Biograph | ||||
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Box set by Bob Dylan | ||||
Released | November 7, 1985 | |||
Recorded | November 1961–August 1981 | |||
Genre | Rock, folk | |||
Length | 214:50 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Jeff Rosen | |||
Bob Dylan chronology | ||||
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Biograph is a 53-track box set compilation spanning the career of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on November 7, 1985 by Columbia Records. Consisting of 53 released and unreleased tracks from 1962 to 1981, the box set was released as a five-LP set, a three-cassette tape set, and a three-compact disc set. Biograph reached No. 33 on the Billboard 200 in the U.S. and has been certified platinum by the RIAA.
The recordings on Biograph are a mix of rarities, hit singles, and album tracks. They are not presented in chronological order; 18 of its 53 tracks had not been previously issued, and three more had only been previously available on singles. Every studio album released by Dylan prior to the appearance of this box set is represented by at least one track, with the exceptions of Self Portrait, Dylan, Desire, Infidels, and Empire Burlesque, although two songs from Desire appear in live versions. The set comes accompanied with a 42-page booklet, containing rare photos and liner notes by Cameron Crowe, who interviews Dylan about each of the tracks.
While too comprehensive to be strictly a greatest hits album, it does include nine of the dozen Top 40 hits by Dylan during the time period covered. Missing are "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35," "George Jackson," and "Hurricane." Nine of the ten tracks from Bob Dylan's Greatest Hits appear on this compilation.