Bob served up another solid performance in Charlotte. For the most part, we all 
know the setlist, so the highlight was Bob acknowledging St. Patrick’s day and 
performing The Roving Blade in accordance.  We were also treated to the recent 
addition of Big River and the occasional Gotta Serve Somebody. Personally, I 
thought the show started slow and was a little off until the end of Multitudes 
and beginning of False Prophet. Dylan seemed to hit his stride at this point in 
the show. Masterpiece’s arrangement and Dylan’s phrasing kept me on my toes 
following along the lyrics and storyline. My friend commented that a hard-core 
Deadhead would have a hard time even recognizing the tune. Black Rider was 
delivered with vocal power and force and set the tone for Dylan’s voice to be 
the primary instrument in the band for the remainder of the night. There are 
times I miss the days of Larry Campbell and Charlie Sexton (a band that really 
“jamed”), but tonight when Bob was waving his hand telling the band to back-off 
and thus creating a near “solo” performance of several tunes, I melted into a 
puddle of ecstasy. I have seen roughly 30 shows over the past 35 years – and it 
just doesn’t get any better than this. Dylan’s harp intro on I’ve Made Up My 
Mind was greatly appreciated and heartfelt. Goodbye Jimmy Reed was not one of 
my favorite tunes of the night but it picked up the pace a bit and made the 
band intros more energetic. Props to Tony Garnier! So many years on the road 
with Bob and conducting the band to Dylan’s wishes – mad respect! Thank you. 
It’s always hard for me to hear Every Grain Of Sand. I love the tune dearly, 
but I always compare it to the classic ‘dog barking’ version with Bob in his 
living room on the piano… and well… that’s a tough comparison. Tonight’s 
version was absolutely beautiful and worthy of the encore. The harp playing 
at the end was soothing and seemed effortless. Seeing Bob in such a small 
place as the Belk Theater (with incredible seats and a fairly older crowd) 
was a truly wonderful experience. The Asheville show on Thursday will be a 
dramatic change in venue and possibly have a few pot-smoking hippies on the 
side. I hope folks know what to expect - no hit songs – just Bob delivering 
some of the strongest and most powerful performances of his career. Listen 
closely.

Joe Moore

Lucky Me

I believe this is my 52nd Dylan show. I think I was wrong in my last review, 
not that anybody would care. But this is my second Rough and Rowdy Ways show. 
I am sure of that. My first was in Port Chester, NY, November 24, 2021, with 
my middle son. Of that show, I commented on how I felt the sequencing of the 
songs seemed carefully constructed to tell a coherent story. Or, at least, 
create an indelible image. This show left me with a different impression. 
Not sure if I am right, but I will share what I felt.

I have two sons who live in Durham, NC, and I floated the idea of seeing 
the Charlotte or Fayetteville shows with them. One, who is referred to 
above, couldn’t get off of work. The other, my youngest, who hasn’t seen a 
Bob show with me since he was six, when my wife and I took our kids to one 
of the “kids get in free shows” on August 27, 2004, at Warner Park in 
Madison, WI. It was my youngest’s birthday weekend, and we agreed on the 
Charlotte show on St. Patrick’s Day. I had seen Bob on Halloween at least 
once—possibly twice.

My wife and I corralled our husky into the crossover around 10:00 a.m. on 
Friday, left Long Island, and off we went. And, around 3:30 on Sunday 
afternoon, my son and I left Durham for Charlotte, and, with God on my 
side, I got to see the master one more time with one of my sons. May there 
be many more.

I was a bit concerned initially. My long time Dylan running buddy saw one 
of the Clearwater shows. His accounting was less than enthusiastic. Then 
I read some of the Athens reviews, and hope kicked in.

My son and I stopped at a very nice place for a burger and a beer before 
the show—Cowbell Burger and Whiskey Bar—and found our seats at the Belk 
Theater with time to spare. I picked up our tickets at Will Call, which 
means that, much to my wife’s chagrin, I finally have another ticket stub 
to find a place for! The curtain rose promptly at 8:00, and they were 
there at their stations, locked in and ready to go, with Bob wearing a 
green shirt to match(?) his suit.

Bob stood up for the first time on “I Contain Multitudes” and stepped out 
from behind the piano on two seemingly random occasions to playfully 
acknowledge the crowd. He also specifically said, “Thank you,” on another 
occasion.

He is dead center facing the crowd on this leg of the tour. Jerry is 
directly behind him, and strategically places tom drops masterfully. 
Tony is slightly behind Bob to his right with Doug close by, almost 
exclusively on acoustic guitar, though he did switch to electric on 
“Crossing the Rubicon.” Bob Britt reversed roles from electric to 
acoustic on the next one, “To Be Alone with You.” He is placed behind 
Bob to his left and faces Jerry almost exclusively throughout the show. 
A grayer Donnie is far off to the left of Bob, and is typically down in 
the mix, but, on two or three occasions, they did accentuate his parts 
on multiple instruments, and when they did, it was enjoyable.

Bob’s voice was solid if not very good all night. On the first couple 
of songs, the vocals were not quite as clear, but I think that was more 
a matter of getting the mix right, and not Bob. The crowd enjoyed the 
show. The lower level was full. There were a few empty seats in the 
second level where we were sitting. There were several standing 
ovations. In my mind, the highlights were the Nashville Skyline songs. 
“I’ll Be Your Baby, Tonight” and “To Be Alone with Year” were both near 
perfect. Bob and the band just seemed to be having a great time, and 
the audience ate it up.

I detected some revised lyrics at different points, but, from where I 
was sitting, I couldn’t make all of them out. One that I do recall, 
which I remember cracking me up, was during “Gotta Serve Somebody.” He 
sang, “You might be hallucinating, you might see a ghost,” or 
something similar.

We all got an extra one tonight. After the Cash cover “Big River,” he 
tossed in a traditional Irish ballad for the occasion, “The Roving 
Blade.” Anybody who wants to toss in a “Bob can’t sing” crack wasn’t 
listening to this performance in Charlotte.

During his band intro’s he did something that is rare and acknowledged 
their excellence. Forgive me for paraphrasing, but it was a long drive 
home today. He said something to the effect of, “I’d like to introduce 
my band. Not half-bad are they?” Ah, no, they’re not half-bad, Bob. 
Bob teased everybody with a very brief introductory harp on “My Own 
Version of You” but more than made up for it to close out the show 
with an extended solo on “Every Grain of Sand.” No words.

Then, the pose. Then, gone.

Bob obviously wants to play these songs right now. I said I thought 
this show was different than the one from two and a half years ago, 
and this is why I say so. This time, I think he was having more fun 
with them. The first show was really good. I think this one was 
better.