= Bob Dylan - Bob Links - Killarney, Ireland - Reviews - 11/24/25


Reviews
Killarney, Ireland
Gleneagle Arena
November 24, 2025

[Colin Lacey], [John in Killarney]

Review by Colin Lacey


Another very, very good performance, perhaps a single point behind the
previous night due to the absence of a Number 18 in the set. 

The crowd was enthusiastic before and throughout - a five-star review of
Sunday's show in one of the national newspapers had hopes high that this
was going to be something special again. And it was, with- highlight after
highlight. 

The double whammy openers I'll Be Your Baby and It Ain't Me Babe, were
followed by a very strong Masterpiece, while Black Rider was precise,
powerful and intense - and just miles ahead of the studio version. Even
the more casual fans knew something exceptional was happening here. 

My Own Version was again very strong, the band raging and nuanced as
needed. The dynamic ranges they handle, often within in a single song, are
hugely impressive. Rubicon, Desolation, Key West - hard to beat these
performances. 

And to finish, Every Grain came with a fierce harmonica solo, the second
or third of the night.

But what a moment at the last. After taking a standing ovation Bob and the
band left the stage as usual. 

But the Killarney crowd wouldn't let it go at that - perhaps hoping to
revisit the Lakes of Pontchartrain one last time - and the cheering kept
getting louder and louder. 

Remarkably, Bob and the band returned to the stage for a second time. 

And the appreciation increased in volume again as Bob Dylan stood there,
hand on heart, accepting and acknowledging his due after another great
show. 

There would be no encore. But this quite poignant moment was a good
substitute. 

- Colin Lacey

[TOP]

Review by John in Killarney


Bob Dylan has played in many of the world's big cities during his long and
varied career. He has played in a few smaller towns too. Nobody in or near
Killarney ever expected he'd  play in their local town. And so it came to
be! Not just for one night! Two nights! When the announcement came in July
of the upcoming tour, locals now had a rare and privileged opportunity to
see one of the great troubadours of music on their doorstep!  Many came in
expectation to the shows on Sunday and Monday night last but left so glad
at what they'd witnessed. Faces in the crowd were from many nearby places
- a short drive or walk away. Fossa. Loughquittane. Coolcaslagh. Fair
Hill. Kilcummin. Lissyclearig. Sliabh Luachra. Cahersiveen and Cloghane.
On the nights, musical highlights included 'My own version of You',
'Watching the River Flow,'  'Key West' and 'Desolation Row ' which seemed
to resonate more with the crowd on the second night. Bob Dylan himself has
many times acknowledged the influence of the rich tapestry of Irish music
and song in his music. He recounted in Martin Scoresese's film  'No
Direction Home' the wise words of Liam Clancy -'no fear, no envy, no
meaness!' Bob Dylan shows no fear in still touring after all the decades
and now almost in his mid eightees! No fear in playing a setlist for the
last four years, more than half of which includes his most recent work! No
meaness in visiting the smaller venues and towns like Killarney! But
maybe, just maybe, there was a slight hint of envy, yet respect on night
one, when to the delight of the audience  he sung a rare version of 'The
Lakes of Pontchartrain,' a nod locals would say perhaps to the very scenic
Lakes of Killarney!  Who Knows?!

John in Killarney

[TOP]

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