CHARLES BABINGTON: Bob Dylan's coming to town. Go see him
EDITOR'S NOTE: Charles Babington covered national politics and policy for the Associated Press, The Washington Post and was a reporter, editor and Washington correspondent for The News and Observer of Raleigh in the 1980s and ‘90s.
Here’s my nearest claim to fame: I’ve seen Bob Dylan in concert in six different decades.
The most recent was in April at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans. The first was the best: Charlotte in 1974, when I was a sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill. His backup group was The Band. (Yes, The Band!)
In between, I’ve seen Dylan every few years in Texas, Washington, D.C., Virginia, and other places. I’ve seen him in huge arenas and minor league baseball stadiums; in iconic rock’n’roll venues like the 9:30 Club in D.C.; and in unglamorous places like the parking lot of the Calvert Marine Museum in Solomons, Maryland.
I’m a Dylan fan, not fanatic. I don’t own all of his 40 studio albums. I don’t know all his 600-plus songs. I’ve passed up countless chances to see him in concert, because he tours almost non-stop.
He’s coming to Raleigh and Charlotte in June, part of the Outlaw Music Festival with Willie Nelson and others. If your bucket list includes seeing Bob Dylan, you might consider it. He turns 83 in May — and Willie Nelson will be 91. They’re older than Joe Biden!
I may not be a Dylan nut, but his music has fascinated me since I was 18. It inspired me to start playing harmonica, helping me join garage bands and acoustic jams ever since. I nearly always sing two Dylan gems: "I Shall Be Released" and "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere."
I’m weary of the “Dylan can’t sing” trope. I like the way he sang most of his career (admittedly it has fallen off in recent years). But you don’t have to like his voice. There are thousands of great covers.
What’s stranger to me is the near-exclusive focus on his lyrics. “The poet of his generation!” Yes, he totally deserved that 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature. But why so little attention to his fabulous melodies and arrangements? Show me an artist who has composed a greater, more varied body of tunes that rock, gallop, saunter, haunt, mystify and delight.
His songs cover every structure and mood imaginable. "Positively 4th Street" piles venomous verses atop one another with no break for a chorus (or mercy). "I Want You" is a yearning, perfect pop single. "Queen Jane Approximately" is a loping, mournful masterpiece.
If you’re new to Dylan, check out The Byrds’ cover of “Mr. Tambourine Man,” Peter, Paul and Mary’s "Blowin' In the Wind," and Dylan’s original of “Like a Rolling Stone,” which many music critics consider the greatest rock song ever, as do I.
Ready to dig deeper into Dylan’s back pages? Try "I Threw it All Away," "Spirit on the Water," and his duet with Johnny Cash, "Girl from the North Country." In concerts and studios, he invariably has a smoking hot band behind him.
Country music fans, check out "Nashville Skyline," a 1969 album that will knock you out. Rap fans, stream "Subterranean Homesick Blues," a proto-rap song with poet Allen Ginsberg in the video.
Of the dozen Dylan documentaries, the best are D.A. Pennebaker’s “Don’t Look Back,” and Martin Scorsese’s “No Direction Home.”
If you go to Dylan’s concert, a word of caution. Don’t expect to hear his greatest hits, or tunes you can hum along with (or even recognize in many cases). Don’t look for chitchat between songs. He typically says not a word, not even “hi” or “thanks.”
Before the show, go to the most recent tour setlist at bobdylan.com. That way you’ll know what songs are coming up, even if you barely recognize them.
Truth is, you go to a Dylan concert these days not to hear him, but to see him and pay homage. That seems fair. He gave us “Lay Lady Lay,” “All Along the Watchtower,” “The Times They Are A-Changin’” and a gazillion other great songs.
When you’re Dylan’s age, maybe you’ll ask your grandkids, “Hey, did I tell you about the time I saw Bob Dylan?”
Capitol Broadcasting Company's Opinion Section seeks a broad range of comments and letters to the editor. Our Comments beside each opinion column offer the opportunity to engage in a dialogue about this article. In addition, we invite you to write a letter to the editor about this or any other opinion articles. Here are some tips on submissions >> SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
