Don't Think Twice.....

Seeing a great live band is a joy, seeing a transcendent live band is a rarity, and seeing all of the above, fronted by one of your heroes, is beggaring belief. I got all of that, and more, last night when Bob Dylan tore the house down at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, gamboling gleefully through his back catalog. His classics were brilliantly reinterpreted by a cracking backing band, who plundered the history of American music to create a sound both simultaneously new and familiar. Their sound was all ringing guitars, galloping drums, and deep bass, augmented by fiddle and lap steel, and coated with liberal doses of Dylan's harmonica playing, punctuated by gorgeous, short, rich guitar solos.

After a few songs, one of my friends tapped me on the shoulder and commented on the broad demographic around us. It ran the gamut from old hippies and middle-aged corporate types to high-fiving frat boys and tattooed girls. Three albums into a creative streak that matches his best, the latest a number one smash, Dylan is at the top of his game, and a lot of people are going along for the ride.

As a musician, the best live shows send me rushing home to my guitar, filled with the joy of music. I have a show coming up on the 28th at the Bottom of The Hill, and am completely inspired after seeing this fantastic concert.

Check out The San Francisco Chronicle's great review here.