Bob Dylan and Grateful Dead – Foxborough 1987 Review

Whether it was a midlife crisis or a musical kinship he wished to make permanent, Bob Dylan attempting to join Grateful Dead was a fascinating moment. The application was lodged and filed away by The Dead, who thought highly enough of Dylan to tour with him, but did not think he would be the right fit. A correct call from Bob Weir and Jerry Garcia there, whose time on the road had taught them plenty. Dylan was good for a guest spot. Grateful Dead were exceptional as his backing band. You can find countless examples of their chemistry together, so long as you steer clear of the miserable Dylan and The Dead record. Foxborough 1987 is a sweet example of their work together, the overlap of instrumental sharpness and lyrical focus. It’s a surprising sharpness from Dylan, whose career at this point was alive on stage, but in the studio had taken an astonishing dive.  

Thanks to some excellent scrubbing and quality upgrades, watching the Foxborough 1987 performance is a treat. You can see Grateful Dead members keeping pace with Dylan, figuring out where he wants to take the instrumentals. His lead is strong enough, and it gives Garcia, Weir, and the rest of the group a chance to experiment. Veterans of the stage by this point, their additions to The Times They Are A-Changin’ are marvellous, as is Dylan’s vocal work. For a period often defined by Dylan being incomprehensible or a complete vocal letdown, his work with Grateful Dead had a clarity to it he would lose once more in the early 1990s. He was drifting further away from a recognisable stage presence. There is nothing wrong with that, but Grateful Dead proved to be a strong ballast for Dylan, who rattles out hits like Ballad of a Thin Man, Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again, and All Along the Watchtower with the intensity and sincerity we expect of him.  

But there is time, too, for some lesser-played pieces. John Brown and I Want You are fascinating choices given the rock and roll context. Grateful Dead follows the lead well, though, and the instrumental creativity, the clear chemistry between The Dead and Dylan, is impressive. Garcia is responsible for some beautiful, drifting guitar tones which, almost by accident, form the core of some of Dylan’s best songs. They give Dylan a chance to break from his frontman duties, feeding him a few delightful guitar riffs. Man of Peace slots into the set nicely, an Infidels rip, which is more stock for Grateful Dead’s impressive instrumental work. Foxborough 1987 highlights the chemistry between the two artists, but beyond that, and thanks to the video to go along with this bootleg, the thrill of live performance is clear. 

Part of why The Dead and Dylan decided to perform is surely rooted in a shared love for the stage. They spent a long enough time on it. Show closer Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door has a special energy to it, one which feels almost inevitable as Grateful Dead closes out their second set of the day, backing a reinvigorated Dylan. You only need to seek out shows after this one, anything from 1991, to see how important The Dead were to his sound. Inventive instrumentals are paired with some of the very best Dylan songs around. Garcia is the standout, adding impressive, deep layers to songs which, while the very best in class, had been ripped apart on stage time and again. Making it sound fresh is half the battle, and they succeed during Foxborough 1987.