Bob Dylan 970809 in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania
Subject: late 8/9 review From: ADixon5547 (adixon5547@aol.com) Date: 12 Aug 1997 20:20:52 GMT (warning: this is a review from a fan who DOES NOT know the names of all previous and present dylan band members.) wow- dylan has a voice again. he actually sang the whole night. much improved over the past two times i've seen him in the singing category. maybe he just needed a rest. (was the heart thing faked just like the motorcycle accident. maybe i'm on to something. sarcasm implied) ok i've had enough of the JJ bashing. both he and the new guy (Campbell?) are competent professionals. certainly not flashy and not great but pretty good. and besides i like to watch bob attempt most of the guitar work, and occassionally nail it. the undertones that campbell created had a markedly James Bond-ian feel. i dont know, i guess i just couldnt dig it. the drummer is better. seems to help the band more and dominate the sound less. i really like the "new" songs he's doing. it makes you feel more like he's not just giving you what you want, but rather doing what he thinks is best, which is what it's all about anyway. there was a slight twinge of remorse at not hearing watchtower though. however, i was troubled by the inclusion of Times changin. anybody else thinks that's really outdated? i felt like he was throwing the 'i remember him from his protest days, before he got wild' fans a bone. well at least it's not blowin in the wind. i think the standout of the set was tangled up in blue. he sang the lines like they meant something, rather than the 'throw it out there' approach i've heard before. don't think twice moved quite nicely, as he seemed to hit stride at the acoustic set. this wheel's on fire was great. it's never been one that i love, but the performance was worthy of praise. he looked a lot more healthy than in recent years and seemed to enjoy himself. he introduced the band, thanked ani and br5-49, and gave a high five to one lucky fan. 12 good songs, then times changin and RDW #12 and 35. oh well, whatyagunnado. as for br5-49 and ani difranco, it wasnt a bad hour and a half of entertainment. br5-49 is a great 'just for kicks' country band. they're quite fun. ani has a good band, a great voice, and a lot energy. as for her lyrics, well, at least they're heartfelt. she tries. as for the presence of ani-maniacs being disturbing, i didnt find that at all. they were having a good time, and though danced as if they were controlled en masse by an arhythmic epileptic puppeteer, i had no problem with them. all in all a good, though not emotionally transcendant, night
Subject: Goin' to the front row...gonna have some fun (8/9 review) LONG From: Mike Fallon (ffrink@telerama.lm.com) Date: Fri, 15 Aug 1997 02:42:19 GMT Good show at Star Lake last night. Here's a quick overview. ----"I pulled into Pittsburgh..six thirty flat"---- My brother, Mark, scored tix in the third row, Gold Circle section, by going to a local supermarket that sells tickets for the Star Lake venue the morning they went on sale and was first in line. ----"should have left this town this morning" I got to the show late after attending a wedding reception and then making a wrong turn onto Route 19 instead of Route 18. Who'd a thunk one number could mean so much?!! Anyway, got parked and started to the gate and heard the opening verse of 'Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You." So I knew Bob was on, but only on the 2nd tune. (Turns out 'Peggy-O' was on the cue sheet. It would have been nice to hear "Peggy-O', being this was the second anniversary of the passing of Jerry Garcia) I figured I missed 'Sweet Marie', the opener these days. I got to my seat, which was in the second row, just in front on Tony Garnier and Bucky Baxter (who once shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die, according to Bob). -----"I reached up, touched my shirt.. And the neighbor said, "Are those clothes yours." Bob had on the light grey suit, with the shirt sleeves about 4 inches past the end of the jacket sleeves. And, as someone mentioned, he had part of the cuff of the left pant leg half into the boot. Looked pretty funny. Thought his mom has taught him about going out in public and all that. Oh, well. Maybe Emmett Grogan wore them like this. Bucky was dressed in all black with a black derby and Tony G. had a sort of purple suit. Larry C. was wearing a dark outfit with long coat and his hair is longer than I remember it being this spring. Former Jerry Band drummer David Kemper was behind the drum kit, possibly pant-less (just kidding). ----'It must be time to carve another notch'--- In slot #3 was 'Tough Mama ' and Bob vocals were warming up. From where we were standing, it seemed like you could pretty much walk right up to the edge of the stage. There were a couple of security thugs standing against the stage, keeping an eye on things, as there were already maybe thirty people standing three or four deep, along the stage edge, right in front of Bob. The ushers were checking the tickets of people trying to get there, but let them through. I thought "Hell, might as well move up closer." I asked the usher about moving up and he said, "'You can go anywhere up here that you want." I think I moved up during "Tough Mama" Up fourth was 'You Ain't Going Nowhere.' Finally, I get to hear it live!! This was always a fun song to play at sing alongs, with easy chords and lyrics. We missed it the 2 shows we saw this spring. So it was great to hear it finally. I was so happy to hear it that I was literally laughing, watching the guys play. And it seemed like, when Tony Garnier was solemnly inspecting the crowd at stage front, he saw me cracking up and he broke into a big smile. Or maybe the bright Hawai'an shirt I was wearing amused him. ---"Oh, everybody that cares...is going up the castle stairs." By this time, I had managed to position myself right in front of the security guy who was standing right at the front of the stage. 'Silvio' was up next, with a little jam at the end, not the lazy half tempo extended jam played at some shows this spring that sounded like the chords to Traffic's "Dear Mr. Fantasy." Then, the acoustic set with a routine 'Don't Think Twice', an OK 'Tangled' and a fine 'Roving Gambler' that had some folks baffled, since they were unfamiliar with the tune. Before 'Gambler', I was shouting a requests for 'Cocaine', but the guy next to me pointed out that it was an Eric Clapton tune. Duh!! Electric again, with a rousing 'God Knows' and then, the highlight of the night for me. I heard the opening chords to 'Wheel's on Fire." Raising my hands over my head, I started to clap and continued almost all the way through the first verse. Bob was giving the people a mixture of the mean stare and an occasional smile. I remember staring right at his scowl with an ear- to-ear grin on my face during the line "that called on me to call on them to get you your favors done." It was one of those moments you never forget. Then a rollickiing "Highway 61' and that was the set. When Bob turned to walk off, his jacket was soaked through with sweat from the shoulder line to the middle of his back. He turned before he went out of sight and half bowed with his hands folded together. And the pant leg was still half tucked in the boot. The encores were 'Rolling Stone', which the crowd loved. The acoustic 'Times they are a changin'' and 'Rainy Day Women.' Near the end of 'RDW', Larry Campbell squeezed off a brief but blistering solo. I would have liked to hear a little more of this guy. ----'Who's gonna throw that minstrel boy a coin... who's gonna let it roll.....------- This was my first time up at the edge of the stage and it was something to remember..... During the end of the regular set, as the band was heading backstage, a guy, dressed in a leather jacket, and, according to my buddy, Dave, carrying a copy of a book, scampered up onto the stage and made it back to intercept Bob back of the stage, in the darkness from where I could see. The security people grabbed him, but I think he stood back there with Bob for a good 30-45 seconds before he was escorted out, And my buddy said he no longer had the book. Perhaps Bob had it to autograph?? We heard the security people yelling for someone to get that guys name. The old hippie couple sitting and standing in the row in front of us were drinking beer and smoking joints all night. During the second song of the night, the woman took her camera and went behind the group of people standing at the center and took a shot of Bob. Then about 3 minutes later, the usher came over and asked for the camera. After a brief discussion, she handed it to him and he removed the film and gave it back. After I made my way to the stage front, I quickly became aware of three girls who were together and were dancing in the style of 'Dead-heads' with gyrations and hands over their heads. Whenever Bob looked down, two of them would point to their third friend, like a signal to Bob. During the course of the evening, the old hippie guy came by several times with the last bit of a joint to share with them and these girls toked up the roach like they hadn't had pot for a while. The girls were taking turns going up to the refreshment stands for drinks and when the person with the drinks came back, they tried to push and squeeze thier way back to the front. After the acoustic set, when I had made my way real close, one of the girls came by, and was obvously a little tipsy, and tapped my shoulder and asked, 'Could you move so I can slide by?" I moved up a bit and said, "Sure, just slide behind me." She got a bit irate and bellowed, "I can't believe how rude guys are around here." I guess she meant me. Near the end of the show, she was on my left and tossed her ring up on stage, and it rolled about three feet behind Bob, to his left. He didn't see it. People tossed a few other things up on stage, like a fat joint, a few roses, a poster board picture. Some jerk even threw a cup of ice at Bob, a few small cubes hitting his jacket and hair!!!! I think this was during 'Times', the acoustic encore song. ---"he got caught in the spotlight, but when he gets to the end, he's got to start all over again" After 'RDWomen', Bob took a last bow and squinted through the lights, and walked up to the edge of the stage. He shook hands with one of the girls at stage center, then walked over towards where I was standing. Everyone had there hands up, to maybe shake his hand for a great show. He stooped right down where I was standing, brushed my hand and shook hands with the girl who threw the ring. Man, was she happy. When I told my buddy, Dave that Bob brushed my hand, he looked at my bright Hawaiian shirt and said, "He probably thought you were David Lindley!" After the crew was clearing the stage, a couple picks got tossed to the crowd and I luckliy got one that was tossed right over my head. When I stood up from picking it up, a short man appeared right in front of me and said "I'll pay money for that." I just said "No, thanks." peace, Mike Fallon S/S JTFC-Norton I Chapter "Suddenly, I turned around and she was standin' there, with silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair." -Bob Dylan
