Bob Dylan Live 1975 (The Bootleg Series Volume 5)

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
One of the many oddities of Bob Dylan's long and unruly career has been the rather cursory recording treatment given his stint as ringleader of the Rolling Thunder Revue. It's a shortcoming that's rectified with the release of Live 1975. Prior to the appearance of this two-disc collection, Rolling Thunder's eclectic road show was chronicled only in the infrequently screened, Dylan-directed Renaldo & Clara film and the bafflingly brief and one-note 1976 live set, Hard Rain. In contrast to its predecessor, this set, culled from four appearances made in November and December of '75, captures the breadth and subtleties of Dylan's Rolling Thunder performances. "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You," formerly a coda from Nashville Skyline, is given a rather incongruous bite here, while "It Ain't Me, Babe" is colored brightly by multi-instrumentalist David Mansfield along with erstwhile David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson, the sparkplug of the gratifyingly ragtag group that coalesced on short notice. Solo acoustic performances weave through caterwauling full-band treatments of songs old ("The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll) and new ("Hurricane" and four other selections from Desire, which wouldn't hit the racks until early '76). While the contributions of a number of caravan cohorts and guests are left out, Joan Baez shares the spotlight with Dylan on four numbers, most notably on the rarity "Mama, You Been on My Mind" and the traditional "The Water Is Wide." But despite its cavalcade trappings, it was Dylan's show, and this collection demonstrates finally just how close to his '60s peak the '70s Dylan was. --Steven Stolder

Bob Dylan Live 1975 (The Bootleg Series Volume 5), Music, Bob Dylan - Rolling Thunder Revue, Album Rock, Folk-Rock, Pop, Rock, Rock & Roll, Rock/Pop, Singer/Songwriter

Average customer rating:

Dylan is king!

perhaps lower expectations are in order

This album rocks!

Another classic from the Bootleg Series with some essential takes

I LOVE THIS!!!!

Bob Dylan Live 1975 (The Bootleg Series Volume 5)
Bob Dylan - Rolling Thunder Revue
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
General | Contemporary Folk | Folk | Styles | Music
Singer-Songwriters | Contemporary Folk | Folk | Styles | Music
Folk Rock | Rock | Styles | Music
General | Rock | Styles | Music
Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
General | Classic Rock | Styles | Music
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No Direction Home: The Soundtrack (The Bootleg Series Vol. 7)

Before The Flood [Live With The Band, 1974]

ASIN: B00006NT3H
Release Date: 2002-11-26

Tracks:

Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You
It Ain't Me, Babe
A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall
The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
Romance In Durango
Isis
Mr. Tambourine Man
Simple Twist Of Fate
Blowin' In The Wind
Mama, You Been On My Mind
I Shall Be Released

Tracks:

It's All Over Now, Baby Blue
Love Minus Zero/No Limit
Tangled Up In Blue
The Water Is Wide
It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry
Oh, Sister
Hurricane
One More Cup Of Coffee (Valley Below)
Sara
Just Like A Woman
Knockin' On Heaven's Door

Amazon.com

One of the many oddities of Bob Dylan's long and unruly career has been the rather cursory recording treatment given his stint as ringleader of the Rolling Thunder Revue. It's a shortcoming that's rectified with the release of Live 1975. Prior to the appearance of this two-disc collection, Rolling Thunder's eclectic road show was chronicled only in the infrequently screened, Dylan-directed Renaldo & Clara film and the bafflingly brief and one-note 1976 live set, Hard Rain. In contrast to its predecessor, this set, culled from four appearances made in November and December of '75, captures the breadth and subtleties of Dylan's Rolling Thunder performances. "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You," formerly a coda from Nashville Skyline, is given a rather incongruous bite here, while "It Ain't Me, Babe" is colored brightly by multi-instrumentalist David Mansfield along with erstwhile David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson, the sparkplug of the gratifyingly ragtag group that coalesced on short notice. Solo acoustic performances weave through caterwauling full-band treatments of songs old ("The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll) and new ("Hurricane" and four other selections from Desire, which wouldn't hit the racks until early '76). While the contributions of a number of caravan cohorts and guests are left out, Joan Baez shares the spotlight with Dylan on four numbers, most notably on the rarity "Mama, You Been on My Mind" and the traditional "The Water Is Wide." But despite its cavalcade trappings, it was Dylan's show, and this collection demonstrates finally just how close to his '60s peak the '70s Dylan was. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews:

Dylan is king!.......2007-03-09

These discs have been in my cd player since I purchased them a month ago. Dylan's painted face allows him to be more diverse. It has songs that feature just Dylan and his guitar and others with his stellar band. For any Dylan fan interested in the bootleg series, this is a great starting point. I have several others in teh bootleg series, but few are as fun as this one. He just rocks!

perhaps lower expectations are in order.......2007-02-15

Some of you are not going to like this review, but buyers will need some candor here. Dylan really is great, and his often great work in the 1970s is generally underappreciated. But this live set is not the place to learn to love Dylan. If you're curious about this title, my recommendation is go pick up his studio recordings of the mid- to late-1970s, beginning with the remastered titles. These are lovely, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes groovy, and often superb. If you already have these, then, if you choose to get this title, you might set your expectations a little lower.

The main problem with Live 1975, as a reviewer below notes, is the singing--or, as one might better say, the bellowing. Dylan has one of rock's great voices and in his studio recordings, including his studio recordings of the 1970s, he sings with astounding emotional authority (where does he get that, one wonders--how does anyone get that?!). In these Live 1975 tracks, however, Dylan is out of voice, bellowing either to be heard or else to "voluminate" in lieu of giving a more emotionally nuanced vocal performance. This is not an uncommon failing of concert recordings, but the present case is quite pronounced and I agree with the reviewer below that it seriously taints the enjoyment of these disks.

I may as well go on to note that the sound of the band is quite dense here. I think it's not a performance problem or an engineering problem, but one of arrangement: there are too many instruments crowding the middle range, so it sounds a bit like an undifferentiated wall of sound. Again, rather characteristic of the 1970s live sound, but rarely the case with Dylan's studio recordings.

In short, if you're curious about Dylan in the 1970s, there are better places to look. My favorite of the Live albums is the 1964 one.

This album rocks!.......2007-01-18

Without a doubt one of Dylans best recordings. I was blown away hearing this for the first time, and the twentieth for that matter. This album was just recently released and is a must have for any Dylan fan. If you're looking for a gift for a Dylan fan this is it. Most fans have the popular titles, Blood on the Tracks, Route 66 Revisited, etc. but there's a good chance they don't have this title yet. Guaranteed not to disappoint.

Another classic from the Bootleg Series with some essential takes.......2007-01-12

The Rolling Thunder Review live collection is a close second to Live 1966 as the most essential live Dylan album ever released. Throughout these recordings, a revitalized and energetic Dylan hollers out his new and old classics to a rambunctious crowd of random people (the show traveled like a circus and had little to no publicity) and reinvents many of his old songs along the way.

This series of shows, like many of Dylan's great post-'65 concerts, features a combination of hard-rocking band numbers and solo acoustic songs. He's got a great band, too, with several guitarists, a tight rhythm section, a violin, and even a pedal steel guitar. With this rocking ensemble he reworks several classics into hard rocking barnstormers. "It Ain't Me Babe" and "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" groove at quick paces and sound almost unrecognizable from their folky original versions. "It Takes a Lot to Laugh" and "Just Like A Woman" are transformed from their delicate studio incarnations to anthemic rockers. Likewise, Dylan's new material (soon to be recorded in the studio as Desire) rocks hardest of all. The versions of "Hurricane" and "Isis" recorded here put the studio versions to shame, performed with fire and energy here that makes these versions the essential recordings.

Some of the album's best moments are the acoustic tunes. The recent hits "Tangled Up In Blue" and "Simple Twist of Fate" sound great, and duets with Joan Baez like "The Water is Wide" channel Dylan's folk past while at the same time remaining firmly rooted in where he was at that moment.

The Rolling Thunder Revue presents Dylan in one of his most daring and original endeavors, and the excellent liner notes tell the story quite well. This collection contains a great selection of classics as well as some great songs that are under-represented in Dylan's live catalog ("The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carrol"). It's a wild ride and a rewarding listen that I heartily recommend.

I LOVE THIS!!!!.......2006-12-06

I absolutely love this double album. Growing up I owned a bootleg of the rolling thunder revue. Unfortunatly it got lost, however this cd did make up for it. The re-working of "it ain't me babe" is great, and the Joan Baez duo of "mama you've been on my mind" is really good with the country/rocking feel. My one slight problem with this is that "NEVER LET ME GO" was left off...that is not cool

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