Dylan’s Rough and Rowdy Ways Tour

[teh]

Last night, I attended Bob Dylan's sold out show at the newly restored Warner Theatre in Erie, PA. My son called me at 4:30 PM yesterday and told me he had scored two free tickets so we went. It's hard to imagine that Bob Dylan has been touring since I was 5 years old and this was the first time I've ever seen him live. My thoughts and observations:

Bob and his 5 piece band walked on stage exactly at 8 PM and played without a break until 9:45 PM. He introduced the band at 9:30, thanked the audience after the last song and they all walked off with no encore. The performance was really well crafted and delivered flawlessly. Bob's singing voice was in fine shape last night. No spotlight on Bob, only the stage lighting.

Bob played piano for the entire set and added harmonica for the last song. His band included two guitar players, a bass player (upright and electric), a drummer and pedal steel guitarist who also played mandolin and fiddle.

During the second half of the show, I would estimate that about 50 audience members left their seats and never returned. My guess is that they left for one of three reasons: 1) They were disappointed that he didn't play one classic oldie or the guitar; 2) they had to use the bathroom and it was tough to navigate the seats in the dark; or 3) It was past their bedtime.

When we went through security, they made every ticket holder silence their phone and gave each of us a small locking bag to put our phone in during the performance. It was clear that they wanted no recording and it was actually nice. It was interesting to watch the behavior of a theatre full of adults who couldn't use their mobile device for two hours. When we walked out, security unlocked each bag and we removed our phones.

In closing, I was glad I went and the price was right. Getting to attend a sold out concert in the newly renovated Warner Theatre that opened in 1931 was a great experience.

[ducktrapper]

Thanks for the review. I've seen Dylan six times over the years and was only disappointed once. Funny about the phones. When I saw him in Fargo circa 2006, I had a digital camera around my neck and security would not let me in. I offered to give them the batteries but no. Since we walked down to the venue, I had to walk back to my motel, leave my camera and return. At the time, I complained that many people had phones with cameras and they were being let in. Looks like they've corrected that loophole. As for people walking out, it's a garden party.