Orchestral additions and arrangements added to the music of Bob Dylan feel so obvious a change it feels cliché. Give it a chance, though, as Dylan did. A compilation of those efforts can be found on the aptly titled Bob Dylan and His Orchestra. A sixty-four-piece orchestra backing the veteran songwriter, who performs some of his very best songs to rapturous smatterings of applause which appear just as quickly as they disperse. Not a note is missed by that crowd, and we are lucky to hear the same on some frankly brilliant bootleg work. These versions are quite unlike any rendition, be it in the studio or live. Live at Budokan may be wrongly cast aside because of how different those classics sounded. Bob Dylan and His Orchestra offers a similar experience. Massive changes to the very best offer a new route to the heart of each song, the fresh take is a real thrill.
Borderline orchestral moments follow a collaboration with the Wynton Marsalis Band on Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right. That overlap in instrumental excess, in Dylan working his way through a classic in the best way possible, in that state of reinvention, is magnificent. The Man in Me is given similar treatment during a performance in Seattle. It is staggering what a few strings can do for a song played on stage dozens of times. Rare it may be the audience’s interest and Dylan’s pursuit overlap, Bob Dylan and His Orchestra is a selection of songs any fan would want to hear rearranged to this extent. Sugar Baby and Moonlight may feel like leftfield choices, tracks which would suggest the songwriter is heading towards unrecognisable fields, but they are a necessary contrast to It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue, and Ballad of a Thin Man.
Some of these performances will bring a tear to your eye, or at the very least may make you think of doing so as the dust in the room is swept into your pupil. Moments of real class from Dylan on stage are no surprise. There are very few moments in his historic career where the stage efforts are below par. They are out there for those with time on their hands, but why listen to those when you can find career-best performances of Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door and Tears of Rage? Beautiful versions which, in hindsight, feel like the sort of instrumental depth and piano-led range Rough and Rowdy Ways would provide. A slower tempo is the clear change, but it is hard not to note those moments where Dylan lets the silence take hold, a pause here or there makes all the difference.
For Bob Dylan and His Orchestra, it means re-evaluating the spirit of classic songs. He does so brilliantly, this unofficial compilation filled with charm and energised performance. A few string arrangements make all the difference. Where orchestral momentum for many artists just means an easier way of ripping at the heartstrings of a listener, Dylan uses it as a chance to develop his vocal style, to ease into the rhythm and blues-like style which on such brilliance. Closer Queen Jane Approximately is a stellar rendition, one of the ten exceptional versions to take note of here. Pair Dylan with whatever instrument you like, chances are he will find a tone and style which works the song into a new groove, a fresh, merit-worthy performance.
