any good Bob Dylan stories?

Either offhand or pointing to a link online; this can be recording habits, onstage, offstage, interviews etc. The guy is utterly fascinating just being Dylan, and these stories never get old.


also, can anyone tell me if this is a different take of "Blood in My Eyes"? I dont have my CD with me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz542iQchN4

and shooting that video must have been a Dylan experience all in itself . . . what an odd guy.

 

I saw Bob Dylan with one of my three sons at Pimlico Racetrack for the 100th Anniversary of Harley Davidson on 8-18-2002. There was an unexpected small crowd considering that it was a beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Anyway, Bob's mike went out during one of the first songs. Nevertheless, he kept singing and the crowd just waited very patiently. The mike came back on and the crowd gave a polite cheer. You could tell Dylan was appreciative that the crowd didn't get worked up or make a fuss about the mike. So, he continued the show. He threw in some biker songs, which was appropriate. He also did Quinn the Eskimo, which I later heard that he had not played in a very long time.

Being such a small crowd, we were able to get very close to the stage without creating a riot. At one point during the show, a fan threw a small pad of paper and pen onto the stage next to Dylan. He picked it up, signed it and threw it back to the fan.

At the end of the show, the crowd gave Bob a great cheer. In return, Bob dropped down to one knee and removed his hat, like a cavalier might have done to a passing lady. I have never seen Dylan be so responsive and appreciative of a crowd.

Here's the setlist...a pretty good one I might add!

01. I Am The Man, Thomas
02. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
03. It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)
04. Highway 61 Revisited
05. Quinn The Eskimo (The Mighty Quinn)
06. Subterranean Homesick Blues
07. Friend Of The Devil
08. Tangled Up In Blue
09. Summer Days
10. Stone Walls And Steel Bars
11. Cold Irons Bound
12. Rainy Day Women # 12 & 35
13. Not Fade Away
14. All Along The Watchtower

 

At a show in Madison, WI in '96 my wife (girlfriend at the time), buddies, and I were able to get up to the rail. There was a segment while he was playing a guitar solo to "Everything Is Broken" when he was crouched down and staring straight at me for about 20 seconds from about 20 feet away. Later we were able to hoist my wife up onto the stage and she was able to dance for a few minutes and eventually kiss Bob on the cheek. In '98 we were engaged after a Dylan show in Cleveland, OH on Valentine's Day.

 

and these stories are all classic methinks . . .http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/bob_dylan/special_features/12361

 

Yeah, that is mandatory reading for any Dylan fan!

 

That was a fabulous article!
Is there another artist better than Bob Dylan?

I don't think so.

 

i cant find the links to all of those articles though . . .

 

sure, and there are others that came before that article, ijust cant find them even though the site is saying they are there if you follow the links.

 

http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/bob_dylan/special_features/12289

http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/bob_dylan/news/12305

http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/bob_dylan/special_features/12304

http://www.uncut.co.uk/music/bob_dylan/special_features/12342

http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/bob_dylan/news/12343

http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/bob_dylan/special_features/8984

 

I happened to be visiting Detroit in November, 1991 and walking by the Fox Theater on Woodward, saw Dylan's name on the marquee. I bought a ticket, turned out to be in the 6th row. That night, Dylan came out wearing a top hat. He leaned into the mike and said: "So this is Detroit, huh? They told me not to come here." He then proceeded to play a mind-blowing set that included Tears of Rage, Watching the River Flow, a once-in-a-lifetime version of Elmore James' "Dust My Broom," and to top it off, played almost the entire second side of "Bringing it All Back Home" in a row--"Baby Blue," "Gates of Eden" and then "Mr. Tambourine Man."
He left after tearing down the house with a killer version of "Highway 61 Revisited."
Could be the best single rock performance I've ever seen--topped only by the Stones of 1972.

 

11-12-1991 Fox Theater

bodine - Here's the setlist from that show.

1 To Be Alone With You
2 Tears Of Rage
3 All Along The Watchtower
4 I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
5 Gotta Serve Somebody
6 The Man In Me
7 Senor (Tales Of Yankee Power)
8 Watching The River Flow
1 It's All Over Now, Baby Blue (acoustic w band)
2 Gates Of Eden (acoustic w band)
3 Mr. Tambourine Man (acoustic w band)
4 Boots Of Spanish Leather (acoustic w band)
5 Dust My Broom
6 Confidential
7 Maggie's Farm
8 Everything Is Broken
9 Just Like A Woman
10 Highway 61 Revisited

 

Beatty Zimmerman's Fudge Bars

INGREDIENTS:
1/3 c. butter
1c. white sugar
2 eggs
1 t.
vanilla
1/4 t. salt
6T. cocoa or 2 pkgs. cocoa bake
1 c. cake flour
1/4 t. baking powder
1/4 c. milk
1/4 c. chopped nuts, optional
Chocolate frosting

DIRECTIONS
Cream butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt until fluffy. Add chocolate to well-creamed mixture. Hand mix the flour, baking powder and milk to cream mixture. Pour mixture in a greased and floured 9" by 9" or 8' by 10" pan. Place in 350 degree pre-heated oven. When shrunk from sides of pan remove from oven. When cool, frost with your favorite chocolate frosting. SERVES 20 (or one hungry Bob on an endless tour)

 

Cool, thanks. ive got about half of those written down on a slip of notebook paper in the dark that night, but the rest are just smudged ink now

 

I came face-to-face w/Bobby once after he played a gig in Seattle. He and Santana were alternating opening that tour, and Bob opened. I was off by a far corner of the (outdoor) venue, when I saw a car pull down the street. Out gets Bob. He starts walking towards me. No one else is around (aside from a 17-year old "security" guy who probably had no idea who it was).

I didn't have a pen or anything, but when Bob got within arms' length of me, I said "Hey Bob!", and he slowly turned to stare at me, through impenetrable sunglasses, not saying a word. I was completely at a loss for what to say and all I could blurt out was something lame like "nice set". He stared for a couple seconds, then turned his head and continued on ... to the public restroom at the corner of the stadium. A few minutes later, he walked back out to his waiting vehicle. My brush w/His Bobness.

Saw Bob on Sunday night here (Boise): my 25th show in 22 years!

 

my old friend tony garnier has been playing bass with bob since 89. at one of his first shows with him, due to dylan's somewhat strict guest policy at the time, we were listed as tony's drivers. this was an outdoor show in new jersey. aside from the crew, there were only a handful of guests backstage. there wasn't really an area set up for guests to watch so we ended up watching from next to the monitor board in the wings. at one point, dylan turned around to signal the upcoming end of the song. i caught his eye and he stared at me for several seconds. i thought i was going to turn to stone with that stare. it was a weird feeling. as the tour went on and in following years he did relax a bit more. a couple of years later at jones beach, he shared the bill with santana for two nights. surprisingly, carlos mostly stayed in his dressing room and bob mingled with everyone.

 

bodine - You're welcome!

If you are interested, there is a website where you can purchase any Bob Dylan show that you are interested in.

http://www.dylansconcerts.com/

 

A few years ago, Dyan played at Clemson University in SC. A friend of mine's daughter at Clemson got to drive Bob from the airport about 25 miles away. (The promoter is a good friend). She said Bob was very personable and they talked about his music that she liked and was he very interested in what other music she listened to.

 

I saw Bob last summer on his tour with Willie and Mellencamp, in Lakewood NJ. The day was absolutely miserable, a true downpour all day with very high winds. Bob apparently left his nearby hotel, and, with hood up, decided to wander the neighborhood. He eventually attracted the attention of two police officers who wondered why some guy was out in these torrential conditions peering through windows. When they picked him up, the young officers did not know who Bob was, nor did Bob have any ID. He was able to persuade them to take him to the hotel, where his identity was at last established. This story got quite a bit of play in the news...

 

I dont care if they are urban legend or gospel truth, but they do make for good Sunday morning reading.



Here's one from Joe's Dylan Stories:

During the recording of "Little Love Letters", I had the honor of singing and playing drums with Carlene and Dylan on a track called "Trust Yourself". The track never made it to "Little Love Letters", but was released years later on Carlene's "Hindsight 20/20" and then on Dylan's "May your song always be sung"

"Trust Yourself" was originally released only in Germany by Giant Records on Carlene Carter's CD single, "Sweet Meant To Be". The CD contains 3 songs from her album "Little Love Letters" and a 4th song,"Trust Yourself" which does not appear on the album. The song was written by Bob Dylan. Carlene Carter does the lead vocals. Dwight Yokam, Howie Epstein, Joe Romersa, Kevin Welch, and Bob Dylan are on backup vocals.

Howie Epstein (bass player for Tom Petty and producer for Carlene) and I were the rhythm section for Dylan's 'guitar player auditions' held up at his house in Malibu in '91.

My first meeting with Dylan was unforgettable. We were in the middle of recording with Carlene when Dylan walks into the studio. Ofcourse the recording stops and everyone moves out to the livingroom. Dylan was the last one to leave the room. I was sitting behind the mixing board, he stopped, looked at me and said the following, I remember every word. It went like this....

D - What do you do?

J - I sit back here, and make sure nobody screws anything up.

D - Eh. You look like a cowboy.

J - I'm a Soy Cowboy.

D - Eh. You ever ride a horse?

J - yeah.

D - You ever ride bare back?

J - No.

D - You ever fight a bull?

J - My ex-wife.

D - eh. You ever ride a bull?

J - No.

D - Well, you look like a cowboy.

...and then he walked out of the room to join Howie and Carlene in the livingroom. I stayed in the studio for a while and thought about what had just happened. The conversation I had with him was in itself a song. It started with the chorus, went through a verse and ended with the chorus "You look like a cowboy". It was perfect!

Just thought I'd share that special moment with you.

Another one of my experiences with him was when he came by the studio to tell us his Elvis Sighting.

One day Howie, Carlene and I were in the middle of a session for Carlene up at Howies studio, when Dylan comes walking in looking like he'd seen a ghost. With a real strange look on his face said "I gotta tell you guys something that happened to me." We stopped what we were doing to listen to Dylans story.

He said,"I don't know if you guys are gonna believe me or not, but it's true".

He said he was on a small tour I forgot where he said exactly, somewhere in the mid-west I think. Anyway, he was on the tour bus traveling through beautiful country side when the bus pulled up to a little diner next to a lake. The bus stopped and Dylan got out and walked over to an area with a view of the lake. He was enjoying the tranquility and beauty of the lake and trees enjoying the fact that no one was around to bug him.

After a few minutes of this, he could see a man with a cooks apron walking towards him from the diner. Dylan thought, "oh great, this guy knows who I am and is going to start talking to me, and I wasn't really in the mood to answer a bunch of stupid questions, and break this perfect moment with nature".

The guy said,"You're Bob Dylan aren't you? You played last night a few miles away didn't you?" Dylan said, "yes", wishing this guy would just go away. The guy said he was learning to play guitar and wanted to make a living singing and playing songs, and said a few other things, but Dylan wasn't really listening, he just wanted him to leave him alone. Then the guy said he was the cook at the diner and asked Dylan if he wanted a coffee. Dylan said yes just to make this guy go away for a while.

When the guy came back with the coffee, he started talking again about the music business, but this time Dylan noticed he was sounding more like someone who has been in the business for a long time, saying things like,"There's nothing new anymore! All the music has been mined already!", and other things that were so deep only someone like Dylan could relate to.

By this time Dylan was starting to pay attention to this 19 maybe 20 year old guy prophesizing about the future and past of music. Just then noticed when this guy turned his head, he had the perfect profile of a young Elvis. By this time Dylan was awstruck with the vision and words coming from what appeared to be a young Elvis.

Dylan listened to this guy speak for a while, and then rapped up the conversation, and the guy went back to the diner.

Not sure of what he just experienced, was it really the spirit of Elvis? Did he just have a conversation with a ghost?

Excited and a little confussed, Dylan went back to the bus which was parked just a few yards away. Dylan asked the bus driver if he saw the cook talking with him. The driver said, "No. I didn't see him". Dylan said, "Yeah, this guy looks just like Elvis. He's the cook at that diner there. Let's go in! You gotta see this guy!".

Dylan and the bus driver walked over to the diner, sat down at a table and asked to see the cook. A large man came to the table and said, "I'm the cook. Did you guys want to talk to me?". Dylan said, "No, I wanted to talk to the other cook that works here!". The large man said, "I'm the only cook here!".

That's the story.

I've told that story to many people, but I love my daughters view of it. I asked my daughter, Reyna, what she thought. Did she think Dylan really taked to the ghost of Elvis? Did she think Dylan made up the story? Her response was one I had not thought of. She said, "I think the bus driver was in on it!".

Well, what do you think? e-mail me

My only other experiences were at his house in Malibu playing drums. Dylan was auditioning guitarists for a tour and asked Howie to play bass and to bring a drummer. I was Howie's choice!

 

from Paul Schaffer's Bob Dylan Stories

When I stuck my head in his dressing room, I saw that he was with his lovely and talented girlfriend at the time, singer Clydie King.

“Hi, Bob,” I said and, offering Clydie a smile, quoted Dylan himself: “What’s a sweetheart like her doing in a place like this?”

Bob nodded in my direction. He didn’t say a word.

“You know, Bob, you grew up just 130 miles to the south of my hometown in Canada. We’re linked by Highway 61. And I gotta tell you something else, man. Just like you, I spent my growing-up years with my ear pressed against the transistor listening to those faraway southern radio stations. Just like you, I learned to love rhythm and blues. And hey, Bob, how about that Bobby Vee? You played piano with him, I could sing both parts to ‘Take Good Care of My Baby.’ We’re soul brothers.”

I waited for his response, but none came. He just seemed to be staring into space. But I kept going.

“When you sang Roy Head’s ‘Treat Her Right’ in rehearsal today, Bob, it sounded just great. I wish you’d record it.”

Finally Bob looked me in the eyes. I’d obviously made a connection.

“Paul, do you think you could introduce me to Larry ‘Bud’ Melman?” he asked, referring to the lovable nerd who was a running character on our show.

I thought Dylan was kidding.

But he wasn’t.

 

10/27/09
My Bob Dylan Story, and everybody else's

Every Dylan fan should check out Expecting Rain, Karl Erik Andersen’s excellent website which collects links to the Bob Dylan news of the day, as well as links that would be of interest to Dylan fans (see the links at the end of this post.) Today Karl posted a link to a site where people wrote their best Bob Dylan stories, and it made me think of my own encounter with Bob. I thought I’d add my story, but do it here....so here is….

My Bob Dylan story.

It must have been the end of 1977; I was eating lunch by myself at the Brentwood Country Mart, a complex of small shops and food stands in Los Angeles less than a mile from where I’d grown up. I’d eaten there hundreds of times, beginning when I was 2 or 3 years old. It was a weekday, and I was in the courtyard, eating my BBQ chicken and French fries, surrounded by mostly middle-aged women in groups of two or three, at small tables.

I was concentrating on my lunch when a scruffy man in a black leather jacket, with two or three little kids circling around him, walked through my field of vision. He was out of place—I remember his long curly hair, the beat up jacket, and his long nails with nicotine stains. Most everyone else in the place was well-dressed and upper middle class to upper class—so he really stood out. I glanced up and did one of the great double takes of my life—for it was Bob Dylan.

He walked into the toy store—my toy store—the one I’d grown up hanging around, where I bought my Matchbox Cars and Hardy Boys books. Unbelievable. Bob Dylan at the Mart. I looked around and it was clear that no one else has noticed nor recognized him. I thought quickly—did I have enough time to rush home to get an album for him to sign ? No, I’d probably miss him. I abandoned my lunch and hightailed it to my car, grabbing a felt-tip pen and a scrap of paper, and positioned myself outside the door of the store. I didn’t want to hassle him, but it was Bob Dylan-- my hero--and I knew I had to at least try to get an autograph.

I looked inside, but couldn’t really see him. So I waited. It seemed about 15 minutes before he emerged, with his kids still running around, paying no attention to him. He was carrying a child’s twirling baton, with some gift wrap and ribbon wrapped around the middle, but not covering the rubber tips on the ends. It looked like he’d been shopping for a birthday party gift for one of his children’s friends. Nervous as hell, I made my move.

“Excuse me, Bob. I’m sorry to bother you, but could I get an autograph ?” He looked at me, weakly held up the baton, which was in his right hand, shrugged his shoulders and said “sorry, I can’t sign,” indicating that the baton in his hand prevented him from using it to sign my paper. Embarrassed, I once again apologized for bothering him, and said something to the effect that his music had had a huge affect on me over the years, and thanked him for it.

I fully expected that to be the end of my encounter, but surprisingly, he asked me when I’d first heard him. I told him it was when I was 10 years old, in 1966, at summer camp. He asked me what song I liked best, and I told him “Like a Rolling Stone.” I said I thought it was a groundbreaking song in many ways, and marked his great transition from acoustic to electric, and that I thought it was brilliantly produced. I probably told him that I had gone to high school with the son of Tom Wilson, who produced that epic track. And I mentioned that I’d heard he was going to go to Japan soon, for his first tour there.

He was very surprised that I knew that, and asked where I’d heard it. I told him I worked at a local record store, Rhino Records, and we had a subscription to Billboard Magazine, and I’d read it there. At some point it occurred to me that he probably had people approach him constantly, telling him how much his music meant to them. I felt like he was testing me, to see how much I actually knew about him and his music, and I was passing the test. We chatted for another minute or two, and then he said “well, I’ve gotta go. Nice to meet you.”

I figured I’d take one last shot and asked again for an autograph. He looked at me, shrugged again, held up the baton, indicating he still “couldn’t” sign, and said, “See ya.” I was in shock.

At the time, I was sad I hadn’t gotten a signature. Happily, 32 years later, I’ve got plenty of signed and handwritten Dylan things. But Bob gave me something far more valuable—some of his time and a memory I won’t ever forget.

 

A friend of mine tells a story about hanging outside the Daisy off Beale Street in Memphis in the early to mid 90s. A slightly smelly, apparently homeless, man asks him if he's with the band that is playing there that night and, if so, what time the gig starts. Then he asks my friend if he has a stick of gum.

After the old guy leaves, my friend realizes it was Bob Dylan. The show at the Daisy that night was The Wallflowers.

Guess he had to buy his own gum.

 

Often saddled with the monolithic "Voice of a Generation [whose songs are best sung by other voices]" moniker, his more impish qualities tend to go unnoticed by anyone but ardent fans. The recent release of The "Complete" Basement Tapes makes for a good musical exploration of unguarded and whimsical Bob, but what about firsthand (or secondhand) accounts of Dylan's more eccentric side?

The purpose of this thread is not to delve into prurient gossip, murky biography, or the uniqueness of his generally perceived serious and aloof persona (let alone his vocal qualities), but to have some fun exploring "the clown who cried in the alley" in the moments he smiles. While there's plenty of music in that vein (ranging from his Talking Blues to the Wilburys, Wiggle Wiggle or the Must Be Santa video), what about stories outside the songs themselves?

--------------

To kick things off, Larry Charles (one of the brains behind Seinfeld) directed Dylan's fictional road movie, Masked and Anonymous. Here he spins the story of Dylan wanting to create and appear in a slapstick series on HBO, inspired by Jerry Lewis and Buster Keaton:



Got any stories about another side of Bob Dylan...?

 

There was a tale that after he made the big time, he donned a top hat and ran through some alleyways, past some homeless guys, throwing hundred dollar bills in the air. Might've been true.

Another story I heard second-hand (possibly third-hand): Bob was at a show-biz/music-biz party in L.A., standing out on a terrace, chatting amiably with some people, when he suddenly excused himself for a moment, leaned over a wall, and threw up, after which he came back and rejoined the group like nothing happened.