The difference between studio and live versions of Bob Dylan‘s work has been highlighted by fans of the legendary songwriter.
A Reddit thread saw fans piece together the best live versions of studio classics, including Blood on the Tracks song Shelter from the Storm and Desire track, Oh, Sister. The r/BobDylan subreddit post highlighted Dylan’s live qualities, with users sharing a collection of songs from Hard Rain and Real Live as some of his best works on stage. Live at Budokan was also shown some love by fans who had a soft spot for the deep cut live performance. A fan asked: “What are your favourite live tracks which differ significantly from their studio counterparts?”
“I’ve recently been obsessed with the Rolling Thunder Revue version of It Ain’t Me Babe – it gave me a whole new appreciation for a song I’ve probably heard a thousand times. I’m curious about others’ favourites!” Other Dylan fans have suggested a range of recordings, but compiled quite the selection of all-time great tracks.
One suggested a Rolling Thunder Revue performance of Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You. They wrote: “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You from the Rolling Thunder Revue. So much energy in the performance and Dylan’s vocals are crazy good.” Another user praised the suggestion as an example of a “good to great” song.
Shelter from the Storm from Hard Rain was a “favourite Dylan performance” for some in the comments, as well as Tangled Up in Blue from Real Live. Others suggested more recent recordings of Dylan as a place to find his best work. One wrote: “Cold Irons Bound when I heard it in concert in 2006 blew me away. Also, the version off of Masked and Anonymous is amazing. Also, High Water (For Charley Patton) is incredible live.”
Another added: “Live at Budokan was my second Dylan listen. Went from Another Side of Bob Dylan (which drove hard into my heart) to Live at Budokan (which is still my favourite live album) – it was an intense month. Friends were listening to Blondie and The Police and I was lost in another world…”
What are your favourite live tracks which differ significantly from their studio counterparts?
byu/Parallelogram12 inbobdylan
One user even suggested a live recording so good, Dylan reunited with the keyboard player for a studio recording decades later. They wrote: “Tangled Up in Blue from Charlotte, NC, 1978. Other versions from the US leg of the 78 tour are brilliant as well. Alan Pasqua is on keyboards, and years later Dylan got him back in the studio as one of the players on Murder Most Foul.”
Oh, Sister, All I Really Want to Do and I Want You from the Live at Budokan album were singled out by Dylan fans as some of his best live work. Another turned to the MTV Unplugged performance from Dylan as a great example of his live work.
They wrote: “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright, the MTV Unplugged outtake. Bob’s guitar playing there is fire. All those outtakes should have been on the official release, except for I Want You. That rendition is pretty bad.”
Love all those albums but lost in this was Dylan and The Band ‘Before the Flood’. 1974 historic tour. I turned ALOT of people on to Dylan with its live version of Like a Rolling Stone plus the rest of the album is truly great.