Anticipating Dylan
The impossible task of figuring out Bob Dylan and why it doesn't matter
Tomorrow I’m going to see Bob Dylan in concert. It will only be my second time seeing him live, the first being somewhere around 2003 or 2004. When I told coworkers this was part of my weekend plans, more than one responded, “He still tours?”
I sometimes forget, since I do surround myself with a lot of people who are as obsessed with music as I am, that there is a sizable part of the population that does not think about Bob Dylan on a regular basis. I’m not “Dylanologist” level of obsessed, and I was probably a more active fan of his at the time I saw him that first time (on one of his minor league baseball stadium tours in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I thought Fort Wayne was closer than it actually is to Chicago…it’s not that close…still, what a fun show), but if you look at the evidence on my bookshelf and in my record collection, you’ll see that Dylan is never too far from my musical consciousness at any given time.
I don’t have a particularly favorite era of his music. I have a soft spot for Love and Theft because it’s really the album that pulled me in to Dylan fandom. It was also one of three albums released right around the same time that still hold as three of my all time favorite albums (alongside Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and Gillian Welch’s Time (The Revelator)). I’m a fan of Modern Times and Tempest too, where many said his voice was so ragged and unbearable that the albums were unlistenable. I have my theory that Dylan always wanted that raw, blues-worn voice and he purposely embraced it for awhile. I mean, come on, it had to be a choice. He came back with crooner records where his voice sounded just fine. He did what he wanted to do. As he always has and he always will.
Of course that’s just a theory. It’s impossible to know what’s going on in Dylan’s mind and what he’s going to do next, which is part of the reason he’s been such a compelling artist for so long. I’m sure it’s what’s frustrating for fans who fell in love with a particular era of his and hoped he’d continue on that track. He never has. And he’s never cared to explain himself either. Once in awhile he’ll open up, but it’s usually a fairly big music news item when a published interview comes out, due to the fact it is so rare.
I wonder what the concert will be like tomorrow? I know from seeing setlists that it is heavy on his latest great work, Rough and Rowdy Ways, which I’m all too happy to take in. It’s a great album and Dylan’s backing band is one of the best around, so hearing these songs live will likely be a treat. As for the other bits of the setlist, it seems like he’s leading with a cover related to the city he’s in and sprinkles in a few of the old gems, but nothing too “iconic” (i.e.- no “Like a Rolling Stone” or “Blowing in the Wind”).
I say it will “likely” be a treat because live shows of his are famously hit or miss and it’s Dylan so sometimes he just confounding. I suppose anticipating Dylan is part of the fun of being a Dylan fan, but only if you realize you’re never going to figure him out and you shouldn’t go in with any expectations.
It’s become one of my pet peeves of music fandom: when people try to anticipate their favorite artist’s next moves and then hoist their own expectations on them, only to be disappointed when they don’t get what they wanted/expected. It’s particularly galling to approach a Dylan concert/Dylan new release like this, in my humble opinion, because he’s already given all of us so much. He’s in his 80s and still touring and still producing great work! I suppose from a purely capitalistic, financial transaction point of view, when one pays for goods/services, one expects the quality of said good/service to equal the monetary commitment that they made. So I get it in part?
But art and capitalism have always been uneasy partners. And what a depressing way to approach concerts if that’s your criteria! We live in a capitalist society, and I get that, but the, “Well I spent $300 on this show and therefore this entitles me to…” crowd are the problem. They are the problem because they are becoming the only ones who can consistently afford to go see concerts these days because everyone else is getting priced out and consistently gouged by the likes of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. And they are the problem because they want to check off the “experience” rather than caring about the art being created in real time. I ran into this a bit at the Wilco shows where they played Yankee Hotel Foxtrot in its entirety. You had people there who were talking through most of the show who clearly didn’t actually care other than to tell their friends, “I was there”. I can’t prove it, but I’m guessing that these people are also the same who get all worked up when a band doesn’t play the songs that they “paid to see live”. Just a theory.
My point is, expectation regarding art, whether financially motivated or hyper-fandom motivated should be dropped at all costs. I’m not saying I don’t want to see a good show tomorrow night. But at the same time, part of me hopes to be challenged. Part of me doesn’t want to know the words to the song. Part of me wants the imperfections and the occasional scream of feedback. Part of me wants Dylan to come out and be Dylan and change the key of the song without telling the band and watch as they react in real time.
But even hoping for the unexpected is too much expectation. As I get older, I find myself gravitating towards music that surprises me in some way or another—a sound, a rhythm, peculiar noises, experimentation, art that stretches the form. And that cannot be anticipated and that’s what makes it so special. Dylan’s constant left turns were thrilling and continue to be thrilling because no one anticipated them and no one expected them. Of course the songs are great, but part of what makes him a legend is that fearless pursuit of the essence of creativity—pure, unbound by rules and conventions, restless and only partially discoverable.
So what am I trying to say? I’m trying to say that I’m going to see Bob Dylan tomorrow night and that statement stirs something within me that is connected to the very reasons I love live music. I can’t fully explain it and that’s thrilling in its own right. To quote the great Iris DeMent, “I think I’ll just let the mystery be”.
I’m going to see him next Tuesday in Port Chester-the first night of a 2-night stand. The last tour I saw him on was the Americanarama tour with Wilco and My Morning Jacket. This one should be a real treat, since I love the new album.