Bob Dylan in Sydney: spirit on the water

Aug 15, 2007 at 11:59 PM

Earlier tonight we had the good fortune of seeing Bob Dylan and his band perform at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.

The verdict - fantastic!

This is the 2nd time I've seen Dylan live. The first time, in 1992 at the State Theatre in Sydney was bewildering to say the least. We didn't really recognise anything, due largely to the awful acoustics at that venue. (The State Theatre is a lovely building but it didn't seem to handle this event well.)

This concert was hugely different. The music was well thought through, and performed with gusto and (whew) clarity. His band has gusto and professionalism.

Modern Times

Bob Dylan

The music was a mix of some new versions of older material - such as A Hard rain's a-gonna fall and Tangled up in blue - and new material from his recent album Modern Times.

There would be something rather unimaginative of Mr Dylan if he was singing The times they are a-changin' the same way as he was 40 years ago. But no - tonight's rendition was very different and still very enjoyable.

Mr Dylan played keyboards for most of the event, after initially using the guitar for his opening items. His band very much made up for this with their arrangements of his music.

All in all, this has restored my faith in this artist. I was prepared to remember the 1992 event on the grounds that I had at least seen an historic figure - and there is no doubt that Bob Dylan is an historic figure - in person. Unfortunately then, that was about all I could say in favour of that event.

This event was so much more satisfying. The historic aura continued, but we could actualy sit back (or sit forward in our seats - Dylan's lyrics really grab the listener) and enjoy what's going on. I can now say that I have personally heard Bob Dylan sing Masters of war and A hard rain's a-gonna fall. But not just heard this - but enjoyed it immensely. His band is very good (but the 2 guitarists look like the Blues Brothers), and the performance was very focussed and energetic.

The newer material, especially from the album Modern Times, really had me in. We had previewed this at home in the previous few days, but to hear Mr Dylan's interpretation was spell-binding.

People grumble that Mr Dylan never talks to the audience. (In his 1992 State Theatre concert he barely sang to the audience.) Pauline has a very common-sense response - no need to say any more with the sort of songs he sings! I mean, just listen to Masters of war.

As a bonus, his side-on stance to the audience as he played the keyboard for most of the concert meant that he was directly facing us in the el-cheapo side-of-stage seats. Whacko!

Pauline spruiks Bob Dylan

All in all, now i can really see why people get so excited by this artist. Pauline's faith in Bob Dylan has been restored, as wasthat of the other 18,000 people who witnessed this concert.