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17/11/2005
Dylan in Manchester last night
On matters Dylan, Bernard McGuinn is an expert’s expert. He’s seen more Dylan shows than most of us dare dream about. He took particular pleasure in attending last night’s Bobgig on his home patch of Manchester, the Northern English city centrally important to the Dylan story.
Thanks to Bernard for his report:
“Dylan came on stage at just after 7.40pm, looking just like the man in the long black coat. He kicked off with Maggie’s Farm, which rocked along and set the tone for much of the night.
“He followed it with a stunning She Belongs To Me. I'd never heard this live before, and I love the song. It was well performed. Then Lay Lady Lay, done sweetly.
“When You Go Your Way, Memphis Blues, Long Black Coat and Hard Rain were all highlights. But the centrepiece of the current ensemble’s performance has to be Highway 61. Lasting at least 10 minutes, with each player contributing, it's a stunner. It’s one of only two songs - LARS is the other - where Bob’s keyboard is up in the mix, and it’s worth paying careful attention.
“Dylan also did Cry Awhile, a song I could have done without him ever writing, but I enjoyed this version: it had a cracking arrangement, with some cool banjo. Down Along Cove was delivered as a great blues song, with about seven verses. We also got two stage-centre harp solos, a welcome bonus.
“Dylan’s voice is strong, if now totally lacking in range. Mercifully, he only indulged his regrettable habit of lifting the voice at the end of a line on a few occasions. Someone needs to tell him: it sounds dreadful!
“It was all over by quarter past - no, no, by just after 9.30pm.
“God bless Bob!”
The Dylan Daily is covering the 2005 English shows with exclusive reports by a team of Bob experts: watch this space.
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