Bob Dylan - 'Genuine Live 66'

 

Bootleg label Scorpio put out this 8 CD set entitled 'Genuine Live 66' in 2000.  If you are into Dylan enough to start hunting down bootlegs of his material, then this set is essential.  Like the official 'Live 66' album it covers his tour of that year, unlike the official release though, it goes into far greater detail on every level.  The 1966 world tour, is arguably the peak of pre-motorcycle crash Dylan, when our anti-hero was strung out on amphetamines and desecrating acoustic folkie expectations night after night for an audience that largely hated him. 

This set collects together concerts from Australia, England, Ireland, Denmark and Scotland, and packages them in the box in full color paper jackets inside mini "LP" gatefold cardboard sleeves along with two detailed booklets crammed with info and great pictures, three postcards and a poster (all included in the freeload).  Far more love and attention has gone into this than many "official" releases.

Recorded from the original 3-track source tapes, quality is superb throughout, which when coupled with the stellar performances really impress.  Both electric and acoustic performances are first-rate, and you can tell Dylan is on top form throughout this tour.  One of my personal favorites are the acoustic tracks recorded at the Gaumont Theatre in Sheffield, which are real gems.  One of the great things about Bob's live performances is his passion and interest in the songs and constant effort to try and keep them fresh, whether through completely altering lyrics and jumbling things around as in a lot of his later concerts, or as he does here, by really living the words and bringing out all the little subtleties and nuances in each song.

I love the electric version of "I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)" that he was playing on this tour, especially the May 14 version from Liverpool.  You can hear him give an amusing (probably amphetamine fueled bunkum) explanation of "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" according to which the song is about a painter, Tom Thumb, who was from Juarez but living outside Mexico City, and, "When Tom Thumb was going through his blue period, this was one of the most important times of his whole life." Bob repeatedly performs his mumbling trick, wherein he quiets the crowd by murmuring indistinctly into the microphone, which prompts everybody to shut up, the easier to discern the word of their oracle.

CDs 1&2 - 'A Phoenix In April'

• Recorded at Sydney Stadium, Sydney, Australia - April 13, 1966

CD3 - 'The Children's Crusade'

• Recorded at Melbourne Festival Hall, Melbourne, Australia - April 20, 1966

CD4 - 'While The Establishment Burns'

• Tracks 1-7: Adelphi Theatre, Dublin, Ireland - May 5, 1966
• Track 8: (presumably) K.B. Hallen, Copenhagen, Denmark - May 1, 1966
• Tracks 9-10: ABC Theatre, Edinburgh, Scotland - May 20, 1966

CD5 - 'A Nightly Ritual'

• Tracks 1-10: The Odeon, Liverpool, UK, May 14, 1966
• Tracks 11-12: A Glasgow Hotel Room, May 19, 1966

CD6 - 'The Genuine Royal Albert Hall Concerts'

• Tracks 1-9: Gaumont Theatre, Sheffield, UK, May 16, 1966
• Track 10: Odeon Theatre, Birmingham, UK, May 12, 1966

CD7 - 'The Genuine Royal Albert Hall Concerts'

• Tracks 1-5: Manchester, UK, May 17, 1966 - 3 track tape
• Tracks 6-12: Royal Albert Hall, London, May 26, 1966 

CD8 -'The Genuine Royal Albert Hall Concerts'

• Tracks 1-7: Royal Albert Hall, London, May 27, 1966
• Track 8: WBAI Radio, NYC - 1/19/66

 For the freeload, post one verse from your favorite Bob Dylan song