Bob Dylan "Real Live" 1984***

This is a Dylan LP you rarely hear about, apparently one his most forgettable. Granted, none of his live albums is of earth shattering importance - with the possible exception of the 1966 bootleg Royal Albert Hall Concert - which, as we learned when it was officially released with a 30-something years' delay, was actually not recorded at the Royal Albert Hall after all. But some of his live albums are, if not famous, notoriously disappointing: Hard Rain an underwhelming document of a momentous tour, Dylan & The Dead the collective nadir of two legends. Real Live, on the contrary, is completely inoffensive, thus utterly forgettable. It was recorded during his 1984 tour of UK and Ireland, and features a predominately English band [Mick Taylor (Rolling Stones) on lead guitar, Ian McLagan (The Faces) on keyboards, Colin Allen (Stone The Crows) on drums, and American Greg Sutton on bass]. The song selection and the lean, muscular arrangements are a direct reference to Dylan's Sixties heyday. Maybe his voice, never a fine instrument, here sounds more nasal and whiny than it did back then, but at least he sings like he means it.

The LP gets off to a flying start with "Highway 61 Revisited" and an incendiary "Maggie's Farm", Mick Taylor proving once again that he's the best guitarist The Stones ever had (sorry Keith!). His bluesy licks even elevate the relatively bland mid-tempo material from Dylan's latest album "Infidels" ("I and I", "License to Kill"). The acoustic solo numbers (just voice, guitar and harmonica) have a nostalgic air: On "It Ain't Me Baby" the audience joins in the chorus, while "Tangled Up In Blue" features changed lyrics which created a minor buzz with Dylanologists at the time. "Girl From The North Country" and "Ballad Of A Thin Man" stick close to the originals, while "Masters Of War" is the only track with a radically different arrangement. I like the faster tempo and cutting guitar, but I miss the original's sneering vocal delivery. It's as if Dylan disapproves of these masters of war, when in the older version he sounded like he hated their guts. Great rocking version nevertheless! The record closes with Carlos Santana from the support act joining the band for an fiery performance of "Tombstone Blues". It all adds up to a decent, enjoyable album few would object to - yet the live versions neither surpass the studio ones, nor are sufficiently different to give you something to write home about. I might have already forgotten about it if it wasn't for this nagging question: just who is the black bass player who takes pride of place in the inner sleeve photos? He's neither a member of Dylan's band, nor Santana (obviously). Does anyone know?  

**** for Maggie's Farm, Masters of War, Tombstone Blues

*** for Highway 61 Revisited, I and I, It Ain't Me, Babe, Tangled up in Blue, Ballad of a Thin Man, Girl from the North Country 

** for License to Kill