That's because you don't need him. Dylan really needs no one but himself to write good songs and deliver them. And yes, having the touring band makes it that much better. "Only ten songs?" I thought. Ah, but these songs are lovely loose gooses that are just here to play a bit, and that can take, you know, five, six minutes apiece. So relax. So don't be afraid to jump on the railroad tracks and let your hair trail a bit in the salty breeze. Bob just ain't gonna let anyone get cynical on his buttocks -- uh-uh, not yet, or probably never again. He's still our prophet. Don't muzzle the ox that treads out the corn... Yeah, go ahead and buy this one and let it take you from an irresistable shufflin' dance-step energy all the way down to that loungy stuff when your poor old feet are tired. Four and a half stars is about right: no, not the stunner LOVE AND THEFT was, but almost anywhere "short" of that classic means the man is still the miracle we kinda hoped he was.