Bob Dylan 2001.03.18 in Perth
dylan came on stage dressed in a white suit with a black ribbon bow tie, and white pointy boots. before i begin let me tell you how much better the acoustics were at the entertainment centre compared to the burswood dome where he played last time he was in perth. (august 1998). the other musicians were larry campbell, tony garnier, charlie sexton and david kemper. they were all fantastic. the interplay of guitars was an absolute highlight, but bob dylan's performance was something else. he seemed to have so much more energy and enthusiasm about his songs than last time, not that there was much to complain about that performance. i was in the 6th row, practically in the middle. must have been the best seat in the house.
Picture published in The Weekend Australian on Saturday, 17 March 2001
Newsgroups: rec.music.dylan Subject: perth concert From: Dr George Christos christos@cs.curtin.edu.au Date: Mon, 19 Mar 2001 00:56:31 +0800
let me go through the setlist with a few comments.
1. roving gambler (acoustic). good opener to get
the crowd into the rhythm this song just rumbled and tumbled along.
the sound of 3 acoustic guitars and larry on a big bass was something.
the fist thing i realised was that bob's voice was loud, i mean it was
turned up and dylan wasn't holding back either
2. mr tambourine man (acoustic). what an absolute treat.
dylan sang it slightly differently, with a lot of enthuses in the start
of each new line. i have listed to his recent concert recording and
this was different. it was full of that dylan expressionism. you
know what i mean.
3. desolation row (acoustic). this was good. sounded much like
he did it in 2000, which was pretty special none the same. i was wandering
again where desolation row was during the song. a couple of days ago i
was listening to that interview in san francisco, where he said it was
in a little town in mexico. i think he was joking.
4. stuck inside a mobile (electric). seemed a good place to
change to electric and remind us of dylan dual roles from the 60's.
this was nicely done with strong dylan vocals. dylan's voice was
strong and turned up through the whole set. kinda reminded me of
when i first heard TOOM.
5. Just like a woman (electric, larry on steel guitar). the
crowd loved it and dylan put in a blinder. actually dylan put in
a blinder with every song he sang tonight, so maybe i'll stop telling you
that. it was the best performance i have seen of dylan. he was full
of energy and spirit. at many a time he seemed to toy with the audience,
especially when he was played his electric guitar. he had it high
up his chest with the arm held out horizontal. kinda reminded me of his
early acoustic days. before i forget, one of the highlights for me
was when dylan would bow to the audience after he finished a song and accepted
their appreciation. also reminded me of how he did it in the 60's.
he was very gracious, and i would go as far as to say that he really enjoyed
the applause he and his wonderful band received.
6. 'Til i fell in love with you (electric). this is one of those
forgotten songs off TOOM, because there are so many good songs on that
album. this was a real bluisy number.
7. don't think twice (acoustic). i was real disappointed last
time bob was in perth when he didn't play harp, so just before this song
started when there was some silence i called out, "play harp bobby" and
he did not let me down. he played the harp by holding it against a microphone.
it was nice to hear the sound of dylan's own breath passing through those
little brass reeds. i loved it.
8. visions of johanna (acoustic), what a treat, it was better
than that recent take put on bobdylan.com. dylan's voice was so strong
in this concert.
9 tangled up in blue (acoustic). the people around me
couldn't stop raving about this later. for me it sounded much like other
recent versions. perhaps i was getting a little sick of this song, but
i did enjoy it none the same.
10. standing in the doorway (electric). this was another gem,
probably because they had dylan's voice up so high. the guitar work
by campbell and sexton was a treat in this song and the other electric
numbers.
11. wicked messenger (electric). it took me a while to pick
this one. it was a real rocker. never been one of my favorites though.
bob made it special again by playing harp/
12. rainy day women 12&35 (electric. larry on slide guitar).
the crowd loved this and someone around me lit a joint. you could
really smell it and i think dylan could too. he seemed to lift his nose
up a couple of times. dylan introduced the ban here i think. they
took bows and left the stage. we all knew they went for a quick drink and
would return.
(encore)
13. lovesick (electric). the band returned with a superb lovesick.
it had that Grammy 1997 feel to it but with the shimmering guitar stuff.
the guitar work by campbell, sexton, garnier and bob was superb.
sexton and campbell are very talented guitarists. this song has grown on
me.
14. like a rolling stone (electric). you soon realized that
dylan is not a has-been. he did a superb LARS tonight. once again
the guitar work was special., and dylan sang with such venom.
15. if dogs run free (acoustic). very nice jazzy version, that
i have heard on tapes. this was better cause the vocals where so clear
and strong.
16. all along the watchtower (electric). you could almost
hear jimmy hendrix playing along with this song. it was an absolute
rocker, that rocked the whole stadium.
17. forever young (acoustic). i thought this was going to be
our last song cause it was the fifth in the encore. larry and charlie
sexton sang along with dylan. and it came across rather well. i also
noticed some deliberate synchronisation of the guitars in this song.
it was a treat.
18. highway 61 (electric). this was the best version of
h61 i have every heard. this song hasn't meant much to me but tonight with
the strong vocals and the rhyming guitars i fell in love with it.
dylan really hit hard on the "one" in 61. very nice indeed.
19. blowin in the wind (acoustic). what a song, what a
way to end the night. larry and charlie joined in again and this was quite
effective.
after blowin in the wind, the crowd some 20,000- 25,000 i think (not sure), gave dylan a standing ovation. the whole house stood up and clapped and cheers bob and his wonderful band. Dylan and the other band members seemed to be really enjoying this moment. they stood there lapping it all up. they deserved it. thank you Mr. Dylan.
george christos
before you ask me, i did tape the show, and i didn't stuff it up like
last time.
