Various Artists - I'm Not There: Original Soundtrack

V/A
I’m Not There: Original Soundtrack
SONY Music
Grade: A-

This is the double-disc soundtrack for the new Dylan biopic I’m Not There. Directed by Todd Haynes and featuring a cast of various Dylans including Heath Ledger and Cate Blanchett, I’m Not There is supposed to be a spectacular show. This soundtrack is if nothing else overwhelming and rich in its inclusions of both songs and bands. Disc One features more electric Dylan covers, while the second disc focuses more on acoustic Dylan, but you find good moments throughout both. Sixteen covers greet you on Disc One with Eddie Vedder & the Million Dollar Bashers (the collective of Steve Shelley, Tony Garnier, John Medeski, Tom Verlaine, Lee Ranaldo, Smokey Hormel, and Nels Cline) kicking it off with “All Along the Watchtower.” Sonic Youth keeps things going with “I’m Not There” and the music continues to roll with Stephen Malkmus & MDB covering “Ballad of a Thin Man,” Cat Power absolute rocking “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again,” Iron & Wine & Calexico on “Dark Eyes” which sounds very much like a song off of Beam’s new record, the quirky “Highway 61 Revisited” covered by Karen O & MDB, Mason Jennings on “The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll,” and Willie Nelson & Calexico on “Senor (Tales of Yankee Power).” While Disc One is strong, for my money Disc Two is where the magic is at; you easily get down to any one of the covers. Mira Billotte begins Disc Two (a complete eighteen songs) on the strong “As I Went Out One Morning” and other notables follow in short order with the extended Sufjan Stevens’ cover of “Ring Them Bells,” Charlotte Gainsbourg & Calexico on “Just Like a Woman,” Glen Hansard & Marketa Irglova covering “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere,” The Black Keys’ distorted, dirty swamp blues cover of “The Wicked Messenger,” naturally Mason Jennings’ cover of “The Times They Are Changin’,” Malkus & MDB on “Maggie’s Farm,” and Antony & the Johnsons covering “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” in the only way that they could - oddly. The second disc ends with Dylan and the Band rocking out the original “I’m Not Here.” Even if you never see the film I’m Not There this soundtrack is beyond worth picking up.