Bob Dylan @ SEC Armadillo, Glasgow, 31 Oct

At the age of 81, it feels like Bob Dylan may have finally grown into his famously gruff, wizened voice. For most of the show he's hidden behind his upright piano, just a head poking over with some wispy tufts of hair, but that voice is on magnificent form tonight. When he emerges late on to soak up some applause, hand on hip, he's every bit the legendary figure everyone expects.

All but one song from 2020's brilliant Rough and Rowdy Ways is played tonight (sadly, there's no Murder Most Foul), making up more than half the set. And even the rest are far from hits, with a couple of 1971 deep cuts and a smattering from elsewhere. Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine is the oldest song (1966) and the best example of Dylan's predilection for completely warping his own songs with eccentric and unpredictable vocal cadences. This song, I'll Be Your Baby Tonight and Gotta Serve Somebody are the closest to singalongs tonight, but doing so is impossible given their wildly new styles. I'll Be Your Baby... is the best of the bunch, because the arrangement has also been substantially altered to make it fit with Dylan's current style and range.

This is an important reason why the show is so successful, and makes Dylan a standout figure in a crowded “legacy act” field – he's very aware he's no longer 24. Not many 60s superstars are playing sets mostly made of 2020 songs, but then most aren't still releasing material of such high quality. I've Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You and Mother of Muses are simply beautiful, I Contain Multitudes shows his wry sense of humour and Black Rider is dark and foreboding, with a twisted edge also present on the cover of Johnny Mercer's That Old Black Magic. All are perfectly accompanied by a top band that can bring violin, double bass or twanging guitar to every whim of Dylan's improvisations.

With a rare word mid-show, he acknowledges that it's Halloween night – very fitting given the skeleton tour poster and eerie orange backlights illuminating the stage – letting us know in staccato phrasing that “I. Am. Scared.” It's a suitably weird moment to precede the wonderfully existential Key West (Philosopher Pirate). Every Grain of Sand closes the night on a ruminative note, Dylan treating us to a snatch of harmonica for the only time, before the band takes its final bows.

Bob Dylan has had nothing left to prove for over 50 years now, but the willingness to go on creating and experimenting show him to be cementing his legendary status with every new show and song.