Bob Dylan Live
In Bob Dylan live, we explore what makes Bob such a wonderful live performer. Please share you thoughts and read what others love about his live performances.
1.What makes Bob’s live performances exciting to you? If you have attended a live show please describe a favorite moment; if you haven’t, please describe a moment in a show you’ve heard.
2.How are Bob’s live performances important to his legacy (as opposed to his achievements as a songwriter or recording artist?)
3.Bob is known for rearranging his songs often, sometimes multiple times within a tour. Share with us a time when Bob’s rearrangement of a song really made it shine.
What makes Bob’s live performances exciting to you? If you have attended a live show please describe a favorite moment; if you haven’t, please describe a moment in a show you’ve heard.
Jeffrey Beck, NJ
Derek Caldwell
Barnaby Nelson, Australia
“Dylan can connect with people on quite a profound personal level – when this happens with a group of individuals all together it can take on an almost spiritual quality. Favorite moment – after end of a great concert in Tamworth , Australia 2001, Dylan had almost finished walking off stage, stopped, turned to the front row of audience, covered his face with his hands and started playing peek-a-boo with the audience. Very funny moment that captured something of the ‘masked and anonymous’ theme in Dylan’s work and public identity.”
Jane
“First live performance was in London, late 70′ really ’80’s and a lot of people in the audience were calling for old songs. He stopped the musicians and said “The old songs were once new” and then they played “Dead man” – knocked my socks off. The second was in Bordeaux, 2010. At one point something happened to the microphones so the music drowned his voice. Luckily, it seemed a sound engineer realised and corrected the problem before the next song. It was the first time I’d heard “Jolene” – brilliant!”
Suzanne Simmons
“It was after the show in upstate NY in 2002. The concert was held outdoors at a rundown Erie County fairground. The vibe was super chill. I was seated in the bleachers, with a grassy field and then the stage in front of me.
As the show was about to end, I decided to head down to a fence that separated the stage, Bob’s bus, and the audience. When Bob walked off stage, I yelled his name and waved. To my amazement, he walked a short distance across the grass and gave me a quick hug!
Within seconds, a crowd had gathered. Bob asked, “Are you all having fun, drinking tonight?” Everyone, including Bob, started laughing. Then, he casually walked to his bus with no security in sight.”
Matt Steichen, Minnesota
“The most exciting thing about watching Bob perform is that he refuses to be held captive by expectations or any preconceived notions – of what songs he should play, of what arrangements the songs should have or how the melodies should go. Each song has a built-in structure, but when you watch him perform you can see him navigate within that structure in the moment, deciding how a particular line should be sung, if he should add or take out some words to make it flow better, or if a harmonica or piano fill would serve the song well. He’s constantly trying to tap into his creativity to produce spontaneous, magical moments. Some of my favorite moments: When Bob gave me a high five from the stage in 2001, when he laughed at me mimicking his hang gestures in 2012, and when I yelled “yeah!” and he yelled “yeah!” back at me in 2013.”
Erin Callahan
“Honestly, being in the same space as Dylan and watching him create art in front of an audience is
always the most exciting aspect of seeing him live. Sometimes, especially the few times I’ve
been on the rail in GA or in the first row, I can’t believe how close I am to him and that I get to
spend the evening absorbing everything he has and is willing to give us. The other piece to Dylan
shows that makes them extraordinary is the people in the Dylan community who I have met
along the way. He gives so much joy to so many people and it’s lovely to share that.
Over thirty years of going to Dylan concerts, I have experienced more special moments than I
can count. They are punctuated by the people with whom I have shared them. However, the first
Dylan show I saw with my friend, Cary, in Camden, NJ, on July 17, 1999, stands out among the
many memories I might include. It was an oppressively hot and humid day and we were all rapt
with news about John F, Kennedy, Jr.’s tragic plane crash. During the show, which was fantastic
because of its arrangements and Larry Campbell’s virtuosic playing, Dylan told the jokes, “This
is a love song. We love to play it” and “My ex-wife left me again tonight. She’s a tennis player.
Love means nothing to her.” I remember Cary and I giggling with delight that Dylan spoke to us,
but also by how funny he was (and is).”
How are Bob’s live performances important to his legacy (as opposed to his achievements as a songwriter or recording artist?)
Jane
“I think it is great that he continues to tour.”
Heidi Whidbey
“Many memorable moments at Bob Dylan concerts but one of the most touching was seeing a fellow concert-goer moved to tears when hearing Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door.”
Sue Lobb
“When Bob performs his songs, somehow you can feel what he feels in that performance. And I find I feel it too. And basically it makes me so emotional that often I find myself crying. It’s unbelievable that one man can make me (and many many others)feel that way. He is a prophet and his work will continue to amaze long after we are all gone. Somehow I think he’ll always be around here somewhere.”
Bonnie Cole Ramba
“I have never been to a Bob Dylan concert. Unfortunately, it had not been on the table in previous years … but this July, my dream will come true in Raleigh, NC! In the meantime, I have poured over the great concert videos on the fan club page. Here is one that said so much about Bob’s kindness to his fans:
This review had been shared by Flagging Down the Double E’s, about a concert in Dubuque, Iowa in 1996. The night was titled, “Stage Diving in Dubuque”. It was never disclosed as to why dozens of fans came on stage, trying to shake Bob’s hand … some even trying to kiss him. Bob just calmly looked on, and kept on playing. He never showed any displeasure at the “free for all”. But then, there was a teenaged fan, attending her first Bob Dylan concert, named Bronwen. Bronwen, being shocked at the behavior of the stage crashers, came up with a plan. She decided that she would get up there, dance for a while, and keep people from interrupting him. The video of Bronwen, who danced on stage facing Bob, was absolutely beautiful! At the end of the song, she shyly hugged him, and thanked him. Bob told her that she was a beautiful dancer, and hugged her also! I found that this concert, came to my mind first … because of courageous Bronwen, but most of all, because of the kindness and benevolence of dear Bob towards his fans.”
Matt Steichen, Minnesota
“Bob’s dedication to performing live is what has sustained his career the last 40 years. As he said in Chronicles, he was just about ready to fold up the tent in the mid 1980s, but playing for live audiences rejuvinated him and allowed him to rebuild his fan base. Kids like me who grew up in the middle of nowhere couldn’t see many major acts, but I got to go see Bob Dylan for $25.
He’s said he only makes records so he has songs to play live, so it’s unlikely he would have continued to create new music at all if he hadn’t kept touring.
Bob’s studio recordings, especially early in his career, were often like underdeveloped demos. He’s often fully arranged and realized the songs when playing them nightly on the stage.
The great Paul Williams was exactly right to refer to Bob as a Performance Artist. His physicality and movement and facial expressions are all part of what brings his music to life – the eyes that tell the listener he knows something important and they need to listen closely, the head that bobs like Jerry Lee Lewis, the legs that bend like Little Richard, and the hands that emote like Johnnie Ray.”
Erin Callahan
“This is simple. Dylan has said, most notably in his Nobel Laureate speech, that his songs are
meant to be heard. Of course, though there are many ways to listen to Dylan’s songs, the best
way to experience them is through live performance. He has also said his songs are not etched in
stone. They are constantly evolving. Ultimately, Dylan’s work is important to American music,
art, culture, and history. Every live performance exemplifies and, through the generosity of the
recorders and those who remaster those recordings, chronicles Dylan’s place as one of the most
important artists in American history and the greatest living artist more broadly. As he goes from
town to town, altering arrangements, phrasing, and setlists, the fluidity and expanse of Dylan’s
genius further cement his position.”
Bob is known for rearranging his songs often, sometimes multiple times within a tour. Share with us a time when Bob’s rearrangement of a song really made it shine.
Derek Caldwell
“High Water (for Charley Patton) is one of his new songs that has already changed live. It sounded like an apocalyptic blues song on ‘Love and Theft.’ But last time I heard it live, you could DANCE to it. It had this tempo that made you stomp your feet like you were in the south swamps…’Don’t Think Twice’ was a pretty folk ballad, but last time I heard it it was electrified, but still very pretty. And then, toward the end, it turned into this rowdy whorehouse romp that brought the house down. Bob got front and center with his harmonica, grooving to the music.”
Kait, Ohio
“When I heard the transformation of of Tryin To Get To Heaven from the album version to the version they played live in the fall of 2000 I almost lost my mind. I didn’t know any other artist who could so artistically and beautifully transform a song into it’s version from and alternate timeline. It was fascinating.”
Jane
“Not heard in a live performance, but a rearrangement and extra lyrics to “Lay Lady Lay” – I don’t know where I heard it (youtube? possibly) – added lyrics included “let’s quit this dance and go upstairs”- a touch of naughty humour!
Erin Callahan
“This isn’t quite an arrangement, but a performance that changed my perception of a song. I saw
Dylan in Paris in October 2024 with Laura Tenschert, Julie Cohn, and Robin Haar. Before the
show, I said I wouldn’t mind if Dylan took “Black Rider” out of the set to the shock of my
friends. I had seen a lot of shows on the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour, and “Black Rider” never
truly moved me in the way others had. However, there was something about Dylan’s phrasing
and delivery that evening that reduced me to tears. I finally felt what others had. When Dylan
finished, Laura turned and asked, “Do you still want him to take it out of the set?” No, I did not.”
