Bob Dylan 2000.03.15 in Portland, Oregon

Roseland Theater, 8 NW 6th & Burnside, 1350 tickets
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2000 09:25:03 -0700
From: roderick smith lantern@europa.com (roderick smith)
To: karlerik@monet.no
Subject: Roseland Notes

Roseland Theater Portland Oregon


Here it comes again.

He looks more bird like with each spin of the wheel.  His skin
hangs over his bones like some ancient sage. His wooden face has
turned into wax. He at one looks older than time and against the
light seems to be the last child among us.

Ah the stars have turned cherry red.

The Roseland is an old dance hall on a  second floor. Small stage
with ten row balcony on three sides.  Christmas lights hang along
the rail. It seemed like some inverted riverboat,  whooping it up
on the Yukon.

Dylan the wild captain steering into the Northern winter his
merry crew in perfect step.

This show sizzled.

Now we see the old Jewish peddler with all his wares, glistening
and polished, a ding here or there perhaps,  but laid out for all
to see, and turning the village on it's head.

Surely his body is made of finely jointed maple. He moves with
puppet like precision. Not a wasted nod. He delivers his
astonishing character without hesitation.  The suspension of
disbelief, that's this old man's game.  And he is the master of
it make no doubt.  No wonder he is so "shy."  He must never be
seen.  He is the puppeteer AND he is the puppet.

The old boat sails  up the river, lights flicker against the
night,  the distant sound of horns and beating drums. You keep
thinking, how long can this go on?  Waiting by another bend in
the river, a few bucks in your hand a gamblers heart.

The river boat captain... he knows our fate.

Roderick Smith


BDX


Subject: Re: "In Search Of His Grave" ????
From:   alouie@julian.uwo.ca (Arthur Louie)
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2000 17:48:12 GMT

It looks like the song is called "Searching for a Soldier's Grave" by 
Roy Acuff. Searching cdnow gives these results:

  Blue Sky Boys, "Blue Sky Boys"
  Ralph Stanley, "Pray For The Boys"
  Kitty Wells, "Queen Of Country Music"

Only the Blue Sky Boys album has a sound clip, and it ends with
"so I'm here, I'm searching for his grave..."

I couldn't find the full lyrics anywhere. Can someone help us out?

Arthur



Subject: Re: "In Search Of His Grave" ????
From: Peter Stone Brown 
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2000 18:45:34 GMT

...
Good work Arthur.
I found the song on Kitty Wells Country Hit Parade on Decca, and
transcribed the lyrics.  So if anyone who was there last night,
recognizes the following and can confirm, then this will be
solved.  Is Dylan moving into his Roy Acuff phase?   :-)  Of
course he had an Acuff song on his first album.

Searching For A Soldier's Grave

(chorus) Somewhere here among these many thousands
Are the Americans who all died true and brave
That's where I know I'll find him resting
So I'm here, I'm searching for his grave

You ask me stranger why I made this journey
Why I crossed a thousand miles of rolling waves
Like many others my darling was killed in action
That's why I'm here, I'm searching for his grave (cho.)

When I come to the spot where he's sleeping
I know it will cause more heartaches inside
But I long to be by his side once more and tell him
Tell him that I love him and will until I die (cho.)


---Roy Acuff


--
"Where the angels' voices whisper to the souls of previous times."  --Bob
Dylan
Peter Stone Brown
e-mail: psb51@earthlink.net
http://store.yahoo.com/tangible-music/petstonbrowi.html



        (Written by Johnnie Wright, Jim Anglin and Jack Anglin, 
        bought for $15 by Roy Acuff in 1943. Source: Chris Goldmann via PSB)



Subject: roseland: review and stuff
From:  relish@mindspring.com 
Date: Fri, 16 Jun 2000 12:18:07 -0700

What?  Bob Dylan is playing a 1000 seat club?  I'm going.  That's
all there is to it, I'm going.  Shortly after landing, I get a
call from my mother. "Happy Birthday! Where are you?"  Portland. 
"Why?"  Dylan.  That was all the explanation she needed.

I got into line about 3pm and was happy to see only a handful of
people in front of me.  I'm not coming this far to stand in the
back.  Doors opened about 7:15 and, except for one poor bastard
who chose to verbally assault and then insult one of the security
staff and was summarily ejected, all was right with the world. 
He broke the Golden Rule: Don't hassle the locals. Up the stairs,
turn the corner and there it was.a tiny club with only about 5 or
6 people at the stage.  I quickly settled in at the wall about 6
feet left of center stage.  I'd seen the shows in Santa Cruz
which held about 2000, but this place seemed about one tenth the
size of that place.

At 8:15 the lights go down, band comes out, and we're off. 
Duncan and Brady.  "He's been on the job too long."  Not Bob.  To
Ramona, Masters of War, Ring Them Bells, and Tangled Up in Blue. 
During Tangled he repeats a verse.  From behind me I hear "oops".
 No. No. No.  It just makes it that much longer, which makes it
that much better.  The band pretty much blew the roof off the
dump at the end of Tangled.  They all go for it, Charlie and Tony
are all smiles.  Larry cracks a grin or two.  Bob is pretty much
all business.  I'm hoping Bob will go for the harp and am
disappointed when he doesn't.  Then I'm disappointed I'm thinking
about anything but focusing on this moment.  They end the song
and Charlie steps back with a look on his face that says, "Yeah,
that was good."  Then we get "In Search of His Grave". Nobody
knew it.  Very cool.

The electric set opened up with Country Pie.  Fun.  Standing in
the Doorway. How sweet was that one?  Very. Crash on the Levee. 
Things Have Changed. Then, Drifter's Escape, a personal favorite
for me.  At the end, Bob goes for the harp and I see how foolish
I was, wanting it on Tangled earlier.  I don't think I've ever
seen him play it during an electric song.  What can I say about
this moment except that I will start playing the harmonica
tomorrow and aspire to what he did with it on this song for the
rest of my life?  Then we get Leopard Skin Pill Box Hat.  An ode
to the woman in the audience who is wearing one, perhaps?  Maybe,
but more likely just a coincidence.

They come back on for the encore.  Larry grins and points at a
very excited guy about 5 or 6 to my right.  Charlie is smoking. 
They all strap in and they're off with All Along the Watchtower. 
Charlie realizes he's got two hands committed to the guitar for
the next few minutes and a cigarette still in his mouth.  He
backs up a little, turns and makes eye contact with a stage hand
and then lets it fall to the floor, while mouthing the word
"sorry" with a slightly amused, slightly embarrassed look. 
Somebody points at Charlie and where he dropped the burning
cigarette.  He grins and shrugs his shoulders.  Maybe as they
were coming back on stage, he realized he was playing guitar with
Bob Dylan.  It would make me forget stuff, too.

The encores are great.  Girl of the North Country is beautiful. 
Then they bust out with "She's About A Mover."  I had heard this
song during the sound check a few hours earlier while we waited
in line and thought maybe it would be replacing "Not Fade Away"
on this tour.  Whether it is or not, it was damn fun.  Everybody
was grinning now.  Except Bob.  He's so hard to read, but I
figure if the band is grinning, it's all good.  It winds down and
a roadie crouches behind the equipment with Bob's acoustic, to
close the show with, I assume.  He doesn't want it.  He's
thinking, "We're doing another one."  Actually, I haven't the
slightest idea what he's thinking, but that's what I want it to
be.  "Forget it man, we're playing all night!"  Dream on. Rainy
Day Women #12 and #35.  Bob seems to enjoy parts of this one,
which makes it that much better to watch.  Then the acoustic is
accepted and it's "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right."  As he
finishes the last verse, he tips back on his heels as if he were
about to fall flat on his back.  Suddenly, his feet jump back and
he catches himself, turns and picks up the harp again.  It feels
perfect.  Everyone on stage is grinning.  Even Bob, as he blows
the last, long note, has a huge grin on his face, trying to hide
it behind the instrument.  But he's only ten feet away from me. 
I can see the corners of his mouth turning up.  He turns to put
down the mike and harp and I can see the grin for a brief moment.
 A second later, he turns back and there is no trace of it.

I read the setlists.  I know it's over.  The instruments go down
and the band stands and for applause and "Thank you's".  They
were the lords of all creation.  Bob bows and then. he's still
there.  Before, he's always been gone before the last note has
died, but tonight he seems to be really taking in our
appreciation.  The young man to my right points at Bob, "You're
the man."  He stands a long time before one last bow and then
he's gone.  The roadies come on.  The house music comes up. 
Nobody has stopped applauding. We are trying to will them to come
back.  Maybe if we just want it bad enough. Click your heels
three times and.  I knew he probably wasn't even in the building
anymore, but I didn't stop either.  I was in denial.  That guy's
right, you ARE the man, Bob.  May God bless and keep you always. 
And thanks.


Aaron Foster
aaron@relishing.com
www.relishing.com



Subject: Review - Roseland Theater - 6/15/00
From:   gser@earth.execpc.com  (Dan Krass)
Date: 16 Jun 2000 17:53:36 GMT

The Roseland Theater was located in a very poor part of 
Portland, which made for a few strange moments waiting 
in line while it was still dark out, but we did get
through the line and made it to the front of the stage
in the center, as intended.  The sound in the venue 
was quite good, though Bob's vocals were a tad heavy
from the stage, which is to be expected. On to the songs:

  Duncan And Brady (acoustic) 
Much better than the first time I'd seen it (Reno 3/17e)
and the band seemed really into things from the word go.

  To Ramona (acoustic) 
Bob ran through the vocals perfectly and with much emotion
One of the better performances of this great song I've
seen recently.

  Masters Of War (acoustic) 
Still love this newer arrangement, just as I've always
loved the song live.  Bob starting out singing the first
verse with just one guitar playing and then the song
exploding at the second verse. Wonderful.

  Ring Them Bells (acoustic) 
The first time I caught this one live and Bob did 
it a bit different from the recent performances. As
far as I can tell, he really didn't take any breaks
between verses. Just sang it, stepped back for a second
and was on the mic again for the next one. Strong, powerful,
perfect.

  Tangled Up In Blue (acoustic) 
Tangled was, as always, very good. Bob and the
boys taking the song to the max.

  In Search Of His Grave (acoustic) (Larry on Mandolin) 
Not a song I've heard before, but as with all of these
old covers Bob is pulling out, it was well sung and played.
One note: at the start of the show, before the cue sheets
were out they put a lyrics sheet out by Larry's mic stand,
and sure enough he was reading it during this song. Charlie
must've known it, because he didn't get a sheet.

  Country Pie 
Country Pie was as good as it ever has been

  Standing In The Doorway 
A wonderful live debut. Bob sang it near perfectly and
contributed a wonderful series of leads throughout the
song.  Now, Dirt Road Blues?

  Crash On The Levee 
How long's it been? 97 or so I guess.  I hope this one
stays with us on this tour; wonderfully fun.  Bob 
and the band really tore it apart.

  Things Have Changed 
Much better than the March 2000 outings. Very spooky sounding
and the phrasing was much different. Don't know if this
is how it was done in Europe.

  Drifter's Escape (Bob on harp) 
Wow, indeed.  Done in the Spanish Castle Magic manner
as it was in Europe.  Bob was all over the stage
throughout this song.  Squatting down to his knees
and pointing his hand at the lucky front row people
while playing an amazing harp solo on this one. 
Bob and the band were totally pleased with
this performance, as with the entire show. Very good.
Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat (Bob on harp) 

    (encore) 
  All Along The Watchtower 
When was the last time this was played in the encore? Very
good rendition with Bob showing off his guitar skills
throughout.

  Like A Rolling Stone 
The first time we were able to catch our breath, though
LARS was done very good and almost totally without
the usual flubs.  

  Girl Of The North Country (acoustic) 
Wonderfully soft version of this great song -- enjoyed
it much more than the handful of versions I saw in Spring.

  She's About A Mover (song by Doug Sahm) 
Wow! A kind of silly song, but it was a whole lot of fun
and everyone was loving it. Bob and Charlie were grinning
all the way through and we even got some boogying out
of Larry.

  Rainy Day Women #12 & #35 
Good as usual -- Some improvised lyrics towards the end.
Musically really good, except for Larry having some
technical problems at the start on the slide.

  Don't Think Twice, It's All Right (Bob on harp) 
Wonderfully played and sung -- Bob ended it with a 
lovely long harp solo and while the band was clearing
the stage, Bob was standing there bowing and making
fake harmonica motions with his empty hand. And then he
was out the door. 

The rest of the tour could be half as good as this and
would still be the best one of recent years!

Thank you
Dan Krass

-- 
--Dan Krass
Trade List: http://www.execpc.com/~gser/boots/
Bob Dylan Bootleg CD Artwork Archive:
http://covers.desolationrow.com/



Mitch Rath's review at Bob Dates