Bob Dylan - Bootleg Series Volume 15 (Travelin’ Thru 1967-1969 (1st November 2019) *

Holy **** you know him too ? I thought I was his only contact.

 

I’m in favour of the 1987 London shows being released next.
It’s been a while since there was a totally live set. It might not be the most significant release ever, but none of the multitracks have leaked, it would be a nice ‘fan release’. There could be a 2cd of one show/compilation and a box set of all four shows.

 

Really? I hope it was better than Oct 16 because that was terrible and very short.

 

This. CD sales dropped another 40% in the last 12 months and vinyl sales, though growing, aren't filling the gap. It can't be long before a rethink is necessary. Though that saddens me in some ways, I also think it would be a great opportunity to do-over the whole approach to Dylan's archive. The Bootleg Series has been an evolving beast, and I prefer the recent approach of releasing everything from a session/tour with a curated 'playlist' option - a model that's easily digitised. I'd love it if they did that for every session and tour of his career, with vinyl releases of the best stuff.

We also can't be far away from 'vinyl-on-demand' services where people curate their own playlists to order and have it arrive the next day in vinyl form, either. I'd like to be able to press my own vinyl of my favourite version of BOTT as distilled from the New York sessions, as I doubt the 1-disc version will perfectly meet my personal preferences any more than the 2-disc Cutting Edge did. And, as this thread has proven, we could definitely choose a better cover for it too...

Just put it all out there.

 

A fantastic show

 

As I've said elsewhere, I like the Grateful Dead approach - Dave's Picks 4 times a year and occasional larger sets like May '77. I would pay for something like that if it was Bobbed.

 

Well, I hope if they do this they at least have the good grace to call it Blowin' In The Wind as I had a day long fight through 60 miles of hurricane damage to get to the Oct 16 show.

 

I can’t see vinyl on demand happening. It costs too much and the plates would all go to waste. Unless lathe cutting gets vastly improved.
It would be awesome though.

 

Very much appreciate your perspective and post.

Dylan is a mess vocally in that London show. I'd be shocked if they released that. I think it's booze, his bark outs and shout outs are way off of rhythm.

 

Pre-ordered!

 

And if you order from Dylan.com you get an exclusive bonus disc of Bob covering Watertown

 

Sir, I hope you're not joking, because I have been lobbying for this very set for many, many years!

Is there enough Desire-era [Dylan] material for a Bootleg Series set?

Bob Dylan - Bootleg Series Vol. XII "The Cutting Edge"*

Bob Dylan - Fantasy Bootleg Series

And while I'm at it, I stumbled across my expanded fantasy wish list from the original BS15 thread, cut down in the prime of life over a year ago:

The Dylan source has only mentioned a "coffeehouse" Bootleg Series once, so we don't really know how close that one is to the top of the pile. I'd look at the ones that get mentioned more than once, like BOTT, Rolling Thunder, and the Supper Club shows. If I had to predict future releases, based on previous patterns and mixing it up marketing-wise, here's how I might proceed:

2008: BS08 -- Tell Tale Signs -- 2nd big "career overview" set after the very first Bootleg Series Vols. 1-3; "Fan Wish List" set #1 (1989-2005)

2009: BS09 -- The Witmark Demos -- a "boring but necessary" set, perhaps the last of its kind (i.e., 2 CDs in a slipcase, no expanded versions) (1960s)

2013: BS10 -- Another Self Portrait -- a new phase of Bootleg Series, "Era Revival" project #1 (Country Bob), 1st super deluxe (1969-1971)

2014: BS11 -- The Basement Tapes -- "Fan Wish List" set #2, partly driven by Copyright concerns; 2nd (larger) super deluxe (1960s)

2015: BS12 -- The Cutting Edge -- "Fan Wish List" set #3, partly driven by Copyright concerns; 3rd super deluxe; 1st mega deluxe of complete 1965-66 sessions (1960s)

2016: Live 1966 -- 1st huge tour box; entirely driven by Copyright concerns (1960s) -- Fifth straight release from 1960s; will probably avoid for awhile

2017: BS13 -- Trouble No More -- "Era Revival" set #2 (Gospel Bob), 4th (and larger) super deluxe (1979-1981)

2018: BS14 -- Blood On The Tracks and Desire w/ Rolling Thunder -- "Fan Wish List" set #4; four CDs of outtakes and two complete shows, one from each leg; 5th super deluxe; 2nd mega deluxe of complete BOTT sessions (1970s)

20xx: Live 1975-1976 -- 2nd huge tour box, not sure if it would be "extensive" or "complete" (1970s) -- Third straight release from the 1970s; time for a change?

20xx: BS15 -- Coffeehouse / Folk Bob -- "smaller" in scale after several massive sets; highlights of live stuff from 1961-1963, with complete Carnegie Hall and Town Hall; official release of original cancelled live album from 1963 for RSD (1960s)

20xx: BS16 -- Infidels / Empire / KOL / DITG -- part "Era Revival" set #3 (Eighties Bob) and part "Fan Wish List" set #5 (Infidels sessions!); a more modest 4-CD deluxe; 3rd mega deluxe of complete Infidels sessions (1980s)

20xx: Live 1974 -- 3rd huge tour box; will need to be released by 2024 if Copyright concerns are still in effect (1970s)

20xx: BS17 -- UTRS / Bromberg / Acoustic / Misc. / Supper Club -- part "Era Revival" set #4 (Nineties Bob) and part "Fan Wish List" set #6 (Supper Club!); 3-4 CDs of studio, two live "teaser" discs of NET, and Supper Club DVD; 6th super deluxe (1987-1996)

20xx: Live NET -- 4th huge tour box; not sure how to handle massive era; maybe 1 CD per year of highlights; maybe 10-20 standout shows; maybe Dylan Inc. caves and sets up shop at Nugs.net or similar. Going to be massive, no matter what. (1987-2000+) -- Time for Phase Three of the Bootleg Series?

20xx: BS18 -- Complete Freewheelin' Sessions -- Back to the '60s for one final big dig; all Freewheelin' sessions covered in chronological order (not "every second" though), interspersed with live and radio performances; 7th super deluxe (1960s)

20xx: BS19 -- The Soundtrack Sessions -- 3rd big "career overview" set -- all of Bob's soundtrack work collected, including stuff from Don't Look Back, Eat The Document, Renaldo & Clara, Masked & Anonymous, etc.; 8th super deluxe (1965-2000+)

20xx: BS20 -- Complete Time Out Of Mind Sessions -- "Fan Wish List" set #7; need something "big" here after a few "niche" releases; all phases of sessions covered + 3 CDs of live highlights from 1997-2000, if not already covered above; 9th super deluxe; 4th mega deluxe w/ "every second recorded" (1990s)

OK, I stopped at Bootleg Series 20 -- but believe me, I could go on. I didn't even include stuff that's actually been teased by The Source (1978 tour, 1986 tour, Oh Mercy sessions), Clinton Heylin's wish list (Rundown era), or my own personal wish list (JWH sessions, goddammit!!). IMPORTANT NOTE: Before people start bookmarking this so they can PM me every year and say "WRONG!" -- I'm not trying to predict the future of the Bootleg Series. I'm merely saying this is how *I* might proceed -- and I purposely didn't list any years after 2018, because any number of events (including new albums, Copyright releases, the continuing decline of physical media and, inevitably and unavoidably, Bob's passing someday) can and will change plans. Jeff Rosen seems to be letting the Bootleg Series develop organically, so I don't think he has a whiteboard in his office that says, "2018: Rolling Thunder; 2019: Coffeehouse; 2020: Complete 'Wiggle Wiggle' tape," etc. And that's probably a GOOD thing -- keeping it loose gives them the freedom to take chances and do whatever inspires the passion to keep these things coming.

So this is just me trying to make sense of it all. I'm assuming that a few "rules" are being followed -- like not lingering in one decade for too long, not issuing consecutive "Era Revival" sets, and spreading out the "Fan Wish List" sets throughout the campaign. Given those rules, and given that the Bootleg Series seems to exist on a fast track since 2013, I think that the Bootleg Series **COULD** look **SOMETHING** like this over the next 10-12 years. [Insert all caveats and pre-denials here]

NOTE: Click on the link below -- it was color-coded and everything!

Bob Dylan: Bootleg Series, Vol. 15

 

I was at the 14 October show. It was possibly not as good as the final night of the Wembley run but still a very good one, for a period that was a pretty dark one for Bob. I was and am a huge Petty fan, so I probably enjoyed his set more (and the mini set of electric Byrds songs with McGuinn was stellar), but it was still a memorable Dylan set.

 

My top 5 wishlist:

1. Desire outtakes along with an expanded RTR 1975/76 concert box
2. Infidels outtakes along with a box of the 1984 tour, DVD of London show (I presume it was filmed?)
3. Oh Mercy outtakes
4. Street Legal sessions/Rundown rehearsals along with 1978 concert box covering best shows of the tour
5. Box covering Empire Burlesque, Knocked Out Loaded and Down In The Groove sessions

 

I'd be up for the complete Eat The Document era footage unedited in Blu Ray so we can roll our own concert. Either that or have them edit together a complete concert and chuck the remaining footage on there as a bonus. What is there ? About 20 hours of footage ? I can handle it.
After that, Desire era would be nice.

 

Put this man in charge.

 

"Bootleg Series Consigliere In Waiting"

 

VERY interesting!

Of course, I don’t see it as necessarily either/or. It seems to me both concepts could easily be combined into a single release. In fact, I’m skeptical if we’ll ever see a small scale (1 or 2CDs) Bootleg Series entry again. The current retail environment seems to make larger sets more viable, which can be offered in multiple formats and price points to hit the widest possible audience.

For similiar reasons, I find the prospect of Supper Club as a Bootleg Series entry increasingly unlikely (though I’m fully prepared to eat my words when the next Rolling Stone article is posted!). But combined with, say, the Complete Bromberg Sessions and maybe another NET show? That starts to look like something more in line with the other recent installments.

Smaller sets will surely continue to be released, but in a more low-key way like this year’s 62-66 Live collection. Perhaps the much discussed Gaslight CD will be next to enjoy this type of treatment?

 

With BOTT finally coming out, Supper Club seems to be the most promised/hinted at of all the as of yet unreleased projects.

 

Should this thread be merged with this older/still active thread?

Bob Dylan "The Bootleg Series" – overview and possible future projects

They're pretty much covering the same ground.

 

Yep. And as recently as last year’s article. It’s just a gut feeling more than anything else. But as I said, it’s not that I don’t think it’ll ever be released, just that it’s more likely as a component of a larger overall concept.

Also should be noted I’m often wrong with these sort of predictions!

 

Yes, exactly -- a lot of the ideas that hardcore fans might want (e.g., Supper Club) that might not "stand on their own" can be bundled with other material that would fit a theme. A 1990-1996 Bootleg Series could scoop up outtakes from UTRS (left out of BS8), more from the acoustic albums, the Bromberg Sessions, the Supper Club show, Unplugged outtakes, and all the soundtrack/tribute cuts from the period. All of a sudden, what was seen as a dire period by the general public is packed with great stuff!

 

I can definitely see it being part of something bigger.

 

Agreed, but he is the Apple Consigliere In Waiting, so Bob & Co. May have to wait.

 

Not that it will ever happen during waking hours, but I'd trade both of them to ensconce myself in the FPSHOT tape library.....