Bob Dylan’s Christmas In the Heart, track by track . . .

Dylan just eases into this one, with a quiet pleasure that summons up an image of him settling back in an armchair before the fire, wearing his Bing Crosby cardigan and filling up a pipe — with tobacco!  The ghost of his favorite dog from childhood, old Shep, is curled up at his feet, he can smell the turkey roasting in the oven and he knows that the egg nog in the icebox is just about ripened.  Boy, that’s gonna be good.

The night wind is whipping snow against the windowpanes, and Bob is entertaining visitors, even though nobody but him can see them.

He’s communing here, with Bing and Nat and Frank, not trying to outdo them, just happy to be in their company.

In short, he’s messing with your head.  He’s messing with his own head.  But what the heck?  Just throw another log on the fire, settle back in your own armchair and enjoy it.  It’s Christmas . . . the happiest season of all.

Back to the Christmas In the Heart track list page.