Oslo September 25th 2022.Back to Europe!I arrived in Oslo the day before
Day D. Just to be safe. But I flew Norwegian Airline and all was perfect.I
met my couchsurfing host, a Nun from a Buddhist/Hinduhiste group of
believers. Not my cup of tea but people are people and she is good
hearted.Marcello is another couchsurfer and a guitar player, Astrid a
temporary resident and a saxophone player. So we had a nice evening with
live music and chat.Next morning. September 25th.I contact an Oslo Bobcat,
friend of mine, and we meet by the tour buses "Beat the street". Four of
them ; 2 for the crew, one for the musicians and managers, one for Bob and
Suzie.The Dylan people are all the same!They look so familiar!In the
afternoon they load the buses with luggages and Bob's guitar and a pack of
chips :) . And his stage suits!But they already dropped Bob and the
musicians by the back stage door for the sound check.So....we go for a
bite.By 6pm fans arrive. About 5000 if I am right.I get a ticket from a
couple coming from the UK specifically for that show. They say it was
cheaper to see Bob Dylan in Oslo than in London :( . Their son didn't want
to come so they exchange the ticket for a painting. Cool!We have the no
phone policy : the YONDER POUCH.:)My seat is on the floor but we are
packed like sardines in a can :(I chat with the young couple next to me.
She is a musician. He is cool!Jason takes is position at the sound board
and the musicians take the stage maybe 5 minutes after 8.Bob is right away
on his guitar all the way back  behind the piano. My neighbors
have a hard time knowing who is who and doing what :(Until Bob takes the
piano for "Watching the river flow".The sound is great right away and
Bob's voice is crystal clear.No hat and a black suit.The songs are coming
one after another exactly as the last show; in Denver 2.Maybe "Watching
the river flow" with a better arrangement. "When I paint my
masterpiece" with no drums and only Bob Brit on rythme accoustic guitar
and Donnie on violin. Charley and Doug disappeared back stage.:) Tony on
bass.On "Black rider" Bob moves at the central mike but rapidly retrieves
to the piano."I'll be your Baby tonight" has a warm welcome from the
audience but Bob made a mistake on the lyrics.:("Serve somebody" is
missing the first verse. Deliberately?Bob moves center stage for a quick
salute.Three times Bob will say "thank you" and joke by presenting the
Band. A kind  remark for each one of his 5 musicians.What else?The
piano sounded different. Less agressif.My neighbor asked me if it was an
organ.I believe not. Just the piano tuned differently???Bob was fine. His
voice clear and loud.I couldn't see his face.The public extraordinary
quiet.A nice change with "that old black magic" instead of "melancholy
mood".My highlight of the night?"Jimmy Reed"....But all the songs were
well performed.The Band is tight. So if you had a doubt about the
shows in Europe.... don't worry....Get the setlist and be ready for
theRough and Rowdy ways!See you on the road!

So, finally was it time to see Bob again after a three year break for me.
The last time I saw Bob was in Hyde Park in Jyly 2019 and that was a
concert that I really liked. This time the tour started in Norway and itīs
always nice to come back to Oslo which is a beautiful city full of
interesting art and architecture. As in 2019 Bob played at the big
Spektrum arena. I had hoped to see him in a smaller arena this year but
the arenas seems to be big on this tour. The show started with Bob coming
in and trying to play some electric guitar on Watching The River Flow but
sits down at the piano after a long intro. He seemed irritated at the band
during the first song and waved to them 3-4 times during the song as they
didnīt play as he wanted. They sure stood on their toes during the rest of
the show. Iīve never seen Tony so concentrated. The arrangements were
almost the same as in the US this summer and little has changed on the
setlist but I really liked that he had replaced Melancholy Mood for the
much better Old Black Magic (but in the same time you can wonder why he
doesnīt play one of his own songs instead). Bob is sometimes in a hurry to
start singing while the band tries to catch him up and then he comes in
that typical backbeat phrasing again. But he sings good in 2022 and plays
the piano very well. Key West was lovely perfomed and I really enjoyed
When I Paint My Masterpiece with just Bob Britt and Donnie Herron beside
him on the stage. It is all carefully performed and a bit less intense
than it was about a year ago. One wonders though  how long he will be able
to tour like this. There is nothing wrong with his singing and piano
playing, but he almost canīt stand in fron of his audience any longer and
that is sad to see. The way he performed I Canīt Wait in 2019 seems to be
all gone. Next stop will be Stockholm and then Berlin and itīs good to
have Bob back in Europe again!