Wilkes Barre, PA (21-Nov-02)

Without a doubt, the fall 2002 tour is one of Bob's best of all time, and this show is no exception. The band is on fire from the opening notes of Maggie's Farm to the apocalyptic ending of All Along the Watchtower. The cameraman tends to focus on Bob at the piano with Tony and George wedged in the background, but also benefits from an amazing angle at which to tape Charlie Sexton's guitar playing, which he takes almost full advantage of and which will no doubt please serious guitar players like myself.

Highlights include a rockin' Highway 61 Revisited and an intense Watchtower which includes the most intense Charlie solo I have ever heard. I highly recommend this show to all fans of the fall 2002 tour, or live Dylan in general

Thanks to jman for the discs, and sorry it took so long for the review (it escaped my mind).

This is an excellent show-i really liked the cover tracks-Brown Sugar and Old Man.
Must have for fans of Bob Dylan.

Zooms are kept to a minimum in this nicely shot audience video. Most of the shots focus on Bob, or Bob and Tony, but there are several other set-ups that include the rest of the band members. We never get the feeling of Bob being isolated from the musicians. The high angle on Bob and piano affords a good, but somewhat obscured view of his fingers on the keyboard. The audio is fabulous, with the piano up in the mix. And he sounds pretty good for the most part.

Highlights include a gentle “I Remember You” in which the melody is sung straight until after the bridge, at which point Bob adds some syncopation. “Accidentally Like a Martyr” is sung with such sadness that it almost becomes moribund. I never realized what a great song this was until I heard Bob sing it. The same goes for the other Zevon song, Mutineer,” which casts such a pall of gloom over the proceedings that I felt Zevon was inspiring Bob from the hospital bed. The acoustic version of “Never Gonna Be the Same Again,” with a picked guitar break between each lyric and tom and cymbal punctuation from the drums, is a monumental improvement over the “Empire Burlesque” arrangement. Another highlight is this new version of “Shelter From the Storm,” similar to the old rockabilly arrangement but with the abrasive tempo changes made less obtrusive by the string band’s evenhandedness.

The show opens with a strong “Maggie’s Farm” which the audience chattering over the piano solo. Bob swings “Highway 61.” So does the cameraman. There is some unsteadyness here. Charlie gets a good close up on his solo. “Things Have Changed” has a well-written lyric, but the song has never taken off in concert. It’s never become anything other than what it is. The same can be said for other blues-based tunes in this show, including “Honest With Me,” “Cold irons Bound,” and “High Water” which finally came into its own in 2004.

“Brown Sugar” was a big surprise at the concert, but doesn’t bear repeated listenings. It is slightly better than the covers that were slopped out at the Toad’s Place gig in 1990. Bob’s PC changes to the lyric are disappointing. The other cover, better. Charlie’s harmonies give it a Neil Young sound and Bob holds up his end remarkably well.

The last part of the show drags, with a “Bye and Bye,” a song that seems always to begin in a distracted hush, that never coheres and a vocally weak “Summer Days,” which should be subtitled “Chuck Berry Turns 75,” as it may be the first bona fide rock song written for a senior citizen prom. The last instrumental choruses are hot, though, and there is a terrific shot of the full band that lasts for several minutes.

All in all, a superior show filmed very well.

with the appearance of #D041.su, we now have 2 excellent versions of this show, 21/nov/02, in circulation (see also #D595.su)

as noted in the DVD listing, this film is slightly less focused, but much more dynamic with zooms and pans, than #D595.su. Again, the author has done an excellent job with the soundupgrade- for me a dead give away is when I forget about it while watching the film :-) Authoring also features an enjoyable slideshow with 'electrifying' effects thrown in, and fixed video gaps...Kudos and thanks to the author!

so, again, it is now really a matter of personal taste as to which of these versions you prefer. Currently, my taste is running to the longer/wider shots and clear image of #D595.su. the reader will have to choose for themselves.

For my thoughts on the performances, see my review for #D595.su, suffice it to say that this is a great show and I recommend grabbing up either or both of the excellent SU's that this author has produced.

Thanks always to everyone involved in bringing this DVD out including dvdylan.com, and especially, thanks to Bob Dylan.