Das war die Setlist Bob Dylan’s am Dienstag, 05. Mai 2009, The O2, Dublin (Irland):
Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat (Blonde on Blonde, 1966)
Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right (The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, 1963)
Lonesome Day Blues (Love And Theft, 2001)
Just Like A Woman (Blonde on Blonde, 1966)
Rollin’ And Tumblin’ (Modern Times, 2006)
John Brown (MTV Unplugged 1995)
Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again (Blonde on Blonde, 1966)
Under The Red Sky (Under the Red Sky, 1990)
Honest With Me (Love And Theft, 2001)
Masters Of War (The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, 1963)
Highway 61 Revisited (Highway 61 Revisited, 1965)
Ain’t Talkin’ (Modern Times, 2006)
Thunder On The Mountain (Modern Times, 2006)
Like A Rolling Stone (Highway 61 Revisited, 1965)
(encore)
All Along The Watchtower (John Wesley Harding, 1967)
If You Ever Go To Houston (Together Through Life, 2009)
Blowin’ In The Wind (The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan, 1963)
Band:
Bob Dylan – keyb, gt, harp
Tony Garnier – bass
George Recile – dr
Stu Kimball – rhythm gt
Denny Freeman – lead gt
Donnie Herron – violin, viola, banjo, electric mandolin, pedal steel, lap steel
The Word Magazine: “I’ve been nervously anticipating this gig for the last two weeks. That was when the reports from the front line began coming in – mangled corpses of songs, appalling sound, the Great White Wonder’s indifference to his legacy and audience. It sounded like a Dylan I hadn’t seen since the late 1980s. Believe me I’ve seen bad Dylan gigs. Back then the novelty factor had kept me coming back, but those days are long gone.
The venue wasn’t promising – the O2 Dublin is a big arena and recently reconfigured to accommodate even larger crowds. We were about 40 feet from the stage, just left of centre. The view wasn’t that good – are there no short Bob Dylan fans?
The set kicked off with a rollicking version of ‘Leopard Skin Pill Box Hat’, with Bob at the Casio. Amazingly the sound was great, the band were tight, and Bob was leaning in close to the mic. Moving to the guitar for ‘Don’t Think Twice’ he was singing well. This was what the crowd had come to see, and they responded accordingly. The first spine tingling moment of the night was a stunning version of ‘Just Like A Woman’. The arrangement largely intact the crowd picked up the chorus refrain before Bob. He seemed to like it and by the third pass he was clearly deliberately leaning back on the chorus to let the crowd pick …”
Irish Times: “Here’s a potentially interesting question: what other bona-fide pop-culture icon would treat his audience the way Bob Dylan does? Not a word is said to the capacity crowd between songs; apart from a few dainty steps and hand movements, his stage presence is non-existent; his voice now approximates a series of growls; and some of his best-known songs are altered almost beyond recognition. Perhaps more to the point, why does a Bob Dylan audience accept this kind of treatment?
The answer to the latter is that they’re Bob Dylan fans and they know the score (although aren’t they getting ever so slightly weary of it by now?). The answer to the former? Well, as the man himself sings it, the answer, my friend, is blowin’ in the wind. In other words, go figure.
That Dylan continues to evolve as an artist isn’t in question. Over the past 12 years he has released a series of albums that has even further cemented his position as the pre-eminent figurehead of rock music. Yes, there is filler between the good stuff, but Dylan’s reputation as an artist is copperfastened, his back catalogue comprises an unequalled number of truly great songs and classics – it’s just a shame, to these ears and eyes at least, that he regards his live performances with such a dismaying lack of engagement …”
