Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 00:54:03 GMT From: Tim Anderson (freer@CIX.COMPULINK.CO.UK) Subject: Brixton 30th March Well, I have to eat my words. This was even better than the previous night. EC was rather uncommunicative, maybe not quite as strong, but still excellent. Dylan's voice seemed stronger and there was more atmosphere somehow. Songs: Down in the flood If you see her say hello All along the Watchtower Jokerman Every grain of sand Positively fourth St Tambourine Man Masters of War She Belongs to me God Knows Stuck inside of Mobile I believe in you Like a Rolling Stone Times they are a'changin I shall be released (duet with Elvis Costello!) The duet at the end was excellent fun, with EC and BD doing alternate phrases. A very good concert, probably the best I've seen. Don't expect any more reports from me - I'm not going to any more on the current tour :-((( Tim
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 13:02:42 GMT From: billpannifer (billpannifer@EASYNET.CO.UK) Subject: setlist 30 March Brixton Academy, London 30th March 95 Down in the Flood If You See Her Say Hello Watchtower Jokerman Every Grain of Sand Positively 4th St Mr Tambourine Man Masters of War Love minus zero God Knows Stuck Inside of Mobile I Believe in You Rolling Stone Times They Are a Changin I Shall Be Released (DUET with Elvis Costello) (Elvis - solo acoustic- is opening all three London shows.) Also present (but not appearing) George Harrison, Chrissie Hynde. Dylan 20 mins late on stage. Not as animated as previous night. Marvellous harp on If You See Her. A rather religious setlist! All smiles for the duet- well sung with Elvis and Bob alternating lines within the verses, and Bob pretending to mouth the words into Elvis's ear at one point.
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 15:50:39 BST From: Eddie Thornley (ISSUET@razor.wbs.warwick.ac.uk) "It was, incredibly, miraculously, just like the Sixties: crisp, audible Iyrics sung with passion, tact and poise; clear political commitment; a concern by the singer to dwell within the songs and deliver them as if newly written; a deft manipulation of the overpowering noise that can be made using only a voice and six acoustic guitar strings. And then the support act (a Mr Elvis Costello) left the stage and Bob Dylan came on..." This from this morning's Independent review of Bob's show. Laugh, I nearly spilt my tea. Eddie
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 1995 23:15:45 +0000 From: John Perry (John@JPERRY.DEMON.CO.UK) Subject: Brixton March 30th Nice to see Bob again after 14 or so years. Good to see him at a club sized venue too, with room to move around & not get jostled. I wasn't knocked out by the band ..... For anyone who hasn't seen this lineup - and I don't know how long he's been using 'em - try imagining The New Riders of The Purple Sage on a dull night with the drum seat taken by the drummer from any lightweight heavymetal warmup band you ever saw. Perhaps the wages aren't so good ? Material of this class needs subtlety im the ensemble playing, either the band weren't up to it, or The Bandleader wasn't having any ..... And the arrangements ! This lot must have met at a Rallentando Abuse Group. It is no exaggeration to say that at least 60 per cent of the songs ended with a coda - sometimes TWO - where the band slowly restated the primary chord sequence cf. Stuck Inside of Memphis with de Memphis Blues [sic]. Useful thing rall. but like most other formal devices it gets no better by being beaten to death. I suppose if anybody has earned the right to doodle around on lead guitar in front of his own bar band it's Dylan. Anyone know by what process the man with the strongest body of songs in the world came up with this lot ?
Date: Sat, 1 Apr 1995 01:12:00 +0000 From: John Perry (John@JPERRY.DEMON.CO.UK) Subject: Re: Brixton 30th March ... The acoustic set stood out. Balance was right - and I thought - rapport between the musicians better. She Belongs To Me was lovely. ... Well the way he held the mic lead with the other hand, rather awkwardly, high, away from the body looked a bit like somebody about to do a Jackie Wilson spin ! Something slightly dislocated about the body language.
Date: Sat, 1 Apr 1995 11:43:55 GMT From: Ed Ricardo eddie@edlis.org Subject: Re: Brixton 30th March Re: Brixton 30th March Tim Anderson (freer@cix.compulink.co.uk) wrote: : Well, I have to eat my words. This was even better than the previous : A very good concert, probably the best I've seen. Don't expect any more No time to post anything detailed, but never have I been to a Bob Dylan concert where there was more unanimity about the quality of the performance among those who attend a serious number of Dylan concerts in an average year. Even the most cynical who can always find fault were mesmerized, some astounded. You cannot ask for more than Bob Dylan put into that Thursday performance in Brixton. If you are not going to one of this tour's concerts, wellllll, let's just say Dylan is giving the sort of performance where to miss it would be made an imprisonable offence in a just society. For your own well being you must attend. There is no alternative. Hobartian, Olofian, Caspersian, Gerkepottish, Gustavssonnian, let alone UKrmderian, information to follow at a later date, in a more leisurely fashion. Just wanted to avoid anyone saying after Dylan leaves the UK, "You didn't say it was THAT good, I would have got on a plane and paid scalpers prices if I'd known that! Why didn't you say while there was still time?" Well I did. Get your credit card and passport, get on down to your airport, buy the DAT with mikes at the duty free, and experience performance of significance. If you have read some of my past postings you will know I do not enthuse about modern performances lightly. You miss this, you have only yourself to blame, EDLIS advises attend at any cost... You might even consider selling your last pair of boots and coming barefoot if that's what it takes. ;-) Craig
Date: Tue, 4 Apr 1995 06:23:46 GMT From: Tim Anderson (freer@CIX.COMPULINK.CO.UK) Subject: Re: Brixton 30th March I'm sorry. Bob did not play She belongs to me at this concert. He played Love minus Zero. The order is right though. "Tell me nothing about nothing and I just might tell you the truth" Tim
From: "Wilson, Andrew F" (AFWilson@iee.org.uk) To: "Andersen, Karl" (Karl.Erik.Andersen@nb.no) Subject: Dylan in Brixton Date: Fri, 07 Apr 95 12:36:00 PDT As I can't post to rec.music.dylan, here are some comments about the show I saw. Dylan's concert in Brixton on 30 March was absolutely excellent. If anything, the venue is even better than the Hammersmith Odeon, where I saw him last. The first number, Down in the Flood, was somewhat mumbled (or perhaps muffled in the mix), but thereafter everything was clear as a bell. It was puzzling to see Bob without a guitar, holding a microphone in one hand, swaying slightly rather than dancing. It's certainly a pose which takes some getting used to, and it was reassuring that he picked up a guitar for most of the numbers. Why wouldn't the bass player look at the audience? For almost all of the show he faced the drummer, and hardly ever turned around. There seemed to be a lot of debate about the set list during the show. After most numbers there was a confab, presumably to agree what was going to be sung next. During one of the songs the slide player stopped suddenly and changed to another guitar - presumably a broken string. Later in the song he changed back again - presumably it has been fixed. The result was two large chunks of the song with no slide guitar in it. The audience did not seem very interested during Elvis Costello's support set. There was plenty of applause, but not much attention whilst he was singing. However, there seemed to be general pleasure when he joined Bob to sing I Shall Be Released in the final encore. Andrew
Date: Tue, 11 Apr 1995 11:56:10 -0500 From: Ed Ricardo eddie@edlis.org Subject: Brixton Academy Thursday 30 March 1995... Brixton Academy Thursday 30 March 1995 1. Crash On The Levee (Down In The Flood) [Dylan sans guitar] 2. If You See Her, Say Hello [Dylan sans guitar] 3. All Along The Watchtower 4. Jokerman 5. Every Grain Of Sand 6. Positively 4th Street 7. Mr. Tambourine Man [Dylan sans guitar] 8. Masters Of War [Dylan sans guitar] 9. Love Minus Zero/No Limit 10. God Knows 11. Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again 12. I Believe In You 13. Like A Rolling Stone 14. The Times They Are A-Changin' 15. I Shall Be Released [with Elvis Costello] Welllll, you are thinking this looks a mighty boring posting, we saw this set list some time ago. Feel free to skip to the next posting if you like, I intend simply to give a meandering review of my impression of this concert. I have chosen this one because I promised to do it and because the general consensus among those who take their Dylan concerts in large multiples is that this was the finest of the recent European tour. It was an excellent concert. Mr Dylan was working very hard. He was delivering. He was connecting. Everyone I knew left satisfied. Those unfamiliar with my posting style may think that is no special comment on a UseNet Newsgroup for dedicated Dylan fans. Those who know me will know that I rarely get excited about anything other than pre-Columbian Dylan. I am an unreconstructed fan of Bob Dylan in the 1960s, especially the early 1960s. In later decades I have even experienced some concerts where I felt I deserved my money back, but we won't go into that. I have never been of the deified Dylan set wherein all he does is of varying levels of perfection. So my simple satisfaction is a strong recommendation that whatever your opinion of Bob Dylan, attend a concert when he comes near you now and see if he has preserved the spell he cast on Brixton on that Thursday night. England has been teeming with Dylan concert goers from around the globe for some time, many came a week or more early in order to have some time before the hard trek of a tour dominated their schedule. Several kindly came to visit me, so in a sense the concert of 30 March began much earlier. I shan't bore you with information on each and every person, but I shall give a few examples in order to convey some of the flavour of recent events for me. The first to arrive on my doorstep were Jon and Carol Casper. Regular readers will recall that Jon is the EDLIS Promo CDs agent (and has some other agency as well, I disremember which). I was in London on real academic business the day they arrived, no Dylan connection, and we met up for a fine Gujarati Indian meal and then a few days later they made the journey to Cambridge to see the EDLIS archives, computer systems, lunch at King's College, tea in the library and then dinner at our house. Tea was of course followed with #dylan in irc where they met Ben Taylor for the first time in a live conference. And afterwards they caught a late train from Royston back to London, and I feel sure I saw them each do it with a one-arm jump too! As I drove home from the station I swear I could hear two voices singin' in the distance, "I got the Great Northern Cambridge & Royston to King's Cross train bluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu-ooo-oo- ues, oh Lawdy mamma, got 'em in the bottom of my ramblin' shooo-oo-oo-es, an' when the whistle blows I got to go-oo- oo, baby, don't you know-ow, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the Great Northern Cambridge & Royston to King's Cross train blues..." :-) By Thursday no fans wanted to be in Cambridge, the EDLISian encampment was firmly based in London. Luncheon events in London that day were hard to choose from, I gather many went to a Bob Dylan imitators' contest at the London Dylan pub, The Coach and Horses in Mayfair, but a small old guard from rec.music.dylan convened at Calabash, an African restaurant in Covent Garden. The pair of Bens were there, not a common occurrence, Ben of Newcastle (who is some agent or other I believe?), and Ben of Hobart Tasmania, EDLIS' famed Australian Affairs agent. Until that moment they had not known each other outside of #dylan on irc and e-mail. A lot of meetings this tour have been like that. Hugh Eaton, a relatively new poster, dropped by but as he takes his work seriously he did not have time to stay to eat. Clearly a solid Dylan interest there though, so watch for quality postings from the heart of London. Jon, Carol and myself were there. And most eminent among us was Olof Bjorner, who surprised us all by speaking in sentences, not in set lists! And where a person wished to attend, but was unable to, there was often an envoy. So, for example, Joe Cliburn (EDLIS - Who Has Which Boot agent) missed one more important event, but was brought to life by the tales of Ben of Hobart who had recently visited him. And Andy Gustavsson, the EDLIS Swedish Affairs agent presently on assignment in the United States, unable to attend, sent his parents in his stead! The charming Anne-Marie and Lasse Gustavsson, well versed in matters Dylanological, though appearing less visibly debilitated by the Dylan bug than Andy seems to be. We had a fine meal, a few drinks, and the younger ones went off to save places in the Brixton queue for the more elderly (or did Ben say "the more lazy"?). Brixton is a rough part of London, there is no denying it. When I moved to London after my first degree we were astounded by rents and looked through the papers for something affordable. We found a flat for 200% more than we had been paying in rural Wales for a complete cottage and it was the cheapest there was. It was in Brixton. We did not know one London borough from another, it was definitely the cheapest flat in the paper so we set off to meet the landlord. Leaving the tube station we looked around and knew this was not going to work out but felt honour bound to show up. The landlord came down to let us in, for an afternoon appointment, in his pajamas and dressing gown. Following him up the stairs he turned to us and said, "I can see by the look on your faces that this is not what you were looking for, but I am going to be fixing it up." Water was running down the walls and large pieces of wallpaper were peeling off. "In fact I can fix it up now", he continued, tearing the wallpaper off the wall. "There, that's better", he said. And on it went. And as fate would have it we turned him down and went to live on the opposite side of the city in Crouch End! Well Britain has had many years of Conservative rule, (apparent to tourists who must step over the homeless in the West End of London) and a place like Brixton, how has it fared? You can imagine. But the Brixton Academy is a good venue, well run and with an excellent atmosphere. The queue before the concert was good fun, not tedious at all. I spoke with so many old faces and new, many of the latter I would not have known except for Internet connections. John Baldwin was well ahead of us in the queue, a rec.music.dylan poster whom you may recall, but retiring from work soon after the concert and therefore, EDLIS is reliably informed, intending to contribute substantially to the net. We look forward to that. I met again various people with whom I had queued overnight in June of 1978 when that was how one got decent tickets (e.g. David Agar, for anyone who recalls the people of those very real encampments). And for the first time I met Ray Webster (EDLIS - Tours & Tickets agent) in the flesh, a larger than life figure who knows everyone and is never without a smile. You will recall he is the one who always attracts the cliche that, "he has attended more Bob Dylan concerts than anyone else in the world, including Bob Dylan." Many others were there, including many authors and fanzine writers. Clinton Heylin was in the pub, but I gather did not attend the concert though he had a ticket? John Baldwin I mentioned, presumably most readers now have their copies of his The Fiddler Now Upspoke, but just in case perhaps John could post ordering details to rec.music.dylan? Alison & Phill Townsend were there, though I did not get a chance to speak with them until Manchester. In general there was a tendency to try to get to know new faces at the expense of the old. But the old guard was there, Clive Barrett again getting his priorities wrong, rushing off to relieve a babysitter rather than attend one of the after concert parties. Larry the Lamb, and so on, all the expected characters at these events. And several missed at the concert were caught up with at a Greek lunch in Marble Arch the next day. For example the unparalleled Heinrich Gerkepott, whom I had never met before. Once more a gathering of people with considerable interest in Mr Dylan's work around one table, I found it fun. So you've read this far and think nothing has been said about the concert. I suppose I am stalling. What Bob Dylan does is a very personal thing and I find with anyone I know well all they need to say is something like, "Tonight it worked", and that is enough for me to know all I need to know. Well, tonight it worked. But maybe I'll try and tell you more. I sat in a front row balcony seat, neither DAT taping nor videoing, so I don't suppose I deserved that position. Ben of Newcastle was in front of Bob's left foot, at the apron to the stage, wondering how anyone could be so boring as to be so far back as front row balcony, missing all the atmosphere. But it suits me. (Unfortunately I had forgotten my torch and notebook, so a certain person's fantasies did not come true... ;-)) I have asked Ben Taylor to put a large photograph of the back of his head on his World Wide Web homepage so people can look at that and then recognise him in the audience videos. If you see him from the front -- which is possible, he does not stand stock still -- you will already recognise him as he is the one with the black make- up all over his face in the form of a Newcastle Student Union stamp... The support act was Elvis Costello (many of the UK dates had no support), who was excellent, but I will leave his part to be described by someone more familar with his work, perhaps Hugh Eaton might like to comment? As support acts go we are talking about something rather high quality here. But with Dylan it starts all at once with a crash of cymbals and Crash on the Levee (Down In The Flood) (1967)... The man has no guitar! You knew it would be that way but it is still startling. And the enunciation is poor. But the place is very excited. Very pleased. Many recognise the song in the first few sounds, but many more casually interested in Dylan take a few lines of lyric before they catch it. "Heyyyyyyyyyyyyy, mamma gonna you're gonna miss your best frieeend nowwwwwwwww, Gonna have to find yourself a-nother best frieeend, somehowwwwwwwwwwwwww." Shivers down the spine on the first song means he is on form, right? The windmill arms, the wacky shuffling and posing, where did he dig this up? Does it work? Manic loss of guitar, yes I think we can say it is weird but captivating. If You See Her, Say Hello (1974) continues with a guitar- less Dylan, but now the voice is clear. Is he aiming in his first song at Mr Jones reviewers like the Telegraph review many would have read before this concert, a bizarre review I hope someone will post. The old why are so many people fooled into paying top prices for a sold out concert by someone so incompetent and why are they so pleased? With no acknowledgement that the reviewers are missing something they cannot understand but others clearly do. Poor enunciation means only insiders, dedicated fans, can catch every word. Casual attenders are left catching very few. But that was the first song, the second, If You See Her, Say Hello, is beautifully clear, and clarity remains for the rest of the evening. The harmonica gets quite a cheer. And the crowd goes crazy after the song, so much so I wondered if he was peaking too early, would we have Watchtower and then a trough in the atmosphere? It was a hungry crowd, demanding a lot. "Thank you" and then All Along The Watchtower (1968) strong and in appropriately uncomfortable spurts, building and building, the voice is piercing the night, you can feel he knows it is working tonight and he has no fear of where he is going next. "Outside in the distance, a wildcat did growl, two riders were approaching, and the wind began to howwwwllll." He had harnessed his mystic powers and the wildcat did growl and the wind took on a form of its own. He wasn't baring his teeth in that scary way he used to do, but he had that theatrical control of the situation which cannot but fascinate. The gods were with him. The crowd is wild but wanting to see what happens next. Lots of requests shouted out at this point. Hugh Brown is not the next song. :-( Jokerman (1983) is quieter of course, well received but a chance to recover energy. A strong feeling that Mr Dylan is aiming to give us an extremely autobiographical set this evening. A very restrained performance of this song, but clearly intentionally so. Manipulator of crowds, you're a dream twister... Every Grain Of Sand (1981) exquisitely performed. "I have gone from rags to riches in the sorrow of the night, in the violence of a summer's dream, in the chill of a wintry light, in the bitter dance of loneliness fading into space, in the broken mirror of innocence on each forgotten face." Musically memorable. Positively 4th Street (1965). Played in the expected way, yet the cheer did not come until the words began. And, "When you know as well as me you'd rather see me paralyzed, Why don't you just come out once and scream it?" is left out. Then, "And now I know you're dissatisfied with your position and your place, Don't you understand it's not my problemmm", gets quite a cheer in the middle of the song. Excellent. Mr. Tambourine Man (1964), acoustic, Dylan sans guitar, immaculately beautiful, even to those who have tired of this one. Crowd noise gets a bit intrusive but it does not spoil anything. It is quietly sung, the bar has been open a long time and we are at a live concert, so... Masters Of War (1962), acoustic, Dylan sans guitar, powerful from the first, yet delicate. Lots of crowd reaction. "And I hope that you die and your death will come soon, I'll follow your casket by the pale afternoon, and I'll watch while you're lowered down to your deathbed, and I'll stand over your grave 'till I'm sure that you're dead." Cheers. (Echoes of Elvis Costello's final song? :-)) Love Minus Zero/No Limit (1965), acoustic, Dylan with guitar, long intro. Exquisite, tailored, the ninth song is a good spot to hit them with perfection. He hits them with perfection. Craftsmen, master, significant performer, displaying his wares with confidence. Nothing showy. Nothing unexpected. Quality. The crowd reacts, they know it is special. Is Shirley Noznisky still in his mind when he sings this? God Knows (1990) machine gun drums break the calm. Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again (1966) fast moving, full voiced. Did he really sing, "But the post office has been stolen and the e-mail box is locked"? Then we have the band introductions. By I Believe In You (1978) we are on the third song I would not include in a set list, yet I have not noticed this as it was happening, they are so well performed. Then we are into encores. Like A Rolling Stone (1965) played as if Edie Sedgwick herself was there and listening? Not really, but well done all the same. Crowd clapping along a bit, then singing along sporadically. Wild applause. The Times They Are A-Changin' (1964) meets a lively crowd with exactly what they want, pleasing the wide age range of that audience. Well crafted. Well received. I Shall Be Released (1967) with Elvis Costello. A wonderful duet, especially to see, with Dylan dominating, smiling, enjoying the end of what he knows has been a very fine night. "For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man." What can one say? You should have been there. Why weren't you? :-) I hope he can do something similar in a town near you. EDLIS advice to the moderate collector? So far we have seen no CDs, the rather unfortunate raid on Camden Market has slowed that side of things a little during the tour. You need a DAT of this one and if you have not yet seen the 1995 Dylan sans guitar then you need an audience video, probably best from the balcony if you want to marvel at what those feet do. Funny chap that Bobby Dylan. :-) (Many will recall we had Dylan sans guitar during Rolling Thunder, I am told it even appears on the CD-ROM. Could that project have reminded Dylan of the possibility?) Someone from Wisconsin I believe, posted the other day about how they always smiled or laughed at the funny bits in songs, and I must admit I share this peccadillo. But it is striking that Bob Dylan long ago gave up on pausing for those laughs, listening today you have to wonder if even he could tell you where the audiences used to laugh. Listening to tapes as late as 1965 you can be struck by the alertness of the audience. Compare Love Minus Zero/No Limit on your tape of 30 March 1995 with your tape (or CD: Songs That Made Him Famous, Tuff Bites, T.B. 95.1012, 1995, Bar code: 5 450222 950129, Matrix: DURECO [01] TB 95.1012) of 27 March 1965. [5/082.1] "In the dime stores and bus stations, people talk of situations, read books, repeat quotations, draw conclusions [pause] on the wall [audience laughter]." But today it is sung straight through, no wait-for-it pause. But I still smile. There are countless lines like that. Leaving the concert we ran across Andrew and Pia Muir and Andrew had a gleam in his eyes and a look of excitement. He was clearly very impressed. A few days after the concert I saw a posting from him and thought, oh dear, has he re- thought, will he be as unreservedly praising as he was on the night. And the posting was not positive, but then I realised he was talking about the night before and when he got to Thursday he had high praise indeed. It remains unanimous that Thursday 30 March 1995 at the Brixton Academy something special happened. Outside we chatted with people from all over the world, many of them many of you will know. And then into taxis to what people seem to refer to as "tapers' parties". There have been many DAT tapers and video tapers on this tour, especially from the USA, but I never mention any by name, they tend to wish to remain anonymous. Hence the above account misses names many would expect, they were there but discreetly so. And I suppose it is not done to say too much about what goes on at such a party. But should you attend such an event bring your DAT or cassette recorder, appropriate cabling and blank tape and prepare to drive home at 04:00 in the morning with your car speakers echoing the concert you heard earlier that evening. And if you think Dylan fans can be tediously boring about Dylan, and doubly so about computer technology and Dylan, wait 'til you hear a crowd of techno-gurus with binaural microphones strapped to their heads and customised top-of-the-line DAT recorders strapped to their bodies discussing the esoteric technical side of recording equipment. If it wasn't for the music one might yawn and fall asleep... Ben of Newcastle, Jon, Carol and I left to share a taxi some time after 03:00 a.m. while a room full of Germans, Swedes, Norwegians and Americans clearly thought the night was much younger than we perceived it to be. We dropped Ben at his grandfather's flat in Notting Hill, Jon & Carol at their hotel at Marble Arch and me at a flat in Belgravia which I had borrowed. This brings me to thanks. Best thank Bob Dylan first, for performing, without him all this rigamarole would look even sillier than it does now. But I must thank all the contributors to rec.music.dylan and EDLIS, some have been so generous with accommodation and other facilities I cannot thank them enough. Many who would previously have stayed in hotels at considerable expense -- myself included -- have been put up in peoples' homes and that is of great benefit in two ways. It saves money in what is a rather expensive pursuit at the best of times. And it gives those with an interest in Bob Dylan new contacts from around the world and a chance to talk in depth to them (and exchange illegal objects should they be so inclined). I have been offered incredible hospitality out of the blue from people I had not known existed a few weeks ago. EDLIS is thinking of making up a file of advice to concert goers if readers think it would be worthwhile. There is little I would do differently, except I never thought of the need to bring a bathing suit! You will always meet some fans who stay in rather up-market hotels, and an invite to a swim in the hotel pool is very attractive, especially after a long night. I did not foresee this possibility. Certainly venues for lunches and after hours parties should be communicated well in advance and stuck to. Be sure you have local hotel locations for everyone you wish to meet so telephone arrangements can be made. Most people do not read their e-mail when abroad or even just away from home. It is worth having a central person with e-mail and a telephone to serve as a contact for anyone who loses track of arrangements. If you do want to meet up with a lot of people you must know where they are, and bear in mind you might weaken and go on to further cities where you would like to know where others are. Make notes, I am afraid. Many people came up to me because of the EDLISian flower or they know I wear a red jacket at Dylan concerts. No other male seems to wear a red jacket. Am I making a fashion statement? One I should be willing to admit to? :-) But it works, people tend to find me. But I did have several e- mails about arrangements which arrived too late for me to read before a concert and I had e-mail afterwards from people too shy to interrupt. Pity. Immediately before and after a concert the numbers talking to each other can be quite crazy, but just barge in and make yourself known at least. Lunch before a concert makes sense, somewhere informal and leisurely which will suit all budgets. Obviously it is expensive to go to a concert, but some on very low budgets can feel obliged to partake in things beyond their means, so stay clear of anything too expensive. Supper is pointless, no one wants it, the queue is more interesting than any restaurant. Some eat after a concert, but most seem to think that is the time for serious drinking and/or intake of other substances as breakfast is just around the corner... Was that enough? Too much? Someone asked me to do a full review and include prelims and afters, sooo you got it... Craig -- My love, she speaks like silence, Without ideals or violence, She doesn't have to say she's faithful, Yet she's true, like ice, like fire. People carry roses, Make promises by the hours, My love she laughs like the flowers, Valentines can't buy her. In the dime stores and bus stations, People talk of situations, Read books, repeat quotations Draw conclusions on the wall. Some speak of the future My love she speaks softly She knows that there's no success like failure And that failure's no success at all. The cloak and dagger dangles, Madams light the candles. In ceremonies of the horsemen Even the pawn must hold a grudge. Statues make of match sticks Crumble into one another, My love winks, she does not bother, She knows too much to argue or to judge. The bridge at midnight trembles, The country doctor rambles. Banker's nieces seek perfection, Expecting all the gifts that wise men bring. The wind howls like a hammer, The night blows cold and rainy. My love she's like some raven At my window with a broken wing.
Date: Mon, 24 Apr 1995 13:58:47 +0100 From: "B.P. Taylor" (B.P.Taylor@NEWCASTLE.AC.UK) Subject: 1995 Tour report (late entry) 30 March 1995 - Brixton Academy, London, England ================================================ Down In The Flood (Crash On The Levee) If You See Her, Say Hello All Along The Watchtower Jokerman Every Grain Of Sand [/Shelter From The Storm] Positively 4th Street [/Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat] Mr. Tambourine Man [acoustic with band] Masters Of War [acoustic with band] [/The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll] Love Minus Zero - No Limit [acoustic with band] God Knows Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again I Believe In You - Like A Rolling Stone - The Times They Are A-Changin' - I Shall Be Released [with Elvis Costello] Comment: Started queuing an hour earlier than yesterday and still ended up further to the right than before. Right in front of the speaker in fact but still at the front. "Down In The Flood" was as great as the previous night. No guitar. Dylan looked significantly more alert tonight. Moved with more confidence and assertiveness. Now he really was looking at the crowd. I could have sworn he acknowledged my beaming smile with a tightening of the lip.... ('Who's that nutter?') He was rubbing his nose and blew into a handkerchief at one point. Red shirt with large collars, under a black jacket. As soon as I heard the first few chords of "If You See Her, Say Hello" I knew tonight would be special. The good reading of "All Along The Watchtower" confirmed that. A real surprise: "Jokerman", and so high in the setlist. He didn't attack this as much as I'd heard him do in 1994 but still very enjoyable to hear. And then he follows this with "Every Grain Of Sand"! Inspired. The alternate for this was 'Shelter From The Storm'. "Positively 4th Street" was played in place of the cue sheet alternate of 'Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat' but I'm not sore - it was fantastic. Dylan put down his guitar for "Mr. Tambourine Man" which was gorgeous! Then I was hoping for 'Boots Of Spanish Leather' again after such a breathtaking performance the night before but ... even better: "Masters Of War". How far Dylan has come since Hiroshima 1994! When was the last time harmonica was used for this song? It worked so well tonight! "Love Minus Zero - No Limit" was just beautiful. "God Knows" was the now standard arrangement - great to witness in person. And with "Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again" the song list just got better and better. By this time I was wondering how long Dylan could keep up this phenominal standard. We must heading for a fall.... Well, the fall never came. "I Believe In You" was fantastic. Words begin to fail me.. A minute or so offstage and back for an aggressive "Like A Rolling Stone". And then he returns again for an acoustic song, "The Times They Are A-Changin'". Gorgeous instrumentation. I couldn't believe I was witnessing this! By this time I mistakenly thought all three encores had been played so when Elvis Costello came on stage WITH Dylan and the band I was in heaven. The duet performance of "I Shall Be Released" was so much fun. They took it in turns to sing lines. Elvis was a second too slow with his line so Dylan sang the words for him, though only just in microphone range. And then they sang lines together, or not.... Big smiles from both of them. At the end Dylan called out "Elvis Costelllllloooo". I truly feel privileged to have been present at this show. Such a huge improvement on the night before. Incredible, unbelievable, he couldn't do anything wrong. I have really never seen anything like it.
Date: Mon, 17 Apr 1995 17:20:34 GMT From: Mitch Gart (mg@HARP.CAMB.INMET.COM) Subject: Re: Brixton Academy Thursday 30 March 1995... Thanks, Craig. I really enjoyed reading your post. It so happened that I made a trade and got a tape of the Brixton show, and was listening to the new tape as I read your post. That show is amazing, and totally different from the Boston shows I saw last October. In Boston, most of the time it was a rock show with the instruments pretty loud and Bob's voice sometimes hard to understand over the band. If you already knew the words, you could hear them, otherwise not. In Brixton the band was toned way, way back. At any time you could hear a drum beat, or a guitar, or a lot of Baxter's high slide notes, or some harmonica, but Bob's voice was mixed way out front. Also things were slowed down some. You might say the sound was more like country than rock. Or if you've ever heard a band called Cowboy Junkies, the sound mix reminded me of that group, some of whose discs I love. Maybe it's the Unplugged show that influenced Bob into changing his sound. I have seen a few posts recently where people complained about Bob's band. This may be because the band's sound has been toned down so drastically in the last few months. People making those complaints would probably prefer a tape of last winter's shows. This sounds like it was a great show, and it's definitely a great tape :-), and it's remarkable how much the sound has changed over the last few months. Mitch
Date: Tue, 24 Oct 1995 20:06:25 EDT From: pjest8@VMS.CIS.PITT.EDU Subject: Brixton 3/30/95-short review Hey All, I will spare everyone details of how I got a little free time and thought I would share my time with everyone in rmdland. I will some thoughts on one bootleg that I feel is Bob's best of '95 and has breathtaking versions of some important songs. This will not, however, be an installment of DEEP BENEATH THE WAVES. I am not that well-spoken, nor that well-versed in bootlegs. Anyhoo, here we go.. The show is Brixton, March 30, 1995. The middle of three shows. Bob opens with a normal, but strong-vocalled Down in the Flood. Very good harp and loud vocals. "Heeeeeeeey mama, aint you gonna miss your best friend." The second song opens with a harp solo and we are pleased to find If You See Her. Bob's vocal is very passionate with a little changes in lines. One change is, "We had a falling out, like lovers always do, but to think of her as she left that night, it still hurts me through and through. Ends with awesome harp solo. Third is Watchtower, strong and rocking as always. Forth is Jokerman. Amazing. Fifth is a deep and moving Every Grain of Sand. Listening to this gives me the impression that Bob really likes the line(like most of us do), "Sometimes I turn there is someone there, other times it's only me." Moving performance. The next song is why i wrote this review to begin with. Positively 4th Street. Bob's vocals are so moving, you want to scream! I couldn't imagine being there. "Don't you understand...It's not my PROBLEM!!!!!!!!" I really can't do justice to this version on a computer screen. It's sublime, it's true, through and through. Acoustic set is Mr Tambourine Man, I'm missing the middle song, and It's All Over Now, Baby Blue. Very good and strong. Elloquent is a better word. After acoustic set includes Memphis Blues and I Belive in You. Encores are subtle and touching Like A Rolling Stone. Elvis Costello joins in for interesting I Shall Be Released and rainy Day Women. I realise I skipped songs , but I wanted to stress the strength of 4th street. Bob really moves the listener with this one. As Always, Patrick
