Fall of 1992 Tour Listening Guide

This is the final tour that Bob came out and played a few tunes with just his acoustic guitar and harmonica holder each night

I really enjoy the final tour of 1992, so take my opinions with a bigger pinch of salt than usual. Picking out highlights is difficult because almost every night Bob's solo acoustic sets were all superbly done (see: every single Mama, You Been On My Mind)  so even though I didn't list each one out as a highlight every time, they're all pretty much kick ass and yes for you historians this is the final tour that Bob came out and played a few tunes with just his acoustic guitar and harmonica holder each night but it's more important than just history, these shows are also spectacular to hear. I wish Bob would break out the solo set once more because, as these tapes prove, he focuses so much harder when it's just him out there, and the results can be fun as hell! 

Here's my ever-changing quickie list of my favorite shows from this tour:

1. October 28 - Springfield

2. November 1 - Wilkes-Barre

3. November 9 - Sarasota

4. October 12 - Binghamton "Dust My Broome"              

5. November 4 - Coral Gables

6. October 25 - Providence 

7. November 11 - Clearwater  

October 9 — Pittsburgh  

Sound: 8 (vocals are easily discerned and the instruments are crisp, good crowd level as well)

Highlights: It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding), Don't Think Twice, it's All Right

Comments: This being the first concert of the fall Bob needs a couple tunes to warm up, but once the solo spot comes up he's ready and just nails the rest of the show. His timing on certain songs that have jarring tempo changes is a little off, but he always seems to pull the song out of the fire in the end.

Bottom Line: The highlights (like the ending 3 note harp on Don't Think Twice) will have you wagging your head in amazement and the rest of the concert is not far behind. A solid beginning to a short but sweet tour.
 

October 10 — Lock Haven

Sound: 5.5 — average sound for an audience tape from 1992. Everything is in the tape though, adjust your ears and settle in
Highlights: It's All Over Now, Baby Blue, The Man in the Long Black Coat
Comments: Bob pulled harp on Maggie's Farm three times in October, and this is one of them. The crowd is hanging out waiting for something to happen but Bob and the band are turning in quite the ordinary effort tonight and there's never that initial spark or moment which takes the music to a better place.
Bottom Line: Average sound on this curiously mellow concert. Not many great moments and there is a definite lack of energy when compared to the night before. Unless you want them all, you can pass this one up.
 

October 11 — Rochester

Sound: 7 (echo on the vocals and the guitars and bass are buried under the drums. It rates a 7 because it gets better as time goes on)
Highlights: The harp on Just Like a Woman, the guitars on Silvio. No vocal highlight to speak of unless you want to count It Ain't Me, Babe, but Bob sang this perfectly every single night on this tour...

Comments: Slightly better effort than last night, still not up to the sustained effort of Pittsburgh.
Bottom Line: Bob never got into this concert vocally. The band was tight, but Bob's mailing it in vocally. Better overall concert than last night, but not essential.

October 12 — Binghamton "Dust My Broome"

Sound: 7.5 — vocals are distinct but suffer from a touch of venue echo. The guitars are surprising clear and separated, but the drums obscure the bass greatly)

Highlights: It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry, the Tony and Bob ending of It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding), Unbelievable, Queen Jane Approximately, It Ain't Me, Babe

Comments: A vast improvement over Rochester, the band is in fine form from the start and Bob sounds great. This bootleg omits the opener of Everything is Broken, so I can't comment on that one until I hear it. From the second song of Peggy-O, they're in a groove. Thing is that Bob and the guys want to play some rock and roll, so they inadvertently jam out each ballad, so Simple Twist of Fate is affected by this a bit. At least Bob bookends it with some harp. On the other ear, a song like Positively 4th Street is helped by just such a playing style, and it moves and snaps, unlike the usual slow arrangement. The crowd is back tonight, but the recording isn't sharp enough for them to be a major factor anyway. They're reduced to white noise for the most part here. The acoustic set is superb as always, Bob has no trouble switching gears when it comes time for him to go out alone and play. Oh, and a note to the fan who cries out for Highway 61: Try shouting out your request before or after Bob has an acoustic guitar in hand. Unbelievable kicks off the second electric set with a bang, and the fun lasts right on through to the end a beautiful It Ain't Me, Babe.

Bottom Line: Well, from a bootleg point of view this is incomplete (missing the opener) and there's no filler tracks, so I'd say it doesn't really succeed as an artifact as such. Complete versions do circulate, so I'd hold off picking this one and go instead for an unbooted fan source. From a concert point of view, this is a great performance and well worth finding. 

October 23 — Newark

Sound: 7.5 (bass does not exist on this recording. The vocals are loud and floating above your head, the crowd is below and close, the cymbals are on the same level as the guitars. The rest of the drums and bass are nowhere to be heard unless you do some serious tweaking. Despite how bad I made this sound just now, it's definitely listenable and almost pleasant on the acoustic songs, jumping as high as an 8 in sound on those)

Highlights: the acoustic set is wonderful, as is the closing It Ain't Me, Babe

Comments: Bob is rushing his vocals at the start tonight. Everything is Broken is a frantic crackhead bad trip, but the swift singing actually work to an odd effect on Positively 4th Street. He starts dropping the second half of verses down an octave or two, and his phrasing is wild, daring and chaotic. The crowd is talkative tonight, I think between the crowd standing and dancing, the crowd sitting and yelling at them to sit down and the security stuck in the middle, some focus is lost on the music being played. It Takes a Lot to Laugh is the first real highlight of the night, with Bob and the boys jamming it out all the way. Bob murders Tangled, singing the first set of lyrics correctly, but then he's already going to a topless place in the next set of lyrics. He then goes back and sings the "she was married when we first met" set. Then Bob figures since we already know about the whole strip joint thing, he goes right into living with them on Montague Street and so on. It's like tearing all the pages out of a book and reading them in random order. The next highlight is Boots, as it usually is, and Bob nails the lyrics here, twisting very gentle vocals around the sparse guitar. The problem is the one or two chucklehead morons near the taper who are yelling "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" after a few of the lines. Why in God's name would you cheer and whoop through a solo acoustic song? I wasn't around for the folk shows back in the 1960's but even I have enough sense to shut the hell up and listen.

Bottom Line: Solid show, but nothing special.
 

October 24 — Storrs

Sound: 7.5 (a tad muddy but the vocals are clear. The crowd is cool)
Highlights: She Belongs to Me, Little Moses, Mr. Tambourine Man, the harp on Queen Jane
Comments: In 1992 the band would play every fast song with this sudden breakdown part where it would get real quiet and Bob would blow in with some harp or they would build things back up and just continue. It didn't really work that effectively most of the time, but it did for Shelter this night...
Bottom Line: What a difference a week or two makes. Bob and the boys are refueled and they put together a great show here. Put this one on your want list today!

October 25 — Providence

Sound: 8.5 (clean sound, perfect vocal clarity, the band is nicely behind Bob, nice job, Mr. Taper Man! You may have been standing next to a drunk chucklehead but you sure can make a mean tape!)

Highlights: Dear Landlord, the entire acoustic set is a mindblower, etc...
Comments: Maybe the guy next to the taper isn't drunk, I think he's probably high. I could never understand aggressive social stoners, why didn't this guy stay out in the parking lot pimping his general admission tickets for twice face value instead of staggering in and picking the exact spot next to our covert hero? Ah, I'm just kidding, he's very quiet during most of the songs, hell I'd probably be hooting louder than him if I got to see this concert live. Back to the show, I love the way Bob abruptly ends his harp solo when the harp pisses him off during Don't Think Twice...you'll know it when you hear it.

Bottom Line: This blows last night at Storrs away, and Storrs is a great show. Even Silvio kicks ass. Get yourself a copy of this one.

October 27 — Burlington

Sound: 7.5 (the overall sound is a little distant and the vocals have just a hint of venue echo. The band is playing inside a blender, and while you can hear everything it's poorly separated. Much, much better on the slower songs)

Highlights: Mama, You Been On My Mind, Boots of Spanish Leather, What Good Am I?

Comments: First of all, somebody please clamp a muzzle over that girl next to the taper who is on speed and babbling through everything. Laughing and cheering is one thing, but stop talking already you stupid wretch. Thank you. What, don't look at me like that, somebody had to say it. Bob comes out on fire tonight, he sprints through I Can't Be Satisfied and Peggy-O and finally hits a stride with Watchtower. The intro is a full minute of building tease, Bob toots a bit on the harp, the song jams. Silvio is a meandering mess, oh brother, what's with the drum solo? Jesus, give me a break. Have I mentioned a billion times before how much I love these solo acoustic sets? It takes me back to the 1960's a little, even though I wasn't around, it reminds me of how those old acoustic shows sound. Listen to the harp on Mama You Been On My Mind and tell me I'm wrong. Same with Boots, those warm vocals cut right though the crowd. Masterpiece is just that, what a fun, light version. What Good Am I is the standout track from the encore set. Bob seems to have trouble deciding on a vocal pace so he sort of wings it and what do you know, he makes it work. He stretches one of the lines out for about a year and a half or so.

Bottom Line: Good, solid show!

October 28 — Springfield

Sound: 8.5 (very similar in sound to the Providence show on the 25th, with a little more punch and oddly enough it sounds like the same chucklehead drunk has at times apparently hitched a ride on the tour bus)

Highlights: the entire thing

Comments: My favorite show from this Fall 1992 tour, please go get it and hear for yourself. Yes, I know this is no help from a strictly "review" point of view, but if you like 1992 at all you should probably track this one down. No spoilers here, just go get it. If I reviewed this like the others I'd be here for an hour and I'm just not going to do it. All I can say is that I listen to this one all the time and if you want to know what's so damn special about this tour look no further. In other words, don't write 1992 off as a nasal mess until you've heard one or two from the Fall, starting with this one.

Bottom Line: !

October 30 — Beverly

Sound: 8.5 (another great sounding tape with nice separation and superb upfront vocals. And for once the crowd is back  down in the mix where they belong. Great stuff here)

Highlights: All Along the Watchtower, When I Paint My Masterpiece, What Good Am ?

Comments: Who is the announcer for these gigs? Dude needs a sedative, seriously. This concert doesn't maintain the high bar set by Springfield but it's still a solid effort. It's almost a shame this tape is doomed to remain largely unheard as it's sandwiched in by 2 of the best shows Bob played all year long.

Bottom Line: Worth hearing, but get Springfield and Wilkes-Barre first. 

November 1 — Wilkes-Barre

Sound: 8 (good separation, vocals out in front, the crowd has a little fun between numbers but that kind of adds to it a bit, at least they're respectful during the songs, more or less)

Highlights: West L.A. Fadeaway, She Belongs to Me, the entire solo acoustic set is even more inspired than usual,

Comments: One of the top 5 concerts from 1992, this is not a recording, this is not a recording, blip bloop...

Bottom Line: I do prefer Springfield over this concert because there are a few songs here that are only decent whereas the Springfield show is just solid brilliance, but this is in the top three concerts of fall 1992, and certainly in the top 10 of the entire year. His guitar playing on John Brown is reason alone to track this down, but not the only reason by any stretch...why not get this and Springfield and judge for yourself?

November 2 — Youngstown "Himself"

Sound: 9 (well, it's a 9 most of the time, sometimes the quality dips and the general feel seems a tad compressed. I prefer a more open sounding recordings, but this gets the extra point because of the nice clear vocals)

Highlights: If Not For You, Mama, You Been on My Mind, I've Been All Around This World

Comments: Is that security asking people to sit down or just a jerk in the crowd? Well, even though there are a couple concerts with better performances, I see why the bootleggers choose this show to become a bootleg. Look at all the cool songs they played! (and 3 outstanding covers)

Bottom Line: The set list alone is ticket enough to ride, but Bob's vocals are more ragged than the previous 3 concerts.

November 3 — Cincinnati

Sound: 6 (sounds like this was recorded from 50 rows deep, but the separation is honestly quite good and the vocals are right there albeit with just a touch of hall echo shadowing things)

Highlights: If Not For You, Mama, You Been On My Mind, Desolation Row

Comments: Much better vocals than last night's gig

Bottom Line: A good show with a few nice highlights and solid playing all around. Not essential, but better than average.

November 6 — Gainesville

Sound:
Highlights:
Comments:  no tape is currently circulating
Bottom Line:
 

November 8 — Coral Gables

Sound: 6 (this heavy, compressed tape has an odd sort of cozy and intimate feeling to it. Bass and drums are a bit buried, guitars are a little better and the vocals better than the instruments, so file this one under "adjust and enjoy". The crowd noise is minimal)

Highlights: The entire tape is a highlight!

Comments: This tape sounds like the concert took place in your basement but in fact was an outside show that was cut short by 3 songs due to rain. This may be the reason he plays Hard Rain for the only time all tour here. Hard Rain was on the cue sheets for most of the fall shows as an alternate to the 10 spot normal rotation of Mr. Tambourine and the rest so perhaps he finally found the right environment to air it out. I think you can hear the rain on the tape hit the deck now and then, though, and indeed Bob does address it, saying right before the final song of the evening, "This is the encore song right now. The set was gone about twenty minutes ago, we're already into the encore part now."

Bottom Line: At only 100 minutes, this is the little show that could. An extremely enjoyable listen. One of top 5 from fall 1992 and well worth your time!

November 9 — Sarasota

Sound: 9.5 (I don't think I'd ever give a 10, who knows, but this is just about a perfect 1992 audience recording. The vocal stack is right there in front of you and man does he sound great. The crowd levels are perfect and the band is kicking and jumping right behind Bob. Beautiful)

Highlights: The entire show is sublime, from Pretty Peggy-O to the pause for breath in the middle of singing the word 'touch' in Dear Landlord to the spectacular Hollis Brown.

Comments: Great stuff here, hard to believe the bootleggers passed this one up. 

Bottom Line: One of the top 5 concerts of the tour, go trade for a copy today.
 

November 11 — Clearwater

Sound: 7, then cleans to an 8 (this isn't compressed or a hot recording, it's just turns out to be a better than average audience tape. The guitars are down in the mix while the drums and bass are up, the vocals are nicely out in front though, so bust out the headphones and light the stick of nag, baby)
Highlights: The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll (who said Bob doesn't wail from the pulpit anymore, whew!), Girl From the North Country, Senor, When I Paint My Masterpiece, Shooting Star and the first and only solo acoustic Blowin' in the Wind of the tour is very cool.

Comments: Has there ever been such a bizarre opening couplet as Rainy Day Women and I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine? The irony of some lady yelling out, "WE LOVE YOU!!" exactly as the band kicks into Positively 4th Street cannot be harder to ignore. In other news, 12 year old Derek Trucks guests on guitar with Bob on a couple songs, and to quote the taper or his buddy, "Derek sucks on guitar." 12 years old. Dude can't grow a pube but can play on stage with Bob Dylan, life is hilarious sometimes, you know? Anyway, back to it: Aside from a couple of random screamed requests, the crowd is very mellow and seem to be having a good time. You have to love the Beatle mania scream when Bob starts singing I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine.

Bottom Line: A great concert and well worth finding. My copy has a cut on Boots and Masterpiece but I've heard the rest and this is a fun rocking show you need to hear. This is also the best Shooting Star of the year so if you like that song then that's just one more reason to seek this out.

November 12 — Orlando

Sound: 8 (thick sound on this one. Bass is swamping, the drums are back and echo a bit and the guitars are somewhere between all of that. The vocals are up front, though not as crisp as they could be. Cleans up nicely to an 8.5/9 after a few songs)

Highlights: Positively 4th Street and the solo acoustic set, but what else is new? Shooting Star

Comments: The crowd is happy to be there to say the least. Lots of whistling, clap alongs, talking, laughing, etc. Bob is singing well here, phrasing several songs with interesting twists in them, such as I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine. Watchtower has this hilarious '70s rock opera rave thing going on which works a bit, I suppose. Positively 4th Street is the first gem of the night with good vocals from Bob and stellar guitars from the band. As interesting as Bob's vocal gymnastics are, he seems to be having trouble finishing lines. He'll sing 75% of the verse then sort of mumble off what is presumably the rest of the words. How great is Bob when he goes Neil Young and sings a couple tunes solo? He still had the power back in 1992 to make these moments special show after show. If you like Good as I Been to You you'll probably fall in love with 1992 solo acoustic Bob. Clever harp playing over capable and sometimes playful guitar, subtle and focused vocals, there's a lot to like about the solo sets here, no doubt about it. Still, I have to agree with the guy next to the taper who yells out his request for Black Jack Davey, it would be a killer tune for Bob to roll out. Instead, he plays a fantastic version of Boots, which is just as good. Oddly enough, Times is the song that charges up the crowd the most tonight. Shooting Star is also a great rendition.

Bottom Line: Not as good as say, Clearwater or Sarasota, but still mildly recommended.

November 13 — Sunrise

Sound: 8 (the guitars are bright and up front, the vocals are distinct and the bass and drums are back where they belong. Very crisp during the slower passages)
Highlights: Willing, She Belongs to Me, the acoustic set, Every Grain of Sand

Comments: Excellent setlist tonight, let me tell you. Bob strikes gold with a fine cover of Lowell George's "Willing", and while he's largely unintelligible, you can sense sort of devotion to the song in there someplace. I Believe in You is expertly played and Bob sings it with a sad sort of tone, stretching out the first and last words of the lines in a childish sulk that is wonderful to hear. In fact he roller coasters the vocals all night long. She Belongs to Me is a gem, with Bob moaning the lines out to the delight of the crowd. The acoustic set is once again a beautiful thing. Mama You Been on My Mind is especially potent tonight. The crowd is a disappointment though. They talk throughout every song, although they do shut up long enough so as to not make you want to reach over and shut it off. Bob nails Every Grain of Sand in the second electric set. He slows things down a bit and delivers a splendid rendition.

Bottom Line: Awesome setlist, good sound, good show here. If only the crowd would shut the hell up and listen we'd have a winner. Well, they're not that that bad, but you know what I mean. At first I thought the setlist is better than the performance, but subsequent listens have since changed my mind.

November 15 — West Palm Beach

Sound: 7 (upfront vocals and distinct guitars, but the drums are back and bass is buried deep...is Tony even there, or is he drinking beer talking up the groupies? Hard to tell)

Highlights: Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again, Mr. Tambourine Man, The Times They Are A-Changin', It Ain't Me Babe.

Comments: Well, this crowd is happy to be here, aren't they?

Bottom Line: Final concert of the year (and again irony rears its head when a fan requests When He Returns) and, much like the fall tour began it ends on a high note. Definitely worth hearing if you're into 1992 and into acoustic Bob. For you historians this is the last time Bob every had a solo set in his concerts. And for the record, Mr. Tambourine Man is the final time he played solo with the harmonica and It Ain't Me, Babe is the last song he played by himself in concert.