Bob Dylan – Footlights Review

Rarities and oddities are now no surprise to those who follow the deeper cuts of Bob Dylan. The man has a seemingly endless supply of buried studio offerings, little bits and pieces he deemed no good. His desire to hold his audience and their attention to task for the whole of his shows saw the ban on electronic devices at his shows. But those who persevered are responsible for bringing about Nothing Lasts Forever, a wonderful collection from BennyBoy which lingers on the mind. Collections like these, artists such as Dylan, as much as we hope they would, do not last forever. Nor will they ever, though recording the likes of Footlights, the Merle Haggard classic, and ripping it for a deep cut bootleg, is the parts of time Dylan fans will no doubt hope to cling to. Rightly so.  

Reflective covers are few and far between but for Dylan, this Haggard classic hits well. He has lived a life most men only dream off – not without its spikes in trouble but nonetheless a rich one. Dylan has suffered and struggled with the best of them but with a career trajectory like Johnny Cash, the high, dip and second coming, was something Haggard endured too. It is the case for artists whose discographies are quantity-laden, but the deep cuts are there for those who seek them. Once more the instrumentals are in fine form – a constant for the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour but a sincere surprise, nonetheless. Ripped right from a Boston show and not letting up, the tone Footlights takes is commendable. 

The only thing worse than nobody clapping from an audience is one person clapping, as is the case for the only Haggard fan in the room for this rendition of Footlights. More power to them. Like any champion musician he wins them over with thorough and eventful showcases of his long-lasting skill. What is key to this performance is the vigour of the performer, Dylan creates a real distance between the Haggard original and his own displays of mortality, moving flourishes of exceptional and even fearful proportions. At times the bubble seems fit to burst, the legend of the stage contemplating his final years of intense artistic enlightenment. All it takes is an uproar from the man who noted the changing tides of time over half a century ago. There is some real and raw beauty to Footlights from then on.  

Not the first time Dylan has brought this one to life on the stage – but this was the debut. A catalyst for conversation when it comes to how Dylan perceives himself and, if he is to think of it, his legacy. Whether he does or does not matters in no real measure to Footlights, a charmed and moving piece which holds its own thanks to some flutters of piano work and a gliding guitar creation bursting through at all the right times. As far as it goes for Dylan covers, this is one of the few which needs to be out there. We once more benefit from the rulebreakers risking their time in the building by recording those moves from Dylan which would otherwise be lost to time.