Bob Dylan in Dublin

Well he may not have won the Nobel Prize for Literature but he did have the Oscar (a replica presumably) on display last night at the O2 in Dublin. Mark Knopfler was the first half of a double bill and played a lively set with a very good band. A variety of instruments created an interesting sound with more than a nod towards the venue. Did I hear someone shout Riverdance! from the back at one stage? Pleasant music, nice singing but it wasn't what most of the audience came to hear.

Then Bob. A set quite similar to that in Cork earlier in the year. That great nasty satirical put down Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat opened the set followed by a good mix of old and newer including Tangled Up in Blue delivered in a staccato style. Then Beyond Here Lies Nothin', Desolation Row, The Levee Gonna Break all doom and gloom delivered in a lively upbeat manner, the medium at odds with the message.

Beyond here lies nothin'
Nothin' we can call our own

He finished the set with Ballad of a Thin Man - he certainly could write bitter lyrics in those days. Then a two song encore, Like A Rolling Stone and All Along the Watchtower, during which Bob introduced the band and even told us how much he enjoyed the show.

The problem with a Bob Dylan concert is the songs you don't hear. He has so many great ones that everyone goes to a concert hoping to hear Forever Young, Blowin in the Wind, Every Grain of Sand, Not Dark Yet etc etc.

Another great Bob performance. Now would Tomas Tranströmer fill the O2?