Bob Dylan was scheduled to play at 8:10, but the sun was setting behind 
the stage making it difficult to see. At 8:25, just as the sun finally 
disappeared behind the trees, out comes Bob Dylan with the band. He 
looked sharp in his white sport coat wearing no hat. The stage lighting 
has gotten even dimmer than before and the two big screens displayed an 
unchanging wide shot of the entire band with no close ups. Unless you 
were in the front, all views of Dylan were from a distance.

Dylan's voice was strong and fluid, the best I've heard him sing in 
years. As soon as one song finished, he started into a new one. Zero 
pauses or breaks. It was one continuous 75 minute show. Jim Keltner 
was as solid as a rock and the band was tight and smooth.

I had been half expecting the Rough and Rowdy Ways show, but realized 
quickly that this was going to be a unique set list. What a treat! 
Simple Twist of Fate was a highlight for me. He slowed it down, 
changed some lyrics, and stayed true to the original tune. It was 
powerful! By contrast, Things Have Changed had a totally different 
tune and was only recognizable by listening to the lyrics. Under the 
Red Sky was a nice surprise and he performed it beautifully. The only 
other time I've heard him sing it was at the Fox Theater in Atlanta 
30 years ago and it was a highlight then as well. I was hoping he'd 
do Long and Wasted Years and he did a hauntingly beautiful version of 
it that was very powerful. Much to my surprise, Dylan stood up at the 
end of the song, took a bow, and his set was over. My only wish is 
that it had lasted a little longer.

All in all, it was a dream show with a set list no one could have ever 
predicted in the old Bob Dylan Never Ending Pool. I wish Bob Dylan 
continued good health and hope to see him again in the future. Such a 
memorable show!

Ric Harwood

Whoa Nellie!

This show was, is, and shall be a lot to process. It was a bit bonkers,
even by Dylan standards.

First, let's set the stage. This was the first show on Willie Nelson's
Outlaw Tour, an annual multi-artist show where Dylan is playing all 37
dates. At this show in an amphitheater  in Alpharetta (a city just north
of Atlanta that most of us view as part of "metro Atlanta"), Celisse
opened, then Robert Plant & Allison Krauss, then Dylan, then Willie was
supposed to play but wasn't feeling well, so was not on hand. But his son
Lukas Nelson took over Willie's band, playing many of his Dad's hits and
other songs, aided by special guests Derek Trucks and wife Susan Tedeschi.

Amid much speculation in the Dylanverse that the Rough & Rowdy
Ways-centric and nearly-static setlist since 2021 might change - and the
band too - anticipation was high. Add to that Dylan's turning 83 recently
(about 8 years older than the average American male lifespan) and we were
all keen to see what he would do in this show, on this tour, and with the
time he has left to be a creative force in this world.

Turns out, the speculation was correct, though not in any way we'd have
guessed. In the end, what we heard last night was one of the weirder NET
shows ever (I still call the 1988-onwards tours that as a shorthand,
knowing Dylan doesn't approve).

First, things have changed with the band, with Jim Keltner on drums, and
band member for 19 years Donnie Herron not present. (It's reassuring to
see Tony Garnier there every night, tour in tour out, since June 1989.)

The setlist certainly changed too: not one song repeated from the last
show in April. The Alpharetta setlist could be called Dylan's own version
of his current mindset, with five 1950s covers he's never played before
grafted onto Tempest, plus just one pre-1990 song of his ("Simple Twist Of
Fate") and an oddball revival of "Under The Red Sky" added in. Plus two
songs very familiar from pre-pandemic shows, "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'"
and "Things Have Changed."

Imagine being a 60s music fan and casual Dylan appreciator showing up for
this? You can't always get what you want, friends. But that's been the
case for casual Dylan fans for many years, of course. Don't come expecting
hits, or even anything really recognizable from his younger days; you have
to align your head with Dylan's freewheeling spirit.

So, let's take it song by song.

MY BABE

There was some palpable relief for me - and I'll bet many other Dylan fans
at the show or watching Ray Padgett's helpful live-posting to Twitter
(more on that later) - when the first song was not "Watching The River
Flow. " And in fact, not recognized by most of us. We were ready for a
change.

The first song turned out to be a lost nugget by Willie Dixon recorded by
Little Walter, a bluesy shuffle that seemed a bit familiar (because of
Dixon's gift for writing songs that please the ear) but that I'd never
heard before.

I don't want to overemphasize the word 'relief' at hearing an alternate
opener, because many Dylan fans like me are happy to hear him play
whatever he wants to, and especially at this phase of his career. At age
83, if you're still choosing to be on the road playing to people at an
outdoor show on a mid-90-degrees evening in the deep South (or anywhere),
play what you like please, sir, even if it's the same thing you played the
last time I saw you.

That said, we are all aware of the repertoire of songs the man's written
that he could choose from - not to mention covers that have been an
amazing part of his career. And let's remember, our own times being able
to see him in concert are also limited - we, too, being mortal - so
variety is satisfying and fun.

BEYOND HERE LIES NOTHIN'

Somehow, with Jim Keltner now on drums, his first show playing with Dylan
since short stints in the past including 2002, I now intuited we were
bound for other songs than the familiar Rough & Rowdy Ways ones.

Indeed we were. A significantly-rearranged "Beyond Here Lies Nothin'"
greeted us next - sounding more moody, quiet, and jazzy since last heard
in 2019 - established a feeling that this setlist was going to stretch,
but maybe not in the mind-blowing way the setlists did at Brixton 2003 and
other moments in the NET where there was more randomness at play. So
playing "Beyond Here" was novel in this decade, but not the prior one
(he's played it 435 times).

It's not a key song for me, but the sound was cool - a dark jazz samba
that sounded swampy and deep, like an Oh Mercy or Time Out Of Mind outtake
with a Daniel Lanois vibe. And I think Together Through Life is
underrated, so it's nice to hear something from it.

SIMPLE TWIST OF FATE

"Simple Twist Of Fate" arrived next - familiar, rendered often in the
prior decade, but not since that "back to touring after the height of the
pandemic" show in Milwaukee on 11/2/21. I thought to myself, "Yeah!
Dylan's BACK!" which I'm sheepish to say because it sounds overly reverent
of his older songs, and that's not me. I love the Rough & Rowdy Ways songs
and many of my favorites of his are from the last 27 years since Time Out
Of Mind.

But even with my love for "current Bob," there's been a feeling in recent
years - especially during the Sinatra-setlist years - that, other than
Shadow Kingdom and a few older songs sprinkled in - maybe early / mid
Dylan was a thing of the past. That we now needed to acclimate to just
recent/new Dylan mixed with older covers, and a few older songs here and
there.

So I hope I'm not faulted for wanted to tilt the ship just slightly ...
again, saying that from someone happy Dylan hasn't become a fan-driven
jukebox (sorry, Springsteen and McCartney) or a youthfulness-craving
workout (sorry, Stones). I like Dylan just like he is. And because of that
- because I embrace all eras, phases, and artistic directions of the man -
I do like to hear some other songs in shows sometimes.

A note about Simple Twist - like many of the songs in the set, it was
especially slow-paced - a languid stroll through the scenario of the song.
It felt stretched-out and exceedingly unrushed. Same with Beyond Here and
Cold Cold Heart in particular.

Part of the appeal of a changed-up setlist is the thought that, after a
few years of immaculately decent, docile, adult song arrangements, we
might hear a little rock again, including - just maybe - more of a guitar
sound here and there. But that's not really happening, probably due to
Dylan's ego. At one point during Simple Twist, Doug Lancio at right
started to crank up a little guitar solo. But  Dylan covered that right up
with piano - he just grabbed the spotlight right back.

LITTLE QUEENIE

The next song was a sharp left, the second 50s cover of the night: Chuck
Berry's "Little Queenie." My favorite parts of this one were a) hearing an
actual rave-up guitar riff, after years of a very quiet band and b)
hearing Dylan speak-sing "Meanwhile, I'm still thinkin..."

But Chuck Berry isn't really a favorite of mine - sacrilege to say - so
this felt more like a palette-cleanser to me, showing the band can still
rock if Bob wants them to. And we DID get a little guitar solo here!

MR. BLUE

Next up was the song that made me think Bob was 'bout to have a Toad's
Place kinda night, as he busted out another first-time cover, "Mr. Blue"
by The Fleetwoods !! Whoa ... even as a semi-adjunct to his Sinatra
period, this one felt left-field. I wasn't familiar with it; turns out
it's a Fleetwoods song from 1959.

Very low on the list of ones I'd imagine Dylan to cover, as most of his
covers have been either:

  *   Old roots (blues, folk, country)
  *   More-recent ones by his contemporaries or singers he admires
  (Stones, Neil, Zevon, Van, Paul Simon, Sam Cooke) *   Sinatra

So to just hear a doo wop radio hit from the 50s (it was a #1) was
interesting.

PAY IN BLOOD

Next came what was, for me, the first true let-down of the evening - that
overplayed and underloved Tempest set-piece, "Pay In Blood." I didn't care
for it then, and don't now, although this rendition did sound good. (Like
a Stones country song - like "Silver Train" slowed down and with country
licks.)

COLD COLD HEART

The set's heart - midpoint of this brief 13-song list - came next, with
his first-ever cover of Hank Williams Sr.'s great "Cold Cold Heart." Like
many of these songs, it was stretched out like taffy, super-slow, and in
this case, kind of at a dream state pace ... an internal rumination that
really worked.

"Cold Cold Heart" embodied the essence of why Dylan has always covered
songs - despite being America's most-celebrated songwriter of the last
half-century-plus - and why they reveal so much about him. Hank Sr. was of
course Dylan's north star musically in his formative years, along with a
few others like Woody Guthrie. Performances like this one also show
Dylan's ability to completely inhabit and own songs by others, breathing
new life into them and making them feel present in the now. The set's
highlight for me.

EARLY ROMAN KINGS

After being transported by that cover, the next song landed us back to
earth with a thud - "Early Roman Kings," further confirmation of a lurking
Tempest revival in the setlist. I like it better than "Pay In Blood," but
that's not saying much.

The most interesting aspect of this one was the Bo Diddley shuffle Jim
Keltner built into the intro, to such a degree that I thought they were
'bout to play "Hey Bo Diddley"! I mean, they played Willie Dixon and Chuck
Berry songs just a bit before, so I imagined a bit of a Chess Records
sub-theme building. But no, it was just this concert warhorse heard
quiiiite often between 2012-'19.

UNDER THE RED SKY

Next up, a fun but totally non-essential surprise from his catalog, the
first airing of "Under The Red Sky" since 2013. I can think of 2,000 live
rarities of his I'd like to hear more than this, but at least it wasn't
another Tempest song! I did like the arrangement - much like "Pay In
Blood," I heard a country-Stones flavor in it.

THINGS HAVE CHANGED

Next we had the return of a warhorse, "Things Have Changed," but one that
hadn't been heard since those last shows just before the pandemic in late
'19. It's one of his truly great songs, and I unabashedly love it, but
I've also heard it often enough to pine for - just another great
recent-ish song, if that's what he's going for.

For Dylan though, this one probably goes well beyond those metrics - it's
like a theme song, one more way to say he's not tethered to his fans or to
the past. It's also probably beloved by him because of the Oscar he won
for it in 2001, big movie fan that he is. (That Oscar sat on his piano on
tours for years afterwards.)

I liked the arrangement - sounded like Johnny Cash meets Tom Petty. Also,
by this point Dylan's vocals were extremely clear and upfront - easy to
hear every word.

THE FOOL

Next was my second-favorite song of his set, an oddball obscurity I'd not
heard before - the night's fifth and last cover, all of them from the '50s
- a song by Naomi Ford and Lee Hazlewood, "The Fool."  It sounded like a
close cousin to "I Threw It All Away" and was a set highlight for sure.

SCARLET TOWN

From there, we returned to Tempest for the last two songs - both ones I
like, "Scarlet Town" and "Long & Wasted Years," but not ones I craved to
hear again. I'd kill to hear "Scarlet Town"'s antecedent, "Barbara Allen"
(especially after Robert Plant and Allison Krauss had played "Mattie
Groves" during their set earlier), but that is not to be.

LONG & WASTED YEARS

I like "Long & Wasted Years" as well, but it's a hard/grim listen - the
case with almost every song on Tempest, seemingly designed to reinforce
Dylan's bonafides as a grizzled elder understanding the true harshness of
the world. I just wasn't craving to hear them again, that's all.

And then, friends, that was it. No band intros or other words, just a
brief pause, then house music came on and house lights, bright. Set done,
the Outlaw Tour is begun, we're out.

How do I rate the show overall?

It would be lower in my list of the 22 I've now seen (since my first in
1989), because it contained no true favorites of his songs; nor with the
covers, although I did really enjoy "Cold Cold Heart" and "The Fool."

But, do I treasure being on hand for one of the weirder shows in the
entire NET? YES.

It's hard to separate the fact that this setlist was/is, on paper,
uninspiring for me, with the fun of hearing the arrangements and seeing it
unfold in real time. It's one of the few Dylan shows ever where there was
a sense that he might just do anything. That A would not be followed by B.
Even once we got into the Tempest-heavy portion later, you felt like,
well, is he gonna play another Fleetwoods song now? If not, what's
stopping him?

One more note - it was fun to meet Ray Padgett at this show, author of the
great Dylan interview book "Pledging My Time - Conversations With Bob
Dylan Band Members," which I designed and laid out for him last year. Ray
runs the popular Dylan blog Flagging Down the Double E's, which I
recommend. Also met fellow Dylanphiles including Adam Selzer and others,
plus saw my dear friend of music Jinny Hawkins.

So I say, Bob, if this is the last time I see you, thanks for giving us
your art, and for bringing it to where we are, even on crazy-hot Atlanta
days in late June when you are 83 years old. I have no idea how you do it.
I respect, admire and love what you do. Thank you.

Noel Mayeske