Last Night in Chula Vista (by David Lizerbram)

2025-05-15, North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, Chula Vista, CA

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Last night, Bob Dylan played the second night of this summer’s Outlaw Tour. As you might have seen already, it was another wild one. Between last night in Chula Vista and opening night in Phoenix, he’s now played six of his songs he hasn’t performed in five-plus years and covered six songs by other people he hasn’t performed ever. All together ten new songs were added between nights one and two!

David Lizerbram was on the scene and reports in for us. David is co-host of the excellent podcast Rock Docs, all about music documentaries. If you’re a music nerd, it’s a great listen. I was a guest a while ago to talk about Dont Look Back.

But David wasn’t the only person on the scene. So was his 8-year-old son Miles, for his first concert. Now, if you read my own newsletter about taking my daughter Ella to Outlaw last year, you’ll know why David’s piece hit close to home for me, even if sitting at the back of the lawn with a young child isn’t the best place to catch the nuances of how Bob played this piano solo or phrased that verse (though honestly I think David caught more of that sort of thing than I did last year).

I’ll turn it over to David (and Miles!):

On March 4 of this year, my wife Mana and I had a surprise for our son Miles for his 8^th birthday. We gave him his birthday gifts in the morning, which included MLB The Show 2025, the latest version of his beloved baseball video game, and some baseball cards. Later that day, we took him on a trip to some local baseball card stores (I think you’re seeing a pattern¹). But we had another unexpected gift for him: tickets to the Outlaw Tour, featuring Bob Dylan. This was going to be his first real concert. His response when he heard the news: “Bob Dylan is the greatest rock and roller!” (I don’t know where he got that idea.)

Yesterday was the day. The venue is not in the City of San Diego, where we live, but the nearby city of Chula Vista. Its current name is the North Island Credit Union Amphitheater (locals sometimes refer to it as the NICU, a dark joke). Our tickets were up on the lawn, so we went up to find a spot as Billy Strings was wrapping up his set. Billy was pretty loud at that point, so my kid put on ear protection, which we, of course, brought for him. We only caught the last song, “Meet Me at the Creek.” Nonetheless, there was a jam, so it went on for a little while, and it was a hit. I will now confidently say that Miles is a Billy Strings fan.

Billy’s set ended right around 7:25, which I knew meant that Bob was going to hit the stage right around 7:55. We cruised down to the outside concourse area and got some food and drinks. I’m advised that a double G&T at this venue is $40, but they do have $2 hot dogs. We got our picture taken by the cool Outlaw Fest sign, checked out the merch (there was nothing kid-size, which I never understand, you’re leaving money on the table, folks!), and we scooted back up to the lawn right before Bob started his set.

Now, to be clear, we were all the way up in the back of the lawn. We didn’t want it to be crowded; we really just wanted this to be a great experience for Miles. So geographically, Bob was almost in Mexico, and we were close to Vancouver. And, of course, the screens, unlike with Billy, were not getting right up in Bob’s grill. They showed a proscenium-type shot of the whole stage with the band, but you couldn’t really see very much. This was especially true at first because the sun hadn’t fully gone down, so the stage lights weren’t fully on. So we just settled down and Miles snuggled in his blanket. It was probably around 60 degrees, and he wanted to be cozy. I told him “I’m sorry that you can’t see very much.” He responded, smiling, “It’s okay, I can hear the music.” I already knew we were on the right track.

For those who are following the setlists, this was an unexpected show with some bust-outs and curveballs. They started with a little warm-up jam and then cruised into “Things Have Changed.”

Now, this article is not going to go into great detail about each song, because this was a family outing, and I wasn’t taking notes on every tune (although I was live-posting the setlist to Twitter for posterity). I was talking to my kid, talking to my wife, just enjoying a beautiful time on the lawn. (When I say we were talking, we were speaking quietly, so we weren’t disturbing the people around us. We’re not chompers.)

“Things Have Changed” was a different opener than the previous Outlaw show in Phoenix, and it was followed by an elegant “Simple Twist of Fate.” Bob’s voice was strong from the very first note. The piano sounded fantastic. For being way up on the lawn, the sound was impeccable.

Next we moved into “Forgetful Heart.” At this point, I suspected that Bob was going to replicate the setlist from night one aside from the two opening songs. But that’s not how the night turned out. Next up was the Willie Dixon song “Axe and the Wind,” which everybody had been frantically trying to look up two nights before. Again, the same sequence of songs from the first night.

“To Ramona” continued the 3-4-5 order from Phoenix. “Ramona” hadn’t been played for about eight years prior to that, so it was still something I was absolutely thrilled to hear. The sun went down. All of a sudden, during “Ramona,” the stage lights got a lot brighter and the crowd woke up a bit. I asked Miles if he wanted to go down and get a better view. He and I dodged blankets and lawn chairs to the rail at the top section. He put his arm around my shoulders and started swaying. It was, I have to say, a very special moment.

Last night, Bob played a total of 17 songs. There are 12 songs to go at this point in my narrative. And only four of those had made an appearance in Phoenix. Things were about to change.

In the previous show, the song following “Ramona” had been “Route 66.” I guess that one of his local covers, a little tribute to the Phoenix area. But last night we got “Early Roman Kings.” Miles was still holding me and swaying. Now I know that Ray has a tendency to cry when “Early Roman Kings” is played for other reasons, but I’ll say it was, again, a pretty emotional moment getting to spend this time with my son. [That’s very sweet. I still hate the song. –Editor]

We went back and relaxed on the blanket with my wife Mana for the rest of the show. Mana asked Miles if he saw Bob, and he replied, “I could only see his hair.” Welcome to the Bob concert experience, Miles!

Pictured is Miles with his show souvenir bandanna, wearing a t-shirt for his other favorite musical artist, San Diego’s finest middle school band The Night Carrots. They’re riding their surfboard to school!

Next up was 2024 Outlaw Fest classic “Under the Red Sky.” As it happens, I appeared on the Songs of Experience podcast a few months ago to talk about this song. In prep for it, I played it a few times for Miles, and he and I spent some time discussing the song and its meaning. (He had some interesting theories about it; you can listen to the podcast for more details.) So he lit up when this one started, we talked about how this was one of “our songs,” and he was very excited to have a song that he had a special connection with. I mean, I’ve played tons of Bob Dylan for him over the years, but he doesn’t know the songs that well. And it’s not like he knows “Axe and the Wind.”

Next we got the Charlie Rich cover, “I’ll Make It All Up to You,” that Bob had played two nights before, followed by “All Along the Watchtower.” This was the new arrangement with the shift into a major key. It’s been getting more acoustic, edging closer to the beloved John Wesley Harding version than the rockin’ rave-ups that Bob and the band have been playing for the last 50-some years. Now, a rockin’ “Watchtower” is great, but I’m really appreciating hearing it in this context.

My wife is a fan of Bob Dylan to the extent that a person with good taste is a fan of Bob Dylan, meaning she’s not an obsessive weirdo like me, or presumably, if you’re reading this, like you. She had gone with me to a few other Bob concerts in the past, including one at the San Diego Sports Arena during the 2012 tour with Mark Knopfler. The sound was terrible and it was not one of Bob’s premier vocal performances. We were also at the first weekend of Oldchella in 2016. Mana was pregnant with Miles at the time, and again, I wouldn’t say that one’s known to be one of Bob’s finest shows. The venue and circumstances may not have been optimal for him. The bottom line is that she had sworn never to go to another Bob Dylan concert. It wasn’t how she wanted to remember him or his music.

But when this opportunity came up to take Miles to this show, she was into it. She thought it would be fun. And I assured her that Bob was sounding good these days and that it would be a great experience. She was game for it; she was excited. And credit to her for putting her well-reasoned policy aside for this occasion.

I’m glad to report that she loved this show. And as a fan, but not somebody who listens to bootlegs, she was happy to be able to recognize the songs right away. I get the sense that people who deep in the world of Bob sometimes dismiss that. But for a reasonable, casual fan, to be able to hear Bob’s voice singing clearly, to hear the words that you’ve loved over these years and recognize the tune, is a beloved part of the concertgoing experience. Now, you get what you get with Bob. But in this case, he brought a blend of new arrangements and in-the-moment inspiration, but in a context that was more appealing to the non-super-obsessive fan. And it was great.

Next up was, “It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry,” followed by “Desolation Row.” Everybody lit up for this one. As it happened, we had played this for Miles the day before, in anticipation that maybe Bob would play it. Miles immediately yelled, “Desolation wrench!” because of course he’s heard that story from me. And he was really participating in the concert experience at this point: recognizing songs, sharing jokes and things that you know about the performance and the performer. That’s part of the concert experience. Maybe, like me, you’ve been to a million shows. You’re used to that stuff. But if it’s your first time, it’s exciting and fun in a different way.

Next up was “Love Sick.” It was nice to hear a few highlights from the 2024 Outlaw Tour setlist, and I never get sick (ha ha) of this one. It was followed by “Lonesome Day Blues,” first performance in eight years. “Lonesome Day” is a rocker that goes across with the crowd, even if it’s not one of his most-recognized songs by fans of the '60s and '70s stuff.

At this point I was wondering whether each one could be the last song. But then we were treated to a live debut for Bob, “Share Your Love with Me,” which was originally recorded by Bobby “Blue” Bland. I was frantically Googling at this point. I’m sure I’ve heard this song, because I’ve listened to a few Bobby “Blue” Bland compilations over the years, but I didn’t recognize it right away. I’ve mostly listened to Bland’s album Two Steps from the Blues; check that one out if you’re kind of new to the Bobby “Blue” Bland experience. But this was a tune where, even if you don’t know the song, which probably 99% of the people in the crowd didn’t, it just had that soul vibe and there was nothing not to love.

Next, after the band intros, was “Blind Willie McTell,” again the first performance in eight years. As it happens, we’d played that one in the car on the way down, so it was another recognizable moment for Miles. And, like many people, it’s one of my all-time favorites, so I was absolutely thrilled to hear it. “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right” rounded out the main set—yet another one that had not been played since before the Rough and Rowdy Ways era. A reliable, crowd-pleasing masterpiece. That would have been enough.

But, happily, they did the brief encore thing. The lights dimmed for a moment and came right back up. For the encore, we got another first-time-ever cover by Bob, Rick Nelson’s “Garden Party.” This song has a great story behind it; I’m going long here, you can look it up. And it’s a song that references Dylan by name:

And over in the corner
Much to my surprise
Mr. Hughes hid in Dylan’s shoes
Wearing his disguise

I’m trying to think if that’s the first time he’s ever performed a song that references him. There are many songs that mention Bob Dylan, such as “The Seeker” by The Who and “Mr. Jones” by Counting Crows. But I can’t of him having sung one of them.

The song’s hook/moral, “You can’t please everyone, so you got to please yourself,” was a great way to end this experience. And a message that I hope Miles will carry with him.

And that was it. We didn’t stay for Willie. It was 9:30, well past Miles’ bedtime on a school night. He hung with it through the whole show—if he’d wanted to go home early, we would have left. We just wanted it to be a good experience for him. But he was feeling the vibe the entire time, so we stuck it out. I would love to be able to say to my son, you got to see Willie Nelson. Actuarially, I don’t know if that’s going to happen, although I hope it does.

This morning, I was asking Miles what his favorite part of the show was, and he said, “Spending the time with you and Mommy.” I want to thank Bob for giving us so many opportunities to spend time with friends and family and loved ones. It was a beautiful experience and something I’ll never forget.

Thanks David (and Miles, and Mana!). Listen to Rock Docs wherever you get podcasts. In addition to my ep on Dont Look Back, they’ve done other Dylan docs with friends of the newsletter—No Direction home with Erin Callahan and Both Ends of the Rainbow with the Jokermen guys. Plus as the footnote below notes, Miles has his own podcast, Little Slugger, all about baseball. He should do an episode on “Catfish.”

2025-05-15, North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, Chula Vista, CA

1. As a proud parent, I can’t help shouting out Miles’ baseball podcast, Little Slugger, which just dropped its 48^th episode.