Bob Dylan - Woodstock 1994 (Live) (2016)

DYLAN AT WOODSTOCK SECOND TIME AROUND We ve waited 25 years to hear this. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Bob Dylan So began Dylan s performance at the 1994 Woodstock Festival, held on Winston Farm, Saugerties, New York, which took place a quarter century to the day after the original event. Having temporarily withdrawn from the popular music industry, Bob Dylan had turned down an invitation to perform first time round despite the event taking place in what, at the time, was virtually Bob s backyard. Ironically, he would make a festival appearance in August 1969, but it was at the Isle of Wight in the UK, where he was backed by The Band and performed alongside the likes of The Who, Free, Joe Cocker and Richie Havens. The early 1990s had been a productive time for Dylan who, by the time of Woodstock, had released three albums so far in the decade; Under The Red Sky (1990), Good As I Been To You (1992) and World Gone Wrong (1993). He had also received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1991, and on 30th October 92 had taken part in an all-star concert at Madison Square Garden in his honour, which saw too appearances from The Band, Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Johnny Cash, Lou Reed, Kris Kristofferson, Stevie Wonder, Booker T. And The MGs and others too numerous to mention; this show would be released as The 30th Anniversary Concert Celebration just 10 days after his Woodstock appearance. The festival itself had been an attempt to recapture the magic of the original 69 event, with Santana, The Band, Joe Cocker and Crosby, Stills & Nash being among many returning performers. Rising stars also made appearances that weekend, including the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nine Inch Nails and Green Day. Fittingly, marred by the same problems of overcrowding and security, the sheer mass of attendees and the less-than-perfect weather conditions, the event was dubbed Mudstock ; Primus s Led Claypool claims to this day that he is unable to clean the mud out of his bass cabinets. This recording, broadcast live in superb quality over FM radio and on television to those unable to attend the event, features Bob Dylan s entire performance. Curiously but in typical Dylan-esque fashion, only one number - Under The Red Sky s God Knows - is included from his recent crop of releases, with the majority of his material coming from his classic 1960s period. Including such cuts as Just Like A Woman , Don t Think Twice, It s Alright , Masters Of War , Highway 61 Revisited and All Along The Watchtower , this set will prove a must have release for any Dylan fan, and serves as a valuable memento of this historic event.