Bob Dylan and His Band - Cardiff April 28th 2009

17 Song Set Solid Gold Deliverances...

Seems like a long week. Bob in London on Sun, then down to Cardiff to see him again on Tue. Now it is Fri but it feels like it is much further down the line...don't know why. Tiredness might have something to do with it. Cardiff show was amazing, left me wondering in the car as I drove back to The Smoke with Together Through Life on auto play, just why the hell would anyone not want to see Bob Dylan and His Band these days? After the crowds of the Roundhouse and the physical demands it had induced whilst trying to fight off the flu, it was a relief to once again be down at the CIA in the land of the Dancing Dragon and safely inside a proper arena.

Let's face it, da Bobby Dylan Show has been created for arenas and in the smaller places Bob occasionally plays, such as the Camden Roundhouse, although it can seem like a nice idea at the time, the fact of the matter is that the set up is way too big to be reasonably accommodated; it's like playing with a fuckin' great stereo system in your granny's closet. On the two occasions that I have seen Bob play smaller venues the results have been very similar; both the shows at Portsmouth Guildhall in 2000 and Camden Roundhouse in 2009 suffered from the physical constraints of the surroundings. No such congestion though at the CIA. Everything was crystal clear, fuckin' spot on and right on the money as Bob and the boys delivered one of the most perfectly balanced sets I have so far heard them do. Not only that but there was not a single song from out of the 17 song strong set that Bob did not give his full attention to, and that meant the end result was a mighty show indeed.

Guess it was just a happy combination of circumstances that I found myself in the right place at the right time, totally able to fully appreciate what was going on, the onstage alchemy, the strands of the band as they played at being the Bigtime Cowboys they actually are. At the end of it all I left the CIA with my heart bursting full of love for Bobby, his art, the boys and the sound; I left saying silent prayers that there are gonna be a good few more years where this state of affairs is allowed to continue. But of course you never know, the world is a delicate place at the best of times - we spin around the sun until the day our span is spun; and now with pig bugs flying through the air an' stuff like that, d'ya really know what's gonna be round the corner? Love it while you can, appreciate the moment. Yeah, all of that applies, and more...I guess.

Needless to say there was not a hint of any new songs from Together Through Life but as I stood there taking in the awesome show that was unfolding before my eyes I realised that I was being a complete and utter fool to have had any such expectations in the first place. After all, it was only in 2006 that Bob released Modern Times and since then I had only seen him a couple times, in 2007, and yet there I was, not really interested in hearing him perform songs from that album but already wanting the new stuff instead. That's the wanting mind for ya, desire, always new new new, gimme something I haven't heard before and only then will I be happy. Sad illusions ta have I tell ya. Wanting wanting wanting... the tell tale sign of being well and truly stuck in the desire realm; stuck on a no-win jerky ride ta hell. Samsara not dharma; samsara, samsara, samsara... wanting wanting wanting. More more more. New, new, new, gimme, gimme, gimme.

Luckily for me at the CIA I woke up from this horrible self-induced nincompoop state, and realised what a fool, what a spineless toadstool I was to ignore Bob and the boys right there in front of me delivering quite simply amazing performances of his songs, some of which, like those from Modern Times, I had hardly heard him do before. It made me stand up and rejoice that I did that; that I was able to open to the mystery and hear the full majesty of what Bob was doing. 17 songs and 17 solid gold deliverances. In my mind as I looked upon the glorious stage I was saying like a mantra, thank you Bob for being there, thank you thank you, Bobby Bobby. You are a millionaire probably a 100 x over and I know that you really don't have to go out there and do what you do if it wasn't for the fact that performance is your art and as far as that is concerned you are as serious as the Cemetery Man on Planet Supersonic. I'll love ya for as long as you are around, an' then I'll love ya when ya dead!!