The name of the singer/songwriter who began his career in Minnesota before coming onto the Greenwich Village scene in 1961 evokes memories of his classic (or modern) songs in nearly everyone, and for many, it stirs the soul with its themes of peace, of love, of freedom and more. Awakening the soul even further is Dylan’s poetry.
The songwriting has earned Dylan 10 Grammy Awards, but, according to the prize’s official website, it is “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition” that Dylan is the only songwriter to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
The crowd in attendance at the Orpheum Theater on April 1 who came to see the man behind more than 600 songs were no fools.
“You gotta see these guys when they’re here,” Denise Falcon of Omaha said. She said she was more of a fan of rock ‘n’ roll groups such as The Who in the 1970s, as well as being a fan of Pete Seeger, but appreciates Dylan more these days.
Dylan is performing his “Rough and Rowdy Ways” tour across the U.S., largely in smaller venues such as the 2,600-seat Orpheum, making him one of the hottest tickets in town. Supported by a five-piece band, Dylan sang, and played the piano and harmonica, through a wide variety of his tunes—from “False Prophet” to “Key West” and so many more—in a mellow, bluesy set list that was contrary to the tour name. Favorites such as “Crossing the Rubicon,” “When I Paint My Masterpiece,” and “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue” drew more visible reactions from the crowd, which settled back and eased on in to the show.
Dylan entertained a sold-out crowd for 90 minutes, and after he sang “Goodbye Jimmy Road,” this “Mother of Muses” gave a quiet bow and left the stage.
