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Bob Dylan 990915 in Austin, Texas



From: Bernard Vasek 
Date: Thu, 16 Sep 1999 02:18:38 EDT
Subject: Fwd: Sept 15th, 1999 Austin,Tx set list 
To: karlerik@monet.no

...
Paul Simon opens the show. He performs his same 13 song set that he has done 
throughout the tour. There was one encore of LATE IN THE EVENING and STILL 
CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. Paul introduces Bob. The  mini-set is as 
follows:  
1.The Boxer
2.That'll Be the Day/The Wanderer
3. Knockin' on Heaven's Door

An intermission follows and then Dylan and his Band take the Stage.

1.I Am the Man, Thomas
2.Mr. Tambourine Man
3.It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)
4.It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
5.Tangled Up In Blue
6.All Along the Watchtower
7.Just Like a Woman
8.Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again
9.Not Dark Yet
10.Highway 61 Revisited 

Encore 1
11.Like a Rolling Stone
12.Girl From the North Country
13. Not Fade Away

Encore 2
14.Blowin' In the Wind

Encore 3
15.Rainy Day Women #12 & 35

Dylan was in  exceptionally fine form tonight. He wore a black
suit during the mini-set with Simon. He changed into a white suit
for his set and looked great. He seemed to be really enjoying
himself tonight. He was smiling throughout his set. The entire
band was cooking tonight. Of course Charlie Sexton was really
good in front of his home town audience. Dylan gave a couple of
thank you's at the beginning of the set. He introduced the band
right before Highway 61 Revisited. Charlie especially received a
thunderous applause at his introduction.

When Dylan exited the stage during the encores, he put on a white
felt cowboy hat.  We were laughing when he returned to the stage
for the encores, when he was adjusting his hair from wearing the
hat earlier. A funny Bob moment indeed. He is quite animated
these days in concert since the last time I had seen him in
November 1995 and October 1996 here in Austin. At times, when he
stood there with his legs spread and singing, he seemed to be
striking an ELVIS pose.

I was quite surprised at the encores which differed from the
usual during the September southern leg of the tour. Like a
Rolling Stone was performed first as expected. The acoustic
number Girl From the North Country was the first time to be
performed on this leg. He closed the first encore with the usual
Not Fade Away.

After seeing Dylan and his Band leave the stage, we thought it
would be over. But wait, they return for a second encore of
Blowin' in the Wind. They leave the stage for a second time and
return for a final third encore of Rainy Day Women #12 & 35. It
was an awesome, rowdy version and the first time the song has
been performed on the Dylan/Simon tour. This was a fitting finale
to a near perfect night.


Date: 16 Sep 99 08:27:22 PDT To: karlerik@monet.no Subject: austin set 9/15/99 review I'm still a relatively new Dylan fan (3 years or so), & I've been to eight shows in that period & despite the fact Bobby played only two songs I hadn't heard live before, last night's show was the first to demonstrate energy overcoming setlist -- not that it wasn't a great lineup, but like i said, there were some songs (JLAW, Stuck Inside & of course TUIB) that i would like a break from at some point. i've only got a few minutes here before class, but i had to write in real quick to concur with Carsten about the sheer menacing power of "It's Alright, Ma" live & in concert from a 58-year-old man. Unbelievable! The only other show i've seen on this tour so far was St. Louis, before Bobby added it to the set, so I'm not sure how he's done in terms of "lyrical accuracy," (last night he came up with a clearly desperate improv on TUIB that sounded like "..... rollin' on the sea ....." after a series of inaudible grunts) before last nite, but man, he nailed it! Sang more of it than i expected and just sounded committed to the words and confident in their power. I was almost in tears, & looking around at the stunned crowd made me so happy for Dylan -- after that performance he pretty much had them on his side for as long as he wanted to stay on stage. In terms of encores, the crowd worked hard for that extended setlist. They got crazy, man. Other songs: "I Am the Man, Thomas" - faster than expected & a great cover opener; Dylan sings it like he's been wanting to do it for years. Harmonies sounded great, unlike the Simon duets. God, they keep getting worse. "Mr. Tam Man" -Not much to say; instrumentally it was great ... sounded like an extended closing riff, & i was hoping for some harp. Dylan's phrasing is much different from performances as recent as St. Louis. "IAONBB" - Sung with a wise, controlled anger & bitterness; great phrasing. "TUIB" - "TUIB" (although 13th cent poet verse was nice) "All Along the Watchtower" - The guys tore into this one & seemed to put a lot into it; looked to be having a good time. The crowd came alive; at one point a girl behind me let out the most apocalyptic shriek I've ever heard during the last verse "two riders were approaching ....", & i was just like, hello, End of the World! Ragingly loud. "JLAW" - Bob sounded great, i thought ... i think this was the first time i heard harmonica on an electric song, & it was a mournful, haunting performance. "Stuck" - Like during "TUIB", the crowd surprised me by not getting into this as much as other crowds have. Fifth time i've heard this, so waht can i say? "Not Dark Yet" - Right before he played this i yelled for some TOOM bc i was afraid, like St. Louis, that he wouldn't play anything. First time hearing this, my TOOM favorite, & it was soooooooo beautiful & so well-performed. Some older woman behind me said to her husband, "What an honor. What a universal experience." I thought Larry would play steel on it, but they sounded incredible anyway. Afterward, before he introduced the His Band, Dylan said something to effect of, "... Thanks, everybody. That one's from my latest album, which you can get at Jupiter Records, a great place, one of my favorite record stores. They got everything there. Jupiter Records." Jupiter Records is a local indie record store that ran an ad in the Austin Chronicle with a very cool collage of Dylan photos from 62 to 97 or so and the phrase, "Thanks for coming through, Bob." Great spoken moment in the show when i think he was really feeling comfortable. Sexton gets huge ovation. "HWY61" - Loud. Vicious. Rock n' Roll in Texas on a beautiful night. Dylan SCREAMED the lyrics & held up his leg at one point for like 30 secs. ENCORES: "LARS" - Majestic. Dignified. I look at this song like the ultimate encore. I mean, who else can pull out a song like THIS after amazing the crowd for an hour already? Not many people. I could listen to this live for every show i ever go to, the guys do it so well. I wish Bobby would sing that third verse, though. The crowd around me was SO happy. Everyone who wasn't on their feet already is now. "Girl from the NC" - Opening chords sounded as if it would be yet another "It Ain't Me, Babe," or (as i was praying) "Boots of Spanish Leather." Turned out to be this, in what seemed like an odd spot (he played it like third or so in St. Louis). But the crowd took their seats and just ate up Bob's soft but still cutting croon. He was clearly having a great time. "Not Fade Away" - I don't know if the Buddy Holly-loving Texans (he was of course, from Lubbock)recognized this right off the bat, but after Dylan howled the opening lines, everyone rose again and went wild. I love when he lifts his knee and rips down on the guitar during the riff. Classic. "Blowin" - Solid; hypnotizing. "RDW#12&35" - Was wondering what would be his likely finisher after crowd begged for more ... forgot about this. Hadn't heard it for a couple shows, which was nice, but it was a frenzied version last nite & the crowd really deserved it. Everyone dancing, Bob meeting a few more ladies in the first few rows. Screwed up a verse, singing something like, "Stone ya' and they'll be back again/they'll stone ya' and say that it's the end/they'll stone ya and then they'll come back/stone ya and be back all dressed in black!", which i had never heard, but what seemed like a great save to me. All in all probably the best show I've ever seen, although Carbondale in February was great too, in a general admission envrionment. This man continues to give back so much to us and continues to make new fans everywhere. Bob looked great, sounded better, and was no doubt the crowd favorite last night. What a tape this'll be. Thanks, and see ya in Houston & Dallas!
1999: January - February - March - April - May - June - July September -

Tour