What an outstanding rejuvenation the mid-1990s offered Bob Dylan. At a time when grunge was on its way out, the likes of Pulp and Blur were dominating the charts in the UK, Dylan was still surging through. It is strange to think of the Mr. Tambourine Man songwriter and the likes of Elastica, Oasis, and even Pearl Jam as being around at the same time. There is little, if any, overlap between the British bands and the veteran from Duluth, but Phoenix 1995 shows the other side of the record. Music was roaring ahead in new genre turns, but also held part of the 1960s party within. With Suede sharing the glam-rock charms of David Bowie and Oasis ripping The Beatles for their sound, it is refreshing to hear an artist from that time collecting his sounds under a new instrumental style. Such is the thrill of Phoenix 1995.
A fifteen-track set from Dylan is another showcase of his greatest hits, but also a chance to hear him collaborate with Stevie Nicks and cover Jerry Garcia songs. This is a time when Dylan was relying not on contemporary material (that would come just two years later) but on the spontaneity, the surprise, of bringing in fan favourite material. He had long shied away from it, though a rekindling of his interest in the likes of All Along the Watchtower and Mr. Tambourine Man, thanks to MTV Unplugged, had revitalised both audience and artist. Delicate performances of If Not for You and You’re a Big Girl Now bring a tenderness to the stage which Dylan had abandoned following his religious trilogy of works. He was into the big sounds of rock and roll, the sort of noise which would lead him down the synthpop roads of Empire Burlesque. Those moments are rocky to say the least. But a few years on to iron out the little problems, and Phoenix 1995 is a roaring success.
Strong performances of All Along the Watchtower highlight the instrumental success of the band at this stage of touring. Bucky Baxter and Tony Garnier are the essential parts of this performance, with a grizzled-sounding Dylan dropping in to deliver lyrics with the same interest as a man counting bricks. Musical bricks, but bricks, nonetheless. There are parts of the Phoenix 1995 performance where Dylan hurries through the lyrics, either as a chance to give the instrumentals room to breathe, or because he would rather have the band around him improvise a new direction for classic songs. Either way, it does work at times. Though there may be interest once more in the hits, it is untangling their meaning, adapting it to modern musical tones, which is the purpose Dylan finds.
With a phenomenal Nicks cover and a perfect rendition of Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I’ll Go Mine), it is clear Dylan was finding his footing once more as a performing artist. The new wave of interest which came from the MTV generation certainly creates an excitable crowd. These are the moments where Dylan can reflect on his career and reformat them, appealing to the steadier rock generation which was booming across the globe at the time of this performance. Phoenix 1995 is a steady show, one which has no thrills or spills aside from a Nicks collaboration. The rest of it is solid listening, decent work from one of the all-time greats.
