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Cat Power Sings Dylan The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert

31 May 2023

In the Concert Hall | Contemporary Music

Indie rock royalty Cat Power returns to the Sydney Opera House for one very special night, as she recreates Bob Dylan’s legendary 1966 ‘Royal Albert Hall’ performance in her stunning, uniquely interpretive style.

She approached what might have been a whimsical tribute in a spirit of almost religious veneration. The whole occasion had the tone of a ceremony in the church of God Dylan.

The Telegraph (UK)

An indie icon recreates a legendary Bob Dylan performance

Across nearly 30 years of writing, recording and touring, Atlanta-born singer-songwriter Chan Marshall – aka Cat Power – has imbued folk, punk, blues and soul with her indelibly dusky voice, weathering life’s trials to emerge as a true indie icon.

Beloved for her indelible interpretations of other artists’ work on albums such as The Covers Record (2000), Jukebox (2008) and last year’s acclaimed Covers, Power makes her highly-anticipated return to Vivid LIVE with a show like no other.

For a single performance in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall, Cat Power will recreate Bob Dylan’s legendary ‘Royal Albert Hall’ show from 1966, in which the folk rocker scandalised audiences with his then-shocking pivot to electric guitar – what Power describes as “this precipice of time that changed music forever.” A longtime Dylan acolyte, having covered him on The Covers Record (“Paths of Victory”) and Jukebox (“I Believe In You”), Power left UK audiences and critics breathless with her first performance of the show in November of last year.

Cat Power rose to widespread acclaim with her fourth album, the 1998 classic Moon Pix, whose 30th anniversary she celebrated in her last Vivid LIVE performance. The Covers Record featured her unforgettable deconstruction of the Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” while Covers (2022) found Power delivering distinct interpretations of songs by Frank Ocean, Nick Cave, and her friend Lana Del Rey.

Known for her searing vulnerability on stage, Power’s live performances are more than reflections of her emotional complexity – they’re powerful, intimate vessels for the music itself.

Presented by Sydney Opera House

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