Bob Dylan last night in Little Rock - dude's getting old.
The tour is kind of a jazz/beatnick cafe deal with soft lighting, they all wear hats, some of the songs are almost spoken poetry, it's different and cool. He played the piano almost exclusively. Maybe played the strat for 30 seconds in an early song.
However, it was also boring. It didn't help that the people sitting next to me were the most spun-out people I have ever encountered (meth I'm guessing). When I sat down, guy was chugging a pint of clear liquor. Lights go out he lights up a joint. Fair enough, it's a concert - you expect this stuff... maybe not in an indoor concert hall - get a vape or some edibles fuckstick. But that dude was rocking back and forth, screaming and shit. On a 1-10 scale of 1 is stone cold sober and 10 is you spontaneously combust from having too much meth in your system, this guy was way past Tuco Salamanca. A human can't drink and smoke that much shit and still be that wound up with out meth or something similar. It's hard to relax and lean into mellow jazz night sitting next to that.
I told my son this when we were entering "this guy is going to do it his own way - don't expect a greatest hits sing-along... we'll take what we get." I was absolutely correct. Then leaving, this was my commentary "dude's a legend - if he wanted to sit up there, strum one string and piss down his leg... he's earned that, and people would come watch. But don't expect me to say "great concert." Living legend doesn't equate to awesome show." I guess I'm officially old.
Supposedly he's playing with Willie for some Outlaw deal in Austin this summer - maybe that will be a better showing.