That wily Bob Dylan has a new album in the can and all set for an April release, and even better, there’s a song about Houston on it.
The still-untitled album’s sudden appearance came as a surprise even to those close to Dylan, Rolling Stone reports. “The disc has the live-in-the-studio feel of Dylan’s last two studio records, 2001’s Love and Theft and 2006’s Modern Times, but with a seductive border-cafe feel (courtesy of the accordion on every track) and an emphasis on struggling-love songs,” reports senior RS music guru David Fricke.
The song about our town is called “If You Ever Go to Houston,” and it’s a “Texas-dancehall jump,” says Fricke.
Considering R.E.M.’s “Houston,” from last year’s Accelerate, and Tom Petty’s “Orphan of the Storm,” from Mudcrutch’s self-titled 2008 album, obviously the Bayou City is the urban locale of choice for esteemed rock legends. Stick that in your bong and smoke it, Austin.
Dylan is now officially off the hook for omitting Houston from 1986’s outlaw epic “Brownsville Girl,” which he co-wrote with playwright Sam Shepard and mentions just about every other Texas municipality of any size.
Now, hopefully, he’ll take his song’s advice and actually come play a show here — senor Zimmerman hasn’t done so since the 2002 rodeo. He probably would have last year, when he did a three-night stand at Dallas’ House of Blues en route to a bunch of shows in Mexico, but our HOB wasn’t open yet. Now he’s got no excuse.
This article appears in Feb 26 – Mar 4, 2009.
