OTTAWA - Bob Dylan was obviously digging the funky outdoor Bluesfest atmosphere last night. Unlike his claustrophobic showing at Scotiabank Place in November, Dylan strutted front and centre and actually faced his audience of 25,000 partiers.

Well, okay, maybe that wasn't the only surprising thing about Dylan's show.

The 67-year-old troubadour was also in terrific voice as he tore through a set of standards with youthful energy and elusive charisma.

Fresh from his standout performance Wednesday night in Montreal, Dylan opened his second visit to the capital in less than a year with a set of four standards, Rainy Day Woman #12 & 35, Don't Think Twice, It's Alright, Watching the River Flow and It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding), all with Dylan on guitar before moving to the keyboard for Tangled Up in Blue and Masters of War.

Watching Dylan live capped what turned out to be a gorgeous summer night.

Bluesfest fans looking to loosen things up before Dylan were hoping for the perfect musical hors d'oeuvre with Texas guitar deity Jimmie Vaughan cranking out a set of blues standards on the MBNA stage.

Doing raunch is something The Fabulous Thunderbirds former frontman does better than most, which was just fine for the massive crowd that defied the forecast of heavy storms to soak up an hour's worth of traditional electric R&B.

With a sound that would be at home in a Texas strip club and looking like an iconic rocker from the 1950s, the older brother of the legendary Stevie Ray Vaughan (who died in an helicopter crash in 1990), is one of those artists who neutralizes the age-old 'where are the blues at Bluesfest?' debate.

But even with his blue-ribbon blues pedigree, Vaughan's show was surprisingly low-key.

Accompanied by his Tilt-A-Whirl band -- Billy Pitman on rhythm guitar, Bill Willis on bass and keyboards and George Rains on drums -- the 56-year-old Vaughan cranked out a dozen old favourites that showed off his dazzlingly dextrous guitar work.

But he failed to electrify the crowd, mainly because it was all so monotonous. Even a long set of vocals by Lou Ann Barton failed to ignite much interest from the fans, many of whom talked their way through Vaughan's set.

In the end, Vaughan's bland showing only demonstrated how far the festival has evolved from its original blues roots.