Entertainment For Lively Minds
Dylan & sport
As I drove down to Birmingham last night my mind wandered back to Earls court in 1978; queuing overnight for the tickets, begging for an hour off work so I could get down to London, the excitement of seeing Bob for the first time; even if he was a mere dot in the distance….pure magic. Then onto Blackbushe, then the gospel shows at Earls court again. Then along with Santana at Wembley stadium; singing “It’s all over now baby blue” with Van Morrison…more magic. Onto the N.E.C. shows in the 1990’s…fantastic versions of “Girl from the north country”…brilliant…brilliant stuff. So I settle down into my seat still thinking back to those past shows, lights go down, Bob comes on….I can’t tell what the first song is; the hall is so big and the sound is only this side of bad. My ears become accustomed to the boom and echo of the hall. On it goes into the next song, Bob on guitar…this is a bit more like it. As the show goes on and each song begins to sound more like the one before, I started to think again. “I wonder how Manchester United are doing in their Champions league semi final?” and then the it came to me…. Bob Dylan had turned into the Leeds United of music. Leeds United are an English soccer club who at one time were the top of league, they were the best in Europe; the world even; then it all went horribly wrong, and they now languish in the lower divisions of English football. Trading on their past. Still have a loyal following, still able to be surrounded by some adoring fans wherever they play; but lower league by anyone’s reckoning; and they can only dream and think back to their glory days. This is where Bob Dylan is at the moment. Lets hope he can still make a comeback. He was a contender. But if you do go to see him for the living legend that he is, please don’t applaud too hard, it will only encourage him to do more shows like this one!
Steve Gell
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Dylan Bremner
Seems to me that the Leeds analogy may be better suited to Oasis than Dylan - ie once highly successful but thuggish
Thuggish
I didn't feel at all intimidated by "his Bobness"...just dissapointed; he should be taken to see Leonard Cohen or Bruce Springsteen in concert.
Bizarrely
I once had lunch with Bob Dylan (long story). I was wearing a Grimsby Town shirt which caught his attention and led to us talking and eating together. We talked about Grimsby Town quite a bit. Strangely he had never heard of the mighty Mariners. I'd like to think he is aware of them now....
Have to say though that he appeared completely off his face throughout the conversation and I would not be surprised if he did not know them from Plymouth Argyle or Southend Utd even after my careful explanations.
that might be my
favourite post ever.
Not so fast there, buster
You don't really think you're going to get away with that, do you?
Yeah, come on, Dolly.
Spill.
yes do spill those particular beans...
Please
Its a long story but not necessarily a good one...
The abridged version is that I was working on a series of concerts. Bob was booked to play one of the evening shows (and he was really really really terrible that night; it was my first and only experience of seeing him live and he was so bad that he extinguished any desire in me to see him again). The shows were filmed and so we had location catering. Yummy!
Bob timed his arrival at the venue with the serving of lunch. All seats were gone except for the two next to me. I got Bob and his minder. He was clearly under the influence and became mesmerised by my Grimsby shirt. We struck up a conversation which probably lasted three quarters of an hour (but felt much longer). It was a bit of a struggle, actually, probably because of his condition. There were a lot of gaps and silences between talk. I only kept the conversation going because it was such a cool thing to be happening. His minder bought him a plate of food. He ate nothing. He was very thin and looked old even then (20 years ago). We talked about football, Grimsby, Cleethorpes and Steve Cropper and Stax (Steve was also on the bill - he was a really fantastic bloke. Bob was a huge fan of Steve Cropper and the MG's in general as am I.). It was a funny old conversation.
I saw him just before he went on stage. I had a jacket on over my shirt by then. I said "Hi" as he walked to the stage. He looked straight through me. I clearly did not register at that point.