.
And the first one now
Will later be last
For the times they are a-changin’.

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