Compiling tracks from his first seven albums (1977-1993), Chronicles, Vol. 1 offers an overview of Michael Rother's work following his time with Neu! and Harmonia. Neu! had a famously split personality, combining seamless mesmeric grooves and jarring fragmentation, tranquil ambience and industrial menace. Rother was always more readily associated with the melodic, understated part of that equation, enveloping Klaus Dinger's metronomic drumming with layers of processed guitar-minimalism and exploring proto-ambient atmospherics (something he pursued with Harmonia). The material collected here documents Rother's continued exploration of Neu!'s quieter, more tuneful orientation, further developing the pioneering hybrid of rock and electronics initiated with Dinger. With textured melodic lines and spare, rigid beats that coalesce into incrementally changing patterns, several tracks re-create Neu!'s trademark motorik pulse. "Sonnenrad" (from Sternthaler), for instance, wouldn't sound out of place on Neu! 75, its bright, warm groove looking forward to synth pop bands like OMD. Similarly, "Silberstreif" (from Fernwarme) encapsulates the signature characteristics of Rother's guitar work, epitomizing his distinctive blending of expressiveness with absolute minimalist precision, simplicity and control. The melancholy, folk-nuanced title track of Flammende Herzen underscores his ability to imbue the sparsest sounds with emotional resonance. Elsewhere, Rother de-emphasizes the precise motorik drive and takes a more expansive approach, painting in broader strokes, especially on the droning "Pulsar" (from Lust) and "Fernwärme," both of which have a spacier, more hypnotic feel. So much synth-enhanced rock recorded in the mid-'80s has aged badly, but the trance-inducing epic "Tiefenschärfe" (from Suessherz und Tiefenschärfe) is a refreshing exception; with its combination of repetition and gradual variation, samples and unobtrusive beats, this number anticipates subsequent trends in dance music. While Chronicles, Vol. 1 doesn't offer as extensive a selection as the 1993 compilation Radio: Musick von Michael Rother, it nonetheless provides a good introduction to Rother's subtly innovative work. ~ Wilson Neate, All Music Guide
Chronicles, Volume One is the first part of Bob Dylan's planned 3-volume memoir. Published on October 5, 2004 by Simon & Schuster, the 304-page volume covers selected points from Dylan's long career. The book spent 19 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list for hardcover nonfiction books.[1]Chronicles, Volume One was one of five finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Award in the Biography/Autobiography category for the 2004 publishing year. The abridged audio version of the book is read by actor Sean Penn. The unabridged version is read by Nick Landrum.
Defying expectations,[2] Dylan wrote three chapters about the year between his arrival in New York City in 1961 and recording his first album, focusing on the brief period before he was a household name, while virtually ignoring the mid-1960s when his fame was at its height. He also devoted chapters to two lesser-known albums, New Morning (1970) and Oh Mercy (1989), which contained insights into his collaborations with poet Archibald MacLeish and producer Daniel Lanois. In the New Morning chapter, Dylan expresses distaste for the "spokesman of a generation" label bestowed upon him, and evinces disgust with his more fanatical followers. At the end of the book, Dylan describes with great passion the moment when he listened to the Brecht/Weill song "Pirate Jenny", and the moment when he first heard Robert Johnson’s recordings. In these passages, Dylan suggested that the process ignited his own songwriting.
In an interview conducted by Jonathan Lethem, published in Rolling Stone[3], Dylan said he was very moved by the book's reception. "Most people who write about music, they have no idea what it feels like to play it. But with the book I wrote, I thought, ‘The people who are writing reviews of this book, man, they know what the hell they’re talking about.’ It spoils you … they know more about it than me. The reviews of this book, some of ’em almost made me cry—in a good way. I’d never felt that from a music critic ever."
Simon & Schuster have said that Dylan was expected to have begun working on Chronicles Vol. 2 while on a break from the Never Ending Tour in May 2008.[4] According to the book A Simple Twist of Fate, the sequel may feature a section detailing the making of Blood on the Tracks.[5]
