Yeah we were probably there on different nights, LH. I don't remember Hattie at all!

Bob was in the early and terribly earnest stages of his religious conversion, and he was deliberately doing ONLY the new Christian songs he'd written at that time. He did them awfully well, with tremendous energy and committment, because he was inspired about it. The music was great and the band was great

Yes, musically that was a fine concert LH. I believe Dire Straits - or rather, Mark Knopfler - was backing him up on that album. Not sure if he was there that night in Toronto though. It DID sound like it though!

Dylan, in his own mind, was consciously serving God (his idea of God) and humanity by singing only the religious songs. That was how he honestly felt. I'm not saying I would have done that if I was in his place, but that's how he felt at the time. Kind of took guts to do that, wouldn't you say?

Guts? Well, I suppose - although I'm not sure that religious fervour is exactly the same as courage. It took dedication and single-mindedness, that's for sure. I've watched alot of people get all evangelistic when they're first 'born again'. Eventually, their new understandings do mature though, and that urge to preach subsides.

Funny, as I was re-reading my own post above, the first "Him" in this line suddenly took on a different meaning, and I could see the situation that night in a whole new Light' -

It seemed like there was no one else in that Hall except Him, for Him anyway.

Figures. My own jab did a good job, and not at all what I intended!   Gotta love it   :-)

I think now that for most if not all of that concert, Bob wasn't really 'there' at all. He was on some heavenly plane in his own mind, completely swept away by the music and the message he was creating. I'm glad, for the audience' sake, that he came back down to earth later on in that tour! Because his behavior that night did NOT endear anyone to his message, or his 'Messenger'. Quite the opposite, in fact.

It's something that needs radical changing, because "you gotta serve somebody" if you expect to grow as a living and conscious soul.

Well, serving's important. And happiness - ie true inner contentment and freedom from suffering - is paramount. If one is in a state of true happiness, at peace with themselves and their lives in their own minds, there's no driving need to change or preach at others. Happy people are not obsessed with themselves, or with all the little (or not so little) imperfections and annoyances and suffering that are a natural part of physical life. They are much more likely to be generous, helpful, forgiving and compassionate with others than their miserable counterparts.

I'm reading a book right now called "The Art of Happiness", by the Dalai Lama. Now there's a person who has every reason in the world to be depressed, angry, vengeful, hateful etc etc etc - but he isn't! It's amazing!! He's always smiling, has a wonderful sense of humor, loves to be with people, just to talk to them and get to know them. And just being with him fills people with joy somehow. It literally makes their day! He knows how to help people feel important, special, loved, appreciated. And he uplifts and inspires them without preaching at them or trying to convert them!

He does it just by being who he is.

Anyway, we've come a LONG way from Starbucks here, folks! So please pardon the drift, and thanks for listening!