1 INTRODUCTION

A year of surprises! Less than two years and a new studio album, Together Through Life with most songs penned with Robert Hunter of Grateful Dead fame. And then another album! The odds for a Christmas album by Bob Dylan must have been astronomical until this year, but here it is: Christmas In The Heart with Bob Dylans royalties going to charity organizations around the world, feeding the hungry. Less surprising, the 22^nd year of The Never Ending Tour swept through Europe and the US with 97 new shows.

2 2009 AT A GLANCE

3 THE 2009 CALENDAR

3 January	William Zantzinger dies.
7 January	Show # 86: “Work” in the Theme Time Radio Hour series is broadcast.
28 January	It is announced that Bob Dylan has given permission for his song Blowin' In The Wind to be used in a tv commercial for The Co-operative Group in the UK. Dylan's decision is said to have been influenced by the Co-op's high ethical guidelines regarding fair trade and the environment.
January	Bob Dylan records two Woody Guthrie songs, Do Re Mi and Vigilante Man in Malibu, California with Ry Cooder and Van Dyke Parks. The former song is included in the film The People Speak and the soundtrack.
22 March	This year’s Europe tour starts weith a warm-up show at the 1000-seater Berns Salonger in Stockholm, Sweden. The band remains the same. This show contains the live debut of Billy from Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid.
29 March	At the show in Copenhagen, Denmark Gotta Serve Somebody is played for the first time since St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, Florida 30 July 2003.
8 April	The Times We've Known by Charles Aznavour is played for second time, the first being in New York City, New York 1 November 1998.
11 April	First performance of Tough Mama since New York City, New York 28 April 2005 at the show in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
15 April	The final Theme Time Radio Hour, no 100: Goodbye is aired.
17 April	Another live debut: Return To Me, a song recorded at Sony Music Studios, New York City, New York, 17 December 2000 and later released on the soundtrack Sopranos. Peppers & Eggs.
27 April	Together Through Life is released.
1 May	At the show in Liverpool, England Something is played for the second time, the first being in Madison Square Garden, New York City 13 November 2002. While in Liverpool, Bob Dylan visits Mendips, the childhood home of John Lennon of The Beatles.
3 May	Together Through Life, reaches No1 in the US and UK charts simultaneously. As a result, Dylan becomes the oldest artist to have a No1 album in the UK.
5 May	At the first show in Dublin, Ireland, If You Ever Go To Houston is played for the first time. It is the first song from Together Through Life to be played live.
6 May	The 33^rd and last show of the European tour.
May	Christmas In The Heart recording sessions takes place in the Groove Masters Studios in Santa Monica, California.
10 June	The keyboard player and co-producer of the album Slow Train Coming, Barry Beckett, dies at home in Hendersonville, Tennessee, aged 66.
11 June	Bob Dylan and the touring band perform Things Have Changed at The American Film Institute Lifetime Achievement Award as a tribute To Michael Douglas.
28-30 June	Rehearsals for the next tour takes place at Barrymore Theater in Madison, Wisconsin.
1 July	The US Summer tour starts with a show at the Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jolene and Forgetful Heart get their live debuts.
2 July	Live debut of This Dream Of You at the show in Sauget, Illinois.
10 July	This night in Dayton, Ohio it is Beyond Here Lies Nothin' that is premiered.
11 July	Lucas Nelson joins the band and plays guitar from Highway 61 Revisited to the end.
15 July	Tonight it is time for I Feel A Change Comin' On to be be played live for the first time.
23 July	Bob Dylan is detained by police in Long Branch, New Jersey, after he is seen on a rainy day looking in a window of a house for sale. Police officers, called by neighbours fail to recognize Dylan, who is not carrying ID, so they drive him to his hotel where his staff confirm his identity. The officers describe Dylan as polite and "really cool” about the whole incident. It is later realised that the area is close to where Bruce Springsteen wrote Born to Run, so Dylan may have been looking for Springsteen's former house.
4 August	Charlie Sexton joins the band after three songs at the show in Round Rock, Texas.
7 August	Mike Seeger dies.
8 August	First live performance of Not Fade Away since San Diego, California 19 October 2002 in Lubbock, Texas.
11 August	Bob Dylan's show on this night at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Arizona, USA, is cancelled as the temperature is expected to reach 110⁰ Fahrenheit or 43⁰ Celsius.
12 August	Lucas Nelson joins the band and plays guitar on the encores at the show in Lake Elsinore, California.
15 August	The author of Across The Borderline, Jim Dickinson dies. He played guitar on Time Out Of Mind.
16 August	Live debut of Heartbreak Hotel at the last US Summer show in Stateline, Nevada.
4 October	Dylan kicks off the 33-stop US Fall Tour in Seattle, Washington with the first live performance of Gonna Change My Way Of Thinking since Charleston, West Virginia, 9 February 1980! Denny Freeman has left the band after 441 (!) concerts. He is replaced by Charlie Sexton who played with Dylan between 5 June 1999 and 24 November 2001.
5 October	The second night in Seattle, Washington sees the live debut of My Wife's Home Town.
12 October	Christmas In The Heart is released.
31 October	At the second show in Chicago, Illinois Stu Kimball sings a Tom Waits imitation of Jesus Gonna Be Here. It’s All Good is played for the first time.
2 November	In Bloomington, Indiana Stu Kimball again imitates Tom Waits by singing one verse of San Diego Serenade.
17-19 November	This year’s touring ends with three shows at the United Palace Theatre in New York City, New York.
8 December	Release of the soundtrack from The People Speak film.
13 December	The People Speak film is broadcast by History Channel in the US.

[TOP]

4 NEW RELEASES AND RECORDINGS

4.1 Together Through Life

Recorded October 2008 somewhere in California. Released on CD Columbia 8697-51697-2, 27 April 2009.

Tracks:		First played live:
1.	Beyond Here Lies Nothin'	Dayton, Ohio, 10 July 2009
2.	Life Is Hard
3.	My Wife's Home Town	Seattle, Washington, 5 October 2009
4.	If You Ever Go To Houston	Dublin, Ireland, 5 May 2009
5.	Forgetful Heart	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1 July 2009
6.	Jolene	Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1 July 2009
7.	This Dream Of You	Sauget, Illinois, 2 July 2009
8.	Shake Shake Mama
9.	I Feel A Change Comin' On	New Britain , Connecticut , 15 July 2009
10.	It's All Good	Chicago, Illinois, 31 October 2009

All songs written by Bob Dylan & Robert Hunter, except My Wife's Home Town, credited to Bob Dylan & Willie Dixon and This Dream of You, written by Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan (vocal & keyboard), Mike Campbell (guitar), David Hidalgo (accordion, guitar), Donnie Herron (banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, trumpet), Tony Garnier (bass), George Recile (drums & percussion).

4.2 Christmas In The Heart

Recorded May 2009 in the Groove Masters Studios in Santa Monica, California. Released on CD Columbia 88697 67323 2, 12 October 2009.

Tracks:

1.	Here Comes Santa Claus (Gene Autrey & Oakley Haldeman)
2.	Do You Hear What I Hear? (Gloria Shane Baker - Noel Regney)
3.	Winter Wonderland (Felix Bernard - Richard Smith)
4.	Hark! The Herald Angels Sing (Felix Mendelssohn - Charles Wesley)
5.	I'll Be Home For Christmas (Walter Kent - Kim Gannon & Buck Ram)
6.	The Little Drummer Boy (Katherine Davis - Katherine Davis, Henry Onorati & Harry Simeone)
7.	The Christmas Blues (Sammy Cahn & David Jack Holt)
8.	O Come All Ye Faithfull (trad., arr. by Bob Dylan)
9.	Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas (Ralph Blane & Hugh Martin)
10.	Must Be Santa (William Fredericks & Hal Moore)
11.	Silver Bells (Raymond Evans & Jay Livingstone)
12.	The First Noel (trad., arr. by Bob Dylan)
13.	Christmas Island (Lyle Moraine)
14.	The Christmas Song (Mel Tormé & Robert Wells)
15.	O Little Town Of Bethlehem (Phillips Brooks, Lewis H. Redner, J. Scott)

None of these songs have been played live.

Musicians:

Bob Dylan (vocal, guitar, electric piano, harmonica), Donnie Herron (violin, mandolin, steel guitar, trumpet), Phil Upchurch (guitar), David Hidalgo (guitar, accordion, violin), Patrick Warren (piano, organ, celeste). Tony Garnier (bass), George Recile (drums & percussion).

Mixed Voice Singers: Amanda Barrett, Bill Cantos, Randy Crenshaw, Abby DeWald, Nicole Eva Emery, Walt Harrah, Robert Joyce,

All of Bob Dylan’s US royalties from this album, were donated to the charity Feeding America and all UK royalties were donated to the World Food Programme and Crisis UK. Similar donations were made in other countries.

[TOP]

4.3 The People Speak

Tracks:

1. Do Re Mi	Bob Dylan
2. The Ghost Of Tom Joad	Bruce Springsteen
3. Masters Of War	Eddie Vedder
4. Dear Mr. President	P!nk
5. Sail Away	Randy Newman
6. American Terrorist	Lupe Fiasco
7. Drums Of War	Jackson Browne
8. What's Going On	John Legend
9. See How We Are	Exene Cervenka
10. Blues With A Feeling	Taj Mahal
11. Brother, Can You Spare A Dime?	Allison Moorer
12. Only A Pawn In Their Game	Rich Robinson

Do Re Mi recorded January 2009 at the Malibu Performing Arts Center in Los Angeles, California.

The soundtrack released 8 December 2009 on Verve B002UK6DTA.

The DVD released 9 February 2010.

London, England, 25 April 2009, all songs except Spirit On The Water.

4.5.2 Jann Wenner 1969 Interview for Rolling Stone

Different clips, total 14 minutes-

[TOP]