1 A SHORT SUBJECTIVE
RETROSPECTIVE
6.3 Berkeley
Community Theatre, Berkeley, California, 4 December 1965
6.4 A Hotel
Room, Denver, Colorado, 13 March 1966
6.6 The Band's
New Year's Concert 1971/1972
6.7 Rehearsals
before Rolling Thunder Revue II
1
A SHORT SUBJECTIVE RETROSPECTIVE
Another amazingly active year for Bob Dylan. The fifth year of The Never
Ending Tour saw him returning down under for the first time since 1986. The
addition of the multi-instrumentalist Bucky Baxter to the band proved to be a
very good move. Baxter's pedal steel guitar gave new life to otherwise rather
tired songs and prompted Dylan to reintroduce old gems like Idiot Wind to the
set. After two shows in Hawaii, and a series of shows on the US West Coast,
Dylan played his usual set of European summer rock festivals, starting near the
polar circle and ending up at The Mediterranean. During the break between the
summer tours in Europe and the US, Dylan recorded a number of traditional
songs, probably at his home in Malibu and presented them to his record company.
As a result the all acoustic album GOOD AS I BEEN TO YOU was released in late
October. The same month Sony/Columbia arranged the slightly overdue "30th
Anniversary Concert" in Madison Square Garden, broadcast live over
pay-per-view TV-stations in both US and Europe. This event happened in the
middle of the Fall tour, as usual going from north to south on the north
American East coast.
2
The Year at a glance
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[TOP]
3
CALENDAR
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Early January |
Rumours of an acoustic album comes from Sony
Music in France. |
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January 4 |
Rehearsals with the touring band starts in
Los Angeles. They reportedly included a pedal steel guitarist and some other
new musicians. |
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January 17 |
Rehearsals for Letterman's 10th Anniversary
show. Like A Rolling Stone and Dolly Dagger by Jimi Hendrix are
played. |
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The taping of Letterman's 10th Anniversary
show. Two versions of Like A Rolling Stone are run through. The second
is being used in the broadcast. Dylan's performance is the only live music
during the Anniversary show. |
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Late January |
Noel Redding is quoted as saying that he is
doing the new Dylan album in Howard Stern Show in New York. |
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February 6 |
Broadcast of Letterman's 10th Anniversary
show. |
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February 9 |
Robert Hilburn interview with Dylan in Erie
last year is published in The Los Angeles Times Magazine. |
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February 13-15 |
Dylan attends Neil Young's shows on The
Beacon Theatre in New York. They both one night turned up at the Bitter End
to catch David Bromberg's set there. |
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March 9 |
Final rehearsals for the Australian tour
starts at the Leeds Rehearsal Facility in Hollywood. |
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Stuart Coupe interviews Dylan in Los Angeles
via telephone from Sydney. Dylan is in good mood and this 15 minute chat is
one of the most enjoyable from the last years. In this interview Dylan
reveals that he will record in Chicago in June and that "half of the
songs are done". He also mentions that Random House will publish a book
of drawing done while touring, appropriately titled Road Drawings. The
Interview is later printed in a number of Australian papers. |
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The Australian tour starts in Perth. The set
list contains Dolly Dagger and an electric version of Little Maggie,
later to be included on Good As I Been To You. Sadly none of these
songs reappear in 1992. Also debuted was West L.A. Fadeaway from
Grateful Dead's In The Dark album and Cat's In The Well from Under
The Red Sky. The latter was to be a regular during most of 1992. This is
the last show with the "1991" format: 8 electric - 4 acoustic - 4
electric - 2 encores. |
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During the show in Dylan tries to get Bonnie
Raitt on stage before Highway 61 Revisited but for some unknown reason
she fails to appear. Bonnie Raitt and Marc Cohen shared the bill this evening
with Dylan. |
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Peter Wilmouth interviews Dylan backstage at the
Palais Theatre after there show there. The interviews is later printed in The
Age, April . |
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The show in Melbourne features the first Idiot
Wind since Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, 25 May 1976. |
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During the performance of Desolation Row
Dylan is overcome by emotion and has to stop singing. Dylan speaks briefly
with Jackson and the band goes on playing while Dylan goes to the back of the
stage for a while. He then comes back and finishes the song. |
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Dylan again tries Desolation Row but
the same thing happens. His voice breaks during the line "He was famous
long ago for playing the electric violin". Desolation Row is next
played in San Francisco 4 May, without interrupt. |
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Dylan is back on the West Coast for the first
time in three years. The band is now expanded with Charlie Quintana on drums. |
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At the show in Santa Rosa when Dylan has sung
the first two lines of Mr. Tambourine Man when woman from the audience
comes on stage and runs towards Dylan. He looks startled and jumps back. The
band continues to play and the woman "sings", repeating a few lines
several times. She tries to get Dylan to sing with her but he stays back.
Given the length of this “performance” it is obvious that security allowes
her to stay on stage. When they come to lead her off, Dylan takes her arm and
rais it above her head as in triumph! The same woman reappeares and runs to
the microphone when Dylan starts Blowin' In The Wind. She says a word
or two but security takes her off stage immediately this time. |
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May 3 |
Dylan attends the Jerry Garcia concert at the
Warfield but doesn't come on stage. |
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Jerry Garcia attends the Bob Dylan at the
Warfield and comes on stage for two songs, Cat's In The Well and Idiot
Wind. |
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T-Bone Burnett guests on three songs: Idiot
Wind, The Times They Are A-Changin' and Highway 61 Revisited
at the show in San José. |
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The tour ends in Las Vegas, first show ever
for Dylan in the game. |
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May 24 |
Bob celebrates his birthday in Las Vegas. |
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More than two weeks studio sessions in Chicago
appear to have been spent taping mostly covers with David Bromberg and his
band. Dylan records 26 songs, mainly folk and blues material. Some songs
rumoured to have been finished: Lady From Baltimore, Polly Vaughan,
Casey Jones, Duncan And Brady, Catskills Serenade, World Of
Fools (both by Bromberg), Rise Again and Nobody's Fault But
Mine. On the two last songs a 25-person gospel choir is added. |
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The European tour starts on a street corner in
a very northern harbour town in Sweden, Luleå. You probably can't get much
further from Bally's casino in Las Vegas where the last show was played! It
is now that the acoustic numbers start getting very long (Mr. Tambourine
Man is almost 10 minutes) thus extending the show length to about two
hours in many cases. |
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The show in Belfort is unusually short due to
the fact that the main event this evening is Bryan Adams! |
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The final show in Juan-les-Pins starts with Jimi
Hendrix's Hey Joe making it the 8th debut in 11 shows! The others: |
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live
debut of The Girl On The Green Briar Shore. |
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first
I And I during the Never-Ending Tour. |
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live
debuts of A Hazy Shade Of Winter and The Roving Blade. |
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live
debut of 2 X 2. |
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first
airing of I Dreamed I Saw St Augustine since Toad's Place in January
1990. |
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live
debut of Around And Around. |
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At the show in Ottawa Dylan finally gets
around to play the only single from Under The Red Sky, Unbelievable.
This leaves only Handy Dandy and 10,000 Men this far never
played live. |
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Dylan begins an outstanding five night residency
at the Orpheum Theater in Minneapolis an establishment he once owned with his
brother David. |
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"Columbia Records Celebrates The Music
Of Bob Dylan" This three and a half hour tribute show is broadcast live
by various TV and radio stations in US and Europe. A number of artists pays
their tribute by playing one or two Dylan songs backed by Booker T and the
MGs with G.E. Smith on extra guitar as "musical director". Two
notable exceptions: John Hammond Jr has rehearsed I'll Be You Baby Tonight,
but right before the show the evening's host, Kris Kristofferson insists on
doing it, so John Hammond Jr, not knowing any other Bob Dylan songs, sung See
That My Grave Is Kept Clean by Jesse Fuller. Sinead O'Connor gets booed
for her recent appearance at Saturday Night Live, where she for some reason
had tore up a picture of the Pope. Instead of just getting on with her act
she chooses to challenge the audience, ended up screaming an a-capella
version of Bob Marley's War and then leaving the stage in tears. Elvis
Costello was to have done Positively 4th Street and Van Morrison Just
Like A Woman but neither turn up. |
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The fall tour continues in Newark, Delaware
and ends on |
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in West Palm Beach where Dylan's voice is so
shot that he skips the two electric encores. Still it's a great concert and a
fitting end to fifth year of The Never-Ending Tour. |
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October 30 |
Release of Good As I Been To You. |
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[TOP]
4
RECORDINGS
Here’s a
list of recordings from 1992 other than concerts. For details please refer to
the corresponding session pages in Still On The Road.
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January |
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18 January |
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13 March |
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June |
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Summer |
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July-
August |
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14-15 October |
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16 October |
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19 October |
5
GOOD AS I BEEN TO YOU
This album was rushed out to profit on the interest in Dylan after the
Madison Square Garden
tribute concert. Many has over the years wished for an all acoustic album, but now
we got it's a bit of a disappointment. First and foremost because there are no new Dylan songs on it. Since the
previous album, Under
The Red Sky, was recorded mainly in January 1990, it's most likely that at the end of
1992 we have yet to hear a Dylan song from the 90's!
The songs:
Frankie & Albert (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Jim Jones (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Blackjack Davey (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Canadee-i-o (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Sittin' On Top Of The World (Bo Carter/Walter Jacobs)
Little Maggie (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Hard Times (Stephen Foster)
Step It Up And Go (Blind Boy Fuller)
Tomorrow Night (Sam Coslow/Will Grosz)
Arthur McBride (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
You're Gonna Quit Me (Mance Lipscomb)
Diamond Joe (Tex Logan)
Froggie Went A-Courtin' (trad. arr. by Bob Dylan)
Not only is this record acoustic, it's Dylan all by himself, guitar and
harmonica, although the
latter is used on two songs only, 5 and 9 (another source of disappointment).
All songs are traditional or "in the public domain", meaning that the copyright owner
failed to renew. Original authors are indicated above where known.
A special advance sampler in a plain cardboard box with sticker on it
containing Sittin' On
Top Of The World, Tomorrow Night, Canadee-I-O and Hard Times was released in
mid-October. (Columbia CSK 4857).
The promotion material distributed before the release to the music
business mentioned both a single and a video, but neither had appeared at the end
of 1992
[TOP]
6
NEW
TAPES
In addition to all audience tapes from the
shows, the following new tapes became available in 1992:
·
The
1992 Compilation tape
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Folksinger's
Choice, 11 March 1962
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Berkeley
Community Theatre, Berkeley, California, 4
December 1965
·
A
Hotel Room, Denver, Colorado, 13 March
1966
·
More
Basement Tapes
·
The
Band's New Years Concert
·
Rehearsals
before Rolling Thunder Revue II
·
Solid
Rock Live Album
·
Toronto
Concert Film
·
The
Plugz Rehearsals
6.1
The 1992 Compilation tape
This is a 50 minute collection of rarities
put together by a US collector:
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Sally Gal |
Freewheelin outtake, April 1962 |
* |
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Ramblin'
Down Thru The World |
New
York Town Hall, 12 April 1963 |
+ |
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You
Bin Hidin' Too Long |
New
York Town Hall, 12 April 1963 |
** |
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Suzy |
same
as Bootleg Series but slightly longer |
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You
Don't have To Do That |
Bringing
outtake from 13 January 1965 |
** |
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Jet
Pilot |
as
on BIOGRAPH but slightly longer |
* |
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Working
On A Guru |
from
May 1 1970 w/ George Harrison |
+ |
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Let
Me See |
last
track on "1980s Working tape" |
+ |
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Dark
Groove (instr) |
Infidels
outtake |
** |
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Don't
Fly Unless It's Safe (instr) |
Infidels
outtake |
** |
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Neighborhood
Bully |
different
mix w/ harmonica |
* |
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Silvio |
different
mix |
* |
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Dirty
World |
w/
Dylan vocals without overdub |
* |
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Ring
Them Bells |
rough
mix |
* |
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Disease
Of Conceit |
rough
mix |
* |
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What
Was It You Wanted |
rough
mix |
* |
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Shooting
Star |
rough
mix |
* |
**
new song, never before circulated
*
new version, never before circulated
+
same as circulated but in better quality
The
song You Bin Hidin' Too Long is together with the Cynthia Gooding radio
program the most surprising find of the year. A Bob Dylan song performed live
at this well-known concert, a song that no one had even been rumored before!
Some call this Talkin' Hypocrite, but this is most likely another Dylan song
performed in 1962.
6.2
Folksinger's Choice
Another surprise! A complete one hour
radio program in excellent quality! And why has no one ever heard of this one
before? Was it ever broadcast? This is a Cynthia Gooding radio show
taped/broadcast (?) 11 March 1962. It contains chats between Dylan and a
clearly charmed Cynthia Gooding and the following songs:
1. Lonesome Whistle Blues (Hank
Williams/Jimmy Davies)
2. Fixin' To Die (Bukka White)
3. Smokestack Lightning (?)
4. Hard Travelin' (Woody Guthrie)
5. Death Of Emmett Till
6. Standing On The Highway
7. Roll On, John (?)
8. Stealin', Stealin' (trad. arr. Memphis
Jug Band)
9. Long Time Man (trad arr. Alan Lomax)
10. Baby Please Don't Go (Big Joe Williams)
11. Hard Times In New York Town
3,
2, 7, 9 first versions of these songs with Dylan.
5
first known recording of this song.
11
last known recording of this song.
6.3
Berkeley Community Theatre, Berkeley, California, 4
December 1965
This tape really fills in a gap in the
recording history of Bob Dylan. Between the famous Forest Hills concert in
August 1965 and the show in White Plains in New York, 6 February 1966, Dylan
and The Hawks performed some 40 concerts and, up till now, not one single tape
has been in circulation. The tape consists of the electric set:
1.
Tombstone Blues
2.
I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like
We Never Have Met)
3.
Baby Let Me Follow You Down
4.
Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
5.
Long Distance Operator
6.
It Ain't Me, Babe
7.
Ballad Of A Thin Man
8. Positively 4th Street
9.
Like A Rolling Stone
Dylan is backed by Robbie Robertson
(guitar), Richard Manuel (piano), Garth
Hudson (organ), Rick Danko (bass) and Bobby Gregg (drums).
Long Distance Operator is the real treat here, the song later on
appeared on The Basement Tapes sung by Rick Danko. This early version has one
extra verse compared to the later version as printed in Lyrics. It Ain't Me,
Babe has a nice slow arrangement. This is the first known electric version.
Too bad, the first set didn't see the
light of day at the same time, since Dylan premiered Freeze Out, later
known as Visions Of Johanna!
6.4
A Hotel Room, Denver, Colorado, 13 March 1966
This tape was recorded by Robert Shelton
who also can be heard on the tape. It also contains an interview, which has not
yet circulated. This is in the wee small hours of the morning after a long jet
plane trip, most probably the one Shelton describes in his book (chapter 10).
It consists of Dylan playing acoustic guitar and singing/composing new songs.
On the tape there are at least three new songs plus Just Like A Woman and
Sad-Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands. 40 minutes. A must.
6.5
The Basement Tapes
Big Pink, Woodstock, West Saugerties, New
York, Late 1966-October 1967
The
long rumored new batch of tapes from the basement in Woodstock finally started
circulating in September 1992. Most of this material has also been
"released" on the bootlegs "The Genuine Basement Tapes Vol
3-5". The listing below consists of all the new tracks. It starts with 76,
since 75 tracks were known before.
76.
Wildwood Flower (A. P. Carter)
77.
See That My Grave Is Kept Clean (Blind Lemon Jefferson)
78.
Coming Round The Mountain (trad.)
79.
Instrumental Blues
80.
The Flight Of The Bumble Bee (?)
81.