Various Artists: From Another World: A Tribute to Bob Dylan (Buda Musique)

By David Luhrssen

Bob Dylan has been an inspiration to musicians all around the world and on From Another World some of them give tribute by performing his songs. None of the tracks can be called a cover in the strict sense and most are virtually unrecognizable for reasons that have nothing to do with language barriers. Cuba’s Eliades Ochoa transforms “All Along the Watchtower” into a brooding Latin-flavored riff. India’s Purna Das Baul turns “Mr. Tambourine Man” into a lilting Bollywood ballad, while Rumania’s Taraf de Haïdouks goes tambouritza with “Corrina Corrina.” Perhaps Taraf’s Gypsy countrymen Kek Lang come closest to performing Dylan as most American audiences would know him with their lively yet melancholy take on “Blowin’ in the Wind.”