We’ve all wondered what it would be like to be friends with a “famous person.” Because you’re here on the Radio Milwaukee website, I’d be willing to bet a lot of those people are musicians. How cool would it be to hang out, pick their brains, hear what they have to say about music — new and old?
I think that’s why I’ve enjoyed listening to Song Chest Radio Hour these first seven episodes. Host Justin Vernon has a way of making you feel like he’s sitting in the room with you, telling you about this artist or song you’ve never heard before and — through his sheer love of music — making it feel like your new favorite.
Episode 7 still has that vibe (even if Vernon calls it episode 6), but it veers from the path by centering on an artist we all most certainly know.
“We’re going to do a Bob Dylan episode appreciation today,” Vernon says off the top of the show. “Maybe you’re like, ‘Oh no.’ Maybe you’re like, ‘Oh!’ Maybe you’re like, ‘Hell yeah.’ Either way, this is for all of you. I’m going to play you my favorite tracks from all the decades — deep cuts, some standards. We’re going to have great fun.
“This is basically the playlist I’d play for somebody to prove that Bob Dylan’s the greatest, whatever that means.”
I am, admittedly, a Bob Dylan casualist. I know the songs everyone knows, and that’s about it. So going on this 60-minute sojourn with Vernon didn’t just give me that “good hang” energy I always get from Song Chest; it also shined a light on an artist I know of but didn’t really know at all.
Listen to the episode below to get ready for another installment broadcasting over the 88Nine airwaves and streamwaves this Sunday at 5 p.m.
Track listing
- 00:00 — "Sign On the Window,” Bob Dylan
- 05:21 — “Lay Down Your Weary Tune,” Bob Dylan
- 10:57 — “Most of the Time,” Bob Dylan
- 16:56 — “Moonshiner,” Bob Dylan
- 22:45 — “Shooting Star,” Bob Dylan
- 27:33 — “Day of the Locusts,” Bob Dylan
- 32:12 — “Only a Hobo,” Bob Dylan
- 36:07 — “Shot of Love,” Bob Dylan
- 41:06 — “When He Returns,” Bob Dylan
- 46:05 — “Not Dark Yet,” Bob Dylan
- 52:57 — “Angelina,” Bob Dylan
