April 27, 2012
Review by Steinar Daler
Just a short review from the two first shows.in Buenos Aires. I'm sorry I
can't write as poetic as the two guys reviewed the Brazilian show. First
the upper side: Bob's voice is good, almost no barking and no up singing.
Very professional concerts, both of them. Maybe the second one was a bit
better than the first one, but maybe that's only my choice according to
the setlist. The venue is great Good sound. No hassel at the entrance.
6 new songs the second day, from the first day. Blowin' in the wind has
now got back it's proper melody, and was a kind of highlights both days.
Bob looks young and seems to be in very good shape. All band members
are shining at different parts of the concerts. Then the lower side: The
audience are nice, but not too entustiatic before it's all over. But,
everyone seems happy after the concerts. Bob once sang something like:
"I always liked to take chances, when my right hand drawing back, my left
hand advances." He does not take any chances any more, and I miss it.
But, maybe for the Argentinian audience who has not had the possibility to
see him as many times as me, I guess it is the right choice, If he'll play
"Angelina" - a song where he mentions Argentina- tomorrow or Monday, I'll
forgive him. But when he are in Argentina he should act more like
Maradonna or Messi, than like Lampard or Gerrard.. (Sorry to the all of
you who are not into football). Lampard and Gerard are always solid, but
they don't shine like the two Argentinians I mentioned. I also miss some
real highlights - but there have been a couple, at least tonight. Check
out Desolation Row or Cry a while, when you'll find them on DIME in a
while. I will write some more after the next two concerts. Great to be in
Argentina, anyway.
Steinar Daler
Review by Eduardo and Lízia Bueno
There's no doubt about it: Bob Dylan is definetly in peace, fullfilied and amused
with himself in this new encarnarion of his. If he only was the kind of guy who
could look back, he would see that all the bridges he burnt seemed now to be
rebuild by the own bridges he now joyfully plays in his keyboards, swinging and
strong enough (though also sometimes still unsafe) to connect all the assorted
pieces of his creations in a whole set that, after half a century, still makes
complete sense.
If sometimes he indeed looks like a kind of westener Vincent Price (like someone
recently said), with razor-blade eyes that can almost melt the audience, he can
still also be the blue-eyed son, the romantic dreamer, rounded face, curly hair
choir boy from the early 60's that build a ladder to the stars, climbed every rung
and gave us a rainbow. He seems to be forever young. All this impressions were
silhouetted in the minds of several ones that were in the classic Grand Rex
Theather, where Bob played his second Buenos Aires show last night - even
better than the first one, in the opinion of most everyone who attend both.
Buenos Aires is a classic city, and even with the audience being a little too cold
in both nights, it's still the kind of place somehow related to Bob's ways: here,
the elegance is always facing and challeging the decadance... He would play two
more concerts here, so more surprises lay ahead, but few would be as touching
as "Girl From The North Country".
1) If the concert had some surprises, it still opened with "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box
Hat" sounding the same way, only with an extra touch of excitement. Or maybe
it was just a impression of mine, seated in the second row, less than ten meters
from the man himself, in theater with great acoustic...
2) In "Girl From The North Country", Bob was able to echo once again the
impassioned hobo strolling down the streets of New York, thinking of his lost
love from the distant, snowy, plains of his youth in the north country. Except
that, for me, it was like as if he was singing for a mysterious girl from Patagonia,
in the uttermost part of the world, in the deep south of Argentina. The band
followed the feeling and the passion pretty well and heated up the weather
and melted all the snow away...
3) Then, another surprise: "Beyond Here Lies Nothing" changed its place in the
-setlist. But it did changed it's mood: the good new song just rocked and rolled.
4) Bob dropped his guitar and took the harp for "Tangled Up In Blue", once
again presented in a moving and insightful way.
5) "Honest With Me" was plain enough, but also a little flat.
6) "Desolation Row": an all-time favourite that could not go wrong and went
pretty right. You can't lose yourself following Bob, even when he is playing the
part of Pied Piper. It was definetly a chemical romance between all the agents
and superhuman crew. This bearded, round guy was sit next to me and I could
not help but think of Alan Moore and his watchmen as Bob made us ascend to
the top of the watchtower and lean our heads out far enough from the
desolation rows of Buenos Aires, now covered with trash and dirt.
7) The blues and the tango are american cousins: both sing the pain of lost
love. So, it seemed perfect that Bob decided to choosethe world capital of
Tango to the debut of a new song in this current tour: a magnificent version
of "Cry A While". It was one of the most powerful performances of the last
seven concerts, in my opinion, strong enough to turn the wide, majestic River
Plate into the mighty Mississippi.
8) It was almost a Bob's cruelty to choose "Make You Feel My Love" right
after "Cry A While". His performance was deep and intense, revealing the
Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hide side of his personality. An incredible moment.
How cansomeone change his dramactical mood so fast from one song to the
next?
9) The pool of tears beneath our feet flood the resevoir and the leeve surely
broke. The overflow of sound and balance, commanded by Bob's keyboard,
inundated the whole theather. High water everywhere - and it was so good in
there. "The Leeve's Gonna Break" completed a serie of four perfect songs in
a row.
10) When you think you've gained everything, Bob proves that sometimes we
can always gain a little more... and "Love Sick" burst out like rolling thunder.
11) "Highway 61" followed and pushed us further up on the road. Where are
we going? I don't know, but he knows that we are
getting there.
12) "Simple Twist Of Fate" reminded us again that is still blood on those tracks.
The man in the long black coat wasn't born too late: he seems to be the
master of his own time.
13) "Thunder On The Mountain" sounded like a loosy boogie and Bob don't
seem to care no more for the older structure of the song as recorded as the
opening track of Modern Times. It became a completly diferent thing and
sound like the playground moment of the show every night. At least to him.
If now he smiles all the time, in Thunder he almost laughs...
14) No words need to be said about "Ballad Of A Thin Man". It leaves no
space for it in the middle of the awe it provokes every time
Bob and his band deliver it. He is the Wizard of Awe.
15) Being executed in such a perfect and classic way, "Ballad" seems to free
"Like A Rolling Stone" and the following classics from the weight of the past.
This is a Stoned Age song that now, or at least in this current tour, was
cutted loose from all the previous self importance and Bob can play it and
almost kid again with his keyboards, that became a kind of painting box for
of watercolours for him to repaint his masterpiece. "Like A Rolling Stone" is
allowed to be free and maybe even the poor doomed girl will finally found
her way back home. Every night it came out in a different way, the only
thing that didn't changed was the cheerful reaction of the audience to it.
16) Then Bob dived into a version of "All Along The Watchtower" that
surprisingly enough started with him, centerstage, blowing his harp. And to
compete the amusement he sang the second verse blowing the harp
between every line. The band sounded like... The Band. Actualy, It's not
just Bob that looks complete and fulfilled: his touring band (the best he
ever assembled?) also does. They're in peace with the boss: they knew
they got to serve somebody.
17) Once again, "Blowing In The Wind" was the encore and blew not just
the idiot wind of the past away, but also blew our minds away too. Time to
go back home and cry a while.
Eduardo and Lízia Bueno
Review by Alberto Callero
Second night...Federica, the famous italian girl who travels around the world to
see Dylan, was outside the theater asking for a free ticket.One thing I have to
say to Bob fans is that the "Ladies And Gentlemen, Columbia Recording Artist..."
speech is gone!.Concert starts with Charlie and his bluesy style checking
wonderful sound, so the 3.500 sold out Gran Rex were twistin' and shoutin'
with the first chords of "Leopard Skin Pill Box Hat", chosen to start the show
like the day before.Second song surprised the audience with a wonderful
rendition of "Girl from the north country".Bobby was starting to feel again fine
with his voice.I' ll say again that he's in very good shape, very much better than
last visit in 2008."Beyond here lies nothin' " is a regular part of the set list, and
was played as we know in "Black magic woman" style. "Tangled up in blue" :
emotion in motion!, followed with an unpredictable "Honest with me", with Bob
doin' solo guitars.In fact I thought it was an Alien solo style!.Is it good?...Is it
bad?...no, no...is from another dimension!.Twelve minutes of the magic -
"Desolation Row" and Dylan feelin' the song...it seems is one of his favourites.
Another of the highlights was a VERY strange "Cry a while".What was goin' on?...
.I thought it was a new song !!!.People respected everything that the great six
musicians were playin'..silence was a gift, because a magnificent hearted "Make
you feel my love" followed, with Bobby at the center of the stage telling he'll
make us feel his love!."Levee's gonna break" is a classical standard every night
and still rocks!.So then was the moment for "Love sick" and I think that he
maybe should not play the Korg Organ on this one, because is a beautiful melody
and perhaps needs to be played with him as a frontman, but it's my opinion...
The next three were another very big highlight..."Simple twist of fate" feelin'
the real Blood On this track; "Thunder on the mountain" with one of the best
interpretation in years, in fact I thought it was the best version since it was
played alive from the first time!.INCREDIBLE !!!...Then the end was near :
"Ballad of a thin man"...Where are you right now, Mr. Jones?.The harp solo is
like a comet exploding on Earth...the end of "Modern Times"."Like a rolling
stone" with no surprises -good as always-, "All along the watchtower" after the
classic introduction of the band, with big claphands specially for Tony Garnier and
Charlie Sexton and Lights were off expecting for the only encore: "Blowin' in the
wind".People went then near of stage to record that nice moment.No lights again
with the sold out theater with a great ovation shouting "One more!" but it was
the traditional moment "Dylan left the building".So today is the third, and I'll be
there again of course...I wish he could sign to me the big singles book of the
Deluxe Bootleg Series Vol. 8..."you may say I'm a dreamer" !!!.Bob in these days
is shouting to the audience "I put a spell on you" !!!.See you later !
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