The Witmark Demos 1962-1964 is streaming on npr.org until October 19th.  This has already replaced John Wesley Harding as my favorite collection of Dylan songs for several reasons.  One, the recordings are beautiful.  The tones of the instruments and his voice are just right; as far as my ears are concerned, some of these recordings are much better than the ones that made it onto the actual albums.  Two, Dylan’s performance is the best it ever was.  Apparently, the demos were done in a small studio so that the songs could be put down on paper for other musicians to learn before the actual albums were recorded.  Dylan sounds very relaxed and comfortable compared to many of his other recordings.  On several of the songs, he plays piano instead of guitar, which is a nice change sometimes.  Three, Dylan recorded all of these songs before he turned twenty-four.  I am twenty three right now, and I cannot imagine writing songs this good at this point in life.  Maybe by the time I am forty I will write a song like “Spanish Boots of Spanish Leather,” but probably not.  

Anyhow, if you like Bob Dylan, you will want to check this out.