(December 4, 2023)
Video Transcript:
I went to a Bob Dylan concert in Richmond, KY on December 2, 2023 and it was magical.
I did not go expecting it to be magical. I didn’t want to have high expectations and get disappointed for whatever reason.
I read a lot of reviews about the concerts and about how people act in the crowds sometimes.
Also, sometimes Bob’s obstructed by a hat on top of his piano or a water bottle or whatever.
I just didn’t want to set myself up for disappointment, but…
It was unbelievable.
And it was a journey for me too.
First of all, when I bought the ticket in October, I couldn’t believe it.
Bob Dylan came to Richmond, KY. He didn’t come to Lexington, he didn’t come to Louisville, he didn’t come to Nashville.
Those are places I don’t approve of as far as going there to see a show. It’s just not gonna happen.
I’ve been to Nashville to see shows, but I’m not going to Louisville and I’m not going to Lexington because the Man O War is crazy to drive, I’m staying away.
I had restrictions on where I would be willing to go to see Bob Dylan, and I said to myself like a year ago…
If Bob Dylan comes to Kentucky somewhere that isn’t scary as fuck to get to, I gotta go. It’s just like a sign from God. And it happened.
I got my ticket in October and I was like, “This is a couple months away, that’s a long time.” And of course it went by really fast.
I couldn’t even believe that I’d actually gotten a ticket for that entire time. I planned for it, but I was just like, “Come on, this isn’t real.”
So when the day came, I made the trek over the mountains and through the woods. The way there wasn’t bad because it was daylight…
But on the way back it took every ounce of concentration I had. It was pouring rain, it was foggy.
I listened to the same song on repeat for almost the entire way, which was “Hysteria” by Def Leppard.
I was just feeling the vibes and that’s what I do when I drive if I need to be in the zone because of challenging conditions, or if I’m obsessed with a song I’ll just put it on repeat forever.
I’m still processing my thoughts and feelings. The fact that I actually saw Bob Dylan in concert…
And I saw him good too.
Bob Dylan was pretty damn close.
I could see him clearly the entire time, I can’t even believe it.
It was so…
Honestly, it was weird.
Because my seat was on the aisle behind the handicapped section and there wasn’t another row of seats directly in front of me, nobody was obstructing my view.
I was so lucky to get that seat, I didn’t realize it was so great. When I bought the ticket, it was just the closest seat that was on the aisle, which I have to have.
I’d hoped it was a good view, and it was just insanely good.
You can tell Bob does this a lot.
He does this A LOT dude.
That kind of perspective, traveling around just doing show after show, for decades?
What must that be like?
To have that experience, I can’t even imagine.
Bob has seen every single kind of person. At least 100 times, and probably way more than that.
What is that like? What would you even see anymore when you look at people, when you see a crowd? What would you even see? How would you feel about it?
And who can relate to that? Nobody can relate to that.
So Bob stands alone, and I really don’t envy that at all.
I don’t envy Bob Dylan for being as famous and beloved as he is, and people also hate on him. It’s crazy.
I think you gotta be a special type of person to take that, it’s gotta be your destiny. Cuz otherwise, how would you function?
After seeing him, it was incredible, and he was amazing but…
What is it like for him?
You’ve done it so much… can it ever be special anymore?
I can’t imagine.
Somehow Bob makes you feel like it IS special. Which is…
True showmanship, pure mastery.
He can make you feel like you’re the only person in the room.
The way he delivers the lyrics is just powerful.
He IS music, he IS lyrics, that’s just what he is.
Also, 60 years of constant practice probably doesn’t hurt either.
But not just anybody would be able to do that.
I didn’t know that he was pretty much psychic. Because when he’s up there on that stage, he’s just pounding it out but…
He’s also just so huge and expanded in his awareness that he takes up a huge area with his presence and his essence.
So when he’s singing the words, it’s not just words coming out of his mouth, it’s like…
Tentacles of magnetism that reach you and move you around.
I was literally swayed around by the words Bob Dylan was saying.
I didn’t need to understand every single word he was saying, because it’s beyond words.
It’s just imbued with this essence.
It’s like…
No wonder he’s Bob Dylan.
It’s beyond magical.
I didn’t expect that. I didn’t go expecting that.
But from the second I got there, it was in the air. There was magic in the air.
It was gentle magic. Soft magic. I didn’t expect it to feel like that.
It was like a lover, not a fighter kind of magic.
It was like a gentle, soft, purple magic.
I swear I’m not trolling, I’m so serious right now.
It was like a misty, foggy, hazy magic. It was mystical.
And where I parked…
I ended up pretty much right by where they park the tour buses.
I didn’t even see them for a while, but when I did I was like whoa.
I just didn’t expect to see that. I expected to see the front of the building or something.
I didn’t expect for it to be so personal. It felt as personal as a concert with thousands of other people can feel.
But it was special…
I think I saw Bob Dylan walking around outside of the tour bus.
It could have been anyone, but…
It was this mysterious hooded figure.
I kinda think it was Bob Dylan.
And Bob Dylan on stage?
Say maybe that WAS Bob Dylan in front of the tour bus like an hour before the show…
Imagine if that was him. That was just like a regular person walking around out there.
And then he gets on stage and he’s wearing these sparkly pants and he’s dressed to the nines.
He carries this absolute legend with him onto the stage.
Like I said, I don’t understand the perspective of somebody who’s had that kind of life experience.
To play that many shows and be that renown is something that even other famous people…
Have they really had that experience? Cuz I’m pretty sure Bob’s had that experience harder than anybody.
Elvis died pretty young though to be fair, I don’t think he’s a good example.
But I’m just trying to think of other people who are ridiculously famous.
I love Bob and I appreciate the fact that he’s been doing this for so long…
He’s truly incredible.
There’s so much muscle memory involved with what he does too. It’s almost like you could autopilot through it.
But I imagine it probably requires an intense amount of concentration to play the music and be amazing.
It seems kind of like a hard job.
Being in front of all the crowds? I’ve never gotten the impression that Bob is ever nervous. Like in his entire career.
Maybe I’m just oblivious to the way Bob feels, but I just never got the vibe that he ever had stagefright.
Maybe he did at one time, but it sure doesn’t seem like it anymore.
Seems like any type of nervousness he had getting in front of a ton of people is like, way long gone.
And now it’s just as common to him as getting up in the morning…
Eating a piece of toast, brushing your teeth, checking the mail. It’s like it’s as routine to him as something like that.
I just wonder…
I wonder so much.
I still have so many questions.
Ironically, the answer doesn’t come in words. It comes in feelings and emotions.
That magnetic, psychic force that sways you. That’s where the answers are.
I don’t need to know anything else.
I just need to feel it.
