Bob Dylan – Rough and Rowdy Ways at The Met, Philadelphia Review

Anyone hoping to relive the spectacle of the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour is hard-pressed to find a better, more easily available recording than this. Bootlegs be damned for a moment, the build of guitar found in this Bob Dylan show held on November 30, 2021, has all the right moments to it. The sound quality is crisp and solid, a fine form washes over Dylan and there is a presence here which suggests Rough and Rowdy Ways, the material on it and the tour it soon became, has revitalised a traditional songbook-loving artist. Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine) is of course an early show highlight, but the reinvention of those as competitive instrumental wonders is a breath of fresh air – and what a choice it is for this tour date. 

Very much, and obviously, a show for those who were completely engrossed by Rough and Rowdy Ways. What is not to love about such a record? Dylan shows flickers of honest and clear reflection, a rarity as he rattles off references to Mott the Hoople on I Contain Multitudes. It does take you back. To the gig attendance, not to the 1970s, some of us were born a week before Y2K was set to ravage the world. Carry yourself with those weights of memory. What is the trouble in reliving them from time to time? Nibble on your nostalgia. Can it even be nostalgia for a tour which is still ongoing? When the artist at the heart is singing of those changed times, it could be. Its effective highs, the False Prophet intent and fleeing from the proclamations of Dylan as a deity come clear.  

But what about this Philadelphia show is so special? Beyond its access, there is a fine form to it. It all depends on your experience, but for those in the Hull crowd those few years ago, this performance just flicks the mind into a gear three years younger. Dylan sounds hopeful, inspired and despite his alleged tour shortcomings, delivers a bold performance which transports right back to the fateful night, carrying Wings records into the gig because a stop off at a cafe was necessary. It sounds like there is fear in Dylan’s voice on Black Rider, a tremendous joy to behold and it leads into I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight with a raw and truthful flourish.  

Later joy comes from the swinging style of Doug Lancio on guitar – replacing the longstanding Charlie Sexton. It is a bold change which benefits the likes of Gotta Serve Somebody, a track which grows and grows the more it is adapted into this rhythm and blues-like creation. It suits the style and tone Dylan now takes, and long may it continue. Shadow Kingdom proved his hits could hold their weight with this new style, but where is the challenge in using those? What better way to bring a crowd to their feet than to reflect on those songs which did not quite settle the first time around? Pair them with the monumental quality of the Rough and Rowdy Ways tracks and a crowd that sounds totally entranced, and it makes for one of the best live recording experiences available.