DATABASE: LAPD's Most Wanted

Nicely said. Because he goes so deep, it's nearly impossible to dismiss expectations. But when you do....that's when you really connect with him and what he does. Love u Bob!

He didn't do Subterranean, so don't feel bad that you didn't recognize it, (and he did Don't Think Twice at Tuesday's show and it was stellar).

I learned a long time ago to strap on my seat belt and enjoy the ride. You don't know where your going for sure, but it always turns out being a memorable trip. Dylan is now like that favorite car you loved so many, many years ago. It's still running, and running damn good. Dylan is an absolute classic, who refuses to be tied down, or labeled in any way. Expectation kills a Dylan performance. I love him, and am blessed to go along for the ride.

Mr. Bogert
A good article and fair appraisal of Dylan. Your comparison of him to Picasso rings true; I've often thought that too. Picasso's late paintings and Dylan's late songs have much in common; they are powerful, simple works of art, not grand sweeping themes. There's a book called PAINTING AGAINST TIME by about Picasso's late work; I haven't read it but intend to soon. In a way, Dylan is singing ( and writing ) against time even more urgently, because his voice is failing fast. Picasso's eyes didn't fail him, so he had a longer end-time so to speak. I'm happy for Bob that he also is a painter, that will serve him well in the years to come when his restless mind and creative energy need an outlet that can no longer happen in music. I've never had the great privilege to see Dylan live in concert, and now it seems I have missed him again on this recent tour. But he has always been and will always be a living part of my consciouness. I've remained steadfastly loyal to him for 45 years; his changes never threw me off. I learned early on to have faith in him and his directions, even when he was lost on tangents and floundering. I seems like he is fairly happy now, and likes doing what he's doing. More power to him.

"Why? Who can say"
In answer to that, I think the answer lies in the fact that Dylan has not exactly been kind to his voice over the years. Beginning in 1974, Dylan started on a couple-years trend of yelling his lyrics out with a fire and brimstone passion. IMO, those years did some damage to the voice. Also, the incessant smoking can't have done any good.

Not sure when or where you heard Subterranean Homesick Blues, but it wan't at the Palladium this week. The title of the article is very clever, and real. Artists should create for themselves, not pander to an audience or market. They have to have the courage of accepting rejection of their art, which Bob Dylan has always done. I hope he keeps a-changin' for another twenty years, and I'll go see him anywhere within a hundred miles of San Diego, just like I did three times this week.

Bob is trying to be all things to all people; not in a people-pleasing way, but so that he might by all means see some saved. Using the old King James style: to the barbarians he becomes like a barbarian that he might win some barbarians;to the Jews he became like a Jew that he might win some Jews; to those concerned about Bob being moral or lawful enough he would become like them to see some of them saved; to those who live outside the Law he became like those outside the Law that he might win some of them, while Bob himself not being outside the Law of Christ, but under it. And that is a big difference than any of the above. And this is his motive.
It's the only true motive for anything a person can have and Bob knows it. One example from the last song of his Modern Times album: Bob explains in that song how his loyal and much loved companions (who have some understanding of the above) they approve of him doing things this way and they know Bob's code; his secret way in doing it that only those with ears to hear can get (those under Christ, too). Then Bob goes on explaining that he still in fact does practice his faith; though it is a faith long abandoned by many who once professed it in their personal lives or the West itself. He goes on talking about his long and lonely road where there is no need of institutional religion with its various altars and rituals. It it a lonely road because religious people who rely on those "altars" and "relics" cannot get where he is at, and of course neither do those who don't care to know Christ and continue in their own self-justifying life philosophy or view. So, it is a long and lonely road for many of us followers of the Truth; Jesus Christ.
There is a huge difference; in fact there is no such thing as religion connecting people to God, which it cannot do; and a relationship with God in Christ through what He did for us in dying on the cross and rising from the grave for us. Jesus dealt a fatal blow to our two biggest problems from which all our ills flow: sin (on the cross) and death (defeated for us when he rose from death). No need for altars and religious deeds to try and get to God. It will never work because of what Jesus did once and for all time in His death and resurrection for us.
So, there it is. Use your God given mind as you think on these things and listen to Bob's words, all the way through, in context. Not that complicated, again, for those who have ears to hear, just like Jesus said.
Most importantly, and Bob would agree, listen to God's Spirit of truth as revealed only in Jesus, who is God. Read the Bible a lot, especially the Gospel of John.

Here is what you wrote: "Dylan who mangles and mangles and stands stage right on keyboard". I would hate for someone to buy tickets on the "wrong" side after reading your review. Stage directions are based on the viewpoint of the person. The performer is onstage, facing the audience. So Dylan's keyboard (for several years now) is positioned Stage LEFT. From the audience point of view, it is positioned HOUSE Right. Someone who writes about entertainment should know this.

Steve wrote:

Bob is trying to be all things to all people; not in a people-pleasing way, but so that he might by all means see some saved. Using the old King James style: to the barbarians he becomes like a barbarian that he might win some barbarians;to the Jews he became like a Jew that he might win some Jews; to those concerned about Bob being moral or lawful enough he would become like them to see some of them saved; to those who live outside the Law he became like those outside the Law that he might win some of them, while Bob himself not being outside the Law of Christ, but under it. And that is a big difference than any of the above. And this is his motive.
It's the only true motive for anything a person can have and Bob knows it. One example from the last song of his Modern Times album: Bob explains in that song how his loyal and much loved companions (who have some understanding of the above) they approve of him doing things this way and they know Bob's code; his secret way in doing it that only those with ears to hear can get (those under Christ, too). Then Bob goes on explaining that he still in fact does practice his faith; though it is a faith long abandoned by many who once professed it in their personal lives or the West itself. He goes on talking about his long and lonely road where there is no need of institutional religion with its various altars and rituals. It it a lonely road because religious people who rely on those "altars" and "relics" cannot get where he is at, and of course neither do those who don't care to know Christ and continue in their own self-justifying life philosophy or view. So, it is a long and lonely road for many of us followers of the Truth; Jesus Christ.
There is a huge difference; in fact there is no such thing as religion connecting people to God, which it cannot do; and a relationship with God in Christ through what He did for us in dying on the cross and rising from the grave for us. Jesus dealt a fatal blow to our two biggest problems from which all our ills flow: sin (on the cross) and death (defeated for us when he rose from death). No need for altars and religious deeds to try and get to God. It will never work because of what Jesus did once and for all time in His death and resurrection for us.
So, there it is. Use your God given mind as you think on these things and listen to Bob's words, all the way through, in context. Not that complicated, again, for those who have ears to hear, just like Jesus said.
Most importantly, and Bob would agree, listen to God's Spirit of truth as revealed only in Jesus, who is God. Read the Bible a lot, especially the Gospel of John.

Have you stopped taking your medication again? Take your meds and go to bed!

-->who cares unless you happen to be one of those people who actually expects something from Dylan, a man who sorely vexed the beats and folkies when he went electric. Not that it matters because the beats and folkies are now living in Sun City or not at all?

You're daft. The Beats were fascinated, and when dylan came to san fran and ordered tea, Michael McClure, Lawrence Ferlingetti and Ginsberg ordered tea too, but only because he believed quite deeply that he and dylan should be lovers. Corso would have loudly rejected the tea, but sadly was not present that day. None of them would have made any distinction between strumming an acoustic or having a small combo behind you.

Meanwhile, yes, the nerds at Newport and a draft beer emboldened subculture that yelled at dylan from australia to manchester were certainly vexed, but most people are not very dogmatic about music, and Highway 61 was embraced by the pop music buying public.

At any rate the point is that all of this matters, to any student of the life and times of this thing we both live in called a nicely-aged civilization with a living memory of its artists (Its a cool thing to have, ask a billion people in china would were cut off at the knees by wholescale erasure of memory). Who cares who's still alive who was there, dude.

In fairness to Bogart, he has to write columns everyday, so one can't expect him to be an expert on every topic. Clearly he is confused by Dylan and what he experienced at the concert, but hey, Dylan is a tough study, especially in just one night. Dylan is a musical genius of sorts and of course his writing is sharp, multi-layered and at times many other things, including funny and mocking. He has a sense of humor about himself. Above all he's an individualist and an entertainer who is not boring, which is a feat in itself.

Oh God wrote:

<quoted text>
Have you stopped taking your medication again? Take your meds and go to bed!

Sorry you can't hear. Hope you do before it's too late. Til then, you won't cipher as much as Bob as you could. He never denied his Gospel days and his message remains hidden to you too often. So sad fer ya.

In fairness to Bogart's readers he should, at a minimum, not write that Dylan performed a song he didn't perform (especially when the set lists are readily available online).