In 1975, Bob Dylan embarked on tour.

Now this is nothing special or exciting in and of itself. Dylan's been on the road almost constantly over the course of his 40-year career.

There was something a little different about this 1975 tour. And it wasn't just that it was sandwiched between two of his finest albums, 1975's Blood On the Tracks and 1976's Desire. On this tour, Dylan was accompanied by what was more of a traveling troupe than a backing band, called the Rolling Thunder Revue.

Joined by musicians both famous and unknown, these shows featured sets by many members of the band, while different musicians strolled on- and off-stage several times during a performance.

With his latest live release, The Bootleg Series Vol. 5: Live 1975, Dylan presents a collection of his own performances from this tour. Sometimes he's joined onstage by people like Joan Baez, Roger McGuinn of the Byrds or a young T-Bone Burnett. Other times, he sits alone playing acoustic.

Over the course of two discs, which feature 22 songs, Dylan reinvents some of his songs by experimenting with his band, or just plays some of the great songs his fans would expect.

Other times, he introduces his audience to songs that would later appear on Desire, playing six of the nine songs that would end up on that album.

The whole thing kicks off with a rollicking version of "Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You." Dylan's creaky voice still sounds surprisingly crisp and clear, and the song features what becomes a highlight of the album very quickly: Scarlet Rivera's fascinating and enchanting violin work. His violin adds a different feel to many of Dylan's classics.

Other full-band highlights of the album include the next two songs, a bouncy take of "It Ain't Me, Babe" and a rocking version of "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall."

When Dylan plays alone, the songs are still great, but they lose some of the energy that permeates through the rest of the album. Easily the acoustic highlight of Live 1975 is the totally stripped-down and poignant "Love Minus Zero/No Limit."

On "Tangled Up In Blue," Dylan strums along solo, changing several lyrics and singing the whole song in third person, creating an entirely different interpretation of his own song.

The few times he falters are on the newer material, where he's obviously still working out some kinks.

The material from Desire bottoms out with sloppy takes of "Romance In Durango" and "One More Cup of Coffee (Valley Below)," but a sensational country-tinged "Isis" and Dylan's sad lament to his wife "Sara" give hints of how good Desire would be.

Baez joins Dylan for four songs on this set, the highlight of which is their duet on "I Shall Be Released." Another guest star highlight is the meandering version of "Knockin' On Heaven's Door" featuring McGuinn.

Live 1975 presents an intriguing portrait of Bob Dylan. It's early enough in his career that he's still full of energy, but far enough into his career that his repertoire is full of incredible works.

Although it's not as good as the last installment in the bootleg series, the phenomenal Live 1966, Live 1975 is still a great document for all of us who weren't even alive when it was recorded. Grade: A-