So.....Dylan and DBT.
It was to be a momentous show. A storied venue, a line-up of legends and would-be legends.
The evening started off well. We got in an hour earlier than gates, and enjoyed free quesadillas, and over-priced Budweiser beer. It was actually really cool to have some time, under the shade of a tree with Fem-Rabbit. Gates officially opened and we ambled into the venue's seating area, and proceeded to bump into some of our DBT show friends.
Leon Russell is starting to look feeble. His voice, however is still on. I think a huge venue is such a disservice to a man whose music deserves love and attention, and heck even some swaying bodies up by the stage. His rendition of "Wild Horses" set my knees shaking, wondering how he was still managing to bring such soul to a worn-out, over-covered song.
It was during Leon's set that I started to get a bad feeling about the crowd and how the atmosphere was going to be set for the evening. There was a woman who was dancing up by the stage, who was asked by security to sit down. She wasn't dancing outrageously, wasn't being belligerent (as far as we could tell), but simply was allowing the music to overtake her. In other words, she was enjoying herself. The other odd thing was the lack of any type of enthusiasm in the crowd, except for polite golf claps when the band had ended a song. To give you an illustration, the man in front of my wife was doing a crossword puzzle.
When Leon ended his set, I looked behind us. No one was in the row. There was behind that a family of 3--teenage daughter, mom and dad. I leaned back and let them know I intended to stand for the next band, that they were a favorite, and would that be ok. They said, absolutely go right ahead. Thinking I had dodged a potential bullet by getting their graces, I sat easy in my seat until DBT came out.
Around 8pm, DBT emerged and entered the stage. The lights went down, and we stood up. There were pockets of us standing up dancing, and enjoying DBT. All was well until the beginning of the second song when I felt a *tap tap* on my shoulder. I turn around and see security standing behind me. I'm asked to sit down. I reply that its ok, that I've been given a grace card by the people behind me. I'm told, no, in fact someone else it complaining. Now, I get it. Don't misinterpret this as me not getting it. I'm 6', I weight 2something. I have long hair, and a beard. I take up space. But--don't send security to talk to me when you could easily come down and ask me politely to sit down. Common courtesy. Anyway, when I look back there is a dude, probably mid-60s motioning me to sit down with teeth bared, eye-brows furrowed, obviously angry. I mime an "are you serious" motion, and get it again. I look at the security person and say "This is a rock show, right"?
We sat down. I could've fought it, but you know what--it wasn't worth it. There was a couple about 5 seats from us that decided to fight it. They were being booed and yelled at, and I may have even seen a water bottle thrown. They eventually relented as well. For a band like DBT to have people sitting, reserved and essentially catatonic was just odd. I expected a radical shift in audience, but nothing like this.
We came to the conclusion that this show for probably 85% of the audience was their one concert experience of the year. The one where ma and pa cut loose and share a beer. The one where they get to reminisce about their teenage years. I can respect that. But at the same time the audience was almost geriatric (literally). When I saw Mr. Zimmerman 5 years ago the audience was a majority 40/50 year olds. This audience had a large contingency of 60/70 year olds. No lie.
But back to the music. DBT played pretty much what you'd expect. Fairly low-key, and safe. We didn't expect them to burn down the house, so it wasn't a let-down. It was just great to see them in the context of this line-up, and what could possibly be the last east-coast show in awhile.
As for Dylan...his voice is utterly shot. Its becoming a caricature of an imitation of his voice. Still, he brings a style, and elegance to the stage. He was wearing wide-brimmed hat, and black suit with red-piping. While his voice is shot, and his staggering dance moves arthritic in nature, his harmonica skills are still very well intact. He had some breakdowns that were actually pretty awe-inspiring. His backing band was incredible as well. Very tight, and very polished. I swear his lead guitarist is the incarnation of Robbie Robertson. He even looked the part. Dylan did a few classics then launched into his newest album material. What little enthusiasm the crowd had shown during those first songs, was gone as soon as he started up into new material.
Few observations about Dylan fans at Merriweather:
There was a certain feel of nostalgia in the air as when we rolled up people in line were playing Dylan on their phones. Used to going to shows where there is a strict "do not play or wear anything related to the band before a show" mentality.
Dylan didn't have any merch that was new in design. Everything harkened back to 70s (Rolling Thunder Revue), pictures of him in the 60s. He obviously knew his audience.
Best fan I saw was the teen who dressed up like Dylan on the Rolling Thunder Revue complete with white face makeup.
So, it was an interesting night. I'm glad we went, because well, to be honest anytime you can see Dylan its an honor. But mostly I'm glad I could support a band I love on a night that marked a milestone for them. The fact that it was an hour from home was that much sweeter. The whole standing thing was a bummer, but it created fodder for our discussions and brought those us there in the tribe closer.
.gif)
