BOB DYLAN : RETURN TO ME, BELLA MIA

 

Disc One (72:31)

  1. Maggie’s Farm
  2. Mr. Tambourine Man
  3. Most likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go mine)
  4. Man In The Long Black Coat
  5. Rollin’ And Tumblin’
  6. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
  7. ‘Till I Fell In Love With You
  8. Workingman’s Blues #2
  9. Highway 61 Revisited
  10. Ballad Of Hollis Brown
  11. Po’ Boy
  12. Summer Days
  13. Return To Me

Disc Two (77:08)

  1. Thunder On The Mountain
  2. Like A Rolling Stone
  3. All Along The Watchtower
  4. Spirit On The Water
  5. Blowin’ In The Wind
    Bonus Tracks :
  6. Cat’s In The Well
  7. Don’t Think Twice It’s Alright
  8. Things Have Changed
  9. Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum
  10. Make You Feel My Love
  11. It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)
  12. Beyond The Horizon
  13. Love Sick

Label : The Godfatherecords

Venue : Mandela Forum, Florence, Italy

Date : April 18, 2009

Quality : Audience recording (A+)

Comments from Bob's Boots : The Godfather has a nice flare for creating these tri-fold card covers. They are much more appealing and durable then the oft used digipacks, although, harder to locate in a collector's stack because there is no printed spine. Godfather recordings are usually very sharp, and this one is no exception. The recording is clean and the vocals are way out front. It's nearly flawless other than an tape splice during audience applause after Ballad Of Hollis Brown. There are wonderful venue photos included, as well as a venue poster on the front, altered slightly to add the name of the release. The name comes from the Dean Martin cover that Dylan performs for the grateful Italian audience. Dylan released a studio version that is a bit upbeat from Martin's. It was released on the soundtrack The Sopranos - Peppers and Eggs. Dylan sings the last verse in Italian, just as Dino did. Both versions were on youtube until Bill Clinton pressed for their removal. Thanks Monica's Dude!

More comments from Bob's Boots : It just seems a natural for the Godfather to release this one. Some have complained about their package aesthetics. They use plain white sleeves to house the discs, and the discs themselves are all generic Mario puzzo puppet-master logo along with the disc title. This show is the final Italian performance. One slight let down for this reviewer is Man In The Long Black Coat. The dark, menacing and brooding in the original is just intense. I was thrilled to see it added to the show, until hearing the original ominous tune reworked as a country swing. One of the many highlights is Workingman's Blues #2. The discs average about 75 minutes a piece, with disc two being completed with unique songs that were performed the night before. It's a great move for Godfather, but unfortunately, the bonus tracks are not so clean and close up. All in all, though, this is a fine release that you're sure to enjoy. An offer you can't refuse!

Comments from Collectors Music Reviews : Return To Me, Mia Bella contains the complete third and final show in Italy on Bob Dylan's most recent tour of Europe. Godfather use an excellent sounding stereo audience recording which is very crisp, deep and powerful and what Dylan fans come to expect from modern day concert recordings. There is a small but after "Ballad Of Hollis Brown" but no music is lost. It is obvious Dylan wants to come out charging at the Florence audience by the choice of material in the first part of the show. "Maggie's Farm" is played as the opener on this tour for the first time in years. This new arrangement emphasizes the bitterness in the words. "Mr. Tambourine Man" is played in an arrangement emphasizing a martial beat. "Most Likely You Go Your Own Way" is a frequent inclusion in Europe and contains the same bite as the 1974 arrangement which both opened and closed most of those concerts. But the first true surprise comes with "Man In The Long Black Coat." Dylan comes out from behind the keyboard to play guitar on this song. The dark and mysterious mood this song creates is almost completely abandoned in favor of a quick paced country tempo. The opening salvo ends with the stage thumper "Rollin' And Tumblin'." Things slow down a bit for "The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll" (but just a bit). As the band pound the waltz tempo Dylan growls the narrative of the unjust death. Dylan moves back to center stage with harp only for "'Till I Fell In Love With You" (Godfather have a picture from this song on the interior of the sleeve). This is followed by "Workingman's Blues #2? which one review writes: "Bob sang this song with a rare intensity and proofed that this song is a gem (it reminds John Lennon's 'Working Class Hero' thirty years or so after)." It is truly moving, but comparisons to the Lennon song are inaccurate because Dylan misses the intense anger of the Lennon song. "The Ballad Of Hollis Brown" burns with despair in this arrangement and it is only when they play "Po' Boy" that things begin to lighten up a bit. "Summer Days" (two songs from Love & Theft played in a row is rare) is followed by Dylan's cover of the Dean Martin standard "Return To Me" and even sings the final verse in Italian: "ritorna a me.solo tu solo tu mio grande amore!" Something which is truly unique at a Dylan concert. "Thunder On The Mountain" has Dylan playing around with various intonations of the words. "Like A Rolling Stone" turns into a giant sing-a-long with the Florence audience. Two relatively quiet songs, "Spirit On The Water" and a "Blowin' In The Wind" dominated by violin close the show. As a bonus, and to provide as much music as possible, Godfather offers eight of the eighteen songs from the previous evening in at the PalaLottomatica in Rome. The sound quality of the tape unfortunately doesn't measure up to Florence. It is distant but strangely enhanced by tremendous echo and crowd cheering. It is listenable, but not what Dylan collectors come to expect. The songs are taken from various parts of the show with no duplication with the Florence set list. The opening three songs of the show start with "Cat's In The Well" and a version of "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" played to almost comic effect. "Things Have Changed" features Dylan on guitar and "Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum," a song popular in Europe, features Dylan at center stage with harp. Return To Me, Mia Bella is another sterling Bob Dylan release on the Godfather label. It comes packaged in the tri-fold gatefold sleeve with several pictures from the Florence show on the front and insert.