Reviews

Austin, Texas
University of Texas at Austin
Frank Erwin Center
February 24, 2002


[Robert Edwards], [Steve Adams], [Michael Smith], [Eben Hensby]

Review by Robert Edwards



I took my 16-year-old son to his first concert tonight, the end of Bob’s
Winter Tour. The Erwin Center, not know for its acoustics was laid out
well. It’s a huge venue and was roughly 60 – 70% full. This is Austin and
we may be atypical, but I ‘d say about half the crowd looked under 40 and,
despite the Sunday night show, they came to party,

Billed to start at 7:30, Bob and band emerged out, true to his recent
timing at 7:50. I hadn’t seen him in 6 years and he has clearly aged. He
was definitely tired tonight. He was attired in a change of cowboy hat
color - black, and he was somewhat disheveled – to my eyes. He was wearing
a black jacket with faded white stripes. We were in the 8th row so we had
a great view of the band. Stage left facing the audience was George with a
fedora, next to him was Tony. In front of Tony to the left (Bob’s right)
was Charlie, Bob and to the far right Larry. Except for Bob, the entire
band was wearing rose-colored suits with red big collar open shirts.  They
cranked into Duncan and Brady and I was immediately struck with what an
improved sound system Bob has. The boots don’t do the bass in his voice
justice. Duncan and Brady was acceptable. The high lonesome harmony vocals
from Charlie and Larry began and remained beautiful all night. From there
it was Boots of Spanish Leather, but here is where Bob’s fatigue was
apparent. His usual phrasing was missing and he was going through the
motions. Still a solid version with a little well played lead form Bob.
There were no bad songs tonight, but the enthusiasm at the beginning was
clearly missing. It's a good drive from Bossier to Austin 6 - 8 hours and
it may, being the last show just, Bob was just tired. Tony played upright.
This was followed by It’ s all right Ma with Charlie on Dobro and Larry on
Bouzki (sp). Charlie simply rarely took his eyes off Bob and Bob’s cues to
him were brief but the two of them ran the band. I noticed immediately
that Bob for these first songs and the next hour was really glancing at
George, making sure he ended and almost even gesturing to keep the beat.
It’s all right Ma again was nothing special, going thought the motions.
Bob’s voice was husky and again noteworthy for the bass rather than gentle
treble he has been singing with as of late. Larry pulled out his mandolin
for a beautiful intro into Searching For A Soldier’s Grave and again the
effort was just ok, competent version but nothing special.

The house lights dimmed and the show moved forward both in volume and
enthusiasm with Maggie’s Farm. Charlie was like a loaded gun, just waiting
to fire off a few rounds but always demurring to Bob’s basic but accurate
leads. Charlie did get off a couple here; playing a beautiful red I
believe hollow body Gibson. I counted at least 8 different electric
guitars that Charlie played, and he probably had more. He kept looking to
the left of the stage where he must have had some sort of monitor or
display to check his sound. He did not miss a note the entire evening in
my opinion and he looks just like he did in Thelma and Louise, the kid
never ages. Next was a lackluster I’ll be your Baby Tonight, probably
least appealing number of the night, tho you could see Bob was gaining a
little strength. Bob did his usual harp intro, brief and well played.
Larry took the lead here and he is a consummate understated musician. He
also had at least 8 guitars and two different steel guitars.  The show
took on a theme here with Cry a While (double check me on this), but it
was the first song he played from L&T and he was like a different person,
did not miss a line, articulated clearly and began to jump and point the
guitar and tilt his head when singing. If there was any theme tonight it
was that with few exceptions, Bob seemed bored with the classics and
excited with the new stuff. Charlie and Bob began their lead sharing here
and Charlie nailed this one as did Bob. He played lead sparsely on this
song. I would prefer his guitar mixed down a little to accent Charlie’s
and Larry’s steel but that’s just my preference. Bob went back to the old
catalogue with Lay Lady Lay and his voice wasn’t up to it and it paled
especially after the new stuff. Perhaps sensing this, there were many
short-lived huddles in between songs, Bob went back to Love and Theft with
High Water. This was another gear shift up for Bob and band although I
wish Larry’s banjo would have been mixed up a little. Still, even tired,
Bob enjoyed this. Was enthusiastic and wanted the words out there. He and
Charlie shared more tasteful licks and the song was the best of the
evening at that point. I looked at my notes and wrote in caps that Bob
nailed this one. The next song was the exception regarding older stuff and
a real treat for me, as it has to be one of my favorites. Visions of
Johanna with an extended solid harp intro. Bob was into this one, with
great enunciation and a more hushed treble, gentle treatment. No missed
verses, all the words were there. Whenever Bob plays this song I think his
shows turn a corner and it certainly happened here, as his vocals were
just excellent. Staying acoustic the band broke into One too many
mornings, (a surprise) with Larry on pedal and Bob tastefully if not
energetically laying out the song. | The lights went down and then blue
lights flickered above and the crowd knew TUIB was coming. Bob walked to
the back of the stage before it started and if I didn’t know better I
would call his gait wobbly. The man was tired. Then center stage stood
Larry with his beautiful acoustic capped up and the crashing chords to
introduce the song. Now I think this has been played far too often and is
one of my least favorites nowadays but here was another one of those
implausibles, all the songs that I think are ‘tired’ were done well
tonight. Bob walked back to the mike and seemed interested again in this
old stand by. He changed words frequently but it didn’t matter as the
crowed went wild. The first extended jam came in the middle and at the
end, both times Bob and Charlie. Bob impassive but physically almost
shoulder to shoulder with Charlie and Charlie peeling of one subtle lick,
checking with Bob, and then another making the song last what must have
been over 10 minutes. Tony was like a pogo stick and Bob abandoned any
further direction giving to George the rest of the night as George’s
tentativeness gave way to what can only be called an explosion of
percussion. The guy has arms and definably has more of a Keith Moon
approach than Kemper. Anyway, the song worked damn well and the momentum
only got faster and hard with an exquisite version of Summer Days from L
and T. This is one helluva a rocker, even faster than on the record with
great chord progressions and the whole band was grinning ear to ear here.
This was one of the best songs of the night. Dylan looked liked he loved
spitting the words out in perfection and perfect cadence with a renewed
since of energy.  He even resurrected his duck walk, albeit tentative. 
But even here you could sense the fatigue. He simply did not play all the
fast break chords and let his guitar briefly hang with Charlie and Larry
worked their magic. The noise level seemed to rise with each electric
number now and the crowd was totally in Bob’ s hand. Quickly and just as
adeptly, the band launched into Sugar Babe and while Bob changed only
couple of words (ya got no sense, never did) the rest was textbook Love
and Theft. Not only Bob, but the rest of the band were clearly more tight
and involved with the Love and Theft selections. Not letting up, the
Drifter ’s Escape began and the dual leads blasted everyone. Bob’s vocals
were taunting but tempered with fatigue. He was pushing himself now and
another Bob/ Charlie extended Jam took place with Charlie simply turning
his guitar up here after what looked like a nod from Bob and the song tore
the place down. It built up into a guitar lead crescendo and Bob walked to
the back of the stage picked up his harp and blew his fatigued lungs out
for several minutes ending with the harp. Next was the dreaded (for me)
Rainy Day Women but as noted above, Bob dug down deep some how and, freely
changing lyrics, took his cue from the crowd’s enthusiasm and sang verse
after verse with all he had. But the hallmark of this song was another
crescendo moonlike domineering performance by George and an extended jam
with Bob, Charlie and Larry. I didn’t write it down but I believe Larry
was on steel. Whatever, another one of my dreaded oldies had been morphed
into a stomper blues tour de force and ended with band intros.

The first encore followed, then LARS, another concern from me but damn if
Bob didn’t enunciate every word and Charlie hit the classic lick way up on
the neck (that's our home town boy!) I looked at Larry and he was griming
from ear to ear. They clearly enjoyed this and Bob gave it his all even
though his voice was just unable to extend some of the notes he usually
does. Charlie played high lead and Bob choose the base strings on his
electric to play a tasteful singsong accompaniment. The song just has a
life of its own. This was followed by Honest with Me and, as with all the
L and T songs it seemed faster and stronger and Bob clearly had fun with
it. The vocals were so fast and the words so many I couldn’t tell you if
he got it all but it didn’t matter with that break next pace and searing
leads - the thing took off. Charlie and George at this point were playing
to each other for a while and you got the feeling not only was Charlie
driving things but also he and George were jelling. Another surprise
followed with a harp intro and then an absolutely beautiful Blowing in the
Wind. I would have thought that this would be a go thru the motions number
but Bob took this seriously again turning back to his tender whisper like
vocal style and the harmonies by Charlie and Larry started out strong and
got stronger until at the end the three of them sang the most beautiful
version I have head this band perform. The final encore produce All Along
the Watchtower and this song has undergone such a transformation. An eerie
two or three chord loud introduction in the dark and the house lights up
for three searing electric guitars. I believe Larry’s was cappoed but am
not sure. Bob was clearly fatigued here. At the 2nd encore he was again
tentative in his gait I thought. And he screamed the lyrics more than
inflecting them with the beauty he is capable of, but the screaming was
lilting and haunting. George triumphed here he was just a percussion
explosion that one could feel in ones bones, Tony was grinning and pumping
and the jams were transcending. It was very loud, very sharp and the
perfect culmination of the concert. It was 10:05 they played 2 hours and
15 minutes.

Bob toyed briefly with the crowd afterwards with the thumbs up sing and
chatted with someone who threw him a necklace gesturing as if was for
Larry and then putting it in his pocket. He nodded to the audience, and he
slowly walked into the shadows. I can’t think of a better gift from a
father to a son as I looked over at my boy and he was just amazed. As was
I. Play on Bob.

[TOP]

Review by Steve Adams



Simply put, Dylan was outstanding last night.  Excellent vocals, a 
wonderful set list (any one that includes Visions of Johanna is 
great), enthusiastic crowd and Bob enjoying himself combined to 
make this an unforgettable evening.  In contrast to the seeming 
indifference of rodeo goers in Houston on Wed. Feb 20 before the 
concert the In stark contrast to the Houston rodeo crowd, the 
phrase, “People can’t wait they’re gathered around.” aptly 
describes the pre-show atmosphere.  Standing in a long line 
waiting to get in the show (security was high) it wasn’t hard to 
strike up conversations about Dylan.  The guy in front of me joked 
that he hoped security didn’t find what was in his pockets.  When 
I mentioned that if they did he might miss the show he 
responded, “They’ll have to get the swat team first.”
> the opening chords of Duncan and Brady until AATW at 
the end, Dylan was flat out on.  Visions of Johanna, Sugar Baby 
and Blowing in the wind were mesmerizing.  They literally brought 
chills to me.  Bob’s phrasing, emphasis on certain words, 
instrumental interludes and general mood setting are amazing.  
During these type of songs the crowd was respectfully quiet during 
the song while giving the ovation Bob deserved afterwards.  
 Tangled Up in Blue worked the crowd into a frenzy that 
never died down the rest of the night.  I didn’t particularly like 
the arrangement and the vocals were hard to understand but I did 
enjoy the affect it had on the crowd.  Honest With Me during the 
encore was my favorite of his up tempo songs.  It’s perfect for a 
live performance.  Summer Days was fun.  In Houston the band 
sounded out of tune on Summer Days but in Austin they were right 
on.  Really fun to look down on the floor and up in the stands and 
see everyone dancing.   Wish I knew the lyrics to Searching For a 
Soldiers grave, it’s really nice.  Boots of Spanish Leather was a 
treat.  The harmonica intro was spell binding.  At the end it 
sounded like, “boots of…..Spanish..LLLLLeather”.  Nice touch.
 Young (Univ. of Texas students) and old alike definitely 
enjoyed the show. The noise level and long lines for merchandise 
afterwards attests to this. Bob in turn, was taking in the 
adoration of the crowd. He was joking aroundwith someone on the 
front row who trew a silver charm on the stage seemingly 
saying, “Is this really for me?”  He stood nodding and accepting 
applause for an unusually long time and he even dropped to one 
knee before exiting the stage one last time.
 An unforgettable eveing.  Thanks Bob

[TOP]

Review by Michael Smith



What an excellent show this was. But you probably knew that by looking at
the setlist. This was a special show for me as it was the first time my
girlfriend and I would be seeing Bob together. We had each flown into
Austin from separate parts of the country the day before the concert and
proceeded to spend an action packed 24 hours trekking around this colorful
Texas city. We got to meet some fine folks from the as-seen-on-CNN! Dylan
Pool at a burger and beer joint a couple hours before the show and then
headed over to the cavernous Erwin Center to wait for the light to shine.
I only had the time and money to see one show on this tour and had chosen
Austin after careful consideration; it was, after all, Charlie's hometown,
the breeding ground of the "outlaw country" movement of the '70's and I
feel that many of Dylan's best contemporaries hail from around those
parts. At best I was hoping for a surprise guest jam with Willie Nelson or
Ray Benson or perhaps a tribute to Waylon Jennings or Doug Sahm. At worst
I feared that Dylan's voice might be cashed as it would be his fourth show
in four nights as well as the last show of a lengthy tour. My fear was
quickly laid to rest during the opening number, Duncan and Brady, which
saw Bob's voice in fine and powerfully expressive form. Bob looked very
stylish in a black suit with white embroidery, a white ribbon tie and a
black cowboy hat. The band were wearing matching maroon suits. An
exquisite Boots of Spanish Leather was next, which absolutely thrilled my
companion as it was the song she most wanted to hear. During the intro, I
told her it was Girl of the North Country because I couldn't ever remember
Boots being played so early in the set - but I was glad to be proven
wrong. The song opened with a terrific harp solo in which Bob actually
played the melody of the song as opposed to the familiar pattern of
blowing the same few notes that we've come to expect in recent years.
(This would be the case for all of the harp solos of the night with the
exception of The Wicked Messenger.) Dylan sang Boots in a smoky, low voice
that was appropriate for the song and when he reached the final line he
sang "llllllleather", holding onto the "l" and drawing a big response from
the crowd. It's Alright Ma was next and was the first song in which I
could really tell there was a new drummer behind the kit. To my surprise,
George played this song with the brushes, which turned it into a funky
shuffle, with every few beats punctuated by a stomping of the bass drum.
Bob sang the line, "For them that think death's honesty" twice in the last
verse but I consider that only a minor slip up given all the words he had
to chew up and spit out. Searching for a Soldier's Grave was next, a nice
showcase for the harmony singing of Charlie Sexton and Larry Campbell, as
always. A dramatic new arrangement of Maggie's Farm opened the electric
set; so dramatic, in fact, that I didn't recognize it until bob sang the
first line. It sounds a little quieter and funkier than previous
incarnations with a great new guitar riff crashing in at the conclusion of
each sung line. This was a pleasant surprise for me, as it's never been a
favorite song to hear live. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight followed, with Bob's
voice perfectly matching Larry's steel guitar playing in its sweetness and
charm. Bob opened the third verse by singing "Close your - SHOES OFF" with
all of the zest that he sings "Mama, wipe my guns into the ground" on the
Unplugged version of Knockin' on Heaven's Door. Lonesome Day Blues was the
first L&T song of the night and it almost tore the roof off the joint. All
the versions I've heard of this have been great and this was no exception.
Dylan was employing a whole repertoire of grunts and hollers to maximum
effect, including a few "aaaaaahhhhh"s and one big "Looooooord". Lay Lady
Lay was a big surprise in the next slot as it meant this electric set
would be 5 songs, an uncharacteristic length. Absolutely beautiful
version, much better than the one I heard on the Tampa boot. He sang this
very well and it sounded as if it would have been right at home on L&T. I
thought this during several other songs as well - it seems to me as if the
sound of these shows corresponds to the new album in a way I've never
heard in 13 years of attending Bob Dylan concerts. Make no mistake about
it, this isn't just a "Love and Theft tour", this is a Love and Theft
world of sound. High Water closed out the electric set and saw the band
locking into a rollicking groove that they rode out for the entire song.
The success of this confection had as much to do with Charlie's slide
guitar playing as it did with Larry's banjo picking. The opening chords of
Visions of Johanna seemed to deservedly thrill a large portion of the
crowd. Or maybe they were responding to the neat lighting, which bathed
every on onstage and in the crowd in bright red. Bob nailed all the words
and the tone of his voice seemed both wistful and sad. One Too Many
Mornings was next and was almost too good to be true. One of the best
vocals of the night, letter perfect singing and the THIRD beautiful
acoustic gem of after Boots and Visions. What did we do to deserve this?
Tangled finished out the second acoustic segment but seemed disappointing
after everything that had come before. From a theatrical standpoint, the
opening was very effective, with Larry playing alone in the spotlight and
then a second spotlight is added as Dylan strolls up to join him. But the
singing seemed a little lazy and careless, especially when he opened the
third verse with "She was working in a topless . . . working as a cook for
a spell. Leave it to Bob to sing the wrong line by almost interjecting a
verse he hasn't sung in years. As with many a live song though, this had
magic moments and Bob seemed to really come alive at the end and was
strumming his guitar very hard during the last instrumental jam. It was a
perfect segue then to the hard swinging jump blues of Summer Days, as some
of the crowd finally started to stand. This song seems to have gotten
better with time and Bob sang the lyric with passion and purpose. Once
again, the drumming was noticeably different. In spite of the fact that
George has a bongo, a cowbell, a tambourine and chimes (all of which he
uses), his drumming is more straightforward than Kemper's and is missing a
lot of the fills that Dave played. It's more of a muscular, hard driving,
no nonsense approach - I guess Bob felt this was the sound his band
needed. Sugar Baby followed and featured the same loud drumming that
annoyed me when I first heard boots from this tour but I was totally won
over when I saw it live. Maybe it just took me a while to warm up to
George's style but this was as great as any version of Sugar Baby I've
seen or heard. Of course, Bob's voice was the real star of the song but I
also thoroughly enjoyed his guitar playing in which he would strum one
chord every few seconds in perfect time with the drums. As with all of the
rocking songs, Wicked Messenger is now rocking harder than ever. But the
obligatory harp solo at the end was drowned in the mix and seemed a little
disappointing in comparison to the beauty and clarity of the harp solos on
the acoustic songs earlier. Rainy Day Women closed out the main set and of
course featured some impromptu lines, including the hilarious, "They'll
stone you when you're trying to beat the heat". I hope someday that
someone compiles a list of every line Dylan has ever sung in this song. It
will be a very long list. When he introduced the band mid-song, the
applause for Charlie was twice as loud as for anyone else. The short
encore set was excellent, kicking off with Like a Rolling Stone (in which
the tempo has thankfully picked up from last fall) and a hard driving
Honest With Me that matched all of the energy of Summer Days earlier. A
standout Blowin' in the Wind was next, with a great harp intro and vocals.
At the conclusion of this song, Dylan gave the audience both a thumbs up
and a thumbs down, a somewhat confusing gesture that I took to be a
question posed to the audience regarding the quality of the performance
(ensuring our encouragement). Someone then threw a bolo tie on the stage;
Bob picked it up, pointed at it, then pointed to himself as if asking if
the tie was meant for him. After clowning around some more, he put it in
his pocket and the band left the stage. They returned momentarily and tore
into the pounding new arrangement of All Along the Watchtower that was
first debuted last summer. This was finally Charlie's chance to shine as
he played a white-hot solo that utilized several different sound effects
(distortion, organ, etc.) - the solo increasing in intensity until every
person in the arena must have been worked into a frenzy. Afterwards, Bob
did a quick but deep bow to the crowd and exited stage left, leaving
thousands of people clapping in vain for a couple minutes while he and the
band no doubt made their clean getaway. After the show, I heard that Ray
Benson and Will Sexton were watching the show from the wings but, for
whatever reason, weren't asked to jam. But a setlist and a performance of
this caliber leave no room for complaints from me. Bob and the band were
clearly enjoying themselves and the fact that they played 20 songs is
impressive considering there were only four encores and that he played
only 19 songs for the previous couple shows. As we walked out into the
warm Austin night, my girlfriend and I reflected on the whole experience
and how lucky we were to have seen it. And we started immediately making
plans for the summer. See you there.

Michael

[TOP]

Review by Eben Hensby



The drive from Bossier City to Austin was approximately 6 hours.  We then
pulled into the Roadway Inn again, and checked back into the same room we 
had been in on our day off on the 21st.

After some relaxing, we headed out to find Charlie's house (someone had
given us directions).  Kait got some photos and we then headed to the arena 
early because Kait had connections that might get her upgraded tickets.  
As she went to do her stuff, Martin and I decided to check out the arena. 
Pressing our ears up to the doors, we could hear some music but couldn't
make out what it was.  We decided to try some doors to see if any were
unlocked.  At one of the doors, there were two or so beer pickup trucks
and the doors there were unlocked.  When we entered, we saw a group of
five or so employees right beside the door.  They asked us what we were
doing and Martin said we were looking for the box office.  They pointed us
down the hall!  We started towards the elevator, but five to ten feet from
it we ran into two other employees who told us that the box office was
outside.  We then had to leave.  Rats.  Well, we came close...

After we all assembled back at the car, we drove over to Players for a
pre-show gathering.  Kait hadn't obtained any upgrades yet, but was to 
return to the arena early again.  Anyway, we arrived at Players (which 
was very close to the arena) and met up with a bunch of Dylan fans.  
Unfortunately, I didn't get or remember everyone's names, but we met 
Michael G. Smith, Ronny, Jon Lasser and his wife, and several other 
people.  We had some food then headed over to the arena for the second 
time.

After a while, Kait returned to us and she had upgraded her ticket to 3rd
row and Lewis's to 5th row.  She had tried to upgrade Martin's tickets and 
mine but couldn't.  We then got ready to go in for the show.

Martin and I had purchased our tickets from Jon, who had upgraded from 1st
row balcony to 30th or so row floor.  Then Jon won a radio contest and 
obtained 1st row floor seats!  Anyway, Martin and I were going in with the 
idea in mind that we'd be 1st row balcony, looking down at Charlie.  We were 
very pleasantly surprised when we found that our seats really weren't on a
balcony: they were pretty much on the floor!  If I stood up on the ground
beneath my seat and then stepped down two to three feet, I'd be standing
on the floor!  I'd guess we were 10-15 rows back, with a great view.  Both
Martin and I were pleased with our seats.

I struck up a conversation with the fellow next to me, who's name was  
Bernard.  We exchanged email addresses.  Shortly after, Bob came out on 
stage and I noticed he was wearing a new hat tonight: he had worn white 
cowboy hats to the three other shows I'd seen but tonight he had on a black 
cowboy hat.

We had all discussed possibilities for this show, just for fun.  We had
discovered that Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, Asleep At The Wheel, Augie 
Meyers, and many others would be possible guests based on where these people 
lived or were touring.  Bob didn't invite anyone on stage this show, but 
I'm positive I saw Ray Benson (singer and guitarist for Asleep At The Wheel) 
on one side of the stage.  I'm also positive I saw Will Sexton (Charlie's 
brother) on the other side.

Duncan And Brady: Anyway, Bob and the band went into Duncan And
Brady again.  I've said it once and I'll say it again: this is a great
opener.

Boots Of Spanish Leather: Next, Bob pulled out the harmonica for an
intro verse into Boots Of Spanish Leather.  I couldn't believe I was
hearing this for the second time in 2 days!  Bob still seemed to be
warming up, but he absolutely nailed the last line: "Spanish boots of...
spanish lllllllllllllleather"...the stretched L was great!

It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding): Larry had out the cittern and
we went into It's Alright, Ma.  The phrasing was very good and I'd say
that this was probably the best version from the four shows I saw on this
tour.

Searching For A Soldier's Grave: For Searching For A Soldier's
Grave, Bob again opened with an awesome harmonica solo.  I think it was
during this song that I looked over to where Lewis was.  The first few
rows were up and dancing for the whole show, I think.  Lewis was the only
one standing where he was.  I smiled.  Later in the show, I saw he was up
by Kait dancing and found out after the show that the folks around him
were angry he was up and dancing, so he went up to the front.

Maggie's Farm: I turned to Bernard and Martin and told them I'd be
up and dancing for the electric songs no matter what.  The newly arranged
Maggie's Farm started and I jumped down to the floor to dance. 
Unfortunately, the rest of the crowd didn't respond in the same way as I
did to the music.  I felt a little silly at first, being the only one
dancing in our section, but I figured I was here to enjoy myself, so I
kept dancing.  By the end of this song, I was still dancing for other
songs and was no longer feeling silly.

I'll Be Your Baby Tonight: Larry got on the pedal steel and started
I'll Be Your Baby Tonight.  This is a song I've always thought is a nice
song but have never seen anything to special in it before.  However,
tonight, it was one of the highlights!  Wow.  For the first instrumental
break, Bob played the note by swinging his arm down then to the side, and
he just walked around not playing solos.  I don't remember him doing that
at any of the other shows.  He just let Larry play!  And I love the pedal
steel, so it was great to hear Larry coming through.  After one verse, Bob
started with his solos.  Then, later in the song, maybe at the next
instrumental break, Bob stopped again and let Charlie do a great solo. 
Bob's phrasing was also excellent!  At one point, he sung: "I'll be - I
said I'll be, - I'll be your baby tonight!"  Then, during the final
instrumental break, all three guitars were going at it, and it was just
wonderful!

Lonesome Day Blues: A driving blues started up and I thought it was
again Cry A While (as he had played Cry A While at the last three shows). 
Then I recognized a riff and knew it was Lonesome Day Blues!  I prefer
Lonesome Day Blues to Cry A While, so this was great.  It's also a great
song for phrasing, as Bob was stretching out words and lines like he's
known for doing.

Lay, Lady, Lay: Larry got back on the pedal steel (excellent) and
they played a nice Lay, Lady, Lay.

High Water (For Charley Patton): Next, Larry got out the banjo, and
we were pleased to see we were getting an extended electric set of five
songs (instead of four).  Again, it was High Water.  From some recordings
I have of the October-November tour of 2001, the banjo only comes through
at the start and the end.  At this show and the others of this tour, the
banjo could be heard well throughout.

Visions Of Johanna: They switched to acoustic songs and Bob started
a harmonica solo.  Martin and I couldn't believe it: we were getting
another Visions Of Johanna!  I think I was still standing during this one,
just completely in a trance or something.  I remember it being good but
not quite as good as the Dallas version.

One Too Many Mornings: With another intro harp and with Larry back
on the pedal steel (what a great combo!), Bob started singing One Too Many
Mornings.  When I hear the current arrangement of this one, I feel like
it's very close to being perfect but not quite there.  I'm not sure what
it's missing though.

Tangled Up In Blue: Next was Tangled Up In Blue.  Setlist watchers
complain about seeing this song all the time.  Well, I think setlist
watchers need to see more shows.  This song rocks in concert!  Finally, I
wasn't alone at standing and dancing, as this song is just so great at
getting the audience involved.  When the opening chords started, the
spotlight was only on Larry.  Then, as Bob sung the first verse, he and
Larry were lit up.  Then, for the next part where the music sort of
explodes, the lights got the whole band.  Again during this song Bob did
his 'no-solo break' and let the others play away.

Summer Days: What better song to follow Tangled than Summer Days? 
Well, the audience in Austin wasn't up for lots of dancing, and many sat
down for Summer Days.  Not me, of course.  One couple started a
swing/jive/whatever dance in an aisle, but were told by security to sit
down.

Sugar Baby: Sugar Baby followed Summer Days, and I finally sat down
for a rest.  If Sugar Baby was given the same treatment as it was in
October 2001 when I saw it, I'd probably have stood there in a trance, but
I just don't think it's as good as it once was.

The Wicked Messenger: Another great rocker, The Wicked Messenger
erupted next.  At the end, there were some great instrumental verses in
which Bob would give us a bunch of solos, then he gave us a wonderful harp
at the end (which got lots of cheers).  He was waving his hand around as
he played.  As Bernard, Martin and I were dancing (I can't remember when
they finally decided to start dancing too!), security told us to sit down.
 I couldn't believe it.  Sit down?  During The Wicked Messenger?  Well, I
sat down and moved around a lot, but my sitting didn't last long...

Rainy Day Women #12 & 35: The next song was Rainy Day Women and we
were back on our feet.  Security left us alone this time.  I don't know if
it was just me, but I felt like this song was longer than usual with great
instrumental jams.  During the band intros, Charlie received loud
cheering: I think Texas likes Charlie.  Anyway, after the song, they did
the Formation and left.  Many lighters were held up, and it's always quite
a sight to see.

Encore 1:

Like A Rolling Stone: At the start of Like A Rolling Stone, the
security guard next to us opened the rope to the front of the floor and
told us we could go.  For some reason, I hesitated slightly and ended up
too much on Charlie's side with my view blocked by the amps.  We were up
in the front row, stuffed between those who were supposed to be in the
front row and their seats.  I folded up the chair near me to give us a bit
more room.

Honest With Me: Honest With Me followed.  I'm not sure if it was
during this song or the next, but the guy in front of me was taking
multiple photos of Bob and the band on stage using a digital camera.  I
kept thinking: put it away or someone else will for you!  Finally, one of
Bob's security people came down (Baron?) and told him to leave with it. 
He did and he and his wife didn't return, so I got a bit closer.

Blowin' In The Wind: Bob pulled out the harmonica again (I'm not
sure whether he gets them from his pockets or just puts them there when
he's done the intro harp) and played the intro to Blowin' In The Wind.  I
didn't think it was a very good solo, but oh well.  After this song, they
stood in Formation and something very odd and funny happened.  Someone
threw a bolo tie up on stage near Bob's feet.  He looked at it and then
bent down to pick it up.  He stood there with it in hand, facing the
person who had thrown it.  He then started talking, with a grin on his
face, to the guy, asking: "Is it for me?  For me?  For him?  For Larry
Campbell?" and I was just laughing nonstop.  This went on for a minute or
so, then he finally nodded and put it into his pocket.  They then left the
stage!

encore 2:

All Along The Watchtower: They returned for All Along The
Watchtower and, again, it absolutely rocked.  The instrumental jams on
this song are so great, and I was looking forward to hearing it again.  At
the end, I'd like to think Bob reacted to something I did, but doesn't
everybody?  Heh.  I was giving two thumbs up to try to preempt his thumbs
down (I had been doing this during every Formation since Houston, I think)
and he looked over, then did this pose-like thing where he bent his knees
and...ah, heck, I can't describe it!  Anyway, it probably had nothing to
do with me.  Also, at the end of (I think) this Formation, Bob gave the
thumbs down anyway!  Then he left, and the eye logo curtains swung shut.

I rushed after the show up to the merchandise table and bought two posters 
(one for me and one for Kait).  I then found my way back to the car, where 
the others were.  Lewis had Larry's stage cup of water and Kait had Bob's 
stage cups of water and Gatorade!

We then drove to Jon's for the post-show party.  It was a good turnout of
maybe 10-15 people (many were also at the pre-show gathering).  Jon had an 
acoustic guitar and a harp holder, and I had brought my harps, so I played 
a bunch of songs.  Michael Smith also played some songs.  Unfortunately, 
despite that I could've kept going all night, others were getting tired, so 
we left and went back to the hotel.

Tomorrow, I start my journey home...

[TOP]

page by Bill Pagel
billp61@execpc.com

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