adamdean (User)
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Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 5 Months ago
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Just home from the show; was outstanding. Started exactly at 8:00 and off by 9:45 but packed with a trip down memory lane. Couldn't stop thinking about Peter Stone Brown, who was there in spirit, he is now everywhere. I am going to try and attach a photo from my 1st row Loge seat, Bob rockin' out on Ballad Of A Thin Man. My personal highlight was Lenny Bruce, simply because in 45 years of seeing Dylan perform, I had never seen it done live and he delivered an extremely poignant performance. Catch a glimpse.
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Last Edit: 2019/11/22 14:00 By adamdean.
Reason: image
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 5 Months ago
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a photo can only be shared via a link using the "Img" option as seen in the mouseover example.
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aml (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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It's been a few years since I have submitted a review/personal thoughts on a Bob show. I've still been attending a few each year, but it became tiresome to put down my thoughts after arriving home late, and then before I knew it, a week or more had gone by and it soon became "whats the point, now?" Well Thursday night at the Met in Philly gave me more than enough energy, enthusiasm...whatever you want to call it...to get back in the ring. I had been to Baltimore a week earlier, and a fine show that was as well. But Bob found the extra gear in Philly. Maybe it was the beautiful venue (I was lucky enough to see him re-open it Dec 3, 2018 as well). Maybe it was that extremely energetic Philly crowd pushing him further (for all the heat they take about being lousy sports fans, they sure know their music!). Maybe it was a push from above (I feel Peter Stone Brown would have given a strong nod of approval to this hometown performance).
Our hero is definitely slowing, and the "dance" in this song and dance man is gradually slipping away. But the "song" was probably the strongest I have seen in 10 years, maybe more. The voice was on from the words "worried man with a worried MIND!" and at times he felt the need to lash out at us (Pay in Blood, Early Roman Kings, Highway 61, Thin Man), often pointing/stabbing towards the crowd to emphasize his words, as if to say "listen to me!". Then he would take it back 180 degrees and deliver the finest singing you've ever heard. North Country was beautiful, and the interplay between our hero on the ivories and Donnie Heron on violin for this song was unbelievable, poignant. Simple Twist of Fate & It Ain't Me Babe also had strong but measured vocals, and the latter is an arrangement that has developed over the years into a show highlight. But the 5 minutes that stop the show, same as in Baltimore, continues to be Lenny Bruce. Whether he really "rooohhhhde with him, in a taxi once" is folklore to which we may be better off never knowing the truth. But its clear that Bob feels a connection. There's something autobiographical about the way he delivers this one in 2019. Its stunning and were I a wealthy, unemployed man with zero responsibilities, I would spend the next 2 weeks (and a Thanksgiving) in NYC gladly watching it 10 times over. Might be the best thing I have ever seen him do, and the Philly crowd was respectfully quiet, followed by a thunderous roar, recognizing the rare gem that had been so perfectly delivered.
Let's not forget the machine that helps our hero deliver night after night. The addition of Bob Britt and replacement of George Recile by Matt Chamberlain adds something that the band has needed. I do miss George, the 2nd longest tenured band member ever I believe? But man, Matt Chamberlain is there for a reason. His fills, snare work and and just basic tempo work really gives these songs new life. Bob Britt has a lot of leads on this tour, deservedly so. Donnie has become the multi-instrumentalist that almost has me saying "Larry/Bucky who?" I say "almost" because I still miss the vocal harmonies. But Donnie seems to have become more of Bob's "go to" for cues, possibly due to where Bob is positioned most of the time, but also because Donnie's seat gives him full view of the other 4 band members. Charlie and Tony are just so in line with these songs, with our hero, that there's really no reason to fret as long as they both walk out there with him each night. The last time I saw Charlie in Philly, it was in early summer, in a bar that held about 30 people, playing with Michael Ramos & the great Austin musician (and chef!) Michael Fracasso. Charlie looks just as comfortable in his little corner on the stage at the Met as he did that night. And Bob made us all feel like we were the only ones in the room.
10 nights in NYC and 1 in DC. Don't you Dare Miss it!
aml
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Last Edit: 2019/11/23 15:03 By aml.
Reason: Typo
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Warren (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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Wonderful to read aml. I've missed your reviews, but I get your POV. Thanks for taking the time to review this show. Good to see you in print, again.
Cheers.
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aml (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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Thanks Warren. The performance deserved a late night post !
aml
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Derek (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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Thanks aml - good to hear your thoughts. Sounds like a helluva show!
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adamdean (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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I am still trying to figure out how to post my photo I don't do SnapChat or any other stuff like that), but here is another review:
Mixed emotions, joy and sadness, anticipation, excitement and a sense of loss - Bob Dylan & His Band were in the room last night at The Met, the simply fantastic concert venue in downtown Philadelphia, but sadly Peter Stone Brown was not; we recently lost Peter after a long illness and he was simply there in spirit. But Bob Dylan was there and he put on a great show, very slick and professional, a whistle-stop on the way from there to here and off to NYC for a residency run of shows. This time around finds Bob in enhanced "crooner" mode, having taken the stage-moves honed on Sinatra into his main stage act, as he crouches down by the drum kit, microphone in hand then jumps to center-stage to deliver biting lyrics on songs such as Not Dark Yet, Can't Wait and Pay In Blood. There is also the "piano man" with Bob singing clearly on beautiful ballads such as Girl Of The North Country, It Ain't Me Babe, Trying To Get To Heaven and Soon After Midnight. And "rocker" Bob kicking the guitar around the stage on Things Have Changed and Ballad Of A Thin Man. The musicians with Bob are, as always, "some of the finest players in the country" and Charlie Sexton and Tony Garnier power the louder songs like Highway 61, Early Roman Kings, and Honest With Me.
Interesting stage set-up, gone are the carpets and incense - we have 3 mannequins dressed in 1920's finery (think Great Gatsby) at stage rear, Bob's piano front-stage right center leaving stage left open for him to crouch and croon.
My personal highlight was Lenny Bruce, a song I had never heard performed in 45 years of seeing Dylan shows, and it was delivered in a lovely ballad with the words clear and eloquent - bringing dear departed Peter to mind; Lenny Bruce is gone. But Bob remains on the Never Ending Tour and it's always a great thrill to catch a glimpse.
Lights down at 8:02 PM and off-the-stage by 9:46 PM, no openers, no intermission. As the advertisements say, "Don't You Dare Miss It" and don't be late!
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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i sent you a message with a solution ...
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adamdean (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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THANK YOU Jojo! Here is a nice picture of our guitar hero who of course "sold-out" The Met!
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adamdean (User)
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Re:Bob @ The Met Philly 11-21-19 4 Years, 4 Months ago
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