View source for Blood on the Tracks

{{For|the Japanese manga series by Shūzō Oshimi|Blood on the Tracks (manga)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox album
| name         = Blood on the Tracks
| type         = studio
| artist       = [[Bob Dylan]]
| cover        = Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks.jpg
| alt          = A solarized photograph of Dylan's face in profile facing a burgundy stripe with the album's name in white
| released     = {{Start date|1975|01|20}}
| recorded     = September 16–19 and December 27–30, 1974
| studio       = *[[A & R Recording|A & R]], New York City
*[[Sound 80]], Minneapolis
| genre        = 
*[[Contemporary folk music|Folk]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/22485-blood-on-the-tracks/ | title=Bob Dylan: Blood on the Tracks | website=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]] }}</ref> 
*[[folk rock]]
| length       = {{Duration|m=51|s=46}}
| label        = [[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
| producer     = {{hlist|[[Phil Ramone]] (New York; uncredited) |Bob Dylan (Minneapolis; uncredited)<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/rolling-stone-500-blood-on-the-tracks-bob-dylan-1069883/|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|title=500 Greatest Albums: Inside 'Blood on the Tracks,' Bob Dylan's Shapeshifting Seventies Masterpiece|author=Joe Levy|date=2 October 2020}}</ref>}}
| prev_title   = [[Before the Flood (album)|Before the Flood]]
| prev_year    = 1974
| next_title   = [[The Basement Tapes]]
| next_year    = 1975
| misc         = {{Singles
 | name        = Blood on the Tracks
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = [[Tangled Up in Blue]]" / "[[If You See Her, Say Hello]]
 | single1date = January 17, 1975
}}
}}

'''''Blood on the Tracks''''' is the fifteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter [[Bob Dylan]], released on January 20, 1975,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.uncut.co.uk/bob-dylan/shelter-from-the-storm-the-inside-story-of-bob-dylan-s-blood-on-the-tracks-feature|title=Shelter From The Storm – the inside story of Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks|access-date=January 20, 2015|work=[[Uncut Magazine]]|date=November 15, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129032921/http://www.uncut.co.uk/bob-dylan/shelter-from-the-storm-the-inside-story-of-bob-dylan-s-blood-on-the-tracks-feature|archive-date=November 29, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Searchingforagem">{{cite web|url=http://www.searchingforagem.com/1970s/International018.htm|title=Blood On The Tracks 1975|first=Alan|last=Fraser|website=www.searchingforagem.com|access-date=July 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804205435/http://searchingforagem.com/1970s/International018.htm|archive-date=August 4, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> by [[Columbia Records]]. The album marked Dylan's return to Columbia after two albums with [[Asylum Records]]. Dylan began recording the album at an [[A & R Recording|A & R]] studio in New York City in September 1974. In December, shortly before Columbia was due to release the album, Dylan abruptly re-recorded much of the material in [[Sound 80]] studio in [[Minneapolis]]. The final album contains five tracks recorded in New York and five from Minneapolis. The songs have been linked to tensions in Dylan's personal life, including his estrangement from his then-wife [[Sara Dylan|Sara]]. One of their children, [[Jakob Dylan]], described the songs as "my parents talking".<ref name="Sounes284">{{harvnb|Sounes|2001|p=284}}</ref> Dylan denied that the songs were autobiographical.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Willman |first=Chris |date=2015-01-21 |title=40 Facts About the 40-Year-Old 'Blood on the Tracks' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dylans-bloody-best-album-40-facts-about-the-40-year-old-blood-on-the-tracks-159901/ |access-date=2022-02-18 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}</ref>

''Blood on the Tracks'' initially received mixed reviews, but has since been acclaimed by critics and fans as one of Dylan's best albums; various publications have listed it as one of the greatest albums of all time. It was a commercial success, peaking at No. 1 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] and No. 4 on the [[UK Albums Chart]]; the single "[[Tangled Up in Blue]]" peaked at No. 31 on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]]. It remains one of Dylan's best-selling studio releases, with a [[platinum record|double-platinum]] certification by the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] (RIAA) for at least two million copies sold in the United States.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=November 1, 2003|title=The ''Rolling Stone'' 500 Greatest Albums of All Time|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6597661/16_blood_on_the_tracks|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120416063554/http://www.rollingstone.com/news|archive-date=April 16, 2012|access-date=March 22, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2015, it was inducted into the [[Grammy Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=GRAMMY Hall Of Fame|url=https://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame#b|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150626200735/https://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards/hall-of-fame#b|archive-date=June 26, 2015|access-date=May 24, 2016|website=The GRAMMYs}}</ref>

''Blood on the Tracks'' was voted number 7 in the third edition of [[Colin Larkin (writer)|Colin Larkin]]'s book ''[[All Time Top 1000 Albums]]'' (2000).<ref name="Larkin">{{cite book|title=[[All Time Top 1000 Albums]]|editor=Colin Larkin|editor-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|publisher=[[Virgin Books]]|date=2000|edition=3rd|isbn=0-7535-0493-6|page=35}}</ref> In 2003, the album was ranked number 16 on ''[[Rolling Stone]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s list of the “[[Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time|500 Greatest Albums of All Time]]”, rising to number 9 in the 2020 revision of the list. In 2004, it  placed number 5 on ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s list of the "Top 100 Albums of the 1970s".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5932-top-100-albums-of-the-1970s/10/|title=Staff Lists: Top 100 Albums of the 1970s|date=June 23, 2004|access-date=January 11, 2013|work=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130415064956/http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5932-top-100-albums-of-the-1970s/10/|archive-date=April 15, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> A high-definition 5.1 [[surround sound]] edition of the album was released on [[Super Audio CD|SACD]] by Columbia in 2003.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.highfidelityreview.com/columbia-releases-15-bob-dylan-albums-on-hybrid-sacd.html |title=Columbia Releases 15 Bob Dylan Albums on Hybrid SACD |date=September 16, 2003 |access-date=January 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129230957/https://www.highfidelityreview.com/columbia-releases-15-bob-dylan-albums-on-hybrid-sacd.html |archive-date=January 29, 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Background and recording==
After his [[Bob Dylan and The Band 1974 Tour|1974 tour with the Band]], Dylan began a relationship with a Columbia Records employee, Ellen Bernstein, which Dylan biographer [[Clinton Heylin]] has described as the beginning of the end of Dylan's marriage to his wife [[Sara Dylan|Sara]].<ref name=heylin362>{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| pp=362–363}}</ref> In spring 1974, Dylan spent several weeks in New York while he took art classes from the painter [[Norman Raeben]].<ref name=heylin368>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dd5EmZDdScoC&pg=PA369|pages=368–369|title=Behind the Shades: The 20th Anniversary Edition|author=Clinton Heylin|publisher=Faber & Faber|date= April 1, 2011|isbn=9780571272419}}</ref> Dylan credited Raeben with transforming his understanding of time, and during the summer of 1974 he began to write songs using this new knowledge in three small notebooks:<ref>{{Cite web |date=December 31, 2018 |title=Bob Dylan's Three "Blood on the Tracks" Notebooks: Not Just Red |url=https://www.nodepression.com/bob-dylans-three-blood-on-the-tracks-notebooks-not-just-red/}}</ref>
 
{{blockquote|[Raeben] taught me how to see ... in a way that allowed me to do consciously what I unconsciously felt&nbsp;... when I started doing it, the first album I made was ''Blood on the Tracks''. Everybody agrees that was pretty different, and what's different about it is there's a code in the lyrics, and also there's no sense of time.<ref name=heylin368/>}}

Dylan subsequently spent time with Bernstein on his farm in Minnesota and there he completed the 17 songs from which ''Blood on the Tracks'' was formed—songs which Heylin has described as "perhaps the finest collection of love songs of the twentieth century, songs filled with the full spectrum of emotions a marriage on the rocks can engender".<ref name=heylin372>{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| p=372}}</ref>

Before recording the songs that would constitute ''Blood on the Tracks'', Dylan previewed them for a number of friends in the music world, including [[David Crosby]], [[Graham Nash]], [[Stephen Stills]], [[Tim Drummond]] and [[Peter Rowan]].<ref name="st-42">{{harvnb|Gill & Odegard|2005|pp=42–44}}</ref> Nash recalled that Stills disliked Dylan's private performance of his new songs; immediately after Dylan left the room, Stills remarked to Nash, "He's a good songwriter&nbsp;... but he's no musician."<ref name="st-42"/>

Initially, Dylan considered recording ''Blood on the Tracks'' with an electric backing group, and contacted [[Mike Bloomfield]] who had played lead guitar on Dylan's ''[[Highway 61 Revisited]]'' album. When the two met, Dylan ran through the songs he was planning to record, but he played them too quickly for Bloomfield to learn.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} Bloomfield later recalled the experience: "They all began to sound the same to me; they were all in the same [[key (music)|key]]; they were all long. It was one of the strangest experiences of my life. He was sort of pissed off that I didn't pick it up." In the end, Dylan rejected the idea of recording the album with a band, and instead substituted stripped-down acoustic arrangements for all of his songs.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} On August 2, 1974, Dylan signed a contract with [[Columbia Records]]. After releasing his two previous albums, ''[[Planet Waves]]'' and ''[[Before the Flood (album)|Before the Flood]]'', on [[Asylum Records]], Dylan decided his new album would benefit from the commercial muscle of the record label that had made him famous, and his new contract gave him increased control over his own masters.<ref name=Heylin378/>

Dylan commenced recording at [[A & R Recording|A & R Recording Studios]] in New York City on September 16, 1974. Bernstein has stated "the theme of returning ran through the sessions", so "it made a lot of sense to do it at A&R".<ref name=Heylin378>{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| p=378}}</ref> A & R Studios was the former [[Columbia Records#7th Avenue, New York|Columbia Records "Studio A"]], where Dylan had recorded six albums in the 1960s.<ref name=Heylin378/> The musicians quickly realized that Dylan was taking a "spontaneous" approach to recording.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} The producer, [[Phil Ramone]], later said that Dylan transitioned from one song to another as if they were part of a medley.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}} Ramone noted: "Sometimes he will have several bars, and in the next version, he will change his mind about how many bars there should be in between a verse. Or eliminate a verse. Or add a chorus when you don't expect."<ref>{{cite book|last=Rosen|first=Craig|title=The Billboard Book of Number One Albums: The Inside Story Behind Pop Music's Blockbuster Records|publisher=[[Billboard Books]]|location=New York|year=1996|isbn=9780823075867|page=194}}</ref>

[[Eric Weissberg]] and his band, Deliverance, originally recruited as session men, were rejected after one day of recording because they could not keep up with Dylan's pace.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} Dylan retained bassist Tony Brown from the band, and soon added [[organ (instrument)|organist]] [[Paul Griffin (musician)|Paul Griffin]] (who had also worked on ''Highway 61 Revisited'' and ''Blonde on Blonde'') and [[steel guitar]]ist [[Buddy Cage]].{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} After ten days{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} and four sessions<ref>Bjorner, [http://bjorner.com/74%201-6.htm#_Toc522515522 1974 On the Road Again: Calendar] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101103084600/http://bjorner.com/74%201-6.htm#_Toc522515522 |date=November 3, 2010 }} Bjorner's As the Years Passed the Door. Retrieved September 3, 2010</ref> with the current lineup, Dylan had finished recording and mixing, and, by November, had cut a [[acetate disc|test pressing]] of the album. Columbia began to prepare to release the album before Christmas.<ref>{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| pp=381}}</ref>

Dylan played the test pressing for his brother, David Zimmerman, who persuaded Dylan the album would not sell because the overall sound was too stark. [[Robert Christgau]] also heard the early version of the album and called it "a sellout to the memory of Dylan's pre-electric period".<ref name="Christgau" /> At his brother's urging, Dylan agreed to re-record five of the album's songs in [[Sound 80]] in [[Minneapolis]], with backing musicians recruited by David. The new takes were accomplished in two days at the end of December 1974. ''Blood on the Tracks'' was released into stores on January 20, 1975.<ref>{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| pp=381–383}}</ref> The version on the original test pressing was given a limited release in 2019 for [[Record Store Day]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/10564 |title=RSD '19 Special Release: Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks -- Original New York Test Pressing |access-date=February 6, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200206154318/https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/10564 |archive-date=February 6, 2020 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Outtakes ===
The five New York acetate recordings that were replaced on the official album have been officially released on various archival releases, but only in 2019 did the original test pressing get officially released, as a limited-edition vinyl-only Record Store Day release.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.discogs.com/release/13488951-Bob-Dylan-Blood-On-The-Tracks-Test-Pressing | title=Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks (Test Pressing) | website=[[Discogs]] | date=April 13, 2019 }}</ref> The acetate version of "[[You're a Big Girl Now]]" was released on 1985's ''[[Biograph (album)|Biograph]]''. New York takes of "[[Tangled Up in Blue]]", "[[Idiot Wind]]", and "[[If You See Her, Say Hello]]" were released on ''[[The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991|The Bootleg Series, Vol. 1–3]]'', but these were not the versions on the original test pressing. That collection also includes "Call Letter Blues", an outtake/early version of "[[Meet Me in the Morning]]" with alternate lyrics. "Up to Me", another outtake from these sessions, was also released on 1985's ''[[Biograph (album)|Biograph]]''. An alternate take of the song "[[Shelter from the Storm]]" is featured in the original soundtrack album for ''[[Jerry Maguire]]'' (1996). An alternate take of "[[Meet Me in the Morning]]" was released on the B-side of the Record Store Day 2012 release of "[[Duquesne Whistle]]". The acetate versions of "[[Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts]]", "[[If You See Her, Say Hello]]", "[[Idiot Wind]]", and "[[Tangled Up in Blue]]" were not released officially until 2018, when they were released, alongside 70 previously unreleased recordings, on the 6-disc deluxe edition of ''[[The Bootleg Series Vol. 14: More Blood, More Tracks|More Blood, More Tracks]]'', volume 14 of Dylan's ongoing archival ''Bootleg Series''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Bob Dylan / More Blood, More Tracks: The Bootleg Series Vol 14 – SuperDeluxeEdition |date=September 20, 2018 |url=http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/bob-dylan-more-blood-more-tracks-the-bootleg-series-vol-14/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180920195619/http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/bob-dylan-more-blood-more-tracks-the-bootleg-series-vol-14/ |archive-date=September 20, 2018 |access-date=September 20, 2018}}</ref> Despite featuring multiple versions of nearly every song from the sessions, the actual mix found on the test pressing is not in the box set, and was only made available on the aforementioned 2019 reissue.

==Artwork and packaging==
The front cover shows Bob Dylan in a portrait in profile looking to the left. To the left of this is a burgundy color strip with the artist's name and album title, both in white and underlined. While the cover image looks like a painting, it is a heavily edited photograph by Paul Till (who is credited accordingly). Till explained that the picture was taken with a telephoto lens at a concert at [[Maple Leaf Gardens]], in [[Toronto]] on January 10, 1974. When developing the photo he [[Solarization (photography)|solarized]] it, then hand colored it using watercolors, however Ron Coro, then the West Coast Art Director for Columbia Records states that he did not end up using the Paul Till solarized artwork and had used a blown up version of a " 4 X 4" black and white printed photo that Bob Dylan had brought with him in case Ron wanted a copy of the original photo to use. The 4" x 4" print was blown up quite a bit and was extremely grainy. Ron had Bob's profile features retouched for better clarity and then recolored the print as close as possible to Paul Till's original for use as the final art. That final art and album cover design was then approved by Bob Dylan in a meeting that Ron Coro had with Bob at the historic CBS Building in Hollywood CA. At that meeting Bob was shown several layouts of the album package designed by Ron Coro and Bob approved one of the design choices as the final album cover and back cover layout. The original 4" X 4" black and white print was returned to Bob at that final meeting.

The backcover shows, depending on the edition, one of two [[lithograph]]s by David Oppenheim. The main difference is between a version issued with and one issued without liner notes. The [[liner notes]] were written by [[Pete Hamill]], then removed by Columbia Records for later 1975 pressings – which is when the lithograph was switched out – and then reinstated after Hamill was awarded a [[Grammy Award|Grammy]] for his comments. There exist later issues of both versions of the back cover.<ref>[https://bob-dylan.org.uk/archives/20217 For a detailed discoussion see Patrick Roefflaer ''Blood on the Tracks. The art work.'' June 13, 2021]</ref>

==Autobiographical interpretation==
The songs that constitute ''Blood on the Tracks'' have been described by many Dylan critics as stemming from his personal turmoil at the time, particularly his estrangement from his then-wife [[Sara Dylan]].<ref>{{harvnb|Gill & Odegard|2005|pp=186–188}}</ref> One of Bob and Sara Dylan's children, [[Jakob Dylan]], has said, "When I'm listening to ''Blood On The Tracks'', that's about my parents."<ref>{{harvnb|Gray|2006|p=199}}</ref>

Dylan has denied this autobiographical interpretation, stating in a 1985 interview with Bill Flanagan, "A lot of people thought that album pertained to me. It didn't pertain to me&nbsp;... I'm not going to make an album and lean on a marriage relationship."<ref>{{harvnb|Flanagan|1990|pp=96–97}}</ref> Informed of the album's popularity, Dylan told [[Mary Travers (singer)|Mary Travers]] in a radio interview in April 1975: "A lot of people tell me they enjoy that album. It's hard for me to relate to that. I mean&nbsp;... people enjoying that type of pain, you know?" Addressing whether the album described his own personal pain, Dylan replied that he did not write "confessional songs".{{sfn|Williamson|2004|pp=111–113}} However, on the live ''[[Bob Dylan at Budokan|At Budokan]]'' album, Dylan seems to acknowledge the autobiographical nature of the song "Simple Twist of Fate" by introducing it as "Here's a simple love story. Happened to me." In a 1978 interview, he responded to an observation that the album was confessional and that "Tangled Up in Blue" drew on his relationship with Sara by saying, "There might be some little part of me which is confessing something which I've experienced and I know, but is not definitely the total me confessing anything."<ref>{{Citation |title=Bob Dylan — Matt Damsker interview. 1978. Hotel room. 1 PM in afternoon before the start of the tour | date=June 9, 2021 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GPWPP53lKF4 |language=en |access-date=2022-05-24}}</ref>

According to ''Rolling Stone'', in Dylan's lyric notebook, the working title of "Simple Twist of Fate" was "4th Street Affair"; Dylan and [[Suze Rotolo]] lived at 161 W. 4th St. The narrator of the song memorializes an affair of ten years ago instead of singing about Dylan's marriage.<ref>[https://www.rollingstone.com /music/lists/100-greatest-bob-dylan-songs-20160524 '100 Greatest Bob Dylan Songs.'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312000851/http://www.rollingstone.com/ |date=March 12, 2011 }} Rolling Stone, 24 mei 2016. "Simple Twist of Fate" is ranked 15.</ref> In ''Hot Press'', writing about the three known lyric notebooks for the songs, Anne Margaret Daniel noted that "Simple Twist of Fate" was first entitled "Snowbound", and set in part, like "Tangled Up in Blue", in a New York City apartment.<ref>[https://www.hotpress.com/music/full-bob-dylan-cover-story-hot-press-annual-2019-22771539 Daniel, Hot Press]</ref>

In his 2004 memoir, ''[[Chronicles, Vol. 1]]'', Dylan stated that the songs have nothing to do with his personal life, and that they were inspired by the [[List of short stories by Anton Chekhov|short stories]] of [[Anton Chekhov]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.popmatters.com/special/section/all-things-reconsidered-the-35th-anniversary-of-bob-dylans-blood-on-the-//|magazine=[[PopMatters]]|access-date=August 13, 2011|title=All Things Reconsidered: The 35th Anniversary of Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219040655/http://www.popmatters.com/special/section/all-things-reconsidered-the-35th-anniversary-of-bob-dylans-blood-on-the-/|archive-date=December 19, 2013|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Critical reception and legacy==
{{Music ratings
| rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
| rev1Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/blood-on-the-tracks-mw0000189846|title=Blood on the Tracks – Bob Dylan – Songs, Reviews, Credits – AllMusic|website=AllMusic|access-date=July 18, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170721071530/http://www.allmusic.com/album/blood-on-the-tracks-mw0000189846|archive-date=July 21, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Chicago Tribune]]''
| rev2Score = {{Rating|4|4}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Kot|first=Greg|author-link=Greg Kot|issue=October 25|year=1992|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1992/10/25/dylan-through-the-years-hits-and-misses/|title=Dylan Through The Years: Hits And Misses|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|access-date=September 19, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160918084804/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1992-10-25/entertainment/9204060639_1_star-freewheelin-bob-dylan-rolling-thunder-revue-tour|archive-date=September 18, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev3 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev3Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Larkin|first=Colin|author-link=Colin Larkin (writer)|year=2011|title=[[The Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]|page=2006|publisher=[[Omnibus Press]]|isbn=978-0-85712-595-8}}</ref>
| rev4 = [[Music Story]]
| rev4Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.music-story.com/bob-dylan/blood-on-the-tracks|title=Album Bob Dylan Blood On The Tracks|website=[[Music Story]]|language=fr|date=n.d.|access-date=November 26, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121126202148/http://www.music-story.com/bob-dylan/blood-on-the-tracks|archive-date=November 26, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| rev5      = ''[[MusicHound|MusicHound Rock]]''
| rev5Score = 5/5<ref>{{cite book|editor-last1=Graff|editor-first1=Gary|editor-last2=Durchholz|editor-first2=Daniel|title=MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide|edition=2nd|publisher=Visible Ink Press|location=Farmington Hills, MI|year=1999|isbn=1-57859-061-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/369 369, 371]|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781578590612/page/369}}</ref>
| rev6 = ''[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]''
| rev6Score = 10/10<ref>{{cite web|url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/22485-blood-on-the-tracks/|title=Bob Dylan: Blood on the Tracks|work=[[Pitchfork (website)|Pitchfork]]|date=October 30, 2016|access-date=October 30, 2016|last=Jarnow|first=Jess|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161030203559/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/22485-blood-on-the-tracks/|archive-date=October 30, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev7 = ''[[Q (magazine)|Q]]''
| rev7Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref>{{cite journal |title=Review: ''Blood on the Tracks'' |journal=[[Q (magazine)|Q]] |location=London |page=131 |issue=December |year=1993}}</ref>
| rev8 = ''[[The Rolling Stone Album Guide]]''
| rev8Score = {{Rating|5|5}}<ref name="Sheffield">{{cite book|last=Sheffield|first=Rob|author-link=Rob Sheffield|year=2004|editor1-first=Nathan|editor1-last=Brackett|editor1-link=Nathan Brackett|editor2-first=Christian|editor2-last=Hoard|title=[[The New Rolling Stone Album Guide]]|chapter=Bob Dylan|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstonea00brac/page/262 262, 264]|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|isbn=0-7432-0169-8}}</ref>
| rev9 = ''[[Sputnikmusic]]''
| rev9Score = 5/5<ref>{{cite web|last=Butler|first=Nick|date=June 26, 2006|url=http://www.sputnikmusic.com/soundoff.php?albumid=742|title=Bob Dylan - Blood on the Tracks|website=[[Sputnikmusic]]|access-date=September 19, 2014|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140919062732/http://www.sputnikmusic.com/soundoff.php?albumid=742|archive-date=September 19, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>
| rev10 = ''[[The Village Voice]]''
| rev10Score = A<ref name="Christgau"/>
}}

Released in early 1975, ''Blood on the Tracks'' initially received mixed reviews from critics.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|p=113}} ''Rolling Stone'' published two assessments. The first, by [[Jonathan Cott]], called it "Dylan's magnificent new album". The second reviewer, [[Jon Landau]], wrote that "the record has been made with typical shoddiness."<ref name = "Heylin 383"/> In ''[[NME]]'', [[Nick Kent]] described "the accompaniments [as] often so trashy they sound like mere practice takes",<ref name = "Heylin 383">{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| p=383}}</ref> while ''[[Crawdaddy]]'' magazine's Jim Cusimano found the instrumentation incompetent.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|p=113}}

An influential review of the album was written by Dylan critic [[Michael Gray (author)|Michael Gray]] for the magazine ''[[Let It Rock (magazine)|Let It Rock]]''. Gray argued that it transformed the cultural perception of Dylan, and that he was no longer defined as "the major artist of the sixties. Instead, Dylan has legitimized his claim to a creative prowess as vital now as then—a power not bounded by the one decade he so affected."<ref name = "Heylin 384">{{harvnb|Heylin|2011| p=384}}</ref> This view was amplified by [[Clinton Heylin]], who wrote: "Ten years after he turned the rock & roll brand of pop into rock&nbsp;... [Dylan] renewed its legitimacy as a form capable of containing the work of a mature artist."<ref name = "Heylin 384"/> In ''[[The Village Voice]]'', [[Robert Christgau]] wrote that although the lyrics occasionally evoke romantic naiveté and bitterness, ''Blood on the Tracks'' is altogether Dylan's "most mature and assured record".<ref name="Christgau">{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|issue=January 27|year=1975|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv52.php|title=Consumer Guide (52)|newspaper=[[The Village Voice]]|location=New York|access-date=September 19, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140803045806/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv52.php|archive-date=August 3, 2014|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since its initial reception, ''Blood on the Tracks'' has been viewed by critics as one of Dylan's best albums.{{sfn|Williamson|2004|p=113}} In [[Salon.com]], Wyman wrote: "''Blood on the Tracks'' is his only flawless album and his best produced; the songs, each of them, are constructed in disciplined fashion. It is his kindest album and most dismayed, and seems in hindsight to have achieved a sublime balance between the logorrhea-plagued excesses of his mid-1960s output and the self-consciously simple compositions of his post-accident years."<ref>{{cite news|title=Bob Dylan|work=[[Salon.com]]|date=May 5, 2001|url=http://www.salon.com/2001/05/22/dylan_3/|access-date=May 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121028095716/http://www.salon.com/2001/05/22/dylan_3/|archive-date=October 28, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> Bell, in his critical biography of Dylan, wrote that ''Blood on the Tracks'' was proof that "Dylan had won the argument over his refusal to argue about politics. In this, he began to seem prescient."<ref>{{harvnb|Bell|2012|p=556}}</ref> Bell concluded the album "might well count as one of the best things Dylan ever did".<ref>{{harvnb|Bell|2012|p=558}}</ref> Novelist [[Rick Moody]] called it "the truest, most honest account of a love affair from tip to stern ever put down on magnetic tape".<ref name="Hedin">{{harvnb|Hedin|2004|p=109}}</ref>

A result of the acclaim surrounding the album has been that when critics have praised one of Dylan's subsequent albums, they have often described it as "his best since ''Blood on the Tracks''".<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Jody|last=Rosen|title=Bob Dylan's Make-Out Album|url=http://www.slate.com/id/2148563/|magazine=Slate|date=August 30, 2006|access-date=March 22, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070128130043/http://www.slate.com/id/2148563/|archive-date=January 28, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|first=Robert|last=Christgau|title=Not Dead Yet|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/music/dylan-spi.php|magazine=Spin|date=March 1998|access-date=March 22, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061230061336/http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/music/dylan-spi.php|archive-date=December 30, 2006|url-status=live}}</ref> According to music journalist [[Rob Sheffield]], ''Blood on the Tracks'' became a benchmark album for Dylan in the years that followed because it was "such a stunning comeback".<ref name="Sheffield"/>

The album was also included in the book ''[[1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die]]''.<ref>{{cite book|author1=Robert Dimery|author2=Michael Lydon|title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition|date=February 7, 2006|publisher=Universe|isbn=0-7893-1371-5}}</ref>

Hip hop group [[Public Enemy]] reference it in their 2007 Dylan tribute song "[[Long and Whining Road]]": "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back / You bet there's blood on them Bomb Squad tracks".<ref>{{Citation|title=Public Enemy – The Long and Whining Road|url=https://genius.com/Public-enemy-the-long-and-whining-road-lyrics|language=en|access-date=2021-04-12}}</ref>

In 2018, it was announced that the film adaptation of the album was in pre-production, under the direction of [[Luca Guadagnino]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|first=Nathaniel|last=Heller|title=Luca Guadagnino's Cinema of Desire|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/10/15/luca-guadagninos-cinema-of-desire|date=October 8, 2018|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|access-date=February 8, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|first=Justin|last=Kroll|title=Bob Dylan's 'Blood on the Tracks' Album Getting Movie Treatment|url=https://variety.com/2018/film/news/bob-dylan-blood-on-the-tracks-movie-luca-guadagnino-1202983403/|date=October 17, 2018|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=February 8, 2023}}</ref>

==Track listing==
{{Track listing
| all_writing = [[Bob Dylan]].
| headline = Side one
| extra_column = Recorded
| title1 = [[Tangled Up in Blue]]
| length1 = 5:42
| extra1 = December 30, 1974, in Minneapolis
| title2 = [[Simple Twist of Fate]]
| length2 = 4:19
| extra2 = September 19, 1974, in New York City
| title3 = [[You're a Big Girl Now]]
| length3 = 4:36
| extra3 = December 27, 1974, in Minneapolis
| title4 = [[Idiot Wind]]
| length4 = 7:48
| extra4 = December 27, 1974, in Minneapolis
| title5 = [[You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go]]
| length5 = 2:55
| extra5 = September 17, 1974, in New York City
| total_length = 25:20
}}
{{Track listing
| headline = Side two
| extra_column = Recorded
| title1 = [[Meet Me in the Morning]]
| extra1 = September 16, 1974, in New York City
| length1 = 4:22
| title2 = [[Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts]]
| extra2 = December 30, 1974, in Minneapolis
| length2 = 8:51
| title3 = [[If You See Her, Say Hello]]
| extra3 = December 30, 1974, in Minneapolis
| length3 = 4:49
| title4 = [[Shelter from the Storm]]
| extra4 = September 17, 1974, in New York City
| length4 = 5:02
| title5 = [[Buckets of Rain]]
| extra5 = September 19, 1974, in New York City
| length5 = 3:22
| total_length = 26:26 51:46
}}

== Personnel ==
For personnel details, see Heylin, 1996<ref name="Heylin151">{{harvnb|Heylin|1996|pp=151–153}}</ref> and Björner, 2014.<ref name="Björner2014">{{harvnb|Björner|2014}}</ref> Track numbers refer to CD and digital releases of the album.

===Personnel===
* [[Bob Dylan]]&nbsp;– lead vocals, acoustic guitar; [[mandolin]] (8); [[hammond organ]] (4); harmonica (1–5, 7, 9)
* Chris Weber&nbsp;– acoustic guitar (1, 3, 4, 7); [[twelve-string guitar]] (8){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* [[Kevin Odegard]]&nbsp;– acoustic guitar (1){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* [[Eric Weissberg]]&nbsp;– acoustic guitar (6){{ref label|New York|NY}}
* Charles Brown III&nbsp;– electric guitar (6){{ref label|New York|NY}}
* [[Buddy Cage]]&nbsp;– [[pedal steel guitar]] (6){{ref label|New York|NY}}
* [[Peter Ostroushko]]&nbsp;– mandolin (8){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* Gregg Inhofer&nbsp;– piano (3, 4); keyboards (1); Hammond organ (7, 8){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* Thomas McFaul&nbsp;– keyboards (6){{ref label|New York|NY}}
* [[Billy Peterson]]&nbsp;– bass guitar (1, 4, 7){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* Tony Brown&nbsp;– bass guitar (2, 5, 6, 9, 10){{ref label|New York|NY}}
* [[Bill Berg (musician)|Bill Berg]]&nbsp;– drums (1, 3, 4, 7, 8){{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* Richard Crooks&nbsp;– drums (6){{ref label|New York|NY}}

===Technical===

* [[Bob Dylan]] – producer{{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}  
* [[Phil Ramone]] – producer{{ref label|New York|NY}}
* [[Phil Ramone|Philip Rabinowitz]]&nbsp;– [[Audio engineering|engineering]]{{ref label|New York|NY}}
* Paul Martinson&nbsp;– [[Audio engineering|engineering]]{{ref label|Minneapolis|M}}
* Glenn Berger&nbsp;– tape operator, assistant engineer{{ref label|New York|NY}}
* Paul Till&nbsp;– photography
* Ron Coro&nbsp;– [[art direction]]
* [[Pete Hamill]]&nbsp;– [[liner notes]]
* David Oppenheim&nbsp;– illustrations

'''M'''{{note|Minneapolis}}Involved in the Minneapolis recording sessions

'''NY'''{{note|New York}}Involved in the New York recording sessions

==Cover albums==
In 2002, [[Mary Lee's Corvette]] released an album covering ''Blood on the Tracks'' in its entirety.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Goldberg |first=Michael |date=2014-12-17 |title=Video: Mary Lee Kortes Performs Entire 'Blood On The Tracks' Album Live (Dylan Digs Her) |url=https://www.daysofthecrazy-wild.com/video-mary-lee-kortes-performs-entire-blood-tracks-album-live-dylan-digs/ |access-date=2022-12-27 |website=DAYS OF THE CRAZY-WILD |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2022, singer/songwriter [[Ryan Adams]] also released an album covering each song on the album track-by-track.<ref>{{Cite web |author1=Rob Laing |date=2022-12-26 |title=Ryan Adams releases another free album: a cover of Bob Dylan's Blood On The Tracks |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/blood-on-the-tracks-ryan-adams-bob-dylan-free-download |access-date=2022-12-27 |website=MusicRadar |language=en}}</ref>

==Charts==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}

===Weekly charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (1975)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
! scope="row"| Canadian Albums ''([[RPM (magazine)|RPM]])''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.3936a&type=2&interval=20&PHPSESSID=t9cckr6i2p2uuqrhg8msu6sj72|title=''RPM'' Top Albums&nbsp;– April 05 1975|work=[[RPM (magazine)|RPM]]|publisher=[[Library and Archives Canada]]|access-date=July 20, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023202853/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/rpm/028020-119.01-e.php?&file_num=nlc008388.3936a&type=2&interval=20&PHPSESSID=t9cckr6i2p2uuqrhg8msu6sj72|archive-date=October 23, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>
| 1
|-
{{album chart|Netherlands|5|artist=Bob Dylan|album=Blood on the Tracks|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Germany|45|id=6609|artist=Bob Dylan|album=Blood on the Tracks|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|New Zealand|1|artist=Bob Dylan|album=Blood on the Tracks|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Norway|2|artist=Bob Dylan|album=Blood on the Tracks|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
!scope="row"|[[Productores de Música de España|Spanish Albums Chart]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Salaverri|first=Fernando|title=Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002|publisher=Fundación Autor-SGAE|year=2005|isbn=84-8048-639-2|location=|pages=}}</ref>
| style="text-align:center;"|3
|-
{{album chart|UK|4|artist=Bob Dylan|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
{{album chart|Billboard200|1|artist=Bob Dylan|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (2000)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|Ireland2|38|artist=Bob Dylan|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (2019)
! scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
{{album chart|Portugal|48|artist=Bob Dylan|album=Blood on the Tracks|rowheader=true|access-date=August 6, 2021}}
|}
{{col-2}}

===Year-end charts===
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! scope="col"| Chart (1975)
! scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=1975&cat=a|title=Jaaroverzichten – Album 1975|website=dutchcharts.nl|access-date=August 6, 2021}}</ref>
| 31
|-
! scope="row" | UK Albums (OCC)<ref>{{cite magazine |date=December 27, 1975 |title=Top Selling Albums For 1975 |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1975/Music-Week-1975-12-27.pdf |url-status=live |magazine=[[Music Week]] |page=10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309074922/https://worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-Week/1975/Music-Week-1975-12-27.pdf |archive-date=9 March 2021 |via=worldradiohistory.com |access-date=November 30, 2021}}</ref>
| 49
|-
! scope="row"| US ''Billboard'' 200<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/1975/top-billboard-200-albums|title=Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1975|magazine=Billboard|access-date=August 6, 2021}}</ref>
| 40
|-
|}
{{col-end}}

===Singles===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"|
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year
! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Single
! scope="col" colspan="1"| Peak position
|-
! style="width:2em;"| [[Hot 100|US]]<br /><ref name="us">{{Cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/blood-on-the-tracks-mw0000189846/awards |title=Blood on the Tracks - Bob Dylan &#124; Awards &#124; AllMusic |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=November 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190705124635/https://www.allmusic.com/album/blood-on-the-tracks-mw0000189846/awards |archive-date=July 5, 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
! scope="row"| 1975
| "[[Tangled Up in Blue]]"
| style="text-align:center;"| 31
|}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Canada|artist=Bob Dylan|title=Blood on the Tracks|type=album|award=Platinum|relyear=1975|relmonth=1}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=Italy|type=album|artist=Bob Dylan|title=Blood on the tracks|nocert=true|salesamount=100,000|salesref=<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.worldradiohistory.com/UK/Music-and-Media/80s/1988/M&M-1988-11-26.pdf|title=New Marketing Strategy Sees Music On New Stands|magazine=Music & Media|first=Roy|last=Zinsenheim|pages=11|date=November 26, 1988|access-date=February 26, 2023}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|artist=Bob Dylan|title=Blood on the Tracks|type=album|award=Platinum|id=957-3101-2|certyear=2013|access-date=8 October 2021}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|artist=Bob Dylan|title=Blood on the Tracks|type=album|award=Platinum|number=2}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}

==See also==
* [[List of 1970s albums considered the best]]

==References==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== General sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book|first=Ian|last=Bell|author-link=Ian Bell (journalist)|title=Once Upon a Time: The Lives of Bob Dylan|publisher=Mainstream Publishing|year=2012|isbn=978-1-78057-573-5}}
* {{cite web|first=Olof|last=Björner|author-link=Olof Björner|url=http://www.bjorner.com/DSN02710%201974%20Blood%20On%20The%20Tracks%20recording%20sessions.htm|title=1974 Blood on the Tracks Recording Sessions|date=2014|access-date=May 13, 2014|work=Bjorner.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140610200717/http://www.bjorner.com/DSN02710%201974%20Blood%20On%20The%20Tracks%20recording%20sessions.htm|archive-date=June 10, 2014|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|first=Bill|last=Flanagan|author-link=Bill Flanagan|title=Written In My Soul: Candid interviews with rock's great songwriters|publisher=Omnibus Press|year=1990|isbn=0-7119-2224-1}}
* {{cite book|first=Andy & Kevin|last=Gill & Odegard|title=A Simple Twist of Fate: Bob Dylan and the Making of Blood on the Tracks|url=https://archive.org/details/simpletwistoffat00gill|url-access=registration|year=2005|publisher=Da Capo Press|isbn=0-306-81413-7}}
* {{cite book|first=Michael|last=Gray|title=The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia|publisher=Continuum International|year=2006|isbn=0-8264-6933-7|url=https://archive.org/details/bobdylanencyclop00gray|access-date=August 6, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909190025/https://archive.org/details/bobdylanencyclop00gray|archive-date=September 9, 2019|url-status=live}}
* {{cite book|first=Benjamin|last=Hedin|author-link=Benjamin Hedin|title=Studio A: The Bob Dylan Reader|year=2004|publisher=W. W. Norton & Company|isbn=0-393-05844-1}}
* {{cite book|first=Clinton|last=Heylin|author-link=Clinton Heylin|title=Bob Dylan: A Life In Stolen Moments: Day by Day 1941–1995|year=1996|publisher=Schirmer Books|isbn=0-7119-5669-3}}
* {{cite book|first=Clinton|last=Heylin|title=Bob Dylan: Behind the Shades, 20th Anniversary Edition|year=2011|publisher=Faber and Faber|isbn=978-0-571-27240-2}}
* {{cite book|first=Howard|last=Sounes|title=Down the Highway: The Life of Bob Dylan|publisher=Grove Press|year=2001|isbn=0-8021-1686-8|url=https://archive.org/details/downhighwaylifeo0000soun}}
* {{cite book|last=Williamson|first=Nigel|author-link=Nigel Williamson|year=2004|title=The Rough Guide to Bob Dylan|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|isbn=1-84353-139-9}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
<!-- This is a licensed stream for the album, which is allowed under Wikipedia polices -->
* [https://open.spotify.com/album/4WD4pslu83FF6oMa1e19mF ''Blood on the Tracks''] ([[Adobe Flash]]) at [[Spotify]] (streamed copy where licensed – registration required)
* {{Discogs master|type=album|3878}}
* [http://www.superseventies.com/spdylanbob2.html Reviews], superseventies.com
* [http://www.prx.org/pieces/135893-right-on-target-so-direct-bob-dylan-s-blood-on Public Radio Special], "Right On Target, So Direct: Bob Dylan's BLOOD ON THE TRACKS"

{{Bob Dylan}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blood On The Tracks}}
[[Category:1975 albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by Bob Dylan]]
[[Category:Bob Dylan albums]]
[[Category:Columbia Records albums]]