10 Most Underrated Bob Dylan Songs
2. Nettie Moore
2006’s Modern Times saw Bob embrace his old age. The title preaches modernity, but the contents see Dylan assemble a band and blast out rock and roll, regardless of the fashions of the day. But it’s the album’s softest track, “Nettie Moore”, that leaves the most lasting impression, a near seven minute composition that sounds like a piece of traditional music but allows the singer to reflect on his history over one of his most beautiful backdrops.
The song posits Dylan in his natural role: the wandering troubadour whose life is given over to music and the road. As he travels the world he pines for his titular love. Dylan’s vocal rhythms stick close to the lurching guitar and bass, the spacious track allowing his particularly comfortable vocals the room to breathe.
It’s a standout track from a seriously strong album, restrained but full of meaning, an old time song by a guy no longer feeling the need to reinvent himself or chase continued relevance, but instead entirely confident in his position in the pantheon.