I’ve been working diligently on organizing all my files and getting my list up to date. I’m currently in the middle of a bunch of Bob Dylan shows. This batch is already labeled so that they sort chronologically so all I have to do is input them onto my list and then move them to the correct folder. So, I feel like I’m following Bob around on tour. One of the really fascinating things to me about Bob on tour, at least in the last decade or so, is that because he is touring all the time he no longer feels the need to just hit the big cities that everybody else plays at. He seemingly likes to play in more obscure corners of the world. I really feel like he’s trying to perform in every city on the planet.
In 2011 he did a big tour of Europe and on that tour, he played five shows in Germany. Now Germany is a big country, but I doubt any other artist plays five different German cities on their tours of Europe. Naturally, he plays in Berlin and Munich, but he also did stops in Oberhausen and Leipzig. No offense to those fine cities, and while they aren’t exactly obscure or tiny villages, neither are they the sorts of places big-named American rock and roll acts usually gig at.
Or maybe they do. What the heck do I know about concerts in Germany? I just think it’s cool that Bob’s list of cities he’s played a show at is enormous.
All of this is really just to say that I wanted to play around with my Google Drive a little more and I wanted to think about how my blog might look like in the future. I’ve talked a little about not wanting to do individual show posts anymore but maybe trying bigger posts with multiple shows in them.
So here is me posting six shows from Bob Dylan in Germany in 2011.
2011-10-23 – Oberhausen, Germany
2011-10-25 – Mannheim, Germany
2011-10-26 – Munich, Germany
2011-10-27 – Leipzig, Germany
2011-10-29 – Berlin, Germany
2011-10-31 – Hamburg, Germany
I haven’t listened to any of these shows so I can’t comment on the quality of the recording or the performance. I know 2011 isn’t exactly a year that Dylan nerds are constantly praising so it is a bit obscure that I’m randomly posting this. I was really just doing my sorting and thought it was cool that he did six gigs in Germany.
Please do let me know if you have any trouble with the links. But I’m also interested in what you think about doing posts like this. I like the idea of maybe doing posts like this once every couple of weeks or so. My plan would be to do something slightly larger, maybe include the entire European tour or something like that. But the basic format would be the same. I’d like to be able to say something interesting about the batch that I post and then would include links that would look something like what I’m posting here.
Does that make sense? Does that sound good?
This batch pretty much fills up my Google Drive for the moment, so I won’t be able to post anything more until I upgrade. I do have some Paypal money from the last begging session so I will be able to upgrade without begging again. But as I’ve noted in previous posts I really do want to get all my sorting done before I post regularly.
themidnightcafe.org 
Speaking as an aforementioned “Dylan nerd” 🙂
2011 is not a bad year at all 2008-2011 tend to get overlooked … not least because of the ‘circus organ’ but I am always pleasantly surprised when I throw on a concert from that period. 2012 wasn’t that great … and the 2013 shift to “The Set” certainly ushered in a new and not unwelcome era.
Regarding the cities … yes – totally agree. I have seen Bob in Mainz and Wurzburg in Germany – 2 towns I would never have visited or even know existed to be honest … and they were beautiful (in the Spring sunshine!) …
Thanks. I’ve listened to very little Dylan in this period so I appreciate the thoughts. Can you recommend a show from 2011 to listen to?
Hi Mat,
I live in the Netherlands and partly in Germany, because my wife is German. About the small cities in Germany: as you said Berlin, Munich and Hamburg are all (very) large cities. Leipzig is also a major town in the Eastern part of Germany. Mannheim (310.000) and Oberhausen (210.000 inhabitants), are the smaller cities. I think the choice of concert locations in Germany is mainly based on geographics. Hamburg is in the North, Berlin in the North East (and of course the capital), Leipzig in the East, Oberhausen in the West (near the Dutch border) Mannheim in the Southt-West and Munich in the South. With these locations the main part of Germany is coverd, except for the center (Frankfurt), but in other tours Bob is sometimes in Offenbach, which is near Frankfurt and indeed a small city.
Thank you for the information. As I said in the post I mean no ill will towards any of the places Dylan visits (German or otherwise). I just find it fascinating that in the later stages of his career he’s decided to tour in cities most artists skip. And I love that he hit so many places in Germany on this tour. I wonder if Dylan keeps a map somewhere and marks off all the places he’s been.
I’ve actually been to Germany a few times. I’ve been to Berlin, Munich, Berchtesgaden, Cologne and a few others places I’m forgetting. I got stuck in Frankfurt in the middle of the night once, which is a story I’ll tell some other time.
Dylan is my favorite artist, so I’m always up for Dylan posts! Thank you for this and for anything you choose to post of any kind. I like it that you are following your muse of what seems interesting to do next. That’s a good plan.
Also, since this is a post about Dylan in concert, a small plug for a Dylan book I’m involved in, for any who are interested. I designed the cover for this upcoming book containing interviews of Dylan sidemen – it’s going to be really good. I am only involved as the cover designer (and hopefully, the designer of the book when it gets laid out in Spring), and as a fan, so that’s why I’m sharing here. 🙂
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/book-of-interviews-with-bob-dylan-collaborators/x/9502084?fbclid=IwAR0UwQZ5Nwx9iD-NtW9Wnf-Ialyo0Q67V-zQMepHBQ21x9VAjyYQmzcQEN4#/
That is super cool. I subscribe to Ray’s newsletter and have read several of his interviews with those folks and they are always fascinating. Let us know when it hits the bookstores.
Thank you! Will do!
Mat, this is a great idea, thanks for everything you have done, are doing and will be doing, always do what you enjoy.Gary
Hey Matt. I think posting a run of shows like this is a great idea. It is always fascinating to listen to back to back Dylan shows and get a sense of how he was performing during a particular week, for example. If you can do more of this it would be fun listening for sure. Many thanks.
Hey Matt. I love this idea of posting back to back shows. It gives great insight into how Dylan was performing during a particular week or two and for me it is always a fun and fascinating listen to hear the small differences in how he performs songs from day to day. If you can do more of this it would be great. Much appreciated for what you do.
oops. Sorry for double comment! WordPress was asking me to sign in multiple times so it looked like the first one didn’t post! 🙂
Wordress can be so goofy some times, sorry it made you post twice. I appreciate the comment. I do plan on doing more stuff like this. I think it is a fun idea to post shows from one tour or some other grouping. Stay tuned for more!
Sounds good Matt. I’ve been listening to some Fall 1996 shows to get into the sound of Dylan from that time ready for Fragments! In fact I picked up the 2CD version this afternoon from my local record store. Still thinking about going to the department store tomorrow and trying to buy the 5cd set. Time Out of Mind is my favourite album so it seems crazy not to go for the deluxe set. But the financial hit is not good in these difficult times. I gave up my subscriptions to Dave’s Picks for the same reason which really was a tough decision.