Bob Dylan Live 1975 (The Bootleg Series Volume 5) [LIVE]

Bob Dylan

Product Details

• Audio CD (November 26, 2002)
• Original Release Date: 1975
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Live
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B00006NT3H
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (129 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #7,468 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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• This item is part of The Bob Dylan Bootleg Series.

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You

2. It Ain't Me, Babe

3. A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall

4. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll

5. Romance In Durango

6. Isis

7. Mr. Tambourine Man

8. Simple Twist Of Fate

9. Blowin' In The Wind

10. Mama, You Been On My Mind

See all 11 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. It's All Over Now, Baby Blue

2. Love Minus Zero/No Limit

3. Tangled Up In Blue

4. The Water Is Wide

5. It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry

6. Oh, Sister

7. Hurricane

8. One More Cup Of Coffee (Valley Below)

9. Sara

10. Just Like A Woman

See all 11 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

One of the many oddities of Bob Dylan's long and unruly career has been the rather cursory recording treatment given his stint as ringleader of the Rolling Thunder Revue. It's a shortcoming that's rectified with the release of Live 1975. Prior to the appearance of this two-disc collection, Rolling Thunder's eclectic road show was chronicled only in the infrequently screened, Dylan-directed Renaldo & Clara film and the bafflingly brief and one-note 1976 live set, Hard Rain. In contrast to its predecessor, this set, culled from four appearances made in November and December of '75, captures the breadth and subtleties of Dylan's Rolling Thunder performances. "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You," formerly a coda from Nashville Skyline, is given a rather incongruous bite here, while "It Ain't Me, Babe" is colored brightly by multi-instrumentalist David Mansfield along with erstwhile David Bowie guitarist Mick Ronson, the sparkplug of the gratifyingly ragtag group that coalesced on short notice. Solo acoustic performances weave through caterwauling full-band treatments of songs old ("The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll) and new ("Hurricane" and four other selections from Desire, which wouldn't hit the racks until early '76). While the contributions of a number of caravan cohorts and guests are left out, Joan Baez shares the spotlight with Dylan on four numbers, most notably on the rarity "Mama, You Been on My Mind" and the traditional "The Water Is Wide." But despite its cavalcade trappings, it was Dylan's show, and this collection demonstrates finally just how close to his '60s peak the '70s Dylan was. --Steven Stolder

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the Best Live Releases Ever!, January 6, 2003

By	mark "weeping_guitar" (South Dakota) - See all my reviews

This fifth entry in Dylan's much hailed Bootleg Series chronicles the his legendary carnival like 1975 tour, the Rolling Thunder Revue. Legend says that Dylan wanted to do something fresh so he got together a new group of people, some new and some old, and set out to re-invent himself with new energy and purpose. This set, which was taken from shows in the early parts of the tour, displays Dylan at some of his most free and open, feeding off his assembled band.

Once of Dylan's best qualities is the fact that no matter how old, new, bland, or ballsy a song of his is, he has the power to change it to be whatever he wants it to be. He can re-invent everything from the mood to lyrics without making the song any less powerful. Anyone who has seen him on tour lately can attest to that and it's just as obvious here.

Featuring some, at that time, new material the tour had to be a treat for fans because I can't imagine the songs can sound anymore passionate than they do on the record. A good bunch of songs that ended up on the 'Desire' record (which I do not yet have) are quite spectacular. Many thanks to the splendid violin work of Scarlett Rivera, which adds some extra flavor to already great songs. "Isis" is Dylan at his most passionate, "Sara" at his most open, and "Hurricane" at his most political.

Songs like "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" and "Love Minus Zero/No Limit" are that much more touching with Dylan injecting spirit into them with his voice being in top form. "Tangled Up in Blue" can stand side by side with it's studio counterpart, this time Dylan's coming across even more personally part of the song. "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" is even more tense and dramatic here than the original with Roger McGuinn of Byrds fame lending a hand.

Folk singer Joan Baez contributes vocals to a couple of tunes and her vocal performance is the perfect compliment to Dylan's rough voice. Being an old friend of Dylan, she fits naturally into songs from his early career like the classic "Blowing in the Wind" and one of his more well known unofficially released tracks "Mama, You Been on My Mind".

Although bootlegged many times over, this will easily stand as the definitive issue from the legendary Rolling Thunder Revue. A treat for Dylan's newest fans and longtime fanatics alike, it captures the freewheeling, loose feeling that the tour was supposed to be all about. One only can hope Columbia keeps pushing these Bootleg Series releases out as they've been nothing but universally hailed as worthy releases (a sixth one is already slated for next year). The 2 video and one audio bonus DVD adds that much more to the set, allowing the viewer to grasp the collective feel the tour was about as well as getting a glimpse of Dylan in one of his more unique looks with his mysterious white face paint.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Glad it's out officially for everyone to hear, December 1, 2002

By	Judy Becker (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

Had Dylan taken the Rolling Thunder Revue through the midwest instead I would have been lucky enough to hear this music live as a college kid. Instead I heard "Mama, You Been on My Mind," "The Water is Wide," and the intense live versions of "Romance in Durango" and "Isis" on a vinyl bootleg a friend turned me on to the following spring. That was just the beginning. A few months later I picked up another bootleg which contained for me the definitive versions of "It Ain't Me Babe," "Just Like a Woman," and "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" (Providence, R.I.) CDs brought along CD bootlegs and later I got a great two-CD set from the Boston Music Hall (from which several songs for this new official release are drawn). For years I've made tapes of this sweetly magical gypsy-circus rock and roll music for friends, and am glad now everyone can hear it so easily (and in such powerfully clear sound). In response to the reviewer critizing bootleggers for muddy sonics, I'd just say, at least they didn't wait 27 years to put it out! If you like this record, I'd encourge folks to seek out songs left off: "When I Paint My Masterpiece," "Never Let Me Go," "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine," "Dark as a Dungeon," and "This Land is Your Land," among others. Still, the sound here is revelatory - three-dimensional at times, especially Scarlet's violin on "Durango." Other highlights include "Mr. Tambourine Man," maybe Dylan's best version ever of this song, (and muffled on my bootleg) "Love Minus Zero/No Limit," one of Dylan's most tender ballads, rendered beautifully here, and "One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)," reminding us what superb album Desire was (strange how these songs have vanished from Dylan's current repertoire). To CBS: how about something from 1997-2002 next? The current piano/covers tour is fantastic. Will we have to wait until 2029 for that one? (Bootlegs available now.) Or how about a complete issue of the basement tapes (most of the songs still unofficially released after 35 years). Thanks, though, for this one. It'll be in my player for a long time.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Could this be the best Bob Dylan album?, November 28, 2002

By A Customer

I can't take these discs out of my cd player. I play them over and over again. These are some of the best performances of these tunes I've ever heard. His energy is very high - but not that "charge through the song as fast as I can" stuff. He's focused, he really interprets the lyrics - hell - he even enunciates clearly. You'll be surprised, as I was, that his acoustic work here is far better than it was on the previous "bootleg" release from 1964. The song selection is also outstanding, without a single clunker in the group. And this rag-tag pick-up band does a great job of staying right there with him - without the strained shrillness of the '75 (?) concert performance he did with The Band. He's clearly having a great time, and it's very infectious. The DVD is a nice touch with performances of Tangled Up in Blue and Isis. This album also demonstrates, for those who don't already know, that the songs from Desire are among his best. Superb liner notes, too. I can't say enough good things about this album. If you're a Dylan fan, this is an absolute "must-have".