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Rare Live Performances of the Sixties, Vol. 1: The History Series by Bob Dylan

Rare Live Performances of the Sixties, Vol. 1: The History Series

Release Date: 1/1/1991

Recording Date: 1/1991

Label: Magic

Type: CD

Genre/Styles:
Pop/Rock, Singer/Songwriter, Psychedelic, Folk-Rock

What the Critics Say

More than any other bootleg label of note, Magic Music is a study in frustration. While they do invaluable work assembling rare but exceptionally well-done material from the formative stages of Bob Dylan's career, their releases are nevertheless hampered by dubious production decisions that severely compromise their overall impact. Consider Rare Live Performances of the Sixties, Vol. 1: The History Series, which repackages the legendary Gaslight Tapes material first compiled by Magic Music just two years earlier as part of its Documents of Bob Dylan series: recorded in October 1962 at New York's Gaslight Café, these 13 songs capture Dylan's evolution from prodigy to poet, transforming the raw materials of idols like Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leadbelly to create his own postmodern folklore for the New Frontier. Galvanized by the earliest known recorded performances of the soon-to-be-classics "A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall" and "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright," the Gaslight set resonates with searing vitality and authority, serving notice that Dylan has finally begun living the life his art's always evoked. In typical Magic Music fashion, however, the remaining Gaslight Café performances are relegated to a follow-up volume, Rare Live Performances of the Sixties, Vol. 2, even though the complete recorded set would easily fit on one disc. Still, this is essential listening for the serious Dylan enthusiast, and should be obtained by hook or by crook. (The Starbucks coffee chain gave this music belated official release in mid-2005 with its exclusive Live at the Gaslight 1962, but for unknown reasons the disc contains only ten of the 17 tracks that comprise the performance in its entirety. For now, serious Dylan enthusiasts still must seek out underground editions to hear the tapes in their entirety.) ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

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