Bob Dylan: "Trouble No More 1979 - 1981" - The Bootleg Series Vol. 13

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by DeeThomaz, Sep 24, 2015.

  1. Scott6

    Scott6 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Great post!
    I was lucky enough to have been present at all (I believe) of Bob's London shows from 1989 to 2003. Like you lost interest a bit from there onwards, though have continued to see 1 show per tour. The 6 London 1990 shows were stuff of dreams at the time. Love to see box set of those. Not even sure there was even a bootleg set of those?? The 3 London shows to end the tour in 2003 were incredible (added late in the day). The set list went out the window. Funny though that I always enjoyed the Wembley show from a couple of weeks earlier. I thought by then Bob and the band had nailed the set list and the sound at that show was phenomenal.
     
  2. PhilBorder

    PhilBorder Senior Member

    Location:
    Sheboygan, WI
    Listening through the 2 cd set. Freddie Tackett is the best live guitarist Dylan ever had, imo.
     
  3. streetlegal

    streetlegal Forum Resident

    I think I remember someone posted a link to transcriptions they had made of the various versions of "Ain't Gonna Go To Hell" (and perhaps "Cover Down Pray Through" and/or other songs).

    If someone still has it, I would be grateful if someone could repost this link. Thanks!
     
  4. PhilBorder

    PhilBorder Senior Member

    Location:
    Sheboygan, WI
    The 2 cd version gets better and better with each listening, especially the raging alternate version of 'Slow Train'. Imagine if Bob would've skipped the studio, stayed on the road, and released the live versions of these songs. That would've been fairly radical I guess (unless you're Neil Young circa 1979) but the intensity of these performances is undeniable. Whereas 'Slow Train' and 'Saved' drew a rather polite line in the sand, the songs as performed here excavate a gasoline filled moat with fans on one side and Bob waving a lighter around on the other.
     
  5. Tribute

    Tribute Senior Member

    They should hire the Crystal Cat guys and give them full access to soundboards and allow them to master soundboard/audience mixes and give them full reign to produce a series of 20 CD boxes from the NET
     
  6. revolution_vanderbilt

    revolution_vanderbilt Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    Is that a series of boxes where each box has 20 CDs, or a series of 20 boxes, each box containing MANY CDs?
     
    Tribute likes this.
  7. Tribute

    Tribute Senior Member

    Whichever works out for more. I'll start with two boxes of 20 CDs, one each from the Fall 1999 and Fall 2000 tours
     
  8. DeeThomaz

    DeeThomaz Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    In The Felony Room
  9. Clanceman

    Clanceman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, Or
    I’ll state this simple.

    I’m working through this box - just the cds again, on my 2ch system. I’ve played it several times and enjoy it.

    This box set, taken as a whole is most enlightening for me in one way: in my opinion this is the greatest Bob Dylan has ever sounded to me. Stunning vocals. The songs, band, arrangements, power, emotion....all off the charts.

    I’m not sure what I thought...or knew before the box. I liked Slow Train & Saved quite a bit.

    Now I’m positive this was Bob Dylan at his musical peak.
     
  10. Jim Walker

    Jim Walker Senior Member

    Location:
    southeast porttown
    Cinemax is previewing Dylan's performances from Toronto/Buffalo in late-April and early-May 1980, at 10PM EST Monday 26 (tonight). I'm assuming it is the DVD from the Bootleg Series Volume 13 box, Trouble No More. If this info has been posted, consider it a last minute reminder. I am looking forward to this a good bit.

    So I'm warming up with a bootleg from The Warfield Theatre run of shows
    November 12, 1980. One of my favorite periods from Dylan, with a top notch band, impassioned performances and maybe some of that wild mercury hanging in the air. I need to get this set and soon if only for the top notch sound.


    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Feb 26, 2018
  11. streetlegal

    streetlegal Forum Resident

    Toronto is my favorite recording sound of any Dylan live issue. What a stunning sound and mix. I love acoustic-driven rock, particularly when the mix is just right.
     
  12. highway

    highway Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston
    Really into the song Saving Grace lately (I have the live San Diego version on repeat in the car). It’s just such a straight from the gut perfectly imperfect vocal performance and guitar performance from the man.
    Curious on folks’ favorite version and why:
    The studio version off Saved
    Saving Grace (Nov 6, 1979) • (Disc 2)
    Saving Grace (Nov 28, 1979) • (Bonus Disc 2)
    Saving Grace (April 18, 1980) • (Disc 6)
     
    Clanceman and DeeThomaz like this.
  13. Jim Walker

    Jim Walker Senior Member

    Location:
    southeast porttown
    It does sound as good as it can get. Courtesy of CBS shelling out the works for
    the taping and filming at Massey Hall for a possible television broadcast, I
    believe for all 3 days, April 18-20/80 (someone correct me if that is wrong).
     
  14. redsock

    redsock Writer, reader, grouch.

    It was actually four shows: April 17-20. They kicked off the Third Gospel Tour.
     
  15. subtr

    subtr Forum Resident

    I think it was established earlier in this thread (I have no idea where given the size of it) that there isn't anything knocking about from 17th though. This doesn't mean it wasn't filmed or multitracked, but it would also be a coincidence if the sound and audio had gone missing separately. Caveat: this is from memory and could be totally wrong!
     
  16. streetlegal

    streetlegal Forum Resident

    Still really loving this stuff. It got me through some very difficult months. A little surprised this thread has petered out, but I think, after the initial peak, it was impacted somewhat by the "after-party" effect of folks, like me, getting their BD.com deliveries late.

    Discs 3-4 have a slight hodge-podge feel but much of the material is excellent—up with Dylan’s very best. Toronto is outstanding and I also love Earls Court but would love some more 1981 stuff—Drammen July 10 please!! The ’79 live material is less to my taste—both Dylan and the back-up singers sound less . . . disciplined? . . . than they do on later tours (I know that this is not a popular opinion). I suspect there could have been some better selections here, particularly for the slower songs—I don’t like the sudden rise from intimate (which I love) to a nasally “shout” in some of these. Interestingly, one of the better songs from Saved, What Can I Do For You, isn’t really done justice on the selections across the board. On the other side of the coin, Gotta Serve Somebody is transformed for me—who thought I could listen to and fall in love with multiple recycles of a song, from funky groove to rock call-to-arms, I could barely tolerate on STC? Ditto Do Right Unto Me—I find the jazzy live versions infectious; the album version leave me cold. I could go on, but you get the idea!

    One last observation. Lyrically, there is some outstanding stuff here, some of it darkly funny:

    Demands are laid upon you
    And burdens you can't bear
    Sins you can't even remember
    are waiting to meet you there

    Does he sing, on the disc 2 version of Ain't Gonna Go To Hell, something like "I can blind and Orwell 'em?" I think probably not, but, if he did, to "Orwell" somebody is a nifty little turn of phrase!
     
  17. DeeThomaz

    DeeThomaz Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    In The Felony Room
    Ha! I was just wondering that exact thing earlier in the week. Nice to know I’m not alone.

    Speaking of the song, has anyone found a transcription of the late ‘80 version of it? I keep meaning to take a stab at it, but I suspect it’ll be an exercise in frustration.
     
    streetlegal likes this.
  18. Fender Relic

    Fender Relic Forum Resident

    Location:
    PennsylBama
    I've yet to open mine, been sitting in limbo since Dec.....still waiting for the spirit to move me. Thought about it today but I'm surfing a LZ III 2014 Deluxe LP tangent wave at the moment.
     
  19. connorjake

    connorjake Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
     
  20. connorjake

    connorjake Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    Many thanks Tom for the full transcripts of all 4 recorded versions of "Caribbean Wind", I've attempted to do this myself previously, and have always given up in frustration, your efforts are greatly appreciated. I've now put said 4 versions on to one CD, and have printed the various lyrics, all six of them, for a much better understanding of this magnificent piece, which incidentally, I've always considered one of his great lost songs, it's right up there with "Blind Willie McTell", and “Red River Shore”. Thanks again.
     
  21. RupertPupkin

    RupertPupkin Forum Resident

    Location:
    France
    while the vol.14 is announced I can't get tired of these awesome set. The performances are great. Even if some shows are better than some others, I didn't know that I will enjoy so much this box set.
    The horns arrangement ("Slow Train" and unreleased tracks are amazing ("Jesus Is The One")
    I wonder if some people here posted or shared some custom-fan-made artwork for each CD of the Bootleg series vol.13 ?
    I would like to put each CD in a jewel-slim CD case.
    Did someone try to create such artworks for each volume of this set using photos from concerts, studio ?

    (regarding the vol.14 there was a great fan compilation of the best of the Rolling Thunder revue (something like 7 CDs - I don't remember exactly (the best of SBD recording was used and a special volume (with no Bob Dylan, but other artists was done as a bonus CD (featuring Joan Baez, etc...)- I'm looking forward for the official box set (I doubt that for the official box set they will do a special volume with no Bob Dylan at all - the set will focus on Bob Dylan and there's perhaps some (c) issue to do a whole CD of other artists)
     
    jay.dee likes this.
  22. mark ab

    mark ab Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    The Trouble No More film is being broadcast ( in the UK )on BBC4 on the 30th March.
    This article by Richard Williams contains quotes from the director. Presumably the comments confirm the theory that the 'sermons' from the CD live shows were omitted on Dylan's orders. That always seemed the most likely explanation for their absence. If he wanted the film to " go easy on the fire and brimstone" he surely felt the same about the rest of the set.

    "My instructions from Bob included one to go easy on the fire and brimstone,” Sante – who, at 63, is 13 years younger than Dylan – said this week from his home in upstate New York."

    Bob Dylan's controversial born-again phase explored in new film
     
  23. Walter Sobchak

    Walter Sobchak Forum Resident

    The performances are top drawer to be sure, the uniformly hectoring but surprisingly shallow theology of the actual lyrics knocks it down a few notches for me compared to Another Self Portrait.
     
    soundQman and C6H12O6 like this.
  24. RoyalPineapple

    RoyalPineapple It ain't me in the photo, babe.

    Location:
    England
    I realise the following suggestion is sacrilege from an audiophile perspective, but I've found that adding a touch of hall reverb to the mono soundboards from 1979 and 1980 (via the music player on my phone) really helps bring the rather dry-sounding recordings to life.

    I know it's not strictly authentic, but then again neither is listening to an indoor concert recording completely devoid of reverb.
     
    DmitriKaramazov and Sean Murdock like this.
  25. streetlegal

    streetlegal Forum Resident

    “Slow Train” live is a belter each and every live visit.

    The 1981 version—both of them—is the centerpiece of the ’81 show. It never fails to blow your socks off. Could listen to an album’s worth from that European tour.
     
    SteveFff, DmitriKaramazov and mark ab like this.

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