Bob Dylan World Tours 1966-1974 - Through the Camera of Barry Feinstein (DVD, 2005)

A treasure trove of heretofore unseen photographs of Bob Dylan will likely be the main attraction of Bob Dylan World Tours 1966-1974, a labor of love directed and produced by Joel Gilbert. Gilbert, leader of a group (called Highway 61 Revisited) that he bills as "the world's only lookalike, soundalike Bob Dylan tribute band," is obviously a Dylan fanatic (and he does bear a passing resemblance to a younger version of the singer). In the course of this two-hour documentary, he travels to Woodstock, New York, where he and Barry Feinstein, the official photographer on Dylan's trips to England in '66 (when he unveiled his new electric sound, to the dismay of many folk purists) and his '74 "comeback" tour with the Band, examining dozens of photos, many of them quite revealing. Elsewhere, Gilbert interviews journalist Al Aronowitz (who introduced Dylan to the Beatles), filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker (who shot the Don't Look Back documentary), and "Dylanologist" A. J. Weberman (a genuine kook who gained notoriety mainly by rummaging through Dylan's garbage). These encounters are only of passing interest, due both to the fact the subjects are recalling events that took place decades ago and to Gilbert's amateurish interviewing skills; asking Feinstein whether he gave Dylan a birthday present, or wondering if Weberman considers himself "an obsessive fan" (gee, do you think?) may not be the best way to elicit fascinating revelations. While Bob Dylan World Tours 1966-1974, which also includes an exceedingly lame "re-creation" of Dylan's late-'60s motorcycle accident and a visit to "Big Pink" (where Dylan and the Band recorded), was made without Dylan's participation and contains none of his music, it's obviously a sincere effort. Whether it will find favor with anyone other than Dylan completists is another matter entirely. --Sam Graham