Reviews

New York, New York

Beacon Theatre

November 30, 2019


[Jesse Jones], [Barry Gloffke]

Review by Jesse Jones



I love the Beacon Theater.  I had last seen Dylan there in April, 2005.  I
realized as we waited for this show to start that I have been attending
Dylan concerts for over 45 years, starting with the 1974 tour with The
Band.  This is the first Dylan concert I have seen since 2016.  He is ten
years older than I am, and I noticed with a smile that he moves on the
stage less easily.  But I love that he keeps on keeping on.

Only two of the twenty or so Dylan concerts I have seen were in New York
City, but I know that the audience is a huge factor in the quality of the
show, and I have to believe NYC audiences are the best.  This audience was
receptive and responsive, and the music soared.

My favorites in this show were When I Paint My Masterpiece and 
Girl From the North Country.  Both gave Dylan opportunities to croon,
and I love hearing him croon.  I would like to hear better the lyric
changes on Masterpiece; I caught "when I paint you a masterpiece."  Make
You Feel My Love seems to have reached anthem status.  Not Dark Yet was
chilling.  Highway 61 Revisited should in my opinion be on every list of
the greatest rock songs of all time.  Ballad of a  Thin Man is a personal
favorite (if for no other reason than its use of my name), and I like this
version.  This version of It Takes A Lot to Laugh, It Takes A Train To
Cry, is amazing.

Jesse Jones

[TOP]

Review by Barry Gloffke



Wow! What a show. This, Bob's 6th of 10 Beacon Theatre shows, may have
been his finest. He was on top of his game and the Band was as tight as a
rush hour bus in NYC. Everything grooved and jelled and the crowd was
giving some good energy back to the stage.

Each song from THINGS HAVE CHANGED to IT TAKES A LOT TO LAUGH, IT TAKES A
TRAIN TO CRY was strong and heartfelt. Maybe a few missed/garbled words,
but nothing to detract from the main action. I could describe each song in
detail, but for me the essence of what a great show — and what a great
performer Bob is — was the trifecta of LENNY BRUCE (sad, but true... Bob's
piano and Donnie's violin sets the somber tone), EARLY ROMAN KINGS (Bob
incorporates a mini-rap style periodically during the song, and the Band
nails it down with killer blues), and GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY (the
combo of Donnie's violin and Tony's bass give an air of longing and
sadness). Astounding!! Each one was brilliant on its own, but taken
together... breathtaking. My buddy Brian was with me for his 3rd Dylan
show and he said that GFTNC floored him. I was floored by the transition
of the three songs from how rapt the audience was for LENNY and GFTNC and
how uproarious we were for ERK. Not too many artists can pull that one
off.

Not without merit and mention are the ending trifecta of the set closer
GOTTA SERVE SOMEBODY (Bob introduces the Band before the song. For me this
is a church revival song... as close to Bob's christian period as I will
ever get. Security guard Roberto taps me on the shoulder after this song
and tells me Bob pointed at me during the song, but I was too busy dancing
and juking... I always miss my moment.), and the encores of BALLAD OF A
THIN MAN (absolutely rocking tonight, with great leads by Bob {Dylan, not
Britt} and pulsing drive by the Band. Great rock 'n roll.) and IT TAKES A
LOT TO LAUGH, IT TAKES A TRAIN TO CRY (slow, drawn out blues/lyrics, with
Bob pounding the keys into submission). Whereas the earlier trio were
slow-fast-slow, these were all more up tempo and in your face. The
audience was up and dancing for GSS and stayed on its feet throughout the
wait for the encores and to the finish. Fantastic! 

Bravo!... once again Bob.

Glad to have my buddy Brian with me tonight and glad to see all of the
Bobcats tonight... too many to mention... but as always, nice to see Ed.
It was a good Saturday night gathering of Bobcats who came in from all
over... England, Canada, California just to name a few places. Great
spirit for a great show. See you all on Tuesday.

[TOP]

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