Bob Dylan 2001.08.25 in Lancaster
Newsgroups: rec.music.dylan Subject: Re: August 25, 2001 - Lancaster, California - setlist From: Rin rinji69@earthlink.net Date: Sun, 26 Aug 2001 09:23:13 GMT Organization: EarthLink Inc. -- http://www.EarthLink.net X-Mailer: Mozilla 4.7 [ja] (Macintosh; U; PPC) Hi I just came from the show. It was a greatest hits show. Show started with Humming Bird and it seemed like nobody knew the song except Bobcats. It's ok and everybody enjoyed the songs. There were no rare songs for tonight but I was very happy only because I was there. He blew long and beautiful harmonica solo on "it's all over now baby blue". Before the band started" Gotta Serve Somebody", Bob had a trouble with his electric guitar then he switched to an acoustic guitar. "Mama, You Been On My Mind" was very sweet! and one of the best performance the night. New arrange on "JIm Hendrix" type "All along the watchtower" was very welcome but I wanted to hear more Charlie's guitar solo! Bob didn't say "thank you" or anything like that, but at last, Bob made a bow ones. That was such a great moment to me and I knew he wanted to say "thank you" with silence. He looked very old man but he performed like a full of a energy as young rock singer or even better. Does anyone tape the show? I want to have my own copy. Please Email me if you have it. I taped some but only the last 7 songs. :( I don't have any trade CDR (I have some but not so great lists) Of course I will pay for the handling and blank CDRs. Peace, Rin
from Wes J. Nixon: I just returned from the Dylan show in Lancaster, and I must say that I have a new respect Ñ respect for anyone who can write a review on the same night they see a show. I'm tired, and I'm going to bed. Goodnight. Good morning. One of the problems of being an obsessive trader in Dylan bootlegs is that Bob's concerts sometimes lack any element of surprise. Except for a few instances, this was the case in Lancaster. Last night's show found Bob in fine form. His voice was strong and sweet with clear enunciation and without any lung-gurgle. His legs and knees whipped about recklessly like the bungee jumpers to the right of the fairground stage, his harmonica instrumentals were melodic and extended, and only a few times did his lead guitar solos sound like he was chopping firewood in a cafeteria kitchen. The crowd was very interesting. A nice mix of young and old, with every one of them looking as if they just got out of rehab, or decided to skip it lieu of the Bob show. It may have been the 240 Degree desert temperature. Our group was no less diverse than the rest of the crowdÑcousins, uncles, aunts, friends and even one particularly lovely mom came along. (Woops, sorry ladies, 3 lovely "mom's' came along). As for the music, I did hear a couple complaints from my uncle and aunt that Bob should have played more of his old songs (which, he did, by the way, just with arrangements very different from his 60's versions). As Bob always does on his closing night of a tour or venue, his attitude was 70% rock, 30% other. The highlights for me were definitely the harmonizing vocals on "Hummingbird", "Searching for a Soldiers Grave", "Knockin' on Heavens Door" and "Blowin' in the wind." There is just pure magic in the way Charlie and Larry supports Bob's singing. Also, Dylan's harmonica on "The Times They are A-Changin'", "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" and especially "Drifters escape" was much more fluid and than I remember from other shows. The Best songs of the night? The worst songs? Well, The show really started cooking about halfway through, about when Bob played "Masters of War." Every song from that point seemed inspired and urgent, with the show ending with a whopping version of "Highway 61". The new arrangement of "Gotta Serve Somebody" seemed a bit strained and clumpy and "Tell Me that it isn't True" didn't make me swoon too much. The singing and overall arrangement of "All Along the Watchtower" was like lightning from a pellet gun. It was fierce, untamed and unexpected. Wow. In all, it was a very memorable Bob show. The fairgrounds were jumping all around us, and the hot desert breeze blowing through the band's hair all night gave the show a surreal, slightly ominous tone. The screen behind the band was a painted landscape of the high desert with shadows of Joshua trees. Bob was again looking svelte and dignified, like a GQ version of Cornel Saunders wearing a grimace that could crack milk. Good job Bob. See you September 11th.
Newsgroups: rec.music.dylan Subject: with mike and bob in Lancaster! From: CoupDgrac coupdgrac@aol.com Date: 26 Aug 2001 19:35:58 GMT Organization: AOL http://www.aol.com it was a good, solid bob show. he was in clear, articulate voice and the white suit and black tie were pure country-class. i liked the hard-rock "...serve somebody" better than i'd ever heard it before. also liked his little two-step shuffles during his harmonica solos! shake yer booty, bob! yes, i also hoped for more unfamiliar songs (like maybe a "L&T" preview? c'mon bob, even iggy previews new stuff!), a bit too much of the 60s standard-bearers. HOWEVER... i was still more than pissed when many in the audience took their bathroom or beer-breaks during the quiet, powerful "masters of war". assholes. It was also great seeing him in the county fair setting, as opposed to a formal concert hall appearance. Tho it mightve been nice to hear him address the crowd with more than the band intros, it sort of only enhanced his reluctant legend-status. seeing him is like seeing few masters of the arts in america that i can imagine. he's in his own class. no one but NO ONE can touch him. and to see him at a county fair was the best place. how american can you get? if only we'd caught him afterward at the swine-judging exhibit, i'd a-died and gone to heaven... o, and... at least he lost the moustache.
Newsgroups: rec.music.dylan Subject: lancaster review 08/25 (long) From: Michael G Smith mikeygsmith@hotmail.com Date: 27 Aug 2001 13:01:31 -0700 My friends and I arrived at the venue about two hours before showtime and joined a very large group of people looking to buy scalped tickets in front of the box office. The situation was exacerbated by the fact that the box office computers were down and therefore no one could pick up their will call tickets. Eventually it all worked out though unfortunately my seats were in the grandstand while the rest of my party were trackside. The show turned out to be a perfect complement to the previous night in Vegas with eight different songs in the main set but performed at the same standard of excellence. As with the previous night, the show began with the band taking to the stage as a piece of classical music played (the one the Jaws theme ripped off) and the crowd went crazy. I noticed Bob was wearing a white suit with a much longer coat than usual as they began playing an unfamiliar tune... Humming Bird - A first for me. I knew this was old-time country but I was expecting a slow shuffle. Instead, it's really quite fast and almost western swing. I also love how it starts with the boys in the band humming. The Times They Are A-Changin' - I never thought I would call this the highlight of the show but it was. Bob nailed every word as surely as I would want a carpenter to build my house. Topped off with a great harp solo too. Desolation Row - Hard driving version with a nice vocal though Bob hit some bum notes in his guitar solo. Searching For A Soldier's Grave - was Searching for a Soldier's Grave. Gotta Serve Somebody - A real nice surprise for a couple of reasons. First, Bob strapped his electric guitar on, then took it off and handed it back to his guitar tech as there was apparently something wrong with it. Obviously being the kind of performer who will not stop the show for even one minute, Bob spontaneously put his acoustic guitar back on and began the song. It was great because you could clearly hear Bob's guitar playing the way you could when he was the lone acoustic player on If Dogs Run Free. And all three guitars were rocking. The lyrics of course were different as they invariably are with his "list" songs: "Might be sleeping ( ? ) like a lowdown dirty dog/ Sleeping on nails, sleeping in a hollow hog"! Finally what was really special was the phrasing as Bob adopted a distinct "preacher man" persona for the choruses: "You KNOW. . . you GOTTA . . . you GOTTA serve somebody!" Tell Me That It Isn't True - Short and concise unlike the previous night but likewise beautifully sung. Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine) - One of the other highlights of the night. Terrific playing by Charlie who replicated the sound of the horns from the original and a very expressive Bob vocal. Lots of big "YES"s and "Ahhh"s! I believe he also sang this intrguing lyric: "You say you're thinking/ that you're always drinking/ but you know how hard you try". 'Til I Fell In Love With You & Masters Of War - Both solid versions similar to the previous night. It's All Over Now, Baby Blue - Excellent! A very emotive vocal with Dylan sounding almost on the brink of tears. And yet another tour de force harp solo as with "Times" earlier and "Love Minus Zero" from the previous night. Mama, You Been On My Mind - Also not as much of a jam as the previous night but probably a better vocal - low and confident, almost cocky. A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall - YES! Before this song, all of the band members had switched to their electric instruments when Bob apparently changed his mind and called this one instead. Great vocal by Bob who, as I've noted throughout this show and the previous one, seems real comfortable singing in a lower register now. Also great was the fact that there were no backing vocals on the chorus. Drifter's Escape - Nice version with an extended guitar jam after the last verse. However the harp solo was too short and Bob's timing was off, which was disappointing considering how terrific the previous three harp solos were. Everything Is Broken - Once again a lot of fun. At this point, I noticed a lot of people from the grandstand were running down to the trackside area and I joined them. The security people who were checking tickets earlier were nowhere in sight and I managed to get reasonably close. The sound in the trackside area was infinitely better - much louder AND clearer. Bob again introduced the band during the song. Love Sick - Even better than the night before with Bob taking a much more prominent guitar solo. Like A Rolling Stone - The same slow version as the night before but somehow more rocking. HUGE crowd reaction. Charlie leaned in REAL close to Bob as they jammed between verses. Their faces were about an inch apart and it looked like they were going to kiss. Knockin' On Heaven's Door - Also a huge crowd reaction. There were a large number of casual fans in the audience and I could tell they were surprised and pleased that the show was still going on. All Along The Watchtower - I fell in love with this the second time around. It takes away from the momentum a bit as it is no longer instantly recognizable to most of the crowd but I'm always grateful for a new arrangement - especially one as punk as this. Blowin' In The Wind - The phrasing was more conventional than in Vegas but it was made poignant by the fact that the wind seemed to be blowing especially hard onstage. Highway 61 Revisited - Once again Dylan sang all the verses and the crowd was worked up into a frenzy by the hard-rocking solos. Someone threw a beach ball onstage toward the end of the song and Larry kicked it back into the audience without stopping playing for a second! Then they stood in the second "formation" soaking up the rapturous applause. As they left the stage Bob put on his white cowboy hat, which I always take as an indication that he's concluded the show (and the tour) with a satisfied mind. To all of my tour friends, I'll see you cats in October! Michael
Newsgroups: rec.music.dylan Subject: lancaster soundcheck review From: hodah hodah@hodah.net Date: Sun, 02 Sep 2001 19:13:35 GMT Hello everyone, Well, It's been almost a week I guess. But I only got back from the desert yesterday. This post will be about the Lancaster sound check. I was on the fringe of the fair, listening to some old-timer explain his 1 1/2 horsepower gas powered 100 year old well pump, when in the distance I heard the sound of a guitar. I quickly thanked him for the lesson, and skip walked to the venue entrance. I reluctantly passed the sheep shearing tent, and nearly tripped over a 6 year old girl walking her prize winning pig. As I got closer I was really torn, listen to Bob and the boys warm up, or go check out the pygmy goat in the cage to my left. Of course Band the B.'s won out. I found a small group of bobcats leaning against the back wall of a small building, all of us able to get a clear view through a chain link fence of the guys on stage warming up. This is the first sound check I've seen that Bob was involved with. He was wearing a white jacket, sleeves rolled up, a black shirt, and black pants. He later put on a black cowboy hat. I was told this was what he was wearing when seen on the gaming floor of the Hard Rock. He spent a good time of the "set" sitting on a stool. When I first got there, they had their electric instruments strapped on, and were running through SILVIO. The only words being sung were the harmony chorus. Reminded me of a time once before when I saw the band rehearsing the word "wheels" from This Wheels On Fire, over and over again till they (and maybe Bob ) felt they got it right. Next up was what sounded like an instrumental version of TILL I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU. That was followed by something I can only compare to the Marty Robbins song "EL PASO". (all of the sound check was done without vocals). Bob was picking these pretty single note guitar leads while Larry played the Bouziki. Tony was grooving on his stand-up bass. The song continued in this "Spanish" vein for a bit, eventually Bob and the band segued into a rehearsed groove of some kind, that then became LICENSE TO KILL. (at least that was the consensus among the half dozen or so of us observing this). As they were playing, Larry walked around the stage, first picking up the fiddle for a few measures, and trading it in for a mandolin for a few measures more. The instrumental they played next was AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL (or STARS AND STRIPES; they're the same to me) and that became O COME ALL YE FAITHFUL. Apparently that duo of songs was performed in that same order the night before in Vegas. Is this a rehearsal for a new Broadway show about the roots of American music? ANYWAY. The afternoon rehearsal ended with Bob sitting back on the stool playing a not unusual I-III-V chord structure, Larry and Charlie stood in a half circle in front of Bob, and they just started to make a song. It reminded me of ROCK ME MAMA, the "live writing" of that song during the PG&BtK out takes. Well, there ya go. The highlight of my three days is the desert with Bob. I'm going to go into my trip with more depth on my web site. www.hodah.net peace H.
