Bob Dylan is many things, and “diva” is one of them. Or at least it is the assessment given by one person commenting on the way out of the venue. Praise can be heaped on the legendary songwriter for his contemporary setlist found on the Rough and Rowdy Ways trail and his attitude to encores. Undoubtedly, he could fill a three-hour set, but then it would do little for an audience already fidgeting and unable to keep still in the M&S Bank Arena, and less for Dylan and the band. Their instrumental flow is sharp and this can be mistaken for a quickened tempo. Exiting a gig before half nine at night is the stuff dreams are made of. Having it be one of the best Dylan gig experiences of this tour cycle is a bonus.
Enough of a difference is made by Dylan and the band for this leg of the UK tour. Those who caught Dylan two years ago will be pleasantly surprised by the shift from Shot of Love material to the true hits. Desolation Row marks an inevitable high, plenty of whooping and hollering for that one. Rightly so. What should be a celebration of contemporary material from an artist with much to give in the way of reflective writing becomes an adulation of the classics. He has put off those hits for that very reason but it cannot be argued against. The likes of It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue are stunning. Instrumentally different to their studio recordings – as you would expect of the ever-shifting Dylan experience – but still holding the heart and meaningful hope they had on first release.
An audience that never truly settled into the rhythm and flow of this set is the downfall. Nothing on Dylan, nothing he can do as he shuffles back and forth over a vertically placed piano duet bench. His gruff vocal swing is not as bad as detractors would say and it remains an interesting choice for the tour. Dylan becomes just another instrument and it diminishes the star power he holds on stage. This feels intentional because to do anything more than stagger the lyrical aspects of these performances would be to detract from the fine work the rest of the musicians on stage provide. Where it may take some getting used to there are some brilliant moments of clarity, particularly from Key West (Philosopher Pirate) and Mother of Muses.
There is a leeway which needs to be given to Dylan at this stage. He is not the travelling merchant of hit after hit as he was in the 1960s and 1970s. His voice has evolved and changed for the sake of interest, not for the need of preservation. Rough and Rowdy Ways continues as a defiant stage performance. There is a difference between performance and show, and those who left after I Contain Multitudes have missed the point. Come for the legend, stay for the innovations. Slick guitar and instrumental work is key to the enjoyment of these pieces. They steal away from the Dylan standout with purpose, with reason to give their 83-year-old lead a break from demand.
More than a handful of moments are dependent on this new instrumental build. All Along the Watchtower and its fundamental changes make for the thrill of an opener. It is in this familiarity of lyrical context that audiences can find their footing, and can adapt to the chills Dylan now provides to I’ve Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You. When a crowd applauds him for something as small as blowing into a harmonica, winning them over is not the battle. Dylan, then, must challenge himself. Desolation Row makes for a phenomenal moment, a true set highlight where the horrors of his hometown are brought up once more. Dylan is a personable performer in a way which removes the immediate gratification. While he may as well be a stain on your glasses if sat far enough away, the power of his new vocal charm carries the set and the modern materials.
What will overshadow a phenomenal set from a twilight career period for Dylan is the density of his crowds. People who cannot be separated from their phones for an hour and twenty minutes. Those who insist they were unaware they could not bring their phones through to the gig which, to enter, must have a ticket which states there are no electronics to be brought in. Stewards have the patience of saints and Dylan too. A gig where those who want to hear the hits leave before the swing of it all unfolds. Gig etiquette has collapsed over the last few years but here the self-entitlement reigns. Still, it does not steal from the spirit of the gig, the fundamental purpose of an artist parading the riches of his past for those who continue to want some closer inspection of him. Rough and Rowdy Ways is the place to go for it – and what better way to experience it than to do so live? I Contain Multitudes is a telling track, and one of seventeen heavy-hitting and almost brutal-sounding performances within this Liverpool show.
I attended the Dylan gig last night at the M&S arena in Liverpool. The last time I saw him live was in Earls Court London playing the Street Legal tour, having slept on the pavement in Stsnley Street to get tickets from Radio City outlet. Last nights concert was amazing, his musical performance, along with his band was tight, the sound in the concert arena was gret too. I was aware of the “no phones” ruling and can totally understand the reasoning for this. What I did find disappointing was the dark stage lighting and the lack of big screen(s) viewpoints. I was at the rear of the audience and with little or no visual appreciation of the concert itself, which dissapointed a little. I’d recently attended the venue to SEE Eric Clapton, Andre’ Reigh(?) and also
a celebration of “Riverdance” all of which could be truly appreciated due to sound and vision enhancing tbe occasion. Bob Dylans concert was again an amazing spectacle but for me one that could be “heard but not seen” which is an ironic twist indeed. Again, a great performance though.
The sound was terrible for most of the performance, very much unbalanced .. the lighting, wow. a dimly lit stage with 4/5 single lightbulbs in a massive arena with thousands of people…
I couldnt care less about phones being locked in pouches, if anything i think its a good thing and it should be adoped more.. but at the very least, allow the venue to shoot camera onto screens to allow people other than the front 5 rows to see something which we have paid to see.. zero visual experience at all. If its a 500 seat venue, you can get away with that.. in an arena with 11000 people, you shouldnt be allowed to.
I dont think ive ever seen a performer with the balls to do something entirely on his own terms like that
Just saw him (midwest in US) and loved the concert! Great songs, great singing, great night. But I agree about the lighting as I couldn’t see him and I was 15 rows back! I get that it must be what he wants- playing music with the guys in a dimly lit parlor?- but doesn’t everyone go to *see a show, not just listen to one???
I can tell you from the back of the arena, the experience was less than enjoyable. Partly due to the unrested audience, many of them feeling the need to shout things during the silence between lyrics, or talk about their humdrum lives to one another while the equivalent of William Blake is a mere 100 metres away from them, at this distance a spec behind a blurry piano.
There were times though, where his band sounded as though they’d never played together before. It aint me babe was particularly messy.
And sure there were moments of greatness, where I could close my eyes and really get lost in the song, but even those were spoiled by having to stand up and let someone leave their seat because it’s been 10 minutes since they emptied their last overpriced lager.
Perhaps you really need to be down the front.
I agree with you on sitting at the back. I was in Block 10 for this one and it really does take you out of the experience seeing so many people shuffling around – particularly when people are going to and from the bar halfway through. Truly abysmal gig etiquette though not surprising. Perhaps the front is the place to be, but double the price to not be bothered by people chatting through the gig is just something that seems ridiculous. Desolation Row was beautiful, at least!
I was at last night’s performance, and would find it hard to fault Dylan; he was a consummate professional as usual. I did however have a problem with large numbers of the audience, and the venue itself. Why was it that so many in the audience appeared to have the attention span of hyperactive six-year-olds? And yes guys, when it says a 7:30 start on the tickets, that’s actually what it means; not all things in life are approximate or negotiable (and good on Dylan for not pandering to latecomers and delaying things). I suspect that several people were only there for bragging rights, so they could say: “Yeah, I saw the legend” but weren’t actually listening to the music. Inevitably, they got itchy and wandered off. Perhaps it’s yet more evidence of Instagram brain atrophy. Oh yes, the venue: it’s a shame that so many newer concert venues feel the need to pack as many people as possible into a soulless concrete bunker which is so large it’s impossible for many people further back to even make the artist out from the other band members. I guess some would call it financially shrewd: others would call it greedy.
I arrived at the venue at 7pm and queued for over 30 minutes. The set had already started, when we got into the venue. We were situated on the next to back row of the floor, and because of the poor lighting we couldn’t tell if Bob Dylan was actually on stage. The music was great, but like previous comment, some of the audience were restless and chatted and were enjoying the beer more than the gig.
I agree with Bob on not allowing phones into the venues.
Apologies to all the latecomers; I didn’t realise you’d all been stuck outside in queues. Another black mark for the venue, in that case.
We thought it was awful and we were near the front. There were a couple of spotlights but you could barely see Dylan. No screen, unless you’re a diehard fan there isn’t enough to keep you enthralled. When the lights came in we thought it was the interval. ‘Bob not pandering’ was fine when it was a 5er for 2 tickets. 300 quid for 2 tickets felt like a rip off.
Dylan was utterly brilliant and it was such a treat to hear him do it’s all over now baby blue and desolation row a beautiful experience and for those who can’t live without their phones shouldn’t have come there was plenty of information beforehand I was at the back and enjoyed every minute of the set
Love Bob but it was a load of hoowee
The ritual to get in was heavy handed and embarrassing. Dreadful venue. Rough and Rowdy indeed.
I’m a big Dylan fan but stop with your wishy washy crap! He was woeful and as someone who paid 120 quid and 8 quid for a mandatory phone wallet that I wasn’t given, I am entitled to say that. Don’t blame the fans “fidgeting” and being “unsettled”.
I’ve seen Dylan before and he wasn’t great but this was terrible. You can’t expect fans to listen to a record for 60 years and then expect them to sing along (or hastily talk as Dylan did) to a song that is almost unrecognisable to it.
John Chadderton.
The hundreds of ‘latecomers’ were late because we were still queuing outside. They finally abandoned the phone pouch routine or we would have missed many more than the three opening numbers that we lost through poor organisation. It was difficult to find our seats in the darkened arena so Dylan was into number five before we had settled. The stage lighting made Dylan and the band back lit…too dark to make out Bob unless he moved from the piano.
We were near the back. There should have been big screens. I found the sound good and the band were brilliant.
The organisers failed us…not enough time given to go through the checks and nobody inside to help us find our seat in the dark.
Bob was Bob and I love him…have done since 1964, but I think it’s about time he called it a day.
We attended on the 3rd November, we also arrived around 7.00 only to be still stood in the queue outside when the music started.
It was shambolic from the start! Told to form a queue, then form 2 queue’s, then told to form 3 for 2 security gates, only checked one of our tickets, didn’t bother checking or looking at the other one.
The seat numbers were almost impossible to see, we spent about 5 minutes walking up and down looking for our seats, when we eventually found them and sat down, all I could see was the top of the set, my wife was sat on the aisle and spent the rest on the concert leaning over to try and catch a glimpse of Bob, but the set was so dimly lit, there wasn’t a chance of that.
The sound wasn’t good, the people in the row behind were talking, ( not loudly) but we could hear every word they said.
£115 a ticket and all done and dusted by 9.15! Really? We could have asked the taxi to keep the meter running and gone home rather than staying in a hotel and saved a few quid!
You don’t go to hear a concert, you go to see one.
Overall, we felt disappointed and short changed. I know there were some that really enjoyed it, but there does seem to be a lot more that didn’t.
Just for the record, we normally go to 10+ concerts a year, varying from small intimate gigs to sell out arena concerts.
Agree with those complaining about the interminable and poorly organised queues to get in, though I don’t think it was the phone pouches that was the problem – just poor security and ticket checks. Also agree about audience etiquette – quite why people pay north of £100 to talk all the way through a concert is beyond me.
Having seen Dylan before I knew what to expect in terms of the lighting, lack of screens, and minimal stage presence of him and his band, so that didn’t throw me. But I can understand people’s comments, and truth is this is a show suited to 1-2,000 seat theatres rather than 10,000 seat arenas. In an intimate venue like that, this could have been a killer gig – Dylan, as always, reinventing his catalogue, to great effect with songs like Desolation Row and Every Grain of Sand, and doing almost all of his last album which it was great to hear live. Key West (Philosopher Pilate) was the high point for me – a great performance of one of his greatest songs.
I saw Dylan in 1969 at the Isle of Weight festival. If your a true fan you should know that he changes the presentation of his songs at most of his gigs. He is still a true genius in his writing and given his age of 83, how great thou art is he. I enjoyed every minute.
agree with every ones comment should have had screen we left
early as was bored
I thought it was one of the worst concerts I’ve ever been to. My wife & I walked out after 30 minutes bored to death and unable to see the once great man.
Absolutely ridiculous to play such a large venue with no screens.
People talking loudly more interested in their beer than listening to the dull show.
Box ticked.
Won’t be going again.