Country-rock
29 July 1966 Dylan was in a crash and was forced to curtail touring. Reported that his condition was critical and that the accident resulted in the temporary amnesia, although the true severity of injuries remains. Some biographer believed that the accident was used Dilanom as an excuse to rethink the direction of his musical activities and to hold as much time as possible in the second home with my family (by the time he was married and he had several children).
During this period, participants visited zatvornichestva Dylan The Band. Within a few months they recorded with him as the new songs (the texts of which have become much more transparent) and the variation of the traditional folk melodies. These records indicate emerging Dylan away from rock music in the country. Officially they have not been released, but circulated as a bootleg, and only in 1975, the record label Columbia Records prevented illegal distribution through the issuance of the official version of Basement Tapes ( Creatifilms from the basement»). Indeed, whereas in the world of rock music for the first time and was such a thing as a bootleg.
In December 1967 the market entered a long-awaited album of fresh songs Dylan - «John Wesley Harding» (2 nd place in the United States, 1 st place in the UK), which initiated the new direction of popular music - country rock. While most rock musicians regarded without enthusiasm to the next turn in the musical development of Dylan, the sound chamber of the disc and its deliberately simple lyrics (often with biblical overtones) have made a great impression on the musicians from the southern U.S. states. For example, the business card of Jim Hendricks began weighted version included in this album songs «All Along the Watchtower»; Dylan himself admitted his handling of the best of all.
A passion for Dylan American folk music led him to the capital of Country - Nashville. Here, he could enroll with leading Session musicians this area, as well as with the legendary Johnny cache. Seeking purity of sound, at the time of recording a new album, he changed the tone of his voice, and even gave up smoking. Released in 1969 album «Nashville Skyline» was closer in sound to traditional country than to the country rock. He troubled many Dylan fans (who found his new material is uneven in quality), but released single song «Lay Lady Lay» enjoyed success with the public and became a Top Ten pop charts the USA. This song was meant to Dilanom kinodramy «Midnight Cowboy», on selected topics which hints very risky for the time text.