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24/02/2006

Gig-weary fans to miss the Never Ending Tour in 2006?

News of the first 2006 NET dates will be welcomed by most, but not all, Dylan fans. Some of the serial NET attenders I talk to are showing clear signs of Dylan gig fatigue. Several, who’ve seen enough Dylan shows to suggest that there might well be something missing from their lives, are hinting they might even give 2006 a miss.

Good call – they’ve probably seen too many Bob gigs already to continue drawing sustenance from any but the most special. Obsessive following of any musician is an unnatural act: touring musicians play for different crowds in different cities; they don’t play for – or wish to keep seeing – the same faces following them around the globe.

But, while it can be difficult to sympathise with the often harsh reviews of shows by the over-satiated gig-weary, it’s also impossible to judge gigs in the same way as Dylan’s target audience, the casual fan – by the number of karaoke-style hits you can sing along to, and how closely they correspond to the studio versions. The Zealots in the Bob fraternity who judge every gig as well-nigh perfect - "the Sun shines out..." tendency - aren't worth listening to, either.

The most trustworthy reviews of Dylan gigs are by those who know the repertoire and its context, who’ve seen a fair few shows over the years, but not enough for them to have become stale, and who possess the critical apparatus to recognise the good, the bad and the merely mediocre.



Gerry Smith

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