There’s been a lot of Monday-morning quarterbacking going on surrounding Bob Dylan’s performance last night at the White House Civil Rights concert, with one English critic calling it the “worst” of the evening.
I think the arrangement of the song was really beautiful. I loved the spare acoustic trio. Bassist Tony Garnier, who has been with Dylan for two decades, of course drove the song. Who was the pianist? I love the repetitive, circular phrase he came up with – it really put the song in a whole different place, musically – a bit of modern pop with a hint of jazz.
I think Dylan wasn’t unsure of when to play guitar, as some have suggested. If you listen without watching (at the Bob Dylan Examiner) then you can really hear how he consciously chooses when to play. It’s a lot like a jazz trio in that sense. In any case, this has become Dylan’s playing style in general; it’s not much different from how he plays in his own concerts.
As for Dylan’s voice, sure, to anyone who hasn’t heard him since he recorded “The Times They Are a-Changin’,” he probably sounded awful. But to anyone who has been keeping up with him all these years, especially lately, he actually sounded great — he sang more melodiously than usual, he was always on key (Dylan NEVER sings off key), and he sang with particular conviction last night and original phrasing.
I do have one other question though (besides “who was the piano player?”).
Did it seem to you like Dylan was preparing to play a second song when a bunch of security guys swooped to the stage and pretty much led him off before he could start playing?
