BOB DYLAN : SOMEONE'S DISTANT CRY

 

Disc One (73:16)

  1. Gotta Serve Somebody
  2. Million Miles
  3. Maggie's Farm
  4. I Want You
  5. Stuck Inside of Mobile of mobile with the memphis blues again
  6. Masters Of War
  7. Mama, You Been On My Mind
  8. Tangled Up In Blue
  9. To Ramona
  10. Can't Wait
  11. Positively 4th Street
  12. Highway 61 Revisited

Disc Two (73:37)

  1. Love Sick
  2. Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat
  3. Blowin' In The Wind
  4. Not Fade Away
  5. Gotta Serve Somebody
  6. Million Miles
  7. Watching The River Flow
  8. Make You Feel My Love
  9. Stuck Inside Of Mobile with the memphis blues again
  10. Masters Of War
  11. One Too Many Mornings
  12. Tangled Up In Blue
  13. Friend Of The Devil

Disc Three (42:28)

  1. 'Til I Fell In Love With You
  2. Every Grain Of Sand
  3. Highway 61 Revisited
  4. Love Sick
  5. Everything Is Broken
  6. Blowin' In The Wind
  7. Not Fade Away

Label : Thinman Records

Venue : Lehigh University, Stabler Arena, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA + Broome County Arena, Binghamton, New York, USA

Date : February 18 + 19, 1999

Quality : Soundboard Recording (A+)

Comments from Bobs Boots : Wow! What a release! First, let's get the bad news out of the way. While this is a three disc set, it's of two consecutive nights, so there is repetition. The second show is a slightly better one in performance and sound quality. There is not quite enough material for a third disc, so disc three is only about half full at 43 minutes. It perhaps would have been best to release this as a double concentrating on the New York show with bonus material from Bethlehem. Finally, while this is the first appearance to silver, there were two or three different recordings of each show that have circulated among traders. These are perhaps the best, but in between tracks there are brief digital skips or splices in the audience applause when tracks change. It doesn't affect any song, but some might find it a tad annoying. Two particularly bad instances are between the first two songs of disc two and the second and third song of disc three. It happens just as Bob is thanking the crowd. Those are rarities that should have been preserved better. While the Thinman's aesthetics are getting increasingly more spectacular, they need to address the mechanical aspects of the mastering as well. This could have been a better release without the digital noise splices in between every track. With all of that out of the way... don't let any of it sway you from grabbing this title. The sound quality is up front and in your face. Many tracks are Label releasable quality. As a matter of fact, This recording of Million Miles from Broome County Arena was the title track to the 1999 officially released 4 track promo CD "Million Miles: Live Recordings 1997-1999". The title is a play on the fact that you can hear distant cries in between songs, and a cool line from Love Sick that was performed at both shows. After Bob sings the title line in New York, listen for a girl's distant cry. The photos are great throughout the entire package. The front cover photo shows Bob with green lights hitting him. Green lights never look good on anyone, but Thinman goes with the flow and uses a green theme for the set. The inserts are the same high grade, glossy, heavy card stock that this Label has been getting a reputation for. Both shows start off in the standard way of the tour, but four songs in we get to hear one of the highlights of this set. Out of the five tours of 1999, I Want You was only performed four times. On the winter tour, it was performed twice in 1998, but this is the only '99 Winter tour performance. Dylan switches to acoustic guitar for some more highlights. Masters Of War is slowed down, dark and brooding, and the audience responds with bursts of applause at the end of each verse. Then comes another surprise... the tours only outing of Mama, You Been On My Mind. It takes the audience a few moments to catch on, but they explode after the first verse. The beat of this cool and funky version of Tangled Up In Blue almost puts you in mind of Steve Miller's "The Joker" in places. Larry Campbell's great mandolin playing just helps to set it off. To Ramona is light, airy, delicate, breath like... and again, owes a lot of its finesse to the mandolin. And, as always, the harmonies on Blowin' In The Wind soar into the stratosphere. It should have closed the show, as Not Fade Away is almost an anti-climax. The following night's show is better, and includes some of the same highlights, as well as some new ones. As stated earlier, Million Miles was thought to be good enough for official release, followed by a feel good version of Watching The River Flow. Then we're treated to another TOOM instant classic, a beautiful Make You Feel My Love. The Dead's Friend of the Devil is a highlight of the acoustic set, partly because of the sweet harmonies that do the Dead justice, but mostly because it's the one and only performance of the 1998-1999 Winter tour. The audience is most appreciative. Another true to form TOOM song, and then, yet another unique tour song... the hauntingly beautiful Every Grain Of Sand. Blowin' In The Wind is even more spectacular the second night. Bob draws out the words to create some beautiful phrasing, and the late harmony of the final word is reminiscent of bluegrass gospel. Not Fade Away grooves better tonight and doesn't sound as awkward in the final slot. All said and done, then... the handful of negatives are so far outweighed that this title hits the must have list for 1999 shows. Truly, a couple of the better shows of the tour.

Note : I fixed the track transitions on my copy.