Dylan Plays for Intimate Viewing at Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville
What can I write about Bob Dylan that has not been scribed before. Literally nothing I say here can be new. Can it? I mean, it is my personal experience. It is my reaction and my feelings; in that sense this is original. However, this is daunting to write because of the nature of the subject. It’s about Robert Allen Zimmerman, also known as Bob Dylan. He is 82 years old now and on tour to showcase his 39th studio album called “Rough & Rowdy Ways”.
I had never seen Dylan before. This was a moment I could not pass up. The fact that he was playing at a smaller venue was also tantalizing to me. Dylan had booked two nights at the Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville. It is a 1,200 capacity, standing room venue with a loft. I didn’t even hear about this show until four days before it happened, and I figured it was already sold out. I leaped online to double check and to my surprise there were still tickets left. To Bob Dylan?! Really??! Was it because people thought that he couldn’t do it anymore? Or was the promotion that far under the radar? Had people been burned before? I had heard stories of people not getting the Dylan that they wanted at live shows, but honestly, I didn’t care. I just wanted to be able to say, “I saw Bob Dylan live once.”
The tickets may not have been sold out when I got them, but this was definitely a sold-out show. The line poured out onto the sidewalk and up the block as ride shares continually dropped their fares off under the marquee out front. To my surprise, there were to be no phones allowed at this show. As I entered and got my ticket scanned, I presented my phone to an attendant that locked it into a bag and handed it back to me. I should have read the rules. No pics tonight. No notes. I will say it was a great feeling to be released from technology. How freeing. Maybe, I’ll put my phone away more often. Okay, that is delusional.
The show started exactly on time. The ticket said, “Bob Dylan at 8pm” and that’s what we got. I think. I didn’t have a phone. This wasn’t your Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Bob wasn’t slinging his axe for us tonight. He wasn’t plugging in and going electric. Bob was going classic tonight, without playing his classics. I knew going in we weren’t hearing “Blowin’ in the Wind” or “Hard Rain”. There was no way we were being treated to a 12-minute version of “Hurricane”. Dylan would be giving us his album his way.
As he came out onto the stage, he snuck behind the piano that was centered and facing us. He stood behind the ivories so we could see him. It was a conscious effort that I was glad he made. To his left was an electric guitarist. On his right was another guitar and standup bass. The accompaniment was set. So were we. There would be no lasers. Not an ounce of pyrotechnics would be set off tonight. The show set up was simple, but there is no simplicity to our mystic music man.
From the moment he breathed the first word, Bob was as grand as the piano he tickled. His voice was vintage and glorious, and the sound of the theatre matched. I was awe stricken. I wasn’t sure what I was going to be privy to. As I mentioned before, I just wanted to see him, but what I got was so much more. I won’t take you song by song, but rather I’ll leave you with the setlist somewhere below. I had only really heard the song, “Black Rider” before and I truly think it takes us back to Dylan’s humble beginnings as a songwriter. It’s a tale about cheating death and it’s stunningly dark and beautiful. Bob delivers this song to us tonight almost exactly like it sounds on the album. He churns up our emotions and challenges us to think about our own mortality.
I am unsure whether Dylan thought of “Rough and Rowdy Ways” as a concept album. It seems to me that it is. All the tracks work well together and tell a linear story. I found myself so engaged in the wonder of these meticulous lyrics and melodies that the change in song selection went unnoticed to me. It felt as if the whole show was one narrative. Bottom line is, he was great. The man had done this so many times. What more could he give to us? The answer on this night was nearly two hours.
I was grateful for Bob on this evening and will forever be thankful that I shared the earth at the same time as this living legend. If you get the chance to see Dylan on this tour, do yourself a favor and buy a ticket. He appeared happy and content. I caught a smile and a wink to the audience a few times during his set. He is ending his touring days exactly the way he started out, those many years ago… the Bob Dylan way.
Set list:
- Watching the River Flow
- Most Likely You Go Your Way and I’ll Go Mine
- I Contain Multitudes
- False Prophet
- When I Paint My Masterpiece
- Black Rider
- I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight
- My Own Version of You
- Crossing the Rubicon
- To Be Alone With You
- Key West (Philosopher Pirate)
- Gotta Serve Somebody
- I’ve Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You
- Big River -Johnny Cash cover
- Mother of Muses
- Goodbye Jimmy Reed
