A legend will take the stage Tuesday night at Hilton Coliseum. Bob Dylan, known to many as the most influential singer-songwriter of all time, will come through Ames on a stop on his latest tour.

While few can argue the importance of Dylan’s contribution to music, a few questions about his performances have arisen over the years.

David Stuart, associate professor of music, says he will be going to the show but has seen Dylan “only a couple times.” Stuart says expectations should factor into what people tend to get from a live Dylan Concert.

“He has a reputation of being inconsistent in the sense of what people think, but it’s so hard to pin down,” says Stuart, instructor for Music 104, history of rock ‘n’ roll. “I guess it just depends on who you are and what you expect.

“I’ve also heard from other people who have seen the show already that even if Dylan is having a terrible night it doesn’t matter, because it’s just a dynamite band and you should see him just to hear the band.”

Joe Williams of Bi-Fi Records counts himself among those who respect Dylan and his work, but says he won’t be at the concert.

“He has a very strong catalog of albums,” Williams says. “He was very influential. I just have a hard time seeing him as a contemporary musician.”

Williams says while Dylan is by no means a nostalgia act, the majority of his contribution has come from his past recordings.

“I think that his big albums are timeless,” Williams says. “I just think that for me it’s not important to see him live or to have interest in his contemporary work.” Williams also says it would be strange to see a man of Dylan’s age performing certain material on stage. “I think for me the thing is that there is a certain amount of youth rebellion in Dylan music,” he says. “The idea of an old man performing it is a visual irony I don’t need to witness.”

Brian Wrobel, sophomore in statistics, says he will regrettably not be in attendance Tuesday night, but not for lack of desire.

“I’m not going to the show because I have absolutely no money,” he says. “The circumstances are rare, though … if this were any other year, I probably would have gone.”

Wrobel says he’s been a fan since he was young.

“I first got into him from my parents,” he says. “Growing up, I always remember hearing songs of his on mix tapes my parents had made. I [knew] all the words to his ‘No Mercy’ album by the time I was 7. When I got older, I asked to borrow all of my parents’ albums and fell in love with his songwriting, guitar styling and harmonica playing.”

Justin Sandwich, a Bettendorf resident, says he’ll be in Ames when Dylan takes the stage.

Sandwich, who’s been listening to Dylan’s music “since junior high I suppose, when I started listening to my dad’s old records,” says Dylan is a different sort of performer than most playing music today.

“He’s there to play music and not put on a show like a lot of acts do today,” he says. “When he plays it doesn’t feel scripted. He never has a set list set in stone. On any particular tour he can pull some 200 or so songs the band has practiced for out and play it. It’s not like he goes A, B, C, does a little dance, and then does D.”

Stuart says he has to respect that a man of Dylan’s age still tours as much as he does.

“This guy tours almost two hundred dates a year forever,” Stuart says. “He must be getting something out of it, because he doesn’t need the money. He certainly doesn’t need the fame.

“There must be something about performing and touring that he’s getting something really important from, which is kind of a neat thing,” he says. “Whatever the motivation for him to have to do this it’s on some other level, I guess.”

Wrobel says while Dylan’s age may affect the performance a little, the experience hasn’t suffered for that reason.

“Although I think he’s definitely getting old, making long and extensive road trips like this much rarer, I have heard nothing but positive reviews of his latest shows,” he says. “He’s the last remaining artist from the early ’60s that still puts out good music.”

Wrobel agrees the time may be running out on this music legend.

“I can see him releasing one or two more decent albums with subsequent tours, but I don’t think there’s much time left.”