Exhibition

Electric 50: Bob Dylan at the Free Trade Hall Redux

Photos by Aidan O' Rourke.

2016 marked the 50th anniversary of Bob Dylan’s incendiary ‘Judas’ gig at Manchester Free Trade Hall - a gig that has has been hailed as one of the twenty most important moments in rock history, the electrifying night the young American poet clashed head on with the traditionalist die-hards of the folk scene.

Manchester District Music Archive celebrated this outstanding event with a fundraising concert at the Academy 3 on the night of 17 May 2016, exactly fifty years to the day since the FTH concert.

The evening was a sell out and a collection of the North's finest musicians re-created Dylan’s set list from that night, each group or performer playing one song from the original 1966 concert. The MC was Andy Kershaw assisted by the MDMArchive's own CP Lee and the event was a huge success. There was further funding gained for the MDMArchive charity via a raffle of 6 Mark Makin original photographs from the 1966 Free Trade Hall gig, signed by Mark, Andy Kershaw and CP.

The set was as follows:

Intro: Tony 'Longfella' Walsh

Andrew 'Blind Boy' Butler - She Belongs To Me
Kevin Hewick - Fourth Time Around
The Speed of Sound - Visions of Johanna
The Freshies - It's All Over Now Baby Blue
John O'Connell - Desolation Row
Poppycock - Just Like A Woman
Edwina Hayes - Mr Tambourine Man
Dub Vampire - Tell Me Momma
Thick Richard and Friends - I Don't Believe You
George Borowski/EPI - Baby Let Me Follow You Down
Jez Kerr - Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
The Creature Comfort - Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat
Vocal Harum - One Too Many Mornings
Gerry and The Holograms - Ballad Of A Thin Man
Ensemble - Like A Rolling Stone