Live, Early 1980
CS production
1. Gotta Serve Somebody - Los Angeles, February 27, 1980
2. Covenant Woman - Seattle, January 15, 1980
3. When You Gonna Wake Up - Knoxville, February 5, 1980
4. Monologue: Ronnie Hawkins As Bob Dylan - Toronto, April 20, 1980
5. Ain't Gonna Go To Hell For Anybody - Toronto, April 20, 1980
6. Cover Down, Pray Through - Toronto, April 20, 1980
7. Saving Grace - Seattle, January 15, 1980
8. Do Right To Me Baby (Do Unto Others) - Knoxville, February 5, 1980
9. Monologue: The End Times - Toronto, April 20, 1980
10. Solid Rock - Portland, January 16, 1980 *
11. What Can I Do For You - Portland, January 16, 1980
12. Saved - Toronto, April 20, 1980
13. Pressing On - Seattle, January 15, 1980
14. Are You Ready? - Toronto, April 20, 1980
15. I Will Sing - Akron, May 18, 1980
* Introduction from April 20, 1980
With regard to the nuances of the performances themselves, Dylan's on-stage style in 1980 differed little from 1979. In my personal experience of the recordings, particularly in the Winter months, the bass and drums stand out more prominently than the keyboards. Spooner Oldham and Terry Young remain important players, but Tim Drummond and Jim Keltner are more clearly felt than they had been at the 1979 concerts. Certain songs here highlight that more than others - "Do Right To Me Baby," "Solid Rock" and "Are You Ready" are fantastic vehicles for Bob Dylan's rhythm section.
The concerts themselves were extraordinary, as was Bob Dylan's appearance at the 1980 Grammy Awards. He played "Gotta Serve Somebody," and even managed to add some new lyrics and a smoky harmonica solo. His raps continued in 1980, though they were comparatively limited according to the extant tapes. We are lucky to have a record of his comments at a Toronto concert in April 1980, and these makes up the bulk of his prose commentary here. This, surprisingly, includes something of a reflection on his notoriously poor reception by a college crowd in Arizona during the preceding year's tour. Dylan weaves that experience together with his expectation of a forthcoming apocalypse, but manages to make the entire story compelling through his uniquely engaging stage voice. Additionally, he ruminates humorously upon Ronnie Hawkins role as Bob Dylan in the poorly received film Renaldo & Clara; it really makes you wish he spoke a bit more often, eh?
There's not much else to say - early 1980 presented something of an expansion and refinement of Bob Dylan's 1979 shows. Audiences were treated to new songs, though no radical reinventions of his gospel tracks. A cover managed to work its way into the set, briefly, but was then dropped again. It seems that this particular style of performance had run its course; by Fall 1980, the singer would be incorporating secular covers and older compositions with his post-1978 catalog in concert.
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