Uncut UK – October 2019

OCTOBER 2019 • UNCUT• 99

andanunspecifiedmenaceto“Make
YouFeelMyLove”thatanyonefamiliar
onlywithAdele’sversionmighthave
foundunsettling.
Andthencomessomethingwholly
unforgettable,a jaw-droppingversion
of“LikeA RollingStone”.Thesonghas
longsincebeende-fanged,drainedofits
originalpoisonedmajesty,itstowering
malicetransformedintoa crowd-pleasing
anthem,onesongatleastinvariably
presentedina mannerfamiliarenough
fora communalsingalong.Tonight,Dylan
seemsmischievouslydeterminedtodeny
thecrowdeventhatsimplepleasure.The
versionhenowplaysis resplendentin
unexpectedways,delirious,fractured,
kaleidoscopic;quiteunlikeanyiteration
anyofushaspreviouslyheard.Attimes,it
seemslikea hometoallkindsofAmerican
music.There’sa kindofTex-Mexlilttoit,
evenasSextonstartstosoundasif he’s
auditioningforoneofJamesBrown’s
bands,withthewholethingtoppedoffby
a sortoflopingcowboyrhythm.There’s
evena hintofLasVegasflashinDylan’s
exaggeratedcroonandLiberacepiano
flourishes.“Tellit tomeonetime!”he
testifies,lookinginbig-screencloseup
asif he’stryingnottolaughoutloud.The
audience,ofcourse,arekeentojoinin
thechorus,althoughthecrowdandBob
endupsingingthesamewordstorather
differenttunes.It’shilarious,electrifying.
A tender,heart-breaking“GirlFromThe
NorthCountry”is anotherindelibleset
highlight. Dylan was 21 when he recorded

itforFreewheelin’.... He’s 78 now,andso

bringsa lifetimeofsorrow,hurt,longing

andremorsetoitsperformancetonight.It’s

mostlyjustDylan’svoiceandpiano,Tony

Garnier’sboweduprightbass,Herron’s

achinglybeautifulpedal-steelfills,plus

anelegantSextonsolo.

Thesetendswitha fierce“GottaServe

Somebody”,a rarereminderofBob’sBorn

Againdays.Hereturnsfor“Blowin’In

The Wind”, Donnie Herron on bluegrass

fiddle.Thecrowdaroundmeareecstatic

whentheyrecognisewhatDylan’splaying.

Bythen,Bobandhisbandaregetting

swampyandnarcoticon“ItTakesA LotTo

Laugh,It TakesA TrainToCry”.It’sa low-

keyclimaxthatmakesthecrowdthink

NeilwillsoonbeontojoinBobfora more

obviouslyshow-stoppingfinale.They

don’tappeartogethertonight,however,

savingthatforNowlanPark,Kilkenny,two

nightslater.Dylanlinesupwithhisband,

handonhip.Hegivesa littlebowandhis

Chaplinesqueshuffletakeshimoffstage,

a disappearingfigure,shouldershunched.

Andthenhe’sgone.Thenight stirs in his

absence. ALLAN JONES

L I V E

“LikeA Rolling

Stone”is resplendent

in unexpected ways

LIAM CARROLL

BOBANDNEIL

COMEFULLCIRCLE

“Inthesky,Lord,intheskyÉ”

D

YLANandYoungdidn’tappear

togetheratHydePark,disappointing

many.Twonightslater,however,

atNowlanPark,Kilkenny,NeiljoinedBob

forwhattheformerlaterdescribedas“a

celebratorysharedgoodbyetoouroldfriend”,

a versionofthepopularChristianhymn“Will

TheCircleBeUnbroken?”forElliotRoberts,

whoatonepointmanagedbothmusicians.It

wasoneofthesongstheydidthefirsttimethey

everplayedtogether,atthe 1975 SNACKBenefit

atSanFrancisco’sKezarStadium.

Dublin-basedwriterandcriticDesTraynor

wasattheKilkennyshow:“‘PayInBlood’had

justrockedtheplace.Therewasa pause.Then

NeilYoungjustwalkedonwithhisacoustic

guitar.HewentovertoDylan,whowas

standingatthepiano.Dylansaidsomething

toNeilthatmadehimlaugh.Thentheyplayed

‘WillTheCircleBeUnbroken?’.Therewas

noexplanationofthechoiceofsongorits

significance.Butthen,Bobdoesn’tintroduce

hisownsongseither.

“TheydidthemorewellknownCarter

Familyversion,a funeralsong,ratherthan

theolderchurchhymn.Dylantookthefirst

verse,followedbyNeil.Therewasa long

instrumentalbreakafterthesecondchorus

thatgota bitlost,butDylan’spianorescuedit.

Attheend,thepairshookhandsandclapped

eachotherontheshoulders.ThenDylanjust

gotonwiththerestoftheshow.Thenext

numberwas‘LikeA RollingStone’,whichwas

soextraordinarytherereallywasn’ttimeto

dwellonthefactwe’djustseenBobDylan

and Neil Young playing together.”

Comesa time:Young

andDylanplaytogether

for“ouroldfriend”in

Kilkenny, July 14, 2019