Bob Dylan "Rolling Thunder Revue: The 1975 Tour Recordings" (14CD box set; 7th June 2019)

I love that performance. All three brilliant songs. It's one of Dylan's finest live
performances. He looks like a wild mad poet, like the artist he is, and his voice
finds its natural timbre with the minimal accompaniment of bass, violin and his
rhythm guitar. The ensemble threatens to fall apart, and yet somehow it stays
together in discordant melody. I wish he'd played for hours at the Tribute with
this ensemble, recorded a new LP with them, gone on tour with just them. It's
just a terrific performance, surreal and white hot.

When people ask me what is Bob Dylan all about I show them the video of the
John Hammond tribute.



bob dylan john hammond tribute - Bing video

 

My guess is that there have been millions more books written about "criminals" and criminal cases than about the average generally law abiding average Joe who works as an insurance agent his whole life, has 2.5 kids and lives tucked away in suburbia. Gee, I wonder why.....

But of course, "even the President of the United States must stand naked..."
Hopefully ol Bobby has one more sociopathic criminal song in him.

 

Yep, great stuff. For Dylan to even do that song--uncensored--on TV on a sound stage, TV lights glaring, is something else. You can see the sweat from the lights beading up. Scarlet looks a bit 'terrified' at times. It's got to be such a difficult song to perform in that setting and he maintains the focus and intensity throughout. Great little collection of video; I have it on a beautiful DVD release with both the complete Fort Collins and Clearwater live broadcasts in pristine shape, my own little RTR warmup while I wait.

 

Cary Grant in the audience.

I wish the quality of my DVD copies of those shows were better.

As an aside, I've been watching them since 1980, the year I bought one of
the first VHS players. Got the tapes from _____ when he was still living
in Madison, Wisconsin while he was still in command of his faculties.

 

I worked in a record store in 1970, and specialized in jazz. Though I was into jazz, I was not very hip on the latest street slang language.

One dude came in one night (in some wild clothes) and wanted to show me his favorite soul-jazz artist, who I thought was absolutely terrible.

The guy said to me, "This record is really bad!"

I totally agreed, and said "I think it is bad too!"

A huge smile came over his face and he repeated, "Man, it is bad"

I smiled back and agreed again.

He started laughing and wanted to slap me ten, and shouted, "It is so bad!" as he left the shop laughing.

I was laughing too.

But it was only after he left, that I realized that he thought it was good. Real good.

 

You're not going to tell us the name of the artist?
How are we supposed to sleep at night, not knowing?

 

It was just a lesson for me not to take words for their literal meaning.

Context is everything.

So when my girlfriend told me I was bad, I knew she meant I was great.

Then she left. And took her Leonard Cohen records with her.

 

Isis may be missing, but then are we really to trust all the notations provided officially? They don't have the best track record with that...

 

Great. Thanks for posting.

 

Thank you kindly for posting. Just to see, hear, experience, his phrasing of the words in Hurricane saves the day. It makes me think of another blue eyed chap

 

Well I`m grinding my life away, steady and sure
Nothing more wretched than what I must endure

This waiting game is really starting to get to me (good thing I got the Ronnie Lane box set to mellow my mind).

 

Thanks for posting that great video. I remember first reading about the John Hammond tv tribute (which aired on PBS “Soundstage”) in Rolling Stone 10/23/75. Here’s a link to the article written by Robert Palmer. In re-reading it, I found a few interesting tidbits: Scarlet Rivera was involved in organizing a Hog Farm benefit concert for the Chicago Seven. And “Hurricane” was performed twice at the benefit.

Bob Dylan, Jazz Stars Salute Label Pioneer John Hammond – Rolling Stone

 

Well, we know it wasn't trick photography.

 

When part of the John Hammond performance was shown on BBC TV in the UK, on The Old Grey Whistle Test, we only got “Hurricane” and presenter Bob Harris called the violinist Donna Shea. Scarlett's real name?

 

I prefer "Scarlet Rivera." But it would figure that that name is too good to be true.

 

Is that a fact, about her name, or is it speculation?

Who performed "Hurricane" at the Hog Farm Benefit?

The first time I heard "Hurricane" was in a technical school in Westbury, Long Island
NY in 1976. Television Production Studio Operations. A local band came in to make a
videotape of themselves playing the songs from Desire. They played every song on the
album LOUD. It was exciting to hear, but I wasn't part of that shoot. I had to sit in the
classroom and listen to the lecture. I remember putting my hand against the wall and
felt the decibels vibrating through. A friend of mine named Howard, who was also in
the class, bought the album and I listened to it at his place. Wish I knew who they were.

 

Sorry, my mistake. I meant to say that “Hurricane” was performed twice at the Hammond tribute (not at the Hog Farm benefit).

 

Got it.
Desire had not been released yet when Dylan sang at the Tribute. The audience,
including Dylan fan Cary Grant, was hearing "Hurricane" and "Oh Sister" for the
first time. People recognized "Simple Twist of Fate" from Blood On the Tracks,
but it had never been performed live either.

I had hoped that this RTR collection would provide the opportunity to officially
release the Hammond Tribute performance including both takes of "Hurricane"
but evidently not. Darn.

Dylan is real stingy if not miserly with the video.

 

I remember last year they posted the performance of "Simple Twist Of Fate" on YT to tie in with BS14 with all cleaned up visuals. I think they deleted it a few months ago sadly. Luckily we'll get the "Simple Twist Of Fate" performance from BS 5 in video for the doc soon.

 

Whereas those who give any credence to Astrology are not.

 

I will too...

 

Are we including William Zantzinger?

 

At a minimum, a high quality audio transfer and remaster of the Hammond TV show should have been in the box. Now that I am reminded of that event, I am unhappy about the box!

 

Yes.

Don't forget Ahab and The Lone Ranger