June 20, 2008
Review by Marina
Happy and fulfilled with last night show in Grenoble, I heads to Toulouse with
no particular expectations. The Zénith in a nicer place than Grenoble's Palais des
Sports, and this time the first rows are filled with fans, who stand up as the show
begins; there will be no problems with the security, the atmosphere will stay nicer
and the public more upbeat that last night. First off is "Cat's In The Well", not
one of my favourites, then a good and cheered "Lay Lady Lay". The first highlight
comes with a wonderful "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues", newly rearranged and
sung by Bob with some terrific phrasing. After "Rollin' And Tumblin'" comes
"Simple Twist Of Fate", that Bob nails with a soft, almost spoken voice. A
muscular "The Levee's Gonna Break" comes next, followed by a good "Spirit On
The Water". "Things Have Changed", one song I really like, proves to be another
incredible showstopper, Denny Freeman and Donnie Herron exchanging
wonderful solos; Donnie finds out some incredible patterns on his violin that Bob
clearly appreciates, and the public too: I still wonder what exactly a German (?)
guy behind me kept screaming after the song was over, bringing everyone
(including the band) to laughters. Now everyone on stage is really full on: the
band keeps playing every number so tight and Bob keeps smiling, sometimes
laughing, and acting very funny. "Desolation Row", "Honest With Me" (what a
version! for I song I usually don't care much about) a reworked "Sugar Baby "
and then a spectacular "It's Alright, Ma"; how can you even think to improve on
a song like this? I'm still wondering. Things calm down a bit with "Nettie Moore",
but quality doesn't: the stage is dark but for some big yellow lights, the feeling is
almost club-like, and the song sounds great. Denny places a few classy solos on
this one, when it's over I clap my hands towards him, and he is so kind to nods
back with thanks. "Highway 61 Revisited" is a long, happy jam, and "All Along
The Watchtower" better that last night. As for the encores we got "Thunder
On The Mountain", which I like a lot, and "Like A Rolling Stone". What a night!
Next to me was a taper and I spotted another of the usual suspects a few rows
back, so at least a couple of good recordings should surface soon. Check them
out and see for yourself.
Marina
Review by Gerry Mc Cool
As Bob is not touring Britain or Ireland this summer I thought it would be worth
a trip to the South of France to take in a Bob show. A warm night in Toulouse -
but after a seemingly complicated system of seating people - it must be a French
thing - when the lights went down the crowd charged down to the front of
the stage while Bob opening with Cats in the Well looked a little bemused. I
have heard Bob opening with this song a few times and it is a song I never liked
but the crowd liked it though and they always like Lay Lady Lay, the second
song although this song has always seemed a bit meaningless to me outside the
context of Midnight Cowboy. The show really got going for me with Tom
Thumbs Blues which also included a pantomime moment when Bob Seemed to
completely forget where he was in the song and he and Tony and the others
practically fell about laughing and took about five minutes while Stu and the boys
picked it up like one instrument at a time - a great song in any circumstances
anyway.
Best song for me of the night A Simple Twist of Fate - lovely arrangement, Bob
in very tender voice and from here to the end of the show looking as if he was
really enjoying himself. The more recent songs like Spirit, Nettie Moore, The
Levee, Rollin and Tumblin were all good as ever but gettin a bit predictable.Then
Things have Changed right in the middle - never heard this one live before -
always love that - a new one! followed by a greatly orchestrated Sugar Baby and
one of my favourite recent ones, Honest with Me. Then two of my alltime
favourites which I first heard as a fourteen year old in Belfast in 1966, Desolation
Row and Its Alright Ma. The careful, sympathetic, treatment, given especially to
Desolation Row made the hairs on my neck stand on end - not for the only time
on the night. The French crowd then cheered for Louis the King and the forty
red white and blue shoe strings. Then a quieter than of late All along the
Watchtower to finish the main show and I think Bob must have tweaked
something in his throat as his voice struggled a little in the encore, especially on
Thunder on the Mountain. Finished off with the greatest finishing song of all
time and it was even tighter than usual - Like a Rolling Stone - great show - great
night, Bob and all the band really enjoying themselves - now back in Belfast -
loved Toulouse but hope the boys roll up somewhere a little closer to home
next time on this Never Ending Tour.
Gerry Mc Cool
Review by Hugo Argenton
Tonight, Bob was in my city, Toulouse, France. Tonight, it was also my first Bob
Dyaln gig. And this is my review.
No warm-up.
1 - Cat's In The Well. Good song, I didn't know it till tonight. The sound is not
loud yet and it has some problem.
2 - Lay Lady Lay. Beautiful version of this song. I simply love it. The band is good
and the sound is getting better
3 - Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues. Shame on me ! I didn't recognize it. But I have
to tell you that it was hard. Very good version, sound is now perfect, and the
song rocks.
4 - Rollin' And Tumblin'. Long version of a great song. Very good slide on this.
When you hear it, you just don't want it to stop. One of the highlight.
5 - Simple Twist Of Fate. What is fantastic with Bob Dylan is that when you don't
know the lyrics, you could listen to a song without knowing it is that song. To
say it simply, I haven't notice it until Bob gets to the chorus. Great song though!
6 - The Levee's Gonna Break. Good song for his last album. But not a great song.
7 - Spirit On The Water. I like this song, but in live it seems it breaks up the
mood of the show. Well played but not very good live.
8 - Things Have Changed. Er... don't remember it, maybe because I didn't know
this song. If someone can tell me on which album it is ?
9 - Desolation Row. Great, great song... even if, one more time, I needed time
to recognize it. Long song (around 10 - 15 minutes).
10 - Honest With Me. Didn't know the song, but this is a great one. Played very
loud, this is some kind of hard rock rearranged by Bob Dylan, guitars on fire, and
fantastic bass. The band plays very well. One of the highlights.
11 - Sugar Baby. From Love And Theft. One more time, a ballad which breaks
the rhythm and the crown too. Too much jazzy ballads for me in this show.
12 - It's Alright Ma I'm Only Bleeding. The absolute highlight of the show ! If you
just know the acoustic version of the song, just forgot it. This is a huge rock
with hard guitars and guitars solos. Absolutely fantastic !
13 - Nettie Moore. One more jazzy ballad. Become boring.
14 - Highway 61 Revisited. One more highlight. Without any slide but with very
good guitars and great solo. Long version very different from the album version.
Since Honest With Me, the sound has been turned up during rock songs and the
bass is very high in the mix. Just one problem, the drums sounds to me more like
a hard rock drum than a Bob Dylan's.
15 - All Along The Watchtower. Fantastic and surprising version with good solo.
One more time, this is a absolute highlight.
16 - Thunder On The Mountain. The best song from Modern Times. After a long
break, Bob comes back on the stage for two encores. This is played pretty similar
to the album version. Good in live but it can't reached the "warhorses" played
before.
Band intros.
17 - Like A Rolling Stone. One more time pretty similar to habitual live versions.
Good version but it seems now like Bob is not very concerned in what he does.
Play on automatic mode.
The song ends, the lights turns down then up. The band is standing facing the
crowd which seems to wait for some bow. No bow. The band leaves, the show
is over.
Not a good crowd tonight but a numerous one (7000 - 8000). It seems like
there are more people come for an "cultural event" than people come for an
rock concert by Bob Dylan. A good show though, the band is playing great
and Bob is on form.
This was my first Bob Dylan show. I think I'll remember it !
Review by Jacques Pinol
I pity the poor immigrant, who wishes he could have stayed home.
I was yesterday in Toulouse, about 30 years after seein dylan on stage
for the first time. But I went to Toulouse in 1980, Marseille, Paris,
Cannes and so on and so on.
When i arrive to a dylan concert, i m always afraid. Will he be a little
drunk so the genius gets out of the bottle, or too much ? (the genius
stays in the bottle) as soon as three notes are played, i feel assured.
a clear, strong, audible voice. 50 microseconds after the beginning of
desolation row, i know what it means. a tear comes to my eye, but i have
to show no emotion (my daughter and her friends are watching me) and
besides, at 59 years i can t afford to cry. The only regret is not to
have harmonica on desolation row.
Well anyway this concert was too perfect, too clean, musicians were too
good, the sound is perfect. After the show, i stayed silent for two
hours, as usual, but i didn t feel that emptyness inside
maybe i m already old and dont know it?
excuse my poor english, i know only bob dylan sentences!!
Jacques Pinol
(Jacques' review in French)
J’étais hier à Toulouse, pratiquement 30 ans aprés avoir vu Dylan sur
scène pour la première fois à Paris le 7 juillet 1978. Mais j’étais
aussi au stade des minimes en 1980, 1993, etc etc
Ca fait toujours un peu peur d’arriver à un concert de dylan car on se
demande toujours s’il aura suffisamment bu pour que son génie se lâche
mais pas trop pour être dépassé par la boisson. Dés les premières notes,
me voila rassuré. une voix forte, claire et audible. 50 millisecondes
aprés le début de desolation row, je sais ce dont il s’agit. une larme
me monte à l’oeil que j’écrase rapidement parce qu’à 59 ans, ça fait un
peu midinette d’être ému par Bob Dylan. Un seul regret, mais de taille;
pas d’harmonica sur désolation row! Les délires de solo d’harmonica de
dylan me rendent fou c’est 2000 mélodies sur une seule, ou va t il
chercher ça?
Le seul reproche que je pourrais faire, c’est que ce show est trop
parfait, trop carré, trop policé. Les musiciens sont trop bons, le son
trop parfait. J’ai respecté les deux heures de silence traditionnelles
aprés le concert, mais j’ai moins ressenti ce vide à l’intèrieur de moi
(felt that emptiness inside) que les autres fois.
Je me demande si je ne suis pas déjà vieux.
Review by Paul Butler
I've seen Bob quite a few times since that first memorable time in Paris
in 1984 (crowd of 64,000 as I remember). I saw him last year in Paris (my
home town). This was however a special occasion. I was bringing my wife of
2 years to her first Dylan concert. So, of course, I wanted Dylan to be
greater (or greater) as usual, the band to be good, the sound to be
perfect etc etc.
Well, I needn't have worried. The whole thing was perfect. Dylan was
stunning. His total engagement with his music, his songs, these incredible
songs, is beyond moving. This 67-year old man could give teenagers a
lesson in giving life all you've got. He's a miracle. We are so lucky to
have him around.
The highlights were 'It's alright Ma", "Sugar Baby", "JLTTB", "Lay Lady
lay"(first time to hear it live for me I think), "Things have changed" and
a mind-blowing "Desolation Row". The 3 Highway 61 songs were so powerful
and immediate. I mean, I've been listening to these since I was 15 and I
don't expect to be surprised as much anymore. But they were like new!
If you're on this site, I don't need to tell you anything about how
gifted, special, important (yes, even today) or monumental Bob Dylan is,
do I? But still, this was truly greatness on display. The man's not only a
lyrical genius but an impressive showman as well.
Come back to France soon Bob. Je t'aime.
ps. My wife absolutely loved the show and said she couldn't take her eyes
off The Man for the whole time. Just think, here's me, jealous of
Dylan..... Peace & Love to all.
Paul Butler
Review by Jacques Graf
As a french guy living in Paris, this show in Toulouse was the best
opportunity to catch Bob at home this year ( i couldn't be in Grenoble the
previous day ). So I went down to the south of France, driving on (
believe it or not ) highway 61 to reach the place [where the willow don't
bend] - and so I wore my regular " Triumph Motorcycles " tee-shirt for
the event ! -
I arrived early and stood there, sitting on the grass, meeting people and
friends before the show. Seemed to me I was back in 78 at Pantin ...
You all know how it is ... as the lights come down you rush to the stage !
and I got my location, juste in front of the mic, first row. perfect view,
perfect sound. Regular show with a Bob in a good mood... there's really a
great complicity between him and Donnie ( you could see them trying chords
and patterns on " things have changed " ) George and Tony ( the final jam
on " H 61 " was quite a thing ! ). The more the tour unrolls, the more
Deny and Stu are off the band ... Poor inspiration, poor sound ... Isn't
it time to change ? i guess so !
We had a magnificious " Tom Thumb " with what i thought was new diction on
the final stanza, just great how this song is, was and will ever be ! "
Simple twist " and " Sugar baby " - Bob singing back and forth from the
mic, leaving some words in the haze of incense- touched me ! sure they
did !
" Desolation row ", " Don't think twice ", " Nettie Moore " ( some one
sayed " boring ? " ) ... what do you want me to ad ?
This music is totally alive, on the razor's edge, Dylan is not only a song
writer, he's a real musician, building night after night what is one of
the greatest and fascinating work you can listen to. The songs are sort of
patterns on which Dylan knits - if I may say so - his vocal and rhythmic
decorations ... this is pure magic, I tell you ! This particular night in
Toulouse (to lose, lost lost ! ) was a piece in the game, another good
one.
The only person on the scene missing was ... the oscar !
Review by Guillem Turon
A Bob Dylan show is always a Bob Dylan show, one of the greatest musical
experience one can have. And this was so. Although, I was a little
disappointed because it was not special at all. The best thing for me was
the setlist, that I've they'd show me before the show I would have get
very excited (Just like Tom Thumb's blues, Simple twist of fate, Things
have changed & Desolation Row were songs I was hoping to hear), but
the performance for me was only okay, far worse from last time I've seen
him, in 2006, and similar to my worst Dylan experience, in 2004.
Cat's in the well: as someone said, the sound wasn't still good. Good rock
starter for a show but nothing special.
Lay, lady, lay: a growling Bob begins to do strange things with his voice.
That annoys me.
Just like Tom Thumb's blues: great version, but as I read from Gerry the
thing didn't begin to work immediatelly. One of the best moments though.
Rollin' and tumblin': Rocking song that seemed to, with Just like Tom
Thumb's blues, start up the show.
Simple twist of fate: Beatifully played, but for me ruined by the (no-)singing.
The leevee's gonna break: I don't like this song, that seems a repetition of
Cat's in the well in the same show. So it wasn't very interesting for me.
Spirit in the water: I wanted to hear that but didn't like it at all. The
(no-)singing again made me nervous.
Things have changed: One of my favourites (by the way, Hugo: that's not
in any album, it's from the Wonder Boys sountrack and you can find it on
The best of Bob Dylan vol. 2), but didn't like it in the show. The singing
again and the version didn't seem to work well.
Desolation row: With Just like Tom Thumb's blues, one of the best
moments of the night. The singing now was okay and the version was
beautiful, as the song use to be.
Honest with me: Nothing new. Simply a rocking song for the show.
Sugar baby: Nice. I'm not particullary fond of this song in the album and
I liked it very much. And he began to sang a little better at last.
It's alright ma: This song rocks these years. One of the best moments again.
Nettie Moore: Similar to the album version. Simply well done.
Highway 61 revisited: My mother had begun to be afraid he wouldn't play
her favourite this time, but as always she went to see him, he seems to
know and respects her tastes. Good and rocking as always.
All along the watchtower: This version sounded really new to me, with
very different solos and, maybe, more similar to the John Wesley Harding
version.
Thunder on the mountain: More upbeat than the album version.
Nothing special to me.
Like a rolling stone: In that last part, the singing became a little better
and Like a rolling stone was well done.
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