Album Review: Bob Dylan: Fragments- Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996-1997): The Bootleg Series, Vol. 17 (Deluxe Edition)

I resorted to desperate counter-programming as I drove home from pre-pandemic Folk Alliance International Conference sessions.  After being deluged with hours of banjo and conscientious protest songs, I felt compelled to queue up digital productions by the antisocial likes of Kevin Gates.  Not this year.  I’m all in on the six-hour and thirteen-minute reissue of Bob Dylan’s Time Out of Mind.  I loved the album as a new release in 1997.  It sounds even better now.  The former folkie’s ravaged voice, gothic blues and frequently hilarious lyrics reflect my current worldview.  My default soundtrack also led to a synchronized bout of serendipity.  A 16-minute version of “Highlands” began as I left the garage of a midtown hotel after midnight last week.  The song ended when I pulled into my driveway.  I too “feel like a prisoner in a world of mystery.”