Bob Dylan - Don’t Look Back: ’65 Tour Deluxe Edition

Seminal Dylan doc fully loaded

Anybody who’s any kind of music fan will have seen DA Pennebaker’s groundbreaking documentary of Dylan’s 1965 UK tour, and that ‘world’s first promo’ for Subterranean Homesick Blues. Careening around London in shades and a growing arrogance, Dylan embodied cool in this blackand- white film. Putting interviewers on and even once losing his rag, he’s as likeable as he is unlikeable, but forgivable because, you know what? He’s right about it all.

What makes this reissue of an essential leap in rock documentary-making essential is the extra hour’s worth of footage, 65 Revisited, edited together by Pennebaker. With no narrative or Donovan climax to focus on, it offers extra footage for the well known scenes (the ‘lightbulb’ interview, for instance) and more live footage than its parent documentary. There are no memorable set pieces; for one, Dylan is more relaxed with fans than in the original film’s edit. If anything, this heightens the tour madhouse thanks to fast edits and layering of short scenes.

With the addition of a companion photobook (out of print since 1968) and a scene-byscene ‘flipbook’ of the Subterranean… video, this is complete and essential. Now, will someone give Pennebaker the Eat The Document footage for Bootleg Series Volume 8, please?

SonyBMG | cat no tbc

Reviewed by Jason Draper
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