Times They Are A-Changin,’

And Dylan Is Changin,’ Too

By M Stefani Us

Bob Dylan, legendary icon, graced the stage at Essex Junction’s Champlain Valley Fairgrounds last Sunday evening, just as the sun set around 8 p.m.

A blinding flash of sunlight streamed through the clouds like a spotlight onto the stage, as if to herald the entrance of the star, who lost no time with introductions and started right in with his opening song "Leopard Skin Pill-Box Hat."

The mixed audience of old hippies, young teens, kids and the odd lady actually wearing her leopard skin pill-box hat, roared with approval and the concert was off to a good start.

Dylan moved on to the "The Times They Are A-Changin’" perhaps a comment on his stage presentation of his songs. His voice, forever raspy, remains the same, but his song arrangements are continually changing and sometimes not for the better.

I could not recognize his rendition of "Girl From The North Country" with an inverted chord arrangement. Some people disappointed with his act, expected the troubadour Dylan of old, but found an almost suave black-suited musician with his signature white felt bolero, playing most of the set on the keyboards.

The band members were all dressed in matching shiny brown suits and black hats, reminiscent of the Blues Brothers meeting the Lounge Lizards; spitting out boogie-woogie numbers and waltzes, inviting anyone listening to jump up and dance; but Dylan, as many of us know has "nothing to live up to."

I myself found him entertaining, as always; unequalled by anyone; he is one of a kind.

Then, as if conjured up by a magician, the stage turned red, lighting the satin backdrop and set the stage for a driving version of "It’s Alright Ma" with Donnie Herron on the violin, as if outplaying the devil, himself. Shifting the mood again from the fiery red, back to a softer blue, he moved into a sweet, waltz tempo version of "Ramona" with Tony Garnier on the bass fiddle and Herron on the violin.

After about five songs, he switched to the keyboards, tapping his feet and with everyone else, had a "whopping good time" for the rest of the night. He finished the two-hour show with the encore "All Along The Watchtower" and introduced his band members: Tony Garnier, on bass; Donnie Herron, on violin, lap steel; Denny Freeman, on lead guitar; Stu Kimball, rhythm guitar; and George Recile, on drums.

(Stefani Us is a former resident of Rochester, where she served for awhile as photographer for The Herald.)