Bob Dylan brought his band and his lengthy back catalogue to Liverpool’s Echo Arena last week, for the latest gig of his “Never Ending” tour.

Having been criticised in the past for his lack of interaction with his audience, the legendary performer not-surprisingly hurried from track to track without so much as saying hello during his two-hour set, although that didn’t seem to dampen the high spirits of the crowd. Many, myself included, were happy for him to get on with it and let the songs speak for themselves.

Classics such as ‘Like A Rolling Stone’, ‘Just Like A Woman’ and ‘All Along The Watchtower’ entertained the mix of young and old fans that filled the arena, showing just how timeless Dylan’s music is.

Luckily I didn’t turn up expecting to hear the same versions that I’d been used to listening to on CD, as Dylan showed his songs weren’t untouchable by bravely playing livelier re-worked versions.

Whilst musically he appeared to have breathed new life into some of his classics his vocal, however, often left them unrecognisable. Dylan quickly blurted out each lyric, almost as if he was racing against the melody. For the first few numbers I welcomed it as nice change of pace but as the gig went on I hoped he would hold the notes so i could actually hear the words.

An unexpected cover of ‘Something’ by The Beatles was an exception though, and probably worth the ticket price alone.

By Natasha Young