47 year old concert recording shows Dylan as the young serious and serio-comic artist – enter to win a copy

Bob Dylan in Concert Brandeis University 1963 bonus CD

To win a free copy of the Concert at Brandeis, enter your name at the end of the story.

I didn’t expect much from the Bob Dylan bonus CD of Bob Dylan in Concert at Brandeis U in 1963. Surprisingly it is more interesting than The Original Mono Recordings.

First, the concert has never been heard before so it is new to the ear.

The concert was on a tape held by Rolling Stone co-founder and music critic Ralph Gleason. “It had been forgotten, until it was found last year in the clearing of the house after my mother died,” says Ralph’s son Toby Gleason.

“It’s a seven inch reel-to-reel that sounds like it was taped from the mixing disc. A collector/dealer associate of the family said ‘This might be worth something to the Dylan office’ and we sold it to them last year.” Rolling Stone

Second, it shows Dylan is fine form and good humor. It struck me almost immediately how much he liked to pull the audience’s collective leg.

Three of the seven songs are laced with his humor and sarcasm, Talking John Birch Paranoid Blues, Talking World War III Blues, and Talking Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues.

The same humor permeates the lovers appeal in Honey Just Allow Me One More Chance.

Talking World War III Blues is still funny and works better before a live audience

“I said, “Hold it, Doc, a World War passed through my brain”
He said, “Nurse, get your pad, this boy’s insane”
He grabbed my arm, I said, “Ouch!”
As I landed on the psychiatric couch
He said, “Tell me about it”

Well, the whole thing started at 3 o’clock fast
It was all over by quarter past
I was down in the sewer with some little lover
When I peeked out from a manhole cover
Wondering who turned the lights on”

Dylan’s timing on delivering the lines is priceless. Back then some people said he was affecting a Little Tramp persona on stage and you can hear it.

“Well, I spied a girl and before she could leave
“Let’s go and play Adam and Eve”
I took her by the hand and my heart it was thumpin’
When she said, “Hey man, you crazy or sumpin’
You see what happened last time they started”

Lyrics copyright Bob Dylan

Where did Dylan’s sense of humor go? You won’t get that free and easy manner at concerts these days, nor for decades. There are a few sly hints on Modern Times but nothing as boldly humorous.

Too bad. Dylan was a natural comedian and his wit was cutting and quick. Being older doesn’t mean one has to lose their sense of humor. Groucho Marx was funny in his 80s.

Dylan recorded Talking John Birch Paranoid Blues for The Freewheelin Bob Dylan but Columbia Records thought his anti-anti-Communist joke was in poor taste.

Talking Bear Mountain Picnic Massacre Blues demonstrated early on Dylan’s ability to turn news into broadsides. Dylanroots says,

“on June 19, 1961, (Paul)Stookey (Peter Paul and Mary) sat in the Gaslight reading the New York Herald Tribune, which contained an article about a Father’s Day boat cruise up the Hudson River to Bear Mountain that had gone awry due to counterfeit tickets and overcrowding. Stookey showed the story to a recent acquaintance, a 20­year­old singer named Bobby Dylan who had arrived in New York from Minnesota the previous winter. “I remember handing him an article on the Bear Mountain thing,” Stookey said, “and he brought a song back the next day. Astounding.” The song was “Talkin’ Bear Mountain Picnic Disaster Blues,” which Dylan wrote in the style of his idol, Woody Guthrie. Dylan was not at that point known as a songwriter, which made the composition all the more surprising.  William Ruhlman, Peter, Paul and Mary — The Early Years, Goldmine Online, 1996.

It was a skill Dylan practiced with Phil Ochs, a folk singer from the 60s. Ochs would join Dylan at the NY Public Library. Each would take the daily paper and see who could come up with the best folk song from a story in the news.

Another old favorite he performs is Bob Dylan’s Dream. It captures those days when we hung out with friends when we were young. He sings it with just the right emotion of longing and remembrance without being saccharine.

With half-damp eyes I stared to the room
Where my friends and I spent many an afternoon
Where we together weathered many a storm
Laughin’ and singin’ till the early hours of the morn

By the old wooden stove where our hats was hung
Our words were told, our songs were sung
Where we longed for nothin’ and were quite satisfied
Talkin’ and a-jokin’ about the world outside

The concert captures a time long ago when folk singers with protest and smokey voices captured our attention and imagination.

Where to get the Bonus CD

Amazon.com has a few copies of Bob Dylan In Concert: Brandeis University, 1963 on sale.

They also have limited supplies of the CD free with with The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964 (The Bootleg Series Vol. 9) for $14.

There are also come copies on sale at eBay.com

See Dylan Bootleg # 9 to include bonus disc

Win a Free Copy of Bob Dylan in Concert at Brandeis University

To win a free copy of Bob Dylan’s Bob Dylan In Concert: Brandeis University, 1963, send your name, full mail address and email to njnnews (at) gmail.com. Tell us your favorite Bob Dylan song from the 1960s and why you like it. One winner will be chosen at random from all entrants on November 30, 2010. Random choice is final and there are no substitutes.

If there are enough interesting song choices and suggestions, we may publish them with or without your name, which is your choice. If you want your name (or web-name) printed with the comment please let us know.

The award has no commercial value. We will mail the winner their CD. Winners outside of Canada may have to pay duties and taxes in their country of residence.

We value your privacy. Your email or other personal information will not be retained after the contest or used by us other than to mail the CD. Only the winner will be contacted.

Good luck.