Saved | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | June 23, 1980 | |||
Recorded | February 11–15, 1980 | |||
Studio | Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, Alabama [1] | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 42:39 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | ||||
Bob Dylan chronology | ||||
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Re-released cover | ||||
Saved is the twentieth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on June 23, 1980, by Columbia Records. Saved was the second album of Dylan's "Christian trilogy". It expanded on themes explored on its predecessor Slow Train Coming , with gospel arrangements and lyrics extolling the importance of a strong personal faith.
The cover of Saved originally featured a painting by Tony Wright of Jesus Christ's hand reaching down to touch the hands of his believers. However, this cover was subsequently replaced by a painting of Dylan on stage performing during that time period in order to downplay the overtly religious nature of the original cover. It has since been changed back on some re-releases. A quote inside the sleevenotes reads: "'Behold, the days come, sayeth the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah' (Jeremiah 31:31)". [4]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [5] |
CCM Magazine | [4] |
Christgau's Record Guide | C+ [6] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [7] |
Entertainment Weekly | C− [8] |
Tom Hull | B− [9] |
Rolling Stone | [10] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [11] |
The album hit No. 3 on the UK charts, reached No. 24 on the US charts, selling around 280,000 copies and did not go gold. CCM Magazine described the album as an "open declaration of Dylan's deepening faith." [4] Critical reaction to the album was mixed. Robert Christgau awarded the album a "C+", which is described by Christgau as "most likely a failed experiment or a pleasant piece of hackwork". [12] Writing for Rolling Stone , Kurt Loder praised Dylan's backing band, but felt that several songs were hampered by overtly religious messages, although he did single out "In the Garden" for having a "lovely, billowing arrangement". Loder stated that Dylan's efforts at a gospel album were not as remarkable as others "not just because he lacks the vocal equipment but because he's too inventive, too big for the genre", but summarised Saved as a gospel work with "some distinction". [13] In 2020, Rolling Stone included Saved in their "80 Greatest albums of 1980" list, praising Dylan for being "at the peak of his vocal powers, and he’s rarely played with a better bunch of musicians". [14]
Record World said of the single "Solid Rock" that "Dylan's latest inspiration is perhaps his greatest, as evidenced by this compelling rocker." [15]
All tracks are written by Bob Dylan, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "A Satisfied Mind" | Red Hayes, Jack Rhodes | 1:57 |
2. | "Saved" | Tim Drummond, Bob Dylan | 4:00 |
3. | "Covenant Woman" | 6:02 | |
4. | "What Can I Do for You?" | 5:54 | |
5. | "Solid Rock" | 3:55 | |
Total length: | 21:48 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Pressing On" | 5:11 |
2. | "In the Garden" | 5:58 |
3. | "Saving Grace" | 5:01 |
4. | "Are You Ready" | 4:41 |
Total length: | 20:51 |
Technical
Originally released in 1980 on LP and cassette, the album was first reprinted in 1985 and released on CD in 1990. Saved was remastered in 2013 for the release of The Complete Album Collection Vol. One .
Sandinista! is the fourth studio album by the English punk rock band the Clash. It was released on 12 December 1980 as a triple album containing 36 tracks, with 6 songs on each side. It crosses various genres including funk, reggae, jazz, gospel, rockabilly, folk, dub, rhythm and blues, calypso, disco, and rap. For the first time, the band's songs were credited to the Clash as a group, rather than to Joe Strummer and Mick Jones. The band agreed to a decrease in album royalties in order to release the 3-LP at a low price.
Slow Train Coming is the nineteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on August 20, 1979, by Columbia Records. It was Dylan's first album following his conversion to Christianity, and the songs either express personal faith, or stress the importance of Christian teachings and philosophy. The evangelical nature of the record alienated many of Dylan's existing fans; at the same time, many Christians were drawn into his fan base. Slow Train Coming was listed at No. 16 in the 2001 book CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music.
Dylan & the Dead is a collaborative live album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and the Grateful Dead, released on February 6, 1989, by Columbia Records. The album consists of seven songs written and sung by Dylan, with the Grateful Dead providing accompaniment. The album was produced by Jerry Garcia and John Cutler.
Self Portrait is the tenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on June 8, 1970, by Columbia Records.
Bob Dylan at Budokan is a live album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released August 1978 on Columbia Records in Japan only, followed by a worldwide release in April 1979. It was recorded during his 1978 world tour and is composed mostly of the artist's "greatest hits". The performances in the album are radically altered from the originals, using almost all the musicians that played on Street-Legal, but relying on a much larger band and stronger use of woodwind and backing singers. In some respects the arrangements are more conventional than the original arrangements, for which the album was criticized. For a few critics, such as Janet Maslin of Rolling Stone, the differences between the older and newer arrangements had become less important.
Shot of Love is the twenty-first studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on August 12, 1981, by Columbia Records. It is considered to be Dylan's last of a trilogy of Christian albums. Arrangements are rooted more in rock, and less in gospel than Dylan's two previous albums.
Real Live is a live album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on November 29, 1984, by Columbia Records. Recorded during the artist's 1984 European Tour, most of the album was recorded at Wembley Stadium on 7 July, but "License to Kill" and "Tombstone Blues" come from St James' Park, Newcastle on 5 July, and "I and I" and "Girl from the North Country" were recorded at Slane Castle, Ireland on 8 July.
Knocked Out Loaded is the twenty-fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on July 14, 1986 by Columbia Records.
Down in the Groove is the twenty-fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on May 30, 1988 by Columbia Records.
Under the Red Sky is the twenty-seventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on September 10, 1990, by Columbia Records. It was produced by Don Was, David Was, and Dylan.
Into the Music is the 11th studio album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison, and was released in August 1979. It includes "Bright Side of the Road", which peaked at number 63 on the UK Singles Chart, and other songs in which Morrison sought to return to his more profound and transcendent style after the pop-oriented Wavelength. The record received favourable reviews from several music critics and was named as one of the year's best albums in the Pazz & Jop critics' poll.
Smiler is the fifth solo album by English rock singer-songwriter Rod Stewart. It was released September 27, 1974 by Mercury Records. It reached number 1 in the UK album chart, and number 13 in the US. The album included covers of Chuck Berry, Sam Cooke and Bob Dylan songs, as well as a duet with Elton John of John's song "Let Me Be Your Car". Stewart also covered Carole King's "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" where 'Woman' is switched to 'Man'. The release of the album was held up for five months due to legal problems between Mercury Records and Warner Bros. Records.
You is the twenty-second studio album by American singer Aretha Franklin, released on October 16, 1975, by Atlantic Records.
Boz Scaggs is the second studio album by American musician Boz Scaggs, released in 1969 by Atlantic Records. A stylistically diverse album, Boz Scaggs incorporates several genres, including Americana, blue-eyed soul, country, and rhythm and blues. The lyrics are about typical themes found in blues songs, such as love, regret, guilt, and loss. Scaggs recorded the album at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio with producer Jann Wenner, the co-founder of Rolling Stone magazine. The Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section heavily contributed to the album, which included a young Duane Allman, before his rise to fame with the Allman Brothers Band.
"Gotta Serve Somebody" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released as the opening track on his 1979 studio album Slow Train Coming. It won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Male in 1980. It was later anthologized on the compilation albums Biograph (1985), Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits Volume 3 (1994), The Essential Bob Dylan (2000), The Best of Bob Dylan and Dylan (2007).
Stingray is the sixth studio album by Joe Cocker, released in 1976. It follows Cocker's pattern of recording mainly cover versions containing just one original song, "Born Thru Indifference". Bob Dylan remained a favourite artist for Cocker to cover with two Dylan songs on this release. Dylan's version of "The Man In Me" appeared on New Morning but "Catfish" would not be released until 1991 on the first volume of The Bootleg Series.
Dedication is a 1981 album by American singer Gary U.S. Bonds.
"Jokerman" is a song by Bob Dylan that appeared as the opening track of his 1983 album Infidels. Recorded on April 14, 1983, it was released as a single on June 1, 1984, featuring a live version of "Isis" from the film Renaldo and Clara as its B-side.
The Slide Area is the tenth studio album by Ry Cooder. It was released in 1982 and peaked at No. 105 on the Billboard 200.
"Pressing On" is a gospel song written and performed by the American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and released as the sixth track on his 1980 album Saved. When the album was released it was considered by many critics to be "one of the few bright spots on the album" and has stood the test of time by being covered by more than half a dozen artists in the 21st century. The song was produced by Jerry Wexler and Barry Beckett.
Dylan's three Christian-rock albums are derisively referred to as the "Unholy Three," even though they produced a number of great songs, including this one and the aforementioned Gotta Serve Somebody.
Until this release, virtually the only access we've had to Dylan's gospel music has been the three studio albums he made during this era: "Slow Train Coming" (1979), "Saved" (1980) and "Shot of Love" (1981).