At someone else's expense

Because he's not afraid of trying

Say he got no style

Because he don't tell jokes or fairy tales

Say he fails to make you smile

Those lyrics tell the result of a trip from the crest of popularity to relative anonymity. In the '60s, Dylan's protest songs either caught or created a wave. The public agreed the man could do little wrong. Even when he went electric at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. enraging many "purists", Dylan captured a horde of new fans. But religion does not pay. The erstwhile "conscience of a generation", has become an outcast bent on avoiding (or so it seems) the path to popular redemption. Long-time admirers abandoned Dylan, feeling betrayed, while many critics stopped reviewing his offerings, believing the exercise pointless. It is an unjust dismissal, for all Dylan has done is to go on singing what he feels. While we do not have to agree with his every word, we should at least respect his right to be his own man.

"Lenny Bruce" is classic Dylan. It is a sparse, almost bare track celebrating the late comedian. Voice and piano start out alone, joined later by a light bass and drums. Dylan's assurance is almost preachy, making "Lenny Bruce" an I-knew-but-you-didn't sermon:

Lenny Bruce is dead

But his ghost lives on and on

He was an outlaw That's for sure

More of an outlaw

Than you ever were

Lenny Bruce is dead

But his spirit's living on and on

Side one closes out with the hand-clapping "Watered-Down Love". This is pure rhythm and blues in the Motown vein: one can almost hear the original Jackson Five covering it. All the ingredients are present, from a catchy bass line to a twangy rhythm guitar and hilarious lyrics ("You don't want a love that's pure, you want a drowned love, you want a watered-down love").