History in motion. That is what The Royal Albert Hall concert is, and not just for Bob Dylan fans. At a time when Dylan was pushing himself back into a higher gear of quality with Time Out of Mind, the spoils of previous recordings were slowly trickling through. This fourth entry into the Bootleg Series, a live hour and a half to follow the mighty triple bill Bootlegs 1-3 collection, charts a turning point. It is arguably the harshest yet most important change of pace any artist has undertaken. A frosty reception to electric music right in the heart of the Manchester Trade Hall. Confusing, yes, but the Bootleg Tapes are not for the faint of heart. What a fascinating display from the times, and it can be heard right here on this masterclass performance which features fond tracks of acoustic skill and expertly crafted displays with The Hawks.
They would later become The Band but for the time being, as they introduced the electric set which opens with Tell Me, Momma, they were merely a group of chancers to those who protested the switch from acoustic. Said acoustics, the first set of the show, is a delightful experience. It features some of the best Dylan works to date and it should be no surprise the likes of Visions of Johanna and Desolation Row, a supremely gifted eleven-minute showcase, are within this one. It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue is an ultimate highlight – a sincerely beautiful edition of this track which strikes through so well. It feels like the moment change is alerted to the members on the stage, who soon find themselves playing out the acoustic era with Mr. Tambourine Man.
Changing it up to an unsuspecting audience is always a risk but the feel for Dylan during this period, on reflection, is frankly revolutionary. Splitting the room but for the sake of integrity which would later shore up his finest works. He was close to overhauling how we perceive the outtakes and demo recordings of our favourite artists at bootleg tapes and live cuts soon followed – but this change gets off to a wet start. Tell Me, Momma is not the best but soon the pace picks up, the audience begins accepting what happens and by Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat, the riotous awakenings of the electric movement are well and truly in place. One Too Many Mornings and Ballad of a Thin Man are essentials from this record, rip them and plant them in playlists wherever and whenever you can.
Joined by the likes of Robbie Roberston and legendary bass guitarist Rick Danko for this plunge into the depths of electric music, Dylan is in fine form and hits the ground running for a new era. For a series of concerts mired by the controversial shockwaves of the time, we have the benefit of listening back and engaging with some of the finest songs Dylan played on stage or put to tape. Change is a necessary piece of the artistic puzzle, it is why so many are criticised in the here and now. Those who mark their careers with fascinating moves to this genre or that sound will be vindicated as time goes on. Dylan was, and so too will the pioneers who strike out against their sound in bolder, notable ways.
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This was not recorded at the Royal Albert Hall in London, as the notes reveal and the apostrophes around the title indicate. It was at the Manchester Free Trade Hall. Also, not all the crowd warmed to the electricity. The most famous moment in the concert happened between the last two numbers when someone shouted “Judas!” The crowd cheers and someone else cries: “Go home, you great pillock!” Dylan’s reply: “I don’t believe you. You’re a liar.” Then to the band: “Play it f***ing loud!”
Always fascinated me as to why they labelled this the “Royal Albert Hall” performance considering it has nothing to do with the location – assuming it is because “Free Trade Hall” does not sound as monumental or weighty.
Recordings of this concert were amongst the first ever ‘genuine’ bootleg recordings and were erroneously labelled as such at the time. Quite why, I can only speculate, as do you. The Yanks involved had heard of London, England but had never heard of Manchester, Lancashire?
However, in making this official release, as shown, CBS/Sony are, apparently, making a deferential allusion to the fame prior to its official release.
In terms of content, and without being at all enamoured of much of Dylan’s blues output, I always greatly enjoy(ed) ‘Baby let me follow you down’
Much more intriguing, at least for me, is the more general question of quite how so may Dylan concerts resulted in bootleg recordings. Including those from the soundboard.
No subterfuge at all?