The Bob Dylan Show @ Bethel Woods 7-18-09

Where to begin...

The Bob Dylan Show at the original site of the Woodstock Music Festival, was an experience I will never forget.

How could I even begin to describe the emotion, the feeling, the complete awe that can be felt not only at the venue, but by watching a living folk legend perform? The day started out by taking the hour plus drive to the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts. It was perfect, the sky was a beautiful shade of blue with large white cotton ball clouds scattered across it. Driving into the site, parking and walking up the rolling hills to the pavilion and museum was incredible. The museum was filled with every last drop of information you wanted to know about Woodstock and the sixties, from the musicians, to the entire shape of the decade that defined a generation. I could have spent all day in there mulling about in silent awe, but there was more to see. Downstairs they were showcasing a special exhibit of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Bed in for Peace. My favorite part of the exhibit was the wish tree for peace, it's a tree made up of tags where people can make their own wishes for peace and hang them. An overwhelming feeling of peace and silent wonder filled the room where the exhibit was. Wandering back out to wait to get into the pavilion I ran over to the stand where I could purchase my Bob Dylan Show poster for my music room. Ahhh glorious. Inside I found my way to the frozen margarita stand, got my drink grabbed some fries and was pulled from my reverie by the sound of the blues. I grabbed my sister and we ran down the hill and into the seated section where an attendant helped us find our seats. They were perfect. We were under the covered pavilion just slightly left from the center of the stage about half way back. The sound of Americana/Blues filled the sweet summer sky as a smile crossed my face from ear to ear. The Wiyos were on stage and I was really taken with their sound and stage presence. Check out their myspace page for details you won't be disappointed www.myspace.com/thewiyos. I almost forgot who I was there to see as I was blissfully enjoying one of my favorite genres of music, the perfect summer day and a passing moment of shear happiness. Moving along Willie Nelson took the stage an American Icon himself. He playfully tossed his bandanna and hat into the eager crowd as he sang Whiskey River and the crowd proudly sang along and clapped in time to the music. Next up was John Mellencamp he started his set with Pink Houses and ended it with the ever popular Authority Song. The crowd really came alive and the music goers were out of their seats dancing like trees swaying in the breeze to his little taste of America and good old small town charm. By the time Mellencamp was through, the sky had turned from lazy blue to darkened black and the thunder rolled in. The sky opened up and hell poured down for a little while, but I was safe under the roof waiting for my favorite poet to take the stage. Then finally, the stage went black. A single baritone voice cried out to the crowd to put their hands together for the poet laureate of folk music and introduced the man himself, Mr. Bob Dylan. Like a school girl running wild with emotions I called my parents and put the phone on speaker so they could hear the first notes Dylan played. Some nay sayers may believe that he is not the same and should hang up his hat, but I tend to disagree. The legend that is Bob Dylan is like the cheesy saying of "a fine wine only gets better with age." Dylan has been a fine wine his entire life and I don't think he has any expiration date. His words are like poetic swirls floating along the stage. His music, his soul pouring out over the harmonica he played, was everything I had hoped it to be and more. He is a true inspiration to anyone that appreciates poetry, songwriting and folk music. I have been inspired by him and I know that future generations will be inspired by him for many years to come. I will always look fondly back at my time at Bethel Woods and would recommend to visit the venue at least once. Thank you Mr. Dylan for an amazing show. My mere words could never do justice for such an epic performance.