Dylan opens New Orleans jazz fest

[DoYouEverWonder]

29 April 2006

Bob Dylan has opened the first New Orleans Jazz Festival since Hurricane Katrina ravaged the region last year.

Fats Domino, Bruce Springsteen and Elvis Costello will also appear at the event, which is being held in the city over this weekend and next.

A festival spokesman said it was "an important time to support New Orleans".

<snip>

Fans will be able to join the festival over the internet on both Sundays with live coverage of the 10 stages.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4955010.stm


I'm glad to see NO was able to keep this most incredible festival going this year. If you can go please do so, you'll never forget it.

[saltpoint]

1. Good for Bob Dylan and the others. Bravo.

"It was in another lifetime, one of toil and blood
When darkness was a virtue and the streets were filled with mud
I came in from the wilderness, a creature void of form
Come in, she said, I'll give you shelter from the storm..."

[CrazyOrangeCat]

2. "So now I'm livin' in another country

got to get back to her somehow
All the people we used to know
They're an illusion to me now
Some are mathematicians
Some are carpenter's wives
I don't know how it all got started
I don't know what they do with their lives
But as for me I'm still on the road
Lookin for another joint
We always did feel the same
We just started from a different point of view
Tangled up in blue."

Thanks for reminding me to put that album on! ;)

[saltpoint]

16. Hey there CrazyOrangeCat. Yep. What a terrific album it is.

[latebloomer]

24. I've seen love go by my door

It's never been this close before
Never been so easy or so slow.
Been shooting in the dark too long
When somethin's not right it's wrong
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.

Dragon clouds so high above
I've only known careless love,
It's always hit me from below.
This time around it's more correct
Right on target, so direct,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.

Purple clover, Queen Anne lace,
Crimson hair across your face,
You could make me cry if you don't know.
Can't remember what I was thinkin' of
You might be spoilin' me too much, love,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.

Flowers on the hillside, bloomin' crazy,
Crickets talkin' back and forth in rhyme,
Blue river runnin' slow and lazy,
I could stay with you forever
And never realize the time.

Situations have ended sad,
Relationships have all been bad.
Mine've been like Verlaine's and Rimbaud.
But there's no way I can compare
All those scenes to this affair,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.

Yer gonna make me wonder what I'm doin',
Stayin' far behind without you.
Yer gonna make me wonder what I'm sayin',
Yer gonna make me give myself a good talkin' to.

I'll look for you in old Honolulu,
San Francisco, Ashtabula,
Yer gonna have to leave me now, I know.
But I'll see you in the sky above,
In the tall grass, in the ones I love,
Yer gonna make me lonesome when you go.



Copyright © 1974 Ram's Horn Music

Columbia Records

[saltpoint]

26. Not too damn bad on the lyrics, is he. Not too bad at all. n/t

[shain from kane]

3. "So I drifted down to New Orleans

Where I happened to be employed
Workin' for a while on a fishin' boat
Right outside of Delacroix.
But all the while I was alone
The past was close behind,
I seen a lot of women
But she never escaped my mind, and I just grew
Tangled up in blue.

She was workin' in a topless place
And I stopped in for a beer,
I just kept lookin' at the side of her face
In the spotlight so clear.
And later on as the crowd thinned out
I's just about to do the same,
She was standing there in back of my chair
Said to me, "Don't I know your name?"
I muttered somethin' underneath my breath,
She studied the lines on my face.
I must admit I felt a little uneasy
When she bent down to tie the laces of my shoe,
Tangled up in blue."

[CrazyOrangeCat]

4. If you haven't read his autobiography, Chronicles . . .

. . . treat yourself, my friend.

:thumbsup:

[BeyondThePale]

5. What a beautiful read...

I fully agree COC. I was completely entranced by Chronicles!

[graywarrior]

17. Fantastic book

Rich with prose. And visual.

[Catch22Dem]

6. Saw Dylan and Willie Nelson last summer...

It was an AWESOME show. Willie has two of his sons playng in his band, and one kid can play some mean ass guitar!

[Zenlitened]

7. Dylan is a national treasure. So appropriate to see him...

... playing a part in restoring the national treasure that is New Orleans.

:loveya:

Great interview, audio, book excerpts etc. on the NPR site:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4080202

Click on the "listen" button right under the title, "Bob Dylan: A Conversation."


-- Zenlitened, rethinking her atheism in the presence of Dylan's greatness :D

[KamaAina]

18. Appropriate indeed. The whole point of "Highway 61 Revisited"

was that U.S. Highway 61 runs from near Dylan's boyhood home in Minnesota all the way down to the corner of Tulane and Broad in New Orleans, a couple of miles from the Fair Grounds where the Fest is. Young Bob Zimmerman used to listen to music broadcast from New Orleans late at night on AM radio, and it influenced him as it did so many others (e.g. Jimmy Buffett).

When I lived in N.O. around fifteen years ago, it was rumored that Dylan had bought a house on exclusive Audubon Place, off St. Charles just above Tulane Univ.

Oh, one more thing: Why the hell am I not down there?! :eyes:

[pitohui]

21. it was not a rumor

bob dylan had a home in audubon place for many years but i think his financial troubles in the late 80s or early 90s did him in there

[KamaAina]

28. What a coincidence; so did mine

but i think his financial troubles in the late 80s or early 90s did him in there

That would have put him out right around the same time as me. But see, he's back in, and I'm not. Ouch.

That he did in fact live and record in the home town is confirmed:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oh_Mercy

Daniel Lanois was best-known for high-profile projects like Peter Gabriel's So and U2's The Joshua Tree. He even produced the self-titled debut of Dylan's one-time collaborator, Robbie Robertson. Dylan would first meet Lanois in September of 1988, during of stop on the 'Never-Ending Tour.' Lanois was producing a session for The Neville Brothers, who were in the middle of recording Yellow Moon. (Two vintage Dylan compositions, "Ballad of Hollis Brown" and "With God on Our Side," would be included on Yellow Moon.) Held in a portable studio set up in an old colonial house in New Orleans, the session gave Dylan a first-hand look at what it would be like to work with Lanois. Dylan already liked the idea of recording in New Orleans, with its rich history in popular music, and witnessing the relaxed but professional nature of Lanois's work ethic persuaded Dylan to hire him as producer.

Six months later, Dylan began holding sessions, first at a house in Emlah Court, then to 1305 Soniat Street where they spent the bulk of their time. "We found an empty turn-of-the-century apartment building - a five-story building, a fantastic place," recalls Lanois. "It had a bordelloish overtone. We essentially turned the control room into a swamp...we had moss all over the place and stuffed animals and alligator heads...On the record there's not really the obvious presence of synethesizers, just straight-ahead drums and bass and guitars, yet there's this blazing strangeness around it."

Hmmm... Dylan, possibly U2, also the Stones ("Time Is On My Side" is an Irma Thomas cover, but you probably already knew that :-) ) ; maybe it would be simpler just to list the non-N.O. artists (even Britney Spears is from the region)!

P.S. In light of recent events, I've been reworking "The Balllad of Hollis Brown", which is set in South Dakothanger: "Seven women dead on that South Dakota farm/Somewhere in the distance, seven new girls are born..."

[DoYouEverWonder]

8. Live Broadcast on Sunday on the Internet!

Here's the link:

http://music.msn.com/music/neworleansjazz

Bruce Springsteen is headlining!

[lowreed]

9. This is Jazz? nt

[sofa king]

10. Forgive me for pointing out the obvious, but... where's the jazz?

Bob Dylan, Fats Domino, Bruce Springsteen, and Elvis Costello all have one very important thing in common: not one of them is considered a jazz artist. So why are they all headlining the New Orleans Jazz Festival?

Yeah, I know. Fats is a local and the others are lending a little bit of star power to a declining genre and a city which desperately needs some love. Still, I think it's a little sad.

[DoYouEverWonder]

11. The NO Jazz & Heritage Fest

has always been a mix of anything and everything. That's what so great about it. With 10(?) stages there's plenty of jazz. I think the fault is more with the writer who picked out the most recognizable names.

[Karenina]

19. WHERE are

Branford, Wynton and Harry????

I had a moment's je ne sais pas quoi, (SofaKins, YOU probably understand that tiny twinge) gave it a few minutes to settle and came out the other end thrilled and delighted to see so many wonderful musicians turning out to support NO.

[sofa king]

20. Eh, I feel a little less bad now... I guess

I looked at the official site and this appears to be the complete list:

Fats Domino, Bruce Springsteen with the Seeger Sessions Band, Jimmy Buffett, Dave Matthews Band, Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Lionel Richie, Keith Urban, Yolanda Adams, Herbie Hancock, La India, The Meters, Allen Toussaint w/ Elvis Costello, Etta James, Dr. John, The Ohio Players, Irma Thomas, Ani DiFranco, Keb’ Mo’, Hugh Masekela, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Koko Taylor, Pete Fountain, Doug Kershaw, Little Feat, Bishop Paul S. Morton, Sr., The Radiators, Sam Moore, Doug E. Fresh & Slick Rick, Warren Haynes, Angelique Kidjo, Yerba Buena, Chris Owens,Irvin Mayfield, Buckwheat Zydeco, Galactic, Deacon John, Rebirth Brass Band, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Donald Harrison w/ Eddie Palmieri, Snooks Eaglin,Cowboy Mouth, Clarence “Frogman” Henry, Kermit Ruffins, Roland Guerin w/ Marcus Roberts, Sonny Landreth, Walter “Wolfman” Washington, Terence Blanchard, the subdudes, Ellis Marsalis w/ Lew Tabackin, Nicholas Payton, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and many, many more.

There's a Marsalis on the A list, so I suppose I should quit whining. If there are "many, many more" acts than that, I'm sure lots of jazz is on the program. I wish I could go.

[pitohui]

22. jazz fest has just been a name for years

they try to have gospel, folk, a little bit of everything except hard rock

[harrison]

12. Saw Bob Dylan and Merle Haggard in Memphis the other

night at the Orpheum Theater. Great concert. Two legends. Understand that Bob is a pretty big Merle fan. Merle had a couple of little comments about Bush which elicited a few cheers.

I have seen Dylan about four years in a row. Funny thing is that he draws this mix of young and old. It is just really gratifying to see all these different ages coming together to listen to this man. Granted he does what he can with his voice these days, it is still Dylan. He has a great band.

I am so thankful that he still keeps touring.

I believe that it was George Harrison who said that 500 years from now, Dylan would be the one in all the literature books.

My daughter's first concert was to see Dylan. When he cranked up Tangled up in Blue. she was just blown away. Later, we went to see Dylan and Willie in Jackson TN. The clouds had been threatening all evening but the rain held off. Dylan's encore was Like a Rolling Stone. It was August and hot and it started sprinkling, and Bob was cranking out this most famous of songs. He had some kind of purple background in play. My daughter told me later that it was like a religious experience.

I thought so too.

I don't know how much longer Bob will keep doing this. He is closing in on 70, I think. Anyway, I am so grateful for this man and his music.

[madaboutharry]

13. May 24, 1941

is Dylan's birthday. He is going to be 65 years. He is embarking on a new radio career on XM radio which premiers May 3rd.

[pitohui]

23. he ain't 70 yet

as the other poster says, he's 65, however, he has had health issues in the past so might as well enjoy him while he's here

[DoYouEverWonder]

14. BBC has some nice pics from the Fest up

for the rest:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/4957392.stm

[skooooo]

15. Yay Bob!

:-)

[dancingme]

25. preview Dylan's XM radio show

Here's the press preview of the first show:

http://www.xmradio.com/b0bdy1an_s3c/

username: press1 password: xmr0ck5!

[Swamp Rat]

27. too bad locals can't afford to go anymore

:(