Bob Dylan: Live 1961-2000

I don't know about you, but I couldn't make it all the way through Michael Gray's third edition of his Dylan book. My bookmark rests between pages 98 and 99. But at the start he reviews all of Dylan's albums up to 2000. He comments on how all the live albums (with the exception of the 1966 Bootleg, which had just been released then) are dire.

This collects a handful of tracks from those dire albums with previously unreleased tracks up to the 2000 UK tour, which I saw at Sheffield Arena. Predictably, then, it's a mixed bag. Few of the rarities are special. To Ramona is a favourite of Lucy's, and the version here is good, though the recording is very reverby. It's half useful to have recordings of Dignity (though I prefer Robyn Hitchcock's version) and Things Have Changed (though I prefer Barb Jungr's version). In Born in Time you can hear the point (in 1998) where Bob is still sort of trying to sing, whereas now his voice is shot and he just rants prosodically.

I haven't listened to this album very much, and I doubt Michael Gray has either.

MusicBrainz entry for this album