BOB DYLAN & PATTI SMITH : BETHLEHEM 1995

 

Disc One (73:59)

  1. Introduction "Hello Bethlehem" (Patti Smith)
  2. Wicked Messenger (Patti Smith)
  3. Dancing Barefoot (Patti Smith)
  4. Ghost Dance (Patti Smith)
  5. Walking Blind (Patti Smith)
  6. Beneath The Southern Cross (Patti Smith)
  7. Not Fade Away (Patti Smith)
  8. Crash on The Levee
  9. Lay Lady Lay
  10. All Along The Watchtower
  11. You're A Big Girl Now
  12. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight
  13. Silvio

Disc Two (76:20)

  1. Mr. Tambourine Man
  2. Desolation Row
  3. Mama You Been On My Mind
  4. Dark Eyes (with Patti Smith)
  5. Seeing The Real You At Last
  6. Ballad Of A Thin Man
  7. Alabama Getaway
  8. The Times They Are A-Changin'
  9. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35

Label : Hip Records

Venue : Stabler Arena, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA

Date : December 13, 1995

Quality : Audience recording (A-)

Review : A great audience recording with one of the most beautiful and inspiring versions of "Mr. Tambourine Man" I've ever heard. Must have been because Patti was around.

Concert Review (Panix) : Patti was off by 8:50, but there was so much dead air that her set was only 7 songs. (Two electric up front and at the back, as opposed to the standard three, and there was no "Because The Night" or "People Have The Power"). Her cold was evident, despite really valiant efforts by Patti to make sure that it didn't show. I actually felt guilty during "Dark Eyes", as she was obviously struggling and hoping that she wouldn't crack. To put illness on top of this inhumane schedule (not one day off in 11) just made me feel slimy for being a part of it, even as a lowly paying customer. Still, the most enthusiastic overall appreciation came for the reminders of Dylan (the opener, "Wicked Messenger") and the Dead ("Not Fade Away") and it wasn't enough to get an encore. It was Patti's exit after "Dark Eyes" in Dylan's set that got people to actually show some lovin' - a sudden rush of mad (mostly female) fans running up to the front of the wide floor aisles just to say "Hi" or cheer her on. (You'd think it was a rush of Green Day moshers the way security swooped down, but I digress. This coincided with that moment in BobShows where he allows the aisles to be occupied, so little damage was done. Dylan's gentle coaching on lyrics she was forgetting was probably the single most touching thing I've ever seen on stage.)