Dylan provides soundtrack to historic night

November 5, 10:00 AMTwin Cities Performance Art ExaminerBrad Richason

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On the evening of November 4th, 2008 a sold-out crowd filled the University of Minnesota’s Northrop Auditorium for a performance by Bob Dylan, but for many in attendance the ongoing presidential election remained at the center of their thoughts. Obama T-shirts were as ubiquitous as the distinctive red stickers proclaiming, "I Voted." In the auditorium’s lobby, CNN election coverage was projected onto a screen above an engrossed crowd.

With such a pivotal event still being decided, it would be understandable for the audience to crave classic Dylan staples befitting the occasion. But just as the oft-repeated theme of this presidential election has been Change, Dylan maintained his long tradition of eschewing decades old renditions in favor of compelling new variations of his catalogue.

An ecstatically received The Times They Are A-Changin’ was presented as a country waltz. This Wheel’s On Fire was transformed into a roots rocker. And Highway 61 Revisited charged ahead with a musical ferocity that amplified the impact of the song’s satiric lyrics. Such musical reinvention is aided enormously by Dylan’s seasoned backing band, many of whom have been with the performer for years. At literally a tip of the hat, the band can adjust an arrangement, reset the tempo, or expand for another verse. Dylan has referred to the group as, "the best band in the land," a claim that isn’t hard to believe.

While no longer prone to bantering with a crowd, Dylan seemed in good spirits, frequently stepping away from his keyboard to take center stage with his harmonica. For the last verse of the wistful Shooting Star, Dylan even played guitar, an almost unheard of occurrence in recent years. Some will always quibble with the roughness of Dylan’s voice, forever lamenting that the man no longer sounds as he did two decades ago. What such criticisms fail to acknowledge is how expressively Dylan uses his vocals. On the caustic Masters of War, for example, Dylan’s gritty intoning delivers like a funeral dirge.

On this historic night, though, neither Dylan or the audience were in the mood for brooding. Cheers had met the "revolution in the air" line from Tangled Up in Blue and the "President of the United States must stand naked" line from It’s Alright, Ma. None of the earlier applause compared, however, with what met Dylan’s brief words to the crowd - just prior to his last song - that "It looks like things are going to change now." With that introduction, the band strummed into a heartfelt Blowin’ in the Wind.

As the crowd filed out of the auditorium, the sentiments of that anthemic last song still resonating, they were greeted by the projection of CNN declaring the presidency for Obama. Joyful cheers erupted, spontaneous embraces broke out, and tears of hope filled many eyes. Dylan’s songs have never belonged to any political party, but with any person who connects with the music. On election night, that connection felt like an affirmation that a long-sought change had finally been achieved.

SET LIST: Cat's In The Well / The Times They Are A-Changin' / Summer Days / This Wheel's On Fire / Tangled Up In Blue / Masters Of War / Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again / John Brown / Beyond The Horizon / Highway 61 Revisited / Shooting Star / It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) / Under The Red Sky / Thunder On The Mountain / Ain't Talkin'

ENCORE: Like A Rolling Stone / Blowin' in the Wind

(Set list thanks to Bob Links)