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Stumble10 surprises at the Bob Dylan concert
Veteran performer’s show still offers the unexpected
Monday, Oct. 19, 2009 | 3:41 p.m.
Bob Dylan
Sun Coverage
Beyond the Sun
Bob Dylan has been doing his thing – painting, singing, writing, and otherwise expressing himself – for a half-century.
He’s kept generations of audiences both guessing and singing along for years, and the now 68-year-old did it again when he took to the stage at The Joint last night.
Though he’s toured extensively during his long career – both on his own and with the Grateful Dead and, in the late 80s, Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers – Dylan’s shows still manage to have a few elements of surprise.
Here is an overview of some of the more unexpected aspects from last night’s show at the Hard Rock Hotel.
1. The show started on time, at 8 p.m. No opening act, no shenanigans, just right into “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat.”
2. Dylan was uncharacteristically coherent. A rough estimate suggested about 15 percent of the words that exited his mouth resembled words drawn from the English language. This was 14 percent more than normal and 14.5 percent more than expected.
3. There was an abundance of parking in the hotel’s parking structure, despite a decent turn-out for the show. Parking at The Joint can be a royal pain on concert nights but Sunday was a definite exception to the usually unfortunate rule.
4. He played the harmonica during an inspiring rendition of “Forgetful Heart,” then guitar during “Don’t Think Twice It's Alright” – and wowed the crowd with both.
5. The brightest spotlight onstage was focused on the pedal steel guitar for the duration of the show instead of the iconic headliner. Yes, Dylan is famous for literally avoiding the spotlight, but that was just silly. Meanwhile, a wash of overwhelming and bright lighting blanketed the entire stage during a handful of Dylan’s more prominent songs, including “Highway 61 Revisited.”
6. There was an attractive blonde woman in the audience wearing a skin-tight, fire engine red mini dress. While yes, it is Las Vegas and pretty much anything goes, she looked terrifically out of place. The two best guesses were either she confused “Bob Dylan at The Joint” with “A night at XS” or the airline lost her luggage while she was flying from XS to the Hard Rock.
7. A young, emo-esque couple cuddled, rather uncomfortably, near the bar throughout the show. They looked as if they were lost yet, for whatever reason, unable to leave; perhaps they were just resentful because they were being forced to wait for their parent(s) to leave.
8. Eco-friendly cloth Bob Dylan grocery bags were available from the merchandise booth. Talk about progressive – and in seasonal colors, too: green or orange.
9. As Dylan and his band kept things tight onstage, several couples kept time on improvised dance floors. And unlike most random acts of messy and poorly-coordinated choreography, the dancing pairs at last night’s show seemed to know what they were doing. Well done.
10. Dylan did an encore. For a guy who refuses to be photographed onstage, demands the spotlight be kept off of him, and generally doesn’t appear to do anything he doesn’t want to do, not everyone was expecting him to oblige. But he did and the three-song post-show set (“Like A Rolling Stone,” “Jolene,” and “All Along The Watchtower”) just further impressed the already-wowed crowd.
Melissa Arseniuk writes about Las Vegas entertainment and celebrity events. She can be reached at 702-948-7823 or by e-mail at melissa.arseniuk@lasvegassun.com.
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Since making a random 'list' of inaccuracies now appears to constitute music writing, here's a few additions/corrections:
a) Show started 10 minutes late, not on time
b) Dylan was more 'coherent' than at any Las Vegas show in the last 10 years (one assumes this was the writer's first) Perhaps she was projecting that 15% figure in a moment of self revelation...
c) Yes, he played harmonica, as he has done at every show he has ever done. His harp playing was quite good, but hardly rare or unique.
d) Dylan plays an 'encore' (almost always the same three songs) at EVERY concert (see bobdylan.com or boblinks.com for confirmation) so this too was hardly noteworthy.
Guess Mr Jones wasn't the only who knew something was happening, but didn't quite know what it was.
Hi Mr_Burns,
Thanks so much for your feedback.
I thought the show started mighty close to 8 p.m. Perhaps my watch is slow. Either way, 8 or 8:10 p.m. is on-time in my books, all things considered. (Mariah Carey and Puff Daddy/P. Diddy/Sean Combs should take note.)
I'm not sure what you meant about my reference to Dylan's coherence. Everyone I spoke to was equally impressed -- longtime Dylan fans and new ones alike. Same goes with his guitar playing.
As far as his encore goes, it is not surprising that he does one -- most artists play pre-planned encores these days.
That said, Dylan playing an encore is surprising in a larger context: He is so raw and otherwise unconventional, and generally refuses to be phony. If there is any artist out there who would buck the norm, I'd think it would be him. Planned encores seem wrong to me on an ongoing basis, at a Dylan show especially.
Again, thanks for your thoughts. I welcome all feedback and can be reached at melissa.arseniuk@lasvegassun.com if you ever want to chat directly.
Cheers,
M
I loved this article / review. It was off the wall and amusing. It was a refreshing prospective of a concert review. It shows that you were there in the front of the house, enjoying not only the music but the entire show.
If I wasn't a single man, I might have to propose marriage to you.
Your points are taken, Ma'am.
Dylan is really like a musical Rorshach Test--no two observers/listeners see or hear the same thing. It's what makes him, well, Him.
Or as the Man himself put it many moons ago, "people see me all the time, and they just can't remember how to act." --indeed.
Either way, it was a vintage Bob night and a good time was had by one and all...no small feat in these 'Modern Times.'
So dont think twice, it's alright.
MB
saw dylan in 1989 and it was pretty bad, even worse than a dead show during jerry's decline. can't imagine a show 20 years later could have been any better.
I have to admit that although I have avidly read and listened to his music all my life, I had never seen Mr. Zimmerman live. I went without high expectations; I wanted to catch a view of history while I still could.
I was pleasantly surprised. The new sound system at the Joint was up to the task, and Charlie Sexton, the virtuoso picker, really rocked the show. I was surprised, too, by the horn accompaniment on a couple of the early songs. A lot of contemporary songwriters could still learn a lot from Bob.
Song list:
1. Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat (Bob on keyboard)
2. The Man In Me (Bob center stage on harp, Donnie on trumpet)
3. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right (Bob on guitar)
4. Beyond Here Lies Nothin' (Bob on keyboard, Donnie on trumpet)
5. Spirit On The Water (Bob on keyboard and harp)
6. Forgetful Heart (Bob center stage on harp, Donnie on violin)
7. Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum (Bob center stage on harp)
8. Beyond The Horizon (Bob on keyboard and harp)
9. Cold Irons Bound (Bob center stage on harp)
10. Tryin' To Get To Heaven (Bob on keyboard and harp)
11. Highway 61 Revisited (Bob on keyboard)
12. Po' Boy (Bob on keyboard)
13. Thunder On The Mountain (Bob on keyboard)
14. Ballad Of A Thin Man (Bob center stage on harp)
(encore)
15. Like A Rolling Stone (Bob on keyboard)
16. Jolene (Bob on keyboard)
17. All Along The Watchtower (Bob on keyboard)
the 11th surpise is that anyone went.... they should make a rule if you have not created any relevant music in 20 years you need to retire....
I also saw Dylan in 1989 - with Tom Petty. Petty was fantastic, Dylan was just terrible. What a disappointment.
Hers's #11
Bob Dylan-he'a still alive? Don't know anybody that listens to his music