I dropped in on Bob Dylan's show at Ernie Shore field in Winston-Salem, NC last night, and, despite what the dude over at the Winston-Salem Journal "says":http://www.winstonsalemjournal.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ/MGArticle/WSJ_RelishArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149190061098, it was a great show. As I've said before in a previous post, Dylan's current band doesn't hold a candle to the lineup that included Charlie Sexton and Larry Campbell, but Denny Freeman, Stu Kimball, and Donnie Herron are starting to grow on me. They keep getting tighter with each show, and they certainly bring a different sound than Sexton and Campbell did. I particullarly like Herron's contributions on pedal steel and lap steel guitar - it adds a whole new dimension to the music. Tony Garnier and Geroge Recille, the backbone of the band, are simply great.The sound at the minor league ballpark was fantastic, and the band was tight and in a nice groove. Dylan kicked things off with "Maggie's Farm," which is the norm these days, before moving into "The Times They Are a Changin'," "Lonesome Day Blues," and "Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine." Next up was a lovely rendition of "Boots of Spanish Leather" that was gentle and tender. Another stellar performance came shortly after with a wonderful version on "Shelter From the Storm." It was the first time I heard this number performed live, and Dylan and the boys did the song justice. Blistering versions of "Highway 61 Revisited," "Like a Rolling Stone," and "All Along the Watchtower" rounded out the night.Dylan was in fine voice, singing clearly and pushing his phrasing through some interesting twists and turns. The dude from the Winston-Salem Journal found Dylan's voice to be the most objectionable thing about the show, calling it "pinched," "hoarse," and "phlegmatic." Ultimately, the reporter considers Dylan to be "awful as a live performer." I don't give his criticism much merit, considering that Dylan is a remarkable live performer, who manages to give an energetic, compelling performace just about every time he steps on stage these days. I'd put money on Dylan and his band holding their own, if not outshining, just about any other band out there. And it seems to me that complaining about his voice is a rather weak critique, and not very original or even relevant. Yeah, it is rough and unpolished. But it's that very quality, the wildness and rawness and limitations, of Dylan's voice that make it so compelling and ultimately beautiful. Dylan's voice is human in all it's frailties and weaknesses, and that profoundly human dimension adds so much power and depth to his songs. In a world where beauty is equivalent with flawlessness and polish, a surface lacking any depth or individuality, Dylan's voice reminds us that beauty can be ragged, frightening, and harrowing. At his finest, Dylan's singing approaches the sublime, at least in the Romantic sense of the word - a terrifying, often painful, encounter with beauty that suspends rational thought.I can't wait for the release of the new album.