The newest edition in Columbia/Legacy Recordings’ lavish mining of Bob Dylan‘s catalog has been revealed. Trouble No More: The Bootleg Series, Vol. 13/1979-1981 focuses on live recordings from his so-called “born again” period from 1979’s Slow Train Coming through 1980’s Saved and 1981’s Shot of Love. The title was announced on Sept. 20 and is scheduled for a Nov. 3 release as a 2-CD set, a 9-disc (8-CD/1-DVD) deluxe edition with 100 previously unreleased live and studio recordings, including 14 unreleased songs, and a 4-LP set.
As the announcement states, the collection “showcases the music Dylan wrote and performed during one of the most surprising, controversial and inspired periods of his career.”
As recordings from the collection are released, we’ll be sharing them with you. Check out the previously unreleased live version of “The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar,” from November 13, 1980 in San Francisco.
Listen to “When You Gonna Wake Up” from July 9, 1981
On Aug. 28, the New York Film Festival announced it would screen a Trouble No More documentary on Oct. 2 from director Jennifer Lebeau, including “lost” footage from Dylan concerts in Buffalo, N.Y., and Toronto, Canada, during his 1980 Slow Train Coming tour.
The festival described it as “a very special film consisting of truly electrifying video footage, much of it thought to have been lost for years and all newly restored, shot at shows in Toronto and Buffalo on the last leg of the ’79-’80 tour (with an amazing band: Muscle Shoals veteran Spooner Oldham and Terry Young on keyboards, Little Feat’s Fred Tackett on guitar, Tim Drummond on bass, the legendary Jim Keltner on drums and Clydie King, Gwen Evans, Mona Lisa Young, Regina McCrary and Mary Elizabeth Bridges on vocals).”
Interspersed between concert performances are scenes featuring acclaimed actor Michael Shannon as a preacher delivering hair-raising sermons, written by Luc Sante.
The Trouble No More deluxe box set includes the DVD of that film plus a hardcover book featuring an introduction by Dylan scholar Ben Rollins with liner notes by Amanda Petrusich, Rob Bowman and Penn Jillette.
Listen to a sound check of “Slow Train” from October 5, 1978
Trouble No More 2-CD Live Track Listing
Disc 1
1. Slow Train (Nov. 16, 1979)
2. Gotta Serve Somebody (Nov. 15, 1979)
3. I Believe in You (May 16, 1980)
4. When You Gonna Wake Up? (July 9, 1981)
5. When he Returns (Dec. 5, 1979)
6. Man Gave Names to All the Animals (Jan. 16, 1980)
7. Precious Angel (Nov. 16, 1979
8. Covenant Woman (Nov. 20, 1979)
9. Gonna Change My Way of Thinking (Jan. 31, 1980)
10. Do Right to Me Baby (Do Unto Others) (Jan. 28, 1980
11. Sold Rock (Nov. 27, 1979)
12. What Can I Do For You? (Nov. 27, 1975)
13. Saved (Jan. 12, 1980)
14. In the Garden (Jan. 27, 1980)
Disc 2
1. Slow Train (June 29, 1981)
2. Ain’t Gonna Go to Hell For Anybody (Apr. 24, 1980)
3. Gotta Serve Somebody (June 27, 1981)
4. Ain’t No Man Righteous (Nov. 16, 1979)
5. Saving Grace (Nov. 6, 1979)
6. Blessed is the Name (Nov. 20, 1979)
7. Solid Rock (Oct. 23, 1981)
8. Are You Ready? (Apr. 30, 1980)
9. Pressing On (Nov. 6, 1979)
10. Shot of Love (July 25, 1981)
11. Dead Man, Dead Man (June 21, 1981)
12. Watered-Down Love (June 12, 1981)
13. In the Summertime (Oct. 21, 1981)
14. The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar (Nov. 13, 1980)
15. Caribbean Wind (Nov. 12, 1980)
16. Every Grain of Sand (Nov. 21, 1981)
Listen to a rehearsal of “Every Grain of Sand”
The Deluxe Edition’s Rare and Unreleased Tracks
Disc 3: Rare and Unreleased
1. Slow Train (Soundcheck – Oct. 5, 1978)
2. Do Right to Me Baby (Do Unto Others) (Soundcheck – Dec. 7, 1978)
3. Help Me Understand (Unreleased song – Oct. 5, 1978)
4. Gonna Change My Way of Thinking (Rehearsal – Oct. 2, 1979)
5. Gotta Serve Somebody (Outtake – May 4, 1979)
6. When He Returns (Outtake – May 4, 1979)
7. Ain’t No Man Righteous, No Not One (Unreleased song – May 1, 1979)
8. Trouble in Mind (Outtake – April 30, 1979)
9. Ye Shall Be Changed (Outtake – May 2, 1979)
10. Covenant Woman (Outtake –February 11, 1980)
11. Stand by Faith (Unreleased song – Sept. 26, 1979)
12. I Will Love Him (Unreleased song – Apr. 19, 1980)
13. Jesus Is the One (Unreleased song – Jul. 17, 1981)
14. City of Gold (Unreleased song – Nov. 22, 1980)
15. Thief on the Cross (Unreleased song – Nov. 10, 1981)
16. Pressing On (Outtake – Feb. 13, 1980)
Disc 4: Rare and Unreleased
1. Slow Train (Rehearsal – Oct. 2, 1979)
2. Gotta Serve Somebody (Rehearsal – Oct. 9, 1979)
3. Making a Liar Out of Me (Unreleased song – Sept. 26, 1980)
4. Yonder Comes Sin (Unreleased song – Oct. 1, 1980)
5. Radio Spot January 1980, Portland, OR show
6. Cover Down, Pray Through (Unreleased song – May 1, 1980)
7. Rise Again (Unreleased song – Oct. 16, 1980)
8. Ain’t Gonna Go to Hell for Anybody (Unreleased song – Dec. 2, 1980)
9. The Groom’s Still Waiting at the Altar (Outtake – May 1, 1981)
10. Caribbean Wind (Rehearsal – Sept. 23, 1980)
11. You Changed My Life (Outtake – April 23, 1981)
12. Shot of Love (Outtake – March 25, 1981)
13. Watered-Down Love (Outtake – May 15, 1981)
14. Dead Man, Dead Man (Outtake – April 24, 1981)
15. Every Grain of Sand (Rehearsal – Sept. 26, 1980)
Listen to the previously unreleased “Making a Liar Out of Me”
Those attending Dylan’s Slow Train Coming tour were initially surprised that the repertoire focused solely on his new recordings.
12 Comments so far
Jump into a conversation“Those attending Dylan’s Slow Train Coming tour were initially surprised that the repertoire focused solely on his new recordings”— you bet we were. I had seen him at Blackbush in 78 and it was THE greatest concert ever. I took my new wife in 1981 to Earls Court and it was utter s***e. THE worst concert I have ever seen. A real disappointment. How I wish they would release something from The Band tour in 74 or The World tour from 78. I will be avoiding this release like the plague.
I couldn’t disagree more. ’74 was a bombastic, under-rehearsed mess with a little charm, ’78 was ridiculous arrangements of once-classics (I love rolling thunder btw). This era was far superior (live, anyway) the man’s putting it all out there like never before or since. A testament to the power of self-delusion at the very least.
Is that “carribean wind” the one that’s easily found on youtube or the other far superior version, polished up and all that?
Nope, on another site I’ve seen that this a version described as (rehearsal with pedal steel). This must be a different one from the three known versions, which are the Biograph one (Shot of Love session 11.4.1981), the other one from the Shot of Love sessions (31.03.1981), and the live version from San Francisco 12.11.1980.
I’m sure there’s a lot of good stuff here, but I’m a little disappointed there aren’t more studio outtakes (to be able to compile complete alternate versions of the albums) and also surprised the San Francisco 1980 shows aren’t represented more. They were fabulous shows, and the one Mike Bloomfield played on being particularly good. I would have guessed a deluxe set of the era might give that show a proper release, as well as Toronto from earlier that year (which is here in full). Also, the cover is appalling – good job of continuing the tradition of the era!
Just noticed it isn’t the full Toronto show, but a compilation of performances from different nights of the residency.
THANK GOD THIS CHAPTER & VERSE FROM DYLAN SHALL BE RELEASED! I SAW TWO SHOWS ON THE TOUR, “SLOW TRAIN” & “MUSICALLY SPEAKING” THEY WERE TWO OF THE BEST DYLAN SHOWS I”VE SEEN< INCLUDING THE 3RD SHOW OF ROLLING THUNDER TOUR. PEOPLE WHO DOWNED HIM FOR THIS CONVERSION ARE NO BETTER THAN THE CLOWNS WHO BOOED WHEN HE WENT ELECTRIC. LOOKING FORWARD TO THE RELEASES OF ALL. AMEN!
Yet another release to hit the wallet
Not for me or my bank balance, disappointed
The current prices that are listed are MSRP, I believe. As of now, the 2-CD set is 15 bucks.
….I see that the Sony release will omit Dylan’s remarks. I have mixed feelings about that.
1.The omission means that people who have just the set won’t get that much of a glimpse of Dylan reaching out to audiences directly in addition to performing the songs (which certainly reach out in their own way). As historical documents, the Sony discs will somewhat falsify what was going on at these concerts, I suppose.
2.On the other hand, if the “Gospel Speeches” had been left in, it’s they, and not the music, that might have drawn a lot of the critical commentary and buzz, and evoking a lot of predictable anger. It’s easy to predict the kind of badmouthing you’d have seen at Rolling Stone, for example. A lot of people just don’t wanna hear it! — when it comes to someone speaking as a Christian, or anyway that’s my impression; it’s like they act like they’re personally insulted.
3.Also to be said in favor of omitting the speeches, as Sony has done, is the fact that Bob’s imagination was captivated not simply by Jesus, but by a kind of popular apocalypticism that was in the air at the time. If you’re under 40 or so, you probably haven’t experienced this. But many American Christians were influenced by speakers and books such as Hal Lindsey’s Late Great Planet Earth to think that the Bible had predicted global war to follow soon after the establishment of the nation of Israel, etc. So along with basic Christian doctrine that would be affirmed by medieval Catholics, 21st-century Lutherans, Renaissance-era Anglicans, 19th-century Quakers, and the Eastern Orthodox of all centuries, Bob was also taking in some ideas that were very much of their time and place and that never got a lot of traction outside of certain groups.
I can’t say that I think it did the music itself much if any harm. Take a song like “When He Returns.” One might have expected, from the title, that this would be rife with End Times references, kind of like Christian rock star Larry Norman’s “I Wish We’d All been Ready. Nope, not the Dylan song. Instead you get a piece that Jann Wenner raved about in his review of the Slow Train Coming album.
I hope a lot of Dylan’s fans can hear this music and that it will promote better understanding of an intriguing period of his long career.
It’s a great shame that none of his speeches are included. They absolutely add to the atmosphere of the time, although I understand the thinking that they would probably have become the focus of the set, risking deeper appreciation of this fascinating period that features some very beautiful and exciting music. The onstage rants are an interesting listen, especially for fans of lines like ‘don’t follow leaders’, and they are – on the whole – completely bonkers, as one would expect from a newly converted fundamentalist. But they highlight the extent – and direction – of Dylan’s faith, which is what fuelled the songs and performances, and it’s a shame they’re not in this set. Columbia could have compiled a larger set, including more complete shows, but looking at the price of this one, it would be off limits to most people.
For me this new release is awesome. I especially loved Saved and the amazing bass playing of Tim Drummond. If you love Dylan, you gotta take him warts and all, not that I care two hoots about the particular “warts” of the Christian-influenced period of his career.