DÜSSELDORF 2007

PHILIPSHALLE, DÜSSELDORF,

GERMANY

1. Cat's In The Well

2. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right

3. Watching The River Flow

4. It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)

5. Just Like A Woman

6. The Levee's Gonna Break

7. When The Deal Goes Down

8. High Water (For Charlie Patton)

9. I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)

10. Spirit On The Water

11. Desolation Row

12. Highway 61 Revisited

13. Nettie Moore

14. Summer Days

15. Like A Rolling Stone

16. Thunder On The Mountain

17. All Along The Watchtower

Düsseldorf revisited, back at the rail, for me the first show for this
tour. However I had listened already to numerous downloads, so I
did know what to expect, sort of. It was my 57th Bob date since
1981, and I am glad I came over from Cork, for it was a mighty fine
show. The first five songs I saw as the opening act, with Bob Dylan
on electric guitar, followed immediately by the main show, with Bob
Dylan behind his keyboard for twelve songs.

The vast majority of the audience (probably at every show on this
tour) must think that Dylan will pick up his guitar again at a later
stage in the show, and has abslolutely no idea that he will stay
behind his piano until the formation at the very end. For me it was
great to see him back on guitar for those first five songs, as I had
last seen him playing that instrument in Karlstad in 2003.

“Cat's In The Well” is a fine opener for this opening act, and the
fifth song of this “guitar-set”, the first “Just Like A Woman” of the
year, was a nice addition (it was quite different than the last time
I saw it less than ten months ago in Cork). I also liked the
rearranged “It's Alright, Ma”, which was very intense.

After Dylan had put down his guitar, the main set started, sort of,
with another opener, in my ears the perfect opener, a strong
version of “The Levee's Gonna Break”, one of my favorite songs
from “Modern Times” (which for me is the finest studio album in
the last quarter of a century). And “The Levee's Gonna Break”,
for me the finest “fast” Dylan song in as many years, was a real
treat.

It was followed by my favorite “Modern Times” song, the sublime
and awesome “When The Deal Goes Down”, a composition which
means a lot to me. Wonderful to see these two live in concert for
the first time (after those two gems Bob could have played ten
times “H61” for all I cared).

I enjoyed Denny’s guitar work on “When The Deal Goes Down”,
as well as on pretty much any other song where he delivered the
goods in Düsseldorf, especially on “Spirit On The Water” and
“Desolation Row”, but also on “Like A Rolling Stone”. After a nice
rocking “High Water” (song number eight already) I wondered if
Bob is going to play any harp at all, but I wondered not for long,
as the next three songs “I Don't Believe You”,“Spirit On The
Water”, and “Desolation Row” all had both a harp intro and a
harp ending.

“Spirit On The Water” I was hoping to see as well, as the live
versions this year are really very beautiful. My ninth “Desolation
Row” featured many verses, and was perfomed very well by Bob
and his band, which was quite animated throughout (Denny was
almost dancing during “Thunder On The Mountain”). The rocking
regulars of the setlist rocked the audience good, which remained
quiet during the slow numbers. I did not even hear any annoying
clapalongs during “Nettie Moore”, which I enjoyed live much more
than I did the recordings I had heard before (and even though I
was hoping for “Ain’t Talkin’”).

During this song the band layed out a wonderful sound carpet as
a background for a sublime vocal delivery of their band leader,
who remains in my ears the greatest living artist, and whose voice
still is the finest instrument in music history. Last night in
Düsseldorf I did not find fault with either Bob Dylan or his band.
So I am looking forward very much to see them again,
tomorrow in Frankfurt.



APRIL 19, 2007 PHILIPSHALLE, DÜSSELDORF, GERMANY 1. Cat's In The Well 2. Don't Think Twice, It's All Right 3. Watching The River Flow 4. It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) 5. Just Like A Woman 6. The Levee's Gonna Break 7. When The Deal Goes Down 8. High Water (For Charlie Patton) 9. I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met) 10. Spirit On The Water 11. Desolation Row 12. Highway 61 Revisited 13. Nettie Moore 14. Summer Days 15. Like A Rolling Stone 16. Thunder On The Mountain 17. All Along The Watchtower Düsseldorf revisited, back at the rail, for me the first show for this tour. However I had listened already to numerous downloads, so I did know what to expect, sort of. It was my 57th Bob date since 1981, and I am glad I came over from Cork, for it was a mighty fine show. The first five songs I saw as the opening act, with Bob Dylan on electric guitar, followed immediately by the main show, with Bob Dylan behind his keyboard for twelve songs. The vast majority of the audience (probably at every show on this tour) must think that Dylan will pick up his guitar again at a later stage in the show, and has abslolutely no idea that he will stay behind his piano until the formation at the very end. For me it was great to see him back on guitar for those first five songs, as I had last seen him playing that instrument in Karlstad in 2003. “Cat's In The Well” is a fine opener for this opening act, and the fifth song of this “guitar-set”, the first “Just Like A Woman” of the year, was a nice addition (it was quite different than the last time I saw it less than ten months ago in Cork). I also liked the rearranged “It's Alright, Ma”, which was very intense. After Dylan had put down his guitar, the main set started, sort of, with another opener, in my ears the perfect opener, a strong version of “The Levee's Gonna Break”, one of my favorite songs from “Modern Times” (which for me is the finest studio album in the last quarter of a century). And “The Levee's Gonna Break”, for me the finest “fast” Dylan song in as many years, was a real treat. It was followed by my favorite “Modern Times” song, the sublime and awesome “When The Deal Goes Down”, a composition which means a lot to me. Wonderful to see these two live in concert for the first time (after those two gems Bob could have played ten times “H61” for all I cared). I enjoyed Denny’s guitar work on “When The Deal Goes Down”, as well as on pretty much any other song where he delivered the goods in Düsseldorf, especially on “Spirit On The Water” and “Desolation Row”, but also on “Like A Rolling Stone”. After a nice rocking “High Water” (song number eight already) I wondered if Bob is going to play any harp at all, but I wondered not for long, as the next three songs “I Don't Believe You”,“Spirit On The Water”, and “Desolation Row” all had both a harp intro and a harp ending. “Spirit On The Water” I was hoping to see as well, as the live versions this year are really very beautiful. My ninth “Desolation Row” featured many verses, and was perfomed very well by Bob and his band, which was quite animated throughout (Denny was almost dancing during “Thunder On The Mountain”). The rocking regulars of the setlist rocked the audience good, which remained quiet during the slow numbers. I did not even hear any annoying clapalongs during “Nettie Moore”, which I enjoyed live much more than I did the recordings I had heard before (and even though I was hoping for “Ain’t Talkin’”). During this song the band layed out a wonderful sound carpet as a background for a sublime vocal delivery of their band leader, who remains in my ears the greatest living artist, and whose voice still is the finest instrument in music history. Last night in Düsseldorf I did not find fault with either Bob Dylan or his band. So I am looking forward very much to see them again, tomorrow in Frankfurt.
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