The 2001 tour from Bob Dylan is a delight. The Columbia recording artist, as he was often introduced as, shuffles his deck of classic tracks often enough to make listening to any show from this tour worthwhile. Asheville 2001 is another fantastic example of the on-stage consistencies of Dylan and the band at this time, but also highlights the joy of an unexpected setlist. Dylan is cursed with too many hits, to the point where even a twenty-song setlist can feel like it’s missing one or two all-time greats. In the build-up to Love and Theft, Dylan found himself leaning into acoustic sounds once more. He was not rejecting electric in some sort of wild bow to the Newport Folk Festival crowd, just making good on a reinvigorated interest in the acoustic beauties of his past. The Roving Gambler and Mr. Tambourine Man are excellent examples of this, well-received by the crowd then, and in such brilliant quality, they will likely receive the same reception from those listening at home.
Occasionally, a member of the crowd will whoop or simply yell “yeah” and it punctuates just about every line of Visions of Johanna. Rightly so. It’s a welcome run of hits from Dylan who gives these songs an interesting, easy listening-like experience. Beautiful renditions of Visions of Johanna and Maggie’s Farm highlight the consistencies of the acoustic turn. We should not be surprised it works for songs written with acoustic instruments in mind, and yet the new layers and refreshed vocal delivery gives Asheville 2001 a depth which would not be misplaced on a live album. It’s a crisp recording, a fantastic turnaround of some excellent songs, and it features a few deep cuts too. Where Teardrops Fall from Oh Mercy is a nice surprise and an enjoyable performance comes once the shock of hearing it has dissipated. A show so good that every cheer is warranted.
It’s one of the very best Dylan live show bootlegs you can get your hands on. That much is clear. Asheville 2001 has just about everything a listener could want from Dylan. His guitar playing, paired with veteran Charlie Sexton, is wonderful. Firm hand Tony Garnier is there to guide that improvised rhythm, the long and winding instrumental sections a real treat to hear and much nicer with acoustic guitars than a grand piano, as has been the case for the Rough and Rowdy Ways tour. Stick around for some essential performances of Tangled Up in Blue, Things Have Changed, and Like a Rolling Stone, songs which are redefined by the new vocal range from Dylan at this point. He sounds better than he would on Love and Theft, though that is no knock at his 2001 masterpiece.
Take a song like Things Have Changed, just because it’s been on repeat the last few weeks as a break from More and The New Sound. Knowing where the hooks lay, where the vocal breaks are, is part of the listening experience. Dylan can challenge that by shifting the tempo of the song ever so slightly, but for many artists this would mean the song falls to pieces. For Dylan, it just means adapting a new instrumental style. To some that would be an impossible step, but as Asheville 2001 shows, and as some artists are now exploring, it can be a breath of fresh air for songs old and new. Pair Things Have Changed with Like a Rolling Stone and the benefits of challenging audience expectations are clear. Asheville 2001 is an excellent example of how bootlegs, whether uploaded to YouTube like this one or printed on CDs and shared across the globe, are still relevant. Dylan’s camp cannot put this one out, and it’s a shame, because the quality here is better than that of his official live releases.
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