Biograph [Long Box] by Bob Dylan

BIOGRAPH features 53 digitally remastered Bob Dylan recordings spanning the years 1961-1981, 18 of which were previously unissued. Includes liner notes and song annotations by Cameron Crowe including comments by Bob Dylan. This three-disc set was Columbia's first attempt to anthologize Dylan in the box-set format. Unlike the later BOOTLEG SERIES, though, BIOGRAPH does double duty as treasure trove of previously unreleased material and greatest hits package. From "Tangled Up in Blue" to "I Want You," most of Dylan's FM radio staples are here, painting a clear historical picture of both his development as an artist and his transformation from rabble-rousing underdog to popular culture icon. The real gems here are, naturally, the previously unreleased songs. Some, like "Isis" and the surrealistic epic "Visions of Johanna" are Dylan album cuts heard here in revelatory live versions. Some are Dylan's version of songs he wrote that were recorded by others ("Mighty Quinn," a hit for Manfred Mann, and "I'll Keep...