CONCERT REVIEW: Bob Dylan Blows A Message Through Prospect Park, Brooklyn
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Artist:
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Album:Folk, Gospel & Blues: Will The Circle Be Unbroken
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Track:
Bob Dylan Live: Prospect Park Brooklyn
Listening to Dylan live today can be equated to listening to Dylan in the early 60s via transistor radio in a cornfield in Nebraska. His voice live is almost unrecognizable, like it's been dragged through tobacco fields, lugged through tired deserts of American heartland, tortured for years in circulating around smokey bars with no windows, washed out to sea and beached back again, and then hung to dry for too long on radio antennas everywhere. One's ears must strain to distinguish a sole lyric within each indecipherable scratch of a song. It's so painful a process one almost wonders why Dylan continues to put his chords through the trial.
At the same time, for a fan and for anyone who has followed the progression of American Folk traditions, seeing this icon live is thrill, if not necessity - even if those (including myself) who may not agree with his oft political left-leaning lyrics and the increasingly commerical tilt of his circuitous career. Thus, zealous yet patient aptly described the spectators who packed elbow-to-elbow into Brooklyn's Prospect Park to see Bob Dylan on Tuesday night, August 12th. After all, most spectators had already braved the digital and telephonic tempests in order to buy tickets to see him.
As for Dylan, he rarely plays electric or acoustic guitar any more. He is not able to maneuver much around stage any more- and relies on his band for most of the climactic musical refrains. On Tuesday night, he hid most of the time behind a keyboard, which due to his angled stance, could have been mistaken for a walker. And yet, the 67 year old performed with glistening eyes and a wide smile and put on a solid, lengthy show.
He began by waltzing the crowd through folked-up versions of "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35", and " Lay, Lady, Lay". Then through "Girl Of The North Country", " The Levee's Gonna Break" and "Spirit On The Water." In came a bluesy rendition of "Honest Me". Couples swayed as the band undulated into a free-laced jazz style for "Beyond the Horizon," where Tony Garnier liberally plucked the standup bass. "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" was sweetened by tender banjo accompaniment.
As for effects, there were little. Though the set was infused with a cornucopia of instruments (keyboard, harp, bass, drums, guitars, violin, viola, banjo, and electric mandolin), there were few 'roots' improv bits but a couple impressive jazz-style solos. There were no visuals, except a poster of an all-seeing eye that came curling down during the encore. As for costumes, the band wore sedate black suits and hats. Dylan was dressed in his typical uniform - his shrunken body engulfed in a square-shouldered suit and black wide-brimmed bolero hat. Diamonds glittered on his collar ironically like military stars; a scarf was tucked under his neck, dignified yet slightly dedraggled.
There was a stretch within the set, between "Honest With Me" and "Nettie Moore," where the band loitered too long in the too obscure; as a result, some onlookers seemed to bat their eyes too frequently, perhaps falling victim to beer-aided exhaustion while the younger spectators looked painfully bored. Save the few die-hard fans who knew each song he played- the lyrics, the symbolism, et al- it was hard act throughout which to maintain consistent, unceasing interest - especially since, unless you'd paid the hundred dollar price-tag for a front row vantage point, it was often a strain to see over the intimidating palisade of heads.
It helped that the crowd itself served as seminal entertainment. On the sidelines, a man chuckled about the indelible memories associated with "Lay Lady Lay" ("My first wife and I feel in love to "Lay Lady Lady." We fell out of love to "A Fool Such as I." The cycle's continued till now" as he tapped the shoulder of a pepper-haired woman next to him.) Meanwhile, even the security guards peacefully ignored the crowd outside the park gates peaking through barricades and instead hummed the tunes under their breaths.
As "Summer Days" floated through the summer tide air, ladies sipped cough-syrup-resembling red wine, families finished their last nibbles of fried chicken on blankets in the back of the park, and almost the crowd began swaying content as one, large, discombobulated unit.
However, truth told, the overall anti-war message through the set seemed over emphasized (though it is little surprise coming from Dylan.) Can one be a fan of Dylan and his critical role in American folk music traditions, and yet still disagree with his politics? Can one detach music from meaning? Even despite his now slurred vocals, it is still very very difficult to ignore his dogmas, which is a shame for those who may have differing opinions or have less obdurant view points. Yet, inarguably, part of what makes America so grand, and perhaps his voice so rich, is our constitutional freedom to differ, vocalize about such differences - whether onstage or at home - and yet unite together despite those differences.
Thus, as Dylan ripped through an emotional, deconstructed version of "Like A Rolling Stone" during his encore, I too rose to my feet along with the majority of the audience rose to their feet. Why does Dylan perform when he can no longer sing? When he's too frail to play the guitar? The answer was blowing in the wind.
(*NOTE: Cameras were forbidden during the set- so the collage above is fragments from ONE photo taken from my cellphone (hence the grain). I digitally split and withered the peices- so they took on character of their own. Best I could do, folks!)
Photo & Review by Faith-Ann Young
Comments (22)
Indiepixie you are lucky the last time I saw Dylan in 2005 he opted to play the entire gig with his back to the audience and never spoke once all night.
Oh How we laughed!
Good job!
Conrad must've seen the same tour I did! Boring as Abba...
Great post!
hmmmm.............i agree with that..............it's completely up to individual interpretation.
I also really felt a strong anti-war push all evening....
but each to their own :)
Dylan's Prospect Park set list:
. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel)
2. Lay, Lady, Lay (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on pedal steel, Stu on acoustic guitar)
3. Lonesome Day Blues (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel)
4. Girl Of The North Country
(Bob on keyboard and harp, Donnie on pedal steel, Stu on acoustic guitar, Tony on standup bass)
5. The Levee's Gonna Break
(Bob on keyboard, Donnie on electric mandolin, Tony on standup bass)
6. Spirit On The Water
(Bob on keyboard and harp, Donnie on pedal steel, Tony on standup bass)
7. Honest With Me (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel)
8. John Brown (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on banjo, Tony on standup bass)
9. Highway 61 Revisited (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel)
10. Beyond The Horizon
(Bob on keyboard, Donnie on pedal steel, Tony on standup bass)
11. It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)
(Bob on keyboard, Donnie on banjo, Tony on standup bass)
12. Nettie Moore (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on viola, Stu on acoustic guitar)
13. Summer Days (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on pedal steel, Tony on standup bass)
14. Masters Of War
(Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel, Stu on acoustic guitar, Tony on standup bass)
(encore)
15. Like A Rolling Stone (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on pedal steel)
16. Thunder On The Mountain
(Bob on keyboard, Donnie on lap steel, Stu on acoustic guitar)
17. Blowin' In The Wind
(Bob on keyboard and harp, Donnie on violin, Stu on acoustic guitar)
Oh, and BTW
I greatly enjoyed your review, you put me into the middle of the crowd and provided an accurate feel for the ambiance. I love taking "newbies" to Dylan concerts, They usually leave bewildered and confused. "this guy's a genius, right? He's great, Right?"
These days his shows are mostly for **true Believers**
thanks for this review indie. i absolutely worship the ground he walks on, but i gave up seeing him live about 7 years ago after he played baby blue and i didn't recognize the song till it was half way over
I've seen the man twice -
Once at the Fox in Atlanta when the only worthwhile part of the show was Jason & the Scorchers, the opening act,
And once at Atlanta Music Midtown 3 when he closed the weekend (though his set did overlap the final fifteen minutes of Joan Baez's set on a stage on the other side of the grounds...), when he blew away everybody else who had played that weekend, including Cowboy Mouth and Jason & the Scorchers, on energy alone.
There was a palpable anti-war feeling to the set, with "John Brown" and "Masters of War" making a powerful double play. I would even nominate "It's Alright Ma" and "The Levee's Gonna Break" as implied political statements in the context of last night's show.
The moments that moved me the most were "Nettie Moore," and the bluesy rumble of "Highway 61 Revisted," "Lonesome Day Blues" and "Levee." And any opportunity to see Dylan sing "The Girl From The North Country" is ok in my book. Thanks for your evocative, thoughful review. A great night in Brooklyn.
Such a great review, and what you did with the pictures added to the experience. Just wondering, do you know why no cameras were allowed?
Brill improv on the shots, pixie. And first-rate coverage, As regards the anti-war sentiment expressed during his show: Some people will only hear what they want to hear, no matter how loud and obvious the message. Let's call it selective reception.
What you did with that cell phone image is great! I love your creativity!
saw him once with willie nelson. 2005. he did great. the most fun i had was figuring out the song titles.
Your description of his voice is so apt - that croak is just what it feels like. It's a pity he's not playing guitar any more. When I saw him about 5 years ago, the only redeeming part of the night was some brilliant Texas-style guitar playing.
I like the description, too! It reminds me of a favourite voice description of mine a critic came up with about Tom Waits: like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months, and then taken outside and run over with a car. Good stuff.
I was never a Dylan fan myself, but for some reason, I always smile when I stumble into Dylan fans :)
Thank goodness it was a cell phone in lower light - I was terrified that you discovered photoshop filters for the first time or something... LOL!!! Great review - as always - your description of his voice, has me very interested in hearing it now - live.
Great review -- you state what a lot of people have been thinking and only some saying out loud for the past few years, even as Dylan keeps up a relentless tour schedule. Both times I've seen him, the shows had their moments. People want to see him and he still wants to be out there, so it is what it is.
I did see that, I was saying the way you broke up the one photo seem to really work for the artist you were covering. I was just wondering why no cameras were allowed in.
After all, these were the diehards, who bought tickets within the slim time frame before they sold-out...
... or paid a premium in the secondary markets of eBay, StubHub and Craig's List.
:) good point red. There were rumors the tix were going for upwards of $565 !!!
I paid 395 dollars for my ticket and travelled from Norway to see this gig, and I was totally thrilled by the experience!!On the European tour he,s normally doing all these large stadiums concerts(I,ve been attending 19 of those over the years) and this tiny and intimate Brooklyn venue was a wonderful opportunity to see what he is really about.The wonderful soul and spirit of his voice most certainly came across in this concert. Bobs newest songs are just incredibly great, and just marks what a wonderful and creative artist he truelly is. And his todays voice fit them perfectly...He has got this wonderful bluesy feeling while singing Spirit of the water. And who can stand still while listening to Summer Days or Thunder of the Mountain?
About the antiwar theme, I have to say that I definitenely have never felt it like I did here. In Europe I have only once during 19 years heard Masters of war, so he totally does a different take on this theme when at home ground. i would never have expected to hear John Brown in a live concert, fantastic song though! But then again, what do we know and what does it really mean what he thinks.....:-) Great songs and performances though. As long as we love it!
Thanks Bob, You never fail to make an impression!
elisabeth, Norway
seeing dylan live is like seeing dead live at the end of their career (which of course ended when jerry died - you disagree - you are wrong!). you have to be hard core, and see 10 shows to catch the one killer one. requires dedication.