Bob Dylan Fall Tour 2017

Iv only been to about ten Dylan shows over the last 15 years and honestly must say Iv hardly seen anyone walk out.

 

2nd row seats Ames Iowa just sold for $104 on stubhub, 3 hours before show time, $40 below face. 4 second row seats available at $92. Some folks are gettin' a good deal!

Edit: $92 tickets sold (BDboxoffice dot com)

 

After over 55 years in the entertainment business it's clear that he needs some direction if he is ever to be successful. Well you could be proactive. First A) If you know that you don't like the show don't by a ticket. Then B} Since you seem to feel that Bob's touring career is in jeopardy (and that you know how to save it) you could call his management team tell them of the grim facts (they've been thinking that they are doing pretty well! ) and give them the solution before it's too late..

 

I hope he tours Texas soon. Since the ABB are no more my list is down to one to see a couple of more times. Bob.

 

Dylan sang better and seemed more energized and engaged than I've seen in 16 years (Love & Theft tour).
His voice was smoother, he effortlessly hit notes in a higher range with better pitch control than I ever remember.
From the front row I could see little smiles flicker across his face...

He's ditched the crowd-pleasing harmonica for now.
He’s abandoned easier-to-play electric keyboards for grand piano, which requires more hand strength and technique.
I was amazed to hear skillful little licks floating out of the mix.
Trilling descending arpeggios on Early Roman Kings, unison melodies with electric mandolin & guitar…

He directed the band from the piano like Duke Ellington for more than half the songs, moved to center rear stage to croon, tilting the mic stand.
Piano sat left center, facing the audience at slight angle, rather than a sideways on past tours.
His bench set rotated 90 degrees from classic position, he sat on the narrow rather end and confined his playing to upper octaves...
He was often on his feet, though, widening his stance, sinking lower until his legs spraddled nearly as wide as the piano legs.
There's some teenage Little Richard fan left in him...

 

Thanks for the report! Looking forward to a great show Saturday night in Grand Rapids. My last show was South Bend in May, 2015 (which was a terrific night), so it's been a while for me between shows. Reports from this tour have been really strong, as your review reflects. The combination of the good notices, an excellent sounding venue (seen great sounding Bob there before), time between my shows, and the upcoming Trouble release has me super-psyched for the gig!

 

Love this report. Thank you.

 

Got tickets for the Beacon. Mucho looking forward to it. Saw him last year at this same time of year.

 

Every once in a while a post transports you (you are there). I haven't been to a Dylan concert before (relatively new to loving his music on CD), but I've been told "if you go, pay to set up front". This post explains why.

 

Didn't think I was going tonight, but a 2nd Row (in truth 3rd, but it's labeled 2nd) ticket was released at around 5PM late this afternoon, and, well, here I am. Mavis coming on in just over 1/2 hr.

Nice view.

Correction. They seated me in the wrong place. I'm truly in the 2nd row after all. Yay!

 

The Omaha set list had only one song different and a couple in different spots.

To me, it's significant what was NOT played:
Rainy Day Women, All Along The Watchtower, Like A Rolling Stone...
(My wife bought a t-shirt before the show covered in lines from LARS, figures... But we've seen him play it plenty.)

In Omaha he played This Nearly Was Mine for only the fourth time ever, and September Of My Years for the seventh.

The set list of 20 songs came from 13 different albums over a 55 year career.
The most songs (4) were from Tempest (2012), then three from Highway 61 Revisited (1965).

He played Highway 61 live for the first time in 1969 at the Isle of Wight.
Omaha was the 1864th.
Blowin' In The Wind, the 1464th.
(And in two weeks it's my 64th birthday, hmmm....)

Desolation Row is always a treat, and less played, only 525 times in 52 years.
Tryin' To Get To Heaven is more rare, 153 plays in 18 years.

True to form, many songs were nearly unrecognizable at first, different rhythm or tempo from recorded versions.
Summer Days had a loping swing feel, ba-boom, ba-boom, rather than the more oom-pah, room-pah Love & Theft track.

Tony Garnier started the night playing a 60s surf era Fender VI six-string bass with a pick rather than fingers.
It made his lines sharply articulated and twangy, like Carol Kaye's Wrecking Crew work.

At earlier Dylan concerts, I was frustrated when I couldn't hear all six instrumentalists clearly at all times.
I thought perhaps the sound engineers were taking liberties with the mix.

From a front row perspective, I observed that when Bob Charlie, Donnie or Stu fade into the background, it's to stay out of each other's way.
When it's his turn to shine, each one comes through clearly.

 

my experience, with a similar amount of shows during the same time period is the exact opposite. haven't seen a single walkout and have seen plenty of newcomers of all ages turned on to modern Bob. Reality is that he's sounded very similar in a live setting for about the last 20 years and it's hardly something that even the most casual music fan is unaware of. That said, when friends or their kids ask me about whether they should see him, I do the same as you - I make sure they know what 21st century bob sounds like. they all go. most continue to go back as much as they can. Sorry, but "he's past his prime" is the last reason I'd rely on to pass on seeing a living legend. If anything, watching a major artist make do with the limits of age is more compelling to me than what they did 50 years ago.

 

I thought the St Paul show was great, but I was lucky enough to be in the center and first 10 rows. I swear I saw some smiles too! Lots of songs in common with the rest of the tour, but closed the set with Ballad of a Thin Man and 2nd encore song was Lucky Old Sun. Lots of colorful characters to chat with before and after was a bonus!

 

That Lucky Ol' Sun was a real treat. I got the odd feeling he played it for Fats Domino. Not a song specifically associated with Fats, of course, but one that deals with mortality. In any case, the performance felt very heartfelt.

 

That Lucky Old Sun was a nice surprise, first time in this leg of the tour I believe.

 

Unbelievable that he drops an obvious one time cover and continues to play songs from his last 5 albums? Oooohkaaayyyyyy.

 

You got 'Lucky Old Sun' -- you lucky ol' so-and-so. I'm sure you're right about it being done for Fats Domino, too.

I would really like to hear your thoughts about the show -- not a song-by-song breakdown or anything, just a nice overview of the event from a 2nd Row perspective.

Remind me, please: how many time have you seen BD before? And...have all the archival releases of the past few years changed your perception of Bob Dylan, 'Performing Artist' (to steal Paul Williams' title)?

 

Re: "That Lucky Old Sun", according to his official site, he has played it just once in 2015, once in 2016 and this once in 2017. Before that, he last played it in 2000. In total, 30 plays.

 

The new arrangement of "Desolation Row" is very... weird. But I sorta loved it. Particularly the last verse. Or was the St Paul rendition unusual? Also this "Tangled Up In Blue."

 

I was pretty sure it was rare (at least lately). But it was the force of the performance that really made me love it.

 

"Desolation Row is always a treat, and less played, only 525 times in 52 years."

And people wonder why he messes around with the arrangements.

 

From Chicago last night,

 

In recent years he's come close to moving the '60s out of his set altogether-- two songs when I saw him last summer. AFter Oldchella he seemed to move a few of those songs back in.

 

When's the last time a Dylan theater show got a stage-rush for the encore?

Pittsburgh '88 was the last time I witnessed this happen for Dylan, and that was an arena.

 

Dylan delivers more left turns at new Chicago arena

Review of Chicago show here...NOT very good, except for the band.