I am a huge Bob Dylan fan, and I'm not just talking about my weight. To me, he is a poet, prophet and philosopher. I have seen him numerous times in concert. One of the frustrating things about seeing Bob Dylan live is that he is an incredibly erratic performer. Sometimes he barrels through the greatest hits in a croaky blur, other times his performances are thoughtful and articulate. He once sang that the times they were a'changing. Well. so is he. He constantly re-invents himself and his songs on stage. You never know what you are going to get. It can be maddening, but also very rewarding.
Here's where I've seen him over the years and the songs he sang placed in the cultural context of those changing times during the week of the concerts:
Date: July 6, 1986
Venue: RFK Stadium, Washington D.C.
President: Ronald Reagan
#1 Hit Single: Simply Red, Holding Back The Years
#1 Film: The Karate Kid, Part 2
Thumbnail Review:
Simply an amazing concert. Bob Dylan was backed up by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (they alternated sets) followed by The Grateful Dead. Dylan was in great voice and the Heartbreakers provided some serious musical muscle. They played a lot of hits. The arrangements were mostly similar to the recorded versions. As a final bonus, Dylan got up and played three songs with the Grateful Dead. They were amazing. Dylan and The Dead seemed a marriage made in rock and roll heaven, although, in retrospect, it might have been the contact high. When The Dead started playing the stadium was filled with brown marijuana smoke.
Speaking of drugs, I drove the wife of a friend of mine to the concert. When we found our seats, she remarked on how little drugs were present. She had expected more at a Grateful Dead concert. Obviously, she had missed the thirty or so people who walked up to us in the parking lot whispering, "Trips..." Or perhaps she dismissed them as travel agents.
This might have been my favorite concert experience ever.
1. So Long, Good Luck and Goodbye (cover)
2. Positively 4th Street
3. Clean Cut Kid
4. I'll Remember You
5. Shot of Love
6. That Lucky Old Sun (cover)
7. Masters of War
8. To Ramona
9. One Too Many Mornings
10. It Ain't Me, Babe
11. I Forgot More Than You'll Ever Know
12. Band of the Hand
13. When The Night Comes Falling From the Sky
14. Lonesome Town (Cover)
15. The Ballad of a Thin Man
16. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35
17. Seeing the Real You at Last
18. Across the Borderline (Cover)
19. I & I
20. Like a Rolling Stone
21. In the Garden
22, Blowin' in the Wind
23. Rock 'Em Dead
24. Knockin' on Heaven's Door
Date: July 10, 1987
Venue: JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
President: Ronald Reagan
#1 Hit Single: Whitney Houston, I Want To Dance With Someone (Who Loves Me)
Thumbnail Review:
The three numbers Dylan performed with the Grateful Dead the previous summer at RFK Stadium in Washington, DC., portended great things. I was extremely excited when the Dylan and The Dead tour was announced. However, my excitement turned to horror at the concert itself.
Now let me earn the wrath of the Dead fans reading this blog. To me, a Grateful Dead performance mainly serves as the aural background to a pharmacological experience. It seems to me, after seeing a couple of their concerts, that the group quickly settles into a consistent, mellow groove conducive to having a pleasant trip. I call it the Grateful Dead bop. Unfortunately, the Grateful Dead bop renders an unhappy sameness to the Dylan numbers. I couldn't stand it. I experienced my best and worst Dylan concerts back to back.
BTW, on the way home, I did see a Deadhead sticker on a Cadillac.
1. Tangled Up in Blue
2. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
3. Man of Peace
4. The Ballad of Frankie Lee and Judas Priest
5. John Brown
6. Simple Twist of Fate
7. Ballad of a Thin Man
8. Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
9. Chimes of Freedom
10. Queen Jane Approximately
11. Gotta Serve Somebody
12. Joey
13. All Along The Watchtower
Date: February 22, 1991
Venue: Painter's Mill Music Fair, Reisterstown, Maryland
President: George H.W. Bush
#1 Hit Single: Whitney Houston, All The Man That I Need
#1 Film: The Silence of the Lambs
Thumbnail Review:
The Never Ending Tour has begun. At this concert, Dylan was backed up by this G.E. Smith led touring band. He ripped through the set at a breakneck pace with a croaking voice and indifferent arrangements. That said, I really liked it. After Dylan and The Dead, I was relieved to hear him rocking again.
1. You're Gonna Quit Me (cover)
2. Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
3. All Along the Watchtower
4. Positively 4th Street
5. Silvio
6. Born In Time
7. Blackjack Davey (traditional)
8. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll (A good pick for Baltimore)
9, Boots of Spanish Leather
10. God Knows
11. Maggie's Farm
12. A Series of Dreams (The live debut of this song)
13. Boots of Spanish Leather
14. It Ain't Me, Babe
15. Rainy Day Women #13 & 35
Date: July 20, 1991
Venue: Wolf Trap, Vienna, Virginia
President: George H.W. Bush
#1 Hit Single: EMF, Unbelievable
#1 Film: The Terminator 2: Judgement Day
Thumbnail Review:
This concert was only a few months after the Painters Mill one, but the set list was almost entirely different with only a two song overlap. The tone and vibe was completely different as well. The pace was more relaxed and his vocals were clear and articulate. Around this time, I was wondering why Dylan was continually touring. Was it the money? I think I got the answer at this concert. I snuck up close and watched him. He was actually smiling. Wow. Maybe he was touring because he actually enjoyed it.
PS. Kris Kristofferson opened for him. Not a bad deal.
1. New Morning
2. I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)
4. All Along The Watchtower
5. Shelter From The Storm
5. Gotta Serve Somebody
6. Wiggle Wiggle
7. I'll Remember You
8. It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train To Cry
9. Barbara Allen (traditional)
10. Mr. Tambourine Man
11. It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
12. It Ain't Me, Babe
13. Folsom Prison Blues (cover)
14. Everything Is Broken
15. Lenny Bruce
16. Highway 61 Revisited
17. What Good Am I?
18. Ballad of a Thin Man
Date: February 22, 1998
Venue: Patriot Center, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia
President: Bill Clinton
#1 Hit Single: Spice Girls, Too Much
#1 Film: Titanic
This concert took place three days before the 40th Annual Grammy Awards where Dylan won Album of the Year for Time Out of Mind. This was considered a major comeback for Dylan, and this was an amazing concert. His singing was strong and attentive. This performance seemed to really matter to him and it showed.
Although the Bob Dylan/Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers/The Grateful Dead show was probably my favorite concert overall, this show featured Bob Dylan himself at his best.
1. Absolutely Sweet Marie
2. Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You
3. I Can't Wait
4. Simple Twist of Fate
5. Silvio
6. Little Sadie (Traditional) (Acoustic)
7. Masters of War (Acoustic)
8. Tangled Up in Blue (Acoustic)
9. Million Miles
10. Blind Willie McTell
11. Highway 61 Revisited
12. 'Til I Fell in Love With You
13. It Ain't Me, Babe (Acoustic)
14. Love Sick
15. Rain Day Women #12 & 35
Date: November 12, 2019
Venue: Event Center, UMBC University
President: Donald Trump
#1 Hit Single: Lewis Capaldi, Someone You Loved
#1 Film: Midway
Thumbnail Review:After the George Mason University show, I really didn't feel the need to see Dylan again. I felt I had seen a definitive performance. However, some shows tempted me. He played Salisbury University with Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits (who had also produced Infidels, my favorite Dylan album.) Sadly, I couldn't get anyone to go with me. Ditto with the concert at Cal Ripken Stadium with Willie Nelson. However, I couldn't resist this one. If he was going to play this close to my house, I felt practically obligated to see him. Plus, my wife Deborah had never seen him. This would be a good opportunity for her to experience him.
Deborah was not a Dylan fan. We reached a compromise early in our marriage. On our many road trips, I wouldn't play Bob Dylan if she didn't play country music. She was a little wary about going to this concert, but Bob won her over. She left saying that now she got Dylan. Yay!
That said, although the band was terrific and the arrangements were always interesting, seventy-eight-year-old Dylan was not in the best voice. However, what he lost in range, he made up in heart. I was glad to see him, and I look forward to seeing him again.
1. Things Have Changed
2. It Ain't Me, Babe
3. Highway 61 Revisited
4. Simple Twist of Fate
5. Can't Wait
6. When I Paint My Masterpiece
7. Honest With Me
8. Tryin' to Get to Heaven
9. Make You Feel My Love
10. Pay in Blood
11. Lenny Bruce
12. Early Roman Kings
13. Girl From the North Country
14. Not Dark Yet
15. Thunder on the Mountain
16. Soon After Midnight
17. Gotta Serve Somebody
18. Ballad of a Thin Man
19. It Take a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry
Here's some more of my music blogs:
Beatles Albums Ranked
My 20 Favorite Beatles Songs
My 5 Least Favorite Beatles Songs
My 5 Favorite Rolling Stones Albums
My 5 Favorite Dylan Albums
Here are some blogs about music videos I edited:
FD Automatic: Red Shoes
Crack The Sky: Mr. President
Greg Kihn: Horror Show
Nils Lofgren: Alone
Be sure to check out my memoir The Promise, or the Pros and Cons of Talking with God. It is my true story of first faith and first love and how the two became almost fatally intertwined.
Here are some sample chapters:
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