Plenty of Bob Dylan’s backlog is timeless. Not just because of how well-written it is but through how pertinent and striking the lyrics still are. Masters of War may have been written as a response to the Vietnam War but even in modern times the fundamentals, the concept of the song, remain the same. That is a damnable shortcoming of world leaders and a stroke of genius from Dylan, whose The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan rip still roars through, whatever the occasion. This 2006 performance in particular, live from Columbus, has something special to it. A roaring anger kicking on well into the 21st century. Who can blame him? His folk protest fundamentals kick back in here, a gearshift not quite expected of Dylan in the post-Modern Times release cycle.
But it is a welcome and mighty performance of an anti-war classic. There are few protest songs which tackle a specific issue yet push through into the next generation. Listeners and artists should surely hope the subject of the song becomes redundant, though Masters of War is broad enough to be unfortunately on the nose at all times. A brutal display of anger towards an uncaring system, sending young people off to die for a cold government with a sincere lack of care for the countrymen they declare themselves as protecting. It turns the stomach, and it sounds as though it horrifies Dylan too in this performance. Masters of War on stage in 2006 is seething with the spoken word-like brilliance Dylan deployed on stage around this time. It may have been a tad rough at times, a transition brought on more for the sake of shifting interests than vocal changes.
Originally intended with pacifism at its heart, with peace and understanding leading the charge, it has changed, however subtly, to a stance against conflict. Rightly so. Masters of War here is given an instrumental push which elevates it far beyond just another rip of a classic track. Dylan digs deep, as does his long-serving guitar players Stu Kimball and Denny Freeman. The long-serving Tony Garnier on bass is a crucial piece too, and there is no Masters of War groove without the thrills of George G. Receli. The Modern Times studio band rips and roars through a groove-laden shot at those who hide behind death and war. A sincere achievement on the stage right here, and much of that comes from the shifting context of a song which, sadly, will never not be relevant.
Masters of War is to tackle the propagators, defenders or attackers. As if the ultimate sacrifice is worth taking for any reason. Dylan finds a route through to the modern audience, of the time that is, and strikes down conflicts across the globe with the same words as before. Global conflicts are not going to slow or stop because one man on stage has rallied against it but there is a warmth in the sincerity, in the continued disgust in the face of conflict, that makes for a camaraderie like no other. This is not a song which breeds like-mindedness but an articulate putdown, once more, of war without reason. Dylan pushes through the discomfort, disarming it and what few values are held by those who wear the masks he speaks of in this chilling rendition.
