The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack | ||||
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Compilation album by Bob Dylan | ||||
Released | August 30, 2005 | |||
Recorded | 1959–1966 | |||
Genre | Rock and roll, folk-rock | |||
Length | 144:31 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Steve Berkowitz, Bruce Dickinson, Jeff Rosen, and Martin Scorsese | |||
Bob Dylan chronology | ||||
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Bob Dylan Bootleg Series chronology | ||||
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The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack is the fifth installment in the Bob Dylan "Bootleg Series" of rare and/or officially unissued recordings. It was released in 2005 in conjunction with the Martin Scorsese PBS television documentary on Dylan No Direction Home, and was compiled with Scorsese's input. It features mostly previously unreleased material from Dylan's formative years to his rise as an international figure, spanning 1959 to his legendary 1966 world tour.
The Bootleg Series Vol. 7: No Direction Home: The Soundtrack fared well commercially, debuting on the Billboard 200 album chart on September 17, 2005 at number 16, with sales of 50,987 copies. It remained on the chart for 11 weeks. It was certified a gold record on October 21, 2005 by the RIAA. It also reached #21 in the UK.
The project eventually titled as No Direction Home began to take form in 1995 when Dylan's manager, Jeff Rosen, began scheduling interviews with Dylan's friends and associates. Among those interviewed were poet Allen Ginsberg and folk musician Dave Van Ronk, both of whom died before the film was ever completed. Dylan's old girlfriend Suze Rotolo also granted a rare interview, and she later told Rolling Stone that she was very pleased with the project's results. Dylan himself also sat for ten hours in a relaxed and open conversation with Rosen in 2000.
According to Rolling Stone, an unnamed source close to the project claimed that Dylan himself had no involvement with the project apart from the interview, saying that "[Dylan] has no interest in this...Bob truly does not look back." However, work on the first installment of Dylan's autobiography, Chronicles, Vol. 1, did overlap production of the project, though it is unclear how much, if any, influence Chronicles may have had on No Direction Home.
Though raw material was being gathered for the project, Rosen needed someone to edit and shape it into a quality picture, and celebrated filmmaker Martin Scorsese was approached to 'direct' the documentary planned from the project. Scorsese eventually agreed and came aboard in 2001.