Byron Bay Bluesfest
There's a few rules when writing about Bob Dylan: no interviews, no photographs and it seems no looking.
Despite being one of the world's greatest poets and musicians, you could say that after his performance at the Byron Bay Bluesfest, Dylan is continually fighting his desire for privacy even when he is on stage.
Thousands came to see him as the headliner on Monday night but, unfortunately, thousands did not actually see him.
Without a hello to the crowd, Dylan had walked on stage and launched into Don't Think Twice It's Alright.
The crowd did a double take.
"Is this the warm up? We can hear him, but why can't we see him?"
A decision was made somewhere along the line that the performance would only be seen by a select few.
Private man .. Bob Dylan performs at Bluefest.Credit: Edwina Pickles
The 69-year-old did not project his performance live on the big screens surrounding the stage, so anybody under six-foot tall only saw as far as the back of the next six-foot-tall person.
A small stream of people left the concert mid-way but others took matters into their own hands and started piggybacks or shoulder lifts.
Once you were up there, the magnificence of the moment overtook the general annoyance of the situation.
You got to see a slender, taller than expected Dylan behind the organ, leaning into the keys and throwing his leg out, moving in a perfect groove.
That's what you came to see, the legend at work.
But alas, shoulders get sore and down you get to the reality of being a five-foot-one fan.
There were many times when his music so transcended the lack of visuals, you could get lost in his harmonica solos, and everybody was happy enough to give a little twist to Highway 61.
Although Dylan's voice doesn't carry like it used to, he's exchanged its clarity for a gravelly, attitude-filled tone, which was showcased in A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall.
Is this the warm up? We can hear him, but why can't we see him?
After the 90-minute set, in what appeared to be Dylan style, he left the stage without a goodbye and without playing any of his best known songs; Blowin' in the Wind, The Times They are a-Changin, It Ain't Me Babe, or Mr Tambourine Man.
After some begging from the audience, he came back on to sing Like a Rolling Stone, albeit a newer version that was initially hard to recognise.
It was heavier, with electric guitar, lighter on the organ and more up tempo.
Dylan forced the song out with staccato, sometimes repeating the lyrics in quick succession and leaving the chorus up to the crowd at times, who were more than happy to sing along and be part of a Dylan song.
Dylan is a man who has been annoyed by the media and misunderstood by them, who famously wants to keep his mystique and maintain his privacy, but needs to balance that with showing a little more to supporters.
"If you're not going to allow your crowd to see you at this stage in your career, why play?" Blues singer Jennifer Hillhouse said.
"If he doesn't want to give you everything, why be here?"
The media were warned before the gig that "security would be tight", there would be no interviews, no photography, and no front-row pit.
Out of the scores of artists performing at the six-day festival, Dylan was only one of four who didn't want to be photographed, and next to his name, to make it clear, it read: "absolutely no".
A woman who worked on this year's Australian tour, as well as 2007's, said his desire for privacy was well-known among staff, although, it's not strictly enforced.
"From what I know he's very private. You just keep a distance. It's not something that's enforced but as a professional that's something you adhere to," the person who wished to remain anonymous told AAP.
"He goes from his Winnebago to the stage and back."
AAP