War Memorial 1975 - Bob Dylan

War Memorial 1975 - Bob Dylan
Live at War Memorial Auditorium, Oct 31, 1975.

This land is your land, this land is my land
.
.
This land was made for you and me

 

With all the attention that’s been given to anthologizing so many of Dylan’s other live outings (the Never Ending Before The Royal Albert Flood 65 tour collection), it seems incredible that the first leg of Rolling Thunder has still to fall under a similar microscope. In terms of material played (and musicians to play it), it was certainly his most ambitious jaunt prior to the Never Ender, while the rearrangements that seemed to drop nightly into the repertoire ensured that, even when you knew what song was coming next, you didn’t necessarily know what it’d sound like.

From the earliest days of the outing, while the madness was still at its peak, and the Thunder was rolling without any of the squabbling and snarling that later came to mar it, this newly discovered (mid-2006) 17 song line-recording readily upgrades the existing War Memorial tape, and doubles in size the most commonly circulating CD rendering.

Dylan is in excellent form, dedicating "Isis" to Keith Richard and "Never Let Me Go" to David Crosby. But Baez is even better, crystalline through "Diamonds And Rust" and "Dixie," and even making the usually-grating "Oh Happy Day" sound like a cause for celebration. A haunting snatch of "Please Come To Boston" makes you yearn for any still-undiscovered, more complete rendering of the show, but Dylan’s return to the stage sweeps all disappointment away, as "I Don’t Believe You" and "Just Like A Woman" bookend some dynamite highlights from Desire - Scarlett rarely sounded so good as she does through tonight’s "Hurricane," while "One More Cup Of Coffee" is positively chilling. But best of all is the sound quality, which renders this among the finest of all circulating Rolling Thunder tapes. - Dave Thompson

1. 17 - This Land Is Your Land [Revue]
2. 01 - When I Paint My Masterpiece
3. 02 - Romance In Durango
4. 03 - Isis
5. 04 - Never Let Me Go
6. 05 - Mama, You Been On My Mind
7. 06 - Diamonds And Rust
8. 07 - Oh Happy Day
9. 08 - Please Come To Boston
10. 09 - Chestnut Mare
11. 10 - The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down
12. 11 - I Don't Believe You
13. 12 - Hurricane
14. 13 - Oh Sister
15. 14 - One More Cup Of Coffee
16. 15 - Sara
17. 16 - Just Like A Woman

Track 01  When I Paint My Masterpiece !
   * It Ain't Me, Babe (missing from circulating tape)
   * A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall (missing from circulating tape)
Track 02  Romance In Durango !
Track 03  Isis !
   * The Times They Are A-Changin' [Dylan/Baez] (missing from circulating tape)
Track 04  Never Let Me Go [Dylan/Baez] !
Track 05  Mama, You Been On My Mind [Dylan/Baez] !
   * I Shall Be Released [Dylan/Baez] (missing from circulating tape)
Track 06  Diamonds And Rust (Joan Baez) !
  * Mary Hamilton (Joan Baez) (missing from circulating tape)
   * Love Song To A Stranger (Joan Baez) (missing from circulating tape)
Track 07  Oh Happy Day (Joan Baez)
Track 08  Please Come To Boston (Joan Baez) (one-minute fragment)
Track 09  Chestnut Mare (Roger McGuinn)
Track 10  The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down (Joan Baez)
Track 11  I Don't Believe You !
Track 12  Hurricane !
Track 13  Oh Sister !
Track 14  One More Cup Of Coffee !
Track 15  Sara !
Track 16  Just Like A Woman
Track 17  This Land Is Your Land [Revue]

! indicates tracks from the recently-surfaced tape

THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND
words and music by Woody Guthrie

Chorus:
This land is your land, this land is my land
From California, to the New York Island
From the redwood forest, to the gulf stream waters
This land was made for you and me

As I was walking a ribbon of highway
I saw above me an endless skyway
I saw below me a golden valley
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

I've roamed and rambled and I've followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts
And all around me a voice was sounding
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

The sun comes shining as I was strolling
The wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
The fog was lifting a voice come chanting
This land was made for you and me

Chorus

As I was walkin'  -  I saw a sign there
And that sign said - no tress passin'
But on the other side  .... it didn't say nothin!
Now that side was made for you and me!

Chorus

In the squares of the city - In the shadow of the steeple
Near the relief office - I see my people
And some are grumblin' and some are wonderin'
If this land's still made for you and me.

Chorus (2x)