Like BIG big: I saw Elvis Costello and Bob Dylan in concert. It was P-H-A-T phat! Actually, Elvis Costello was awesome and Dylan was great, but ultimately a little disappointing. Costello was really personal and soulful. It was just him and a guitar and he played plenty of older hits that he knows everyone wants to hear. Angels Want to Wear My Red Shoes and Allison were A-fuckin-Plus.
I checked with a cross section of people who saw the show (a dog-catcher) and many of us agree that Dylan, while good, was not really what we were hoping for. One of my favorite Dylan pieces is Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues, with Robbie Robertson’s punchy guitar as a counterpoint to Dylan’s almost-late vocals. The live version is bourbon to my ears.
But that was a long time ago. Now Dylan is with a backing band that is solid, but unremarkable R’n’B all the way, and they do songs that I have never heard. It is still Bob Dylan, especially when he blows harp, but it is not the Bob Dylan that I want to see. I know the man is probably tired of playing “Like a Rolling Stone” on acoustic guitar for the upteen-millionth time and wants to move on as a performer, but frankly, that is what the kids paid for. I guess Bob Dylan has reached a point where he doesn’t need to try to please an audience. Just showing up as himself is enough.
So that concert was a really amazing thing that happened to me last week. Those of you who know me probably get the joke at this point because…SHAZZAM!!!! I also had a kid last week! Yes, 9 and a half months of waiting are over and now a real person belongs to me, and me alone…plus Sarah. Baby Jacob is the latest and shortest addition to the Schmiechen-DeStefano-Cohen-Burke-Beckett clan.
His prodigious predigree includes filmmakers, reverends, newspapermen, Bautistas, Jersey gangsters, Louisville shopkeepers, Samuel Beckett and Capt. John Smith. Big shoes to fill with tiny little feet. Everyone feels this way about their baby, but many people have told me (not just dog catchers) that he is really beautiful. He is like the most fascinating toy ever. All he ever does is sleep and crap his pants yet people have literally traveled across the country just to see him. Having a baby is the most amazing thing ever. Despite his unassuming state, he is always the center of attention and he fills a room with joy just by being him. A little like Bob Dylan.P.S. A gold star to whoever knows Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello's real names
3 comments:
Congratulations!!! Enjoy and try to get some sleep :)
"Allison" is my fave Elvis Costello song. (and "Pump it Up" of course)
Just think Capitan in less than no time Jacob, your little one, will be blogging just like you. I wonder if he'll ever make it to a Robert Allen Zimmerman or Declan Patrick McManus concert. (nowadays you can only ask for trivia in person. it's just too easy to cheat (google it). I have heard that the music you play your infant son, will determine his personality, his outlook on life and what type of woman (or man) he marries. I hope you play him some Motown. -GCNOF
Jlee: Thank you. Yes, EC is the man.
GCNOF: You will be receiving your devalued, bad-faith, cheaters star shortly. And yes, Jacob can be anything he wants and Daddy will still love him, as long as he has funk.
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