Bob Dylan – Time Out of Mind Live Review

Listeners are spoiled for choice when seeking out live versions of Time Out of Mind. Bob Dylan seems fond even now of his return to form album, which, like Oh Mercy nearly a decade before it, gave Dylan new life as a performer. Those nuances which come from changing a song live on stage are heard throughout these versions, taken from the immediate tour after Time Out of Mind and performances from as recently as 2019. It is on those recent occasions that we can hear the ongoing joy Dylan gets from his Grammy-winning album. His delight comes from the same spot a dedicated listener’s does. Time Out of Mind Live is a magnificent bootleg for those wanting to hear slight variations to some of Dylan’s best songs. An album of classics which Dylan has thankfully seen reason to perform for years. A moody masterclass is offered by Time Out of Mind Live.  

All it is missing is Dirt Road Blues, though Dylan’s aversion to performing the song is unexplainable. We are yet to get a live version of it, and at this point, we may never. Love Sick has been stuck in his set for decades and still features as part of the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour. You would be hard-pressed to find a moodier version of the song than what is featured here. Million Miles has a sudden guitar riff which sparks Jimi Hendrix-like qualities, the dangerous style and wonderful form of that song is moulded by the live stage. Dylan does not get enough credit. He gets detractors instead for adapting his studio work to the stage through a multitude of themes. Changing it as frequently as he does is a brilliant skill, and you can get a nice variety from this live bootleg. Inevitable changes between the years are highlighted best of all by the jump between Tryin’ to Get to Heaven and the more recent performance of Til’ I Fell in Love With You.  

That latter song is from a decade ago, but as chilling and cruel as the passage of time may be, it is a brilliant example of Dylan at his best. A truly searing version of the song where percussion is used to punctuate the thrill of love. Whoops from the crowd are all you can hear at times, and with Dylan’s isolated vocals, the band dropping into silence before a big blowout finish, it’s one of the all-time great performances of Time Out of Mind material. Collating that and sharing it with listeners who may not be aware of the version is truly great work, and the bootleggers sifting through show after show should be praised for that dedication. Quieter spots on Not Dark Yet prove that Dylan can conjure brilliance from the bleak, the quieter moments offer magnificent reinventions.  

Til’ I Fell in Love With You and Not Dark Yet are essential listens. They are as strong as the studio versions. Stronger, should you be searching for a sound which makes that cutting return to form a sparse, contemplative tone that the likes of Nick Cave mastered on stage. Nothing short of brilliant, the whole of Time Out of Mind Live is a miraculous display of Dylan at his very best. Pieces from the early 2000s even manage that tone, despite the soft rock thrills of those Love and Theft days. Both Make You Feel My Love and Highlands are extraordinary moments, the two songs detailing an instrumental class Dylan’s band has maintained for decades. Their desire to play up those themes, to change as they go, is as crucial as Dylan’s need to change the fundamentals of his sound. Time Out of Mind Live offers all that and more on a must-listen compilation.