Never Ending Tour
{{Short description|Popular name for Bob Dylan's touring schedule}}
{{use American English|date=September 2024}}
{{Infobox concert
| concert_tour_name = Never Ending Tour
| image = Dylan2 Spectrum.jpg
| image_size =
|landscape = yes
| alt =
| image_caption = Bob Dylan and his Band, Spectrum, Oslo, Norway, March 30, 2007
| artist = Bob Dylan
| location = North America
Europe
South America
Australia
Asia
Central America
| type = World
| start_date = June 7, 1988
| end_date = Ongoing
| number_of_shows = 3,066
| URL =
| number_of_legs = 135}}
The Never Ending Tour is the popular name for Bob Dylan's ongoing touring schedule which began on June 7, 1988.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jun/12/bob-dylan-never-ending-tour |title=Bob Dylan begins his 'never-ending' tour |work=The Guardian |date=2011-06-12 |access-date=2011-11-26 |location=London |first=Michael |last=Hann}}{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/photos/the-evolution-of-bob-dylan-20110509/the-never-ending-tour-begins-1988-1996-0242530 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110514172401/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/photos/the-evolution-of-bob-dylan-20110509/the-never-ending-tour-begins-1988-1996-0242530 |url-status=dead |archive-date=May 14, 2011 |title=The Evolution of Bob Dylan |publisher=Rolling Stone Magazine |access-date=2011-11-26}} The tour amassed a huge fan base with some fans traveling from around the world to attend as many Dylan shows as possible.{{cite web|url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/92670.The_Razor_s_Edge |title=The Razor's Edge: Bob Dylan and the Neverending Tour |publisher=Good Reads |access-date=2011-11-26}}
Dylan himself has been dismissive of the Never Ending Tour tag. He writes in the sleeve notes to his album World Gone Wrong (1993):
{{quote|Don't be bewildered by the Never Ending Tour chatter. There was a Never Ending Tour but it ended in 1991 with the departure of guitarist G. E. Smith. That one's long gone but there have been many others since then: "The Money Never Runs Out Tour" (Fall of 1991) "Southern Sympathizer Tour" (Early 1992) "Why Do You Look At Me So Strangely Tour" (European Tour 1992) "The One Sad Cry Of Pity Tour" (Australia & West Coast American Tour 1992) "Outburst Of Consciousness Tour" (1992) "Don't Let Your Deal Go Down Tour" (1993) and others, too many to mention each with their own character & design.}}
Nevertheless, his touring schedule has continued to be referred to as the "Never Ending Tour" by most media outlets.
According to Swedish researcher Olof Björner,{{cite web|url=http://www.bjorner.com/still.htm |title=Still On The Road |publisher=Bjorner |access-date=2011-11-26}} Dylan played show number 2,000 of the Never Ending Tour on October 16, 2007, in Dayton, Ohio.{{cite web|url=http://www.bjorner.com/DSN29620%20-%202007%20US%20Fall%20Tour.htm#DSN29830 |title=Still On The Road: 2007 US Fall Tour |publisher=Bjorner |access-date=2011-11-26}} He played show number 3,000 on April 19, 2019, in Innsbruck, Austria.{{cite web|url=http://www.bjorner.com/DSN39740%20-%202019%20EU%20Spring%20Tour.htm |title=Still On The Road: 2019 EU Spring Tour |publisher=Bjorner |access-date=2019-04-20}} Dylan has attributed much of the versatility of his live shows to the talent of his backing band, with whom he recorded each of his 21st-century studio albums: Love and Theft (2001); Modern Times (2006); Together Through Life (2009); Christmas in the Heart (2009); Tempest (2012); Shadows in the Night (2015); Fallen Angels (2016); Triplicate (2017); and Rough and Rowdy Ways (2020).
Following the 2019 touring year, performances were cancelled during 2020 in Japan and the US due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On September 27, 2021, Dylan announced a new tour called the Rough and Rowdy Ways World Wide Tour, spanning 2021–2024, with the tour starting in November.{{Cite web|title=Bob Dylan Fall Tour Dates Announced {{!}} The Official Bob Dylan Site|url=https://www.bobdylan.com/news/bob-dylan-fall-tour-dates-announced/|access-date=2021-09-27|website=www.bobdylan.com}} This tour has been referred to by the media as an extension of his ongoing Never Ending Tour.{{Cite web|last=Levy|first=Piet|title=Bob Dylan is resuming his 'Never Ending Tour,' beginning with a show at Milwaukee's Riverside Theater|url=https://www.jsonline.com/story/entertainment/music/2021/09/27/bob-dylan-resuming-his-never-ending-tour-beginning-show-milwaukees-riverside-theater/5883872001/|access-date=2022-01-03|website=Milwaukee Journal Sentinel|language=en-US}}
Origin
The tour's name was cemented when journalist Adrian Deevoy published his interview with Dylan in Q Magazine no. 39, December 1989. Critic Michael Gray listened to Deevoy's interview tape and points out in The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia that Deevoy's article put the phrase into Dylan's mouth, but it actually came from Deevoy in the following exchange:
- AD: Tell me about this live thing. You've gone straight into this tour again—one tour virtually straight into the next one.
- BD: Oh, it's all the same tour.
- AD: It's the Never Ending Tour?
- BD: (unenthusiastically) Yeah, yeah.Gray, The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia, 2006, pp. 173–174
In a 2009 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Dylan questioned the validity of the term Never Ending Tour:
Critics should know there is no such thing as forever. Does anybody call Henry Ford a Never Ending Car Builder? Anybody ever say that Duke Ellington was on a Never Ending Bandstand Tour? These days, people are lucky to have a job. Any job. So critics might be uncomfortable with my working so much. Anybody with a trade can work as long as they want. A carpenter, an electrician. They don't necessarily need to retire.
The tour was briefly interrupted in the spring of 1997 when Dylan was forced to cancel dates after suffering a serious medical issue in May. Columbia Records announced that he was being hospitalized for the potentially fatal chest infection histoplasmosis,{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/bob-dylan-in-hospital-after-heart-scare-1263950.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/bob-dylan-in-hospital-after-heart-scare-1263950.html |archive-date=2022-06-18 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Bob Dylan in hospital after heart scare |publisher=Independent |date= May 29, 1997|access-date=2011-11-26 |location=London |first=David |last=Lister}} but Dylan resumed touring that fall.
Books, live recordings, and broadcasts
File:Bob Dylan in Toronto.jpg, Toronto, November 7, 2006]]
Andrew Muir published Razor's Edge: Bob Dylan and the Never Ending Tour in September 2001. The book chronicles the first fifteen years of Dylan's Never Ending Tour from the point of view of a committed fan, analyzing how Dylan varies his interpretations of his songs, and exploring his possible motivations. In July 2013, Muir updated Razor's Edge when he published One More Night: Bob Dylan's Never Ending Tour: this book covers Dylan's touring activities from 1988 to 2011.
The only complete live album of material recorded with the Never Ending Tour band is MTV Unplugged, recorded in 1994 and released in 1995.
Dylan's 2008 album The Bootleg Series Vol. 8: Tell Tale Signs: Rare and Unreleased 1989–2006 included five live performances from the Never Ending Tour recorded between 1992 and 2004. In 2009, former Never Ending Tour drummer Winston Watson released the DVD Bob Dylan Never Ending Tour Diaries: Drummer Winston Watson's Incredible Journey documenting his touring with Dylan between 1992 and 1996.{{cite web | url=http://www.bobdylandiaries.com | title=Bob Dylan Never Ending Tour Diaries | access-date=March 30, 2017}}
Band
File:Bob Dylan at Roskilde.jpg, 2006]]
File:Bob Dylan Bologna Nov 05 concert.jpg
For a two and a half year period, between 2003 and 2006, Dylan ceased playing guitar, and stuck solely to the keyboard during concerts. Various rumors circulated as to why Dylan gave up guitar during this period, none very reliable. According to David Gates, a Newsweek reporter who interviewed Dylan in 2004, "basically it has to do with his guitar not giving him quite the fullness of sound he was wanting at the bottom. He's thought of hiring a keyboard player so he doesn't have to do it himself, but hasn't been able to figure out who. Most keyboard players, he says, like to be soloists, and he wants a very basic sound".{{cite web |url=http://www.rightwingbob.com/item/talking.htm |title=Talking About Chronicles |publisher=Right Wing Bob |access-date=2011-11-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192237/http://www.rightwingbob.com/item/talking.htm |archive-date=2016-03-03 |url-status=dead }} Dylan's touring band typically features two guitarists along with a multi-instrumentalist who plays pedal & lap steel, mandolin, banjo, violin and viola. From 2002 to 2005, Dylan's keyboard had a piano sound. In 2006, this was changed to an organ sound. At the start of his Spring 2007 tour in Europe, Dylan once again began playing guitar. The last time Dylan played an acoustic guitar live was at the White House's Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights concert in 2010.{{Cite magazine|last=Greene|first=Andy|date=2013-09-10|title=Bob Dylan Plays for Obama|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/flashback-bob-dylan-plays-for-obama-at-the-white-house-56601/|access-date=2021-02-04|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US}} As of the most recent leg of the Never Ending Tour, in fall 2024, he mostly played a baby grand piano but would also occasionally play songs on electric guitar and take center-stage with just his harmonica and microphone.{{cite web|url=http://www.boblinks.com|title=BobLinks}}
The most recent leg of the Never Ending Tour, in the summer of 2024, consisted of the following members:
- Bob Dylan – vocals, piano, harmonica, guitar
- Doug Lancio – acoustic guitar, electric guitar
- Tony Garnier – bass guitar
- Jim Keltner – drums
- Bob Britt – guitar
During a 2006 interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Dylan spoke about his band at that time:
This is the best band I've ever been in, I've ever had, man for man. When you play with guys a hundred times a year, you know what you can and can't do, what they're good at, whether you want 'em there. It takes a long time to find a band of individual players. Most bands are gangs. Whether it's a metal group or pop rock, whatever, you get that gang mentality. But for those of us who went back further, gangs were the mob. The gang was not what anybody aspired to. On this record [Modern Times] I didn't have anybody to teach. I got guys now in my band, they can whip up anything, they surprise even {{nowrap begin}}me.{{cite web|url=http://babybluecafe.blogspot.com/2006/08/rolling-stone-interview-2006-genius-of.html |title=The Genius of Bob Dylan |publisher=Rolling Stone |date= 2006-08-23|access-date=2011-11-26}}{{nowrap end}}
Other notable members include Stu Kimball (guitar 2004–2018), Denny Freeman (guitar, slide guitar 2005–2009), Larry Campbell (guitar, slide guitar, pedal steel, banjo, cittern, mandolin and violin 1997–2004), George Receli (drums 2002–2019), Donnie Herron (pedal steel guitar, violin, banjo, mandolin 2005–2024), Freddy Koella (guitar 2003–2004), David Kemper (drums 1996–2001), Bucky Baxter (pedal steel 1992–1999), John "J.J." Jackson (guitar 1991–1997) and G. E. Smith (guitar 1988–1990). In 2003–2004, Tommy Morrongiello, a technician on the tour, would frequently play guitar with Dylan & his Band. Charlie Sexton, who played the guitar from 1999 until 2002, returned as the lead guitarist in Dylan's band for the fall 2009 tour, replacing Denny Freeman. Sexton was in turn replaced by Duke Robillard for the first half of 2013, before returning on July 3, 2013. Sexton was replaced for seven concerts by Colin Linden before returning once again on July 26, 2013.{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/bob-dylan-welcomes-guitarist-charlie-sexton-back-into-his-band-20090826 |title=Bob Dylan welcomes guitarist Charlie Sexton back into his band |publisher=Rolling Stone |date= 2009-08-26|access-date=2011-11-26}}{{cite web|url=http://www.epiphone.com/News/Features/News/2013/Duke-Robillard-joins-Bob-Dylan-tour.aspx |title=Duke Robillard joins Bob Dylan tour |publisher=Epiphone |date=26 March 2013 |access-date=26 March 2013}}
Over the years, many artists have been special guests at shows, playing songs with Dylan and his band. Artists include Phil Lesh, Jack White, Paul Simon, Ronnie Wood, Bruce Springsteen, Bono, Norah Jones, Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Jimmie Vaughan, Carl Perkins, Elvis Costello, Amos Lee, Patti Smith, Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell, Warren Haynes, Al Kooper, Jorma Kaukonen, Paul James, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Dave Stewart, Chrissie Hynde, Nils Lofgren, Dave Matthews, Susan Tedeschi, Dave Alvin, Chuck Loeb, Dickey Betts, Bob Weir, Ian Moore, Roger McGuinn, Cesar Diaz, Boyd Tinsley, LeRoi Moore, Doug Sahm, Aimee Mann, Liz Souissi, Ray Benson, Leon Russell, Lukas Nelson, Carlos Santana and Mark Knopfler.
=Timeline=
{{#tag:timeline|
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Period = from:07/06/1988 till:{{#time:d/m/Y}}
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ScaleMajor = increment:3 start:1990
ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1989
Colors =
id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals,_harmonica
id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar
id:bass value:blue legend:Bass
id:keys value:purple legend:Keyboards
id:drums value:orange legend:Drums
id:string value:drabgreen legend:String_instruments
id:studio value:black legend:Dylan_album
LineData =
color:studio layer:back
at:18/09/1989
at:10/09/1990
at:03/11/1992
at:29/10/1993
at:30/09/1997
at:11/09/2001
at:29/08/2006
at:28/04/2009
at:13/10/2009
at:10/09/2012
at:03/02/2015
at:20/05/2016
at:31/03/2017
at:19/06/2020
BarData =
bar:BD text:"Bob Dylan"
bar:GS text:"G. E. Smith"
bar:JS text:"John Staehely"
bar:CD text:"César Diaz"
bar:JJ text:"John Jackson"
bar:LC text:"Larry Campbell"
bar:CS text:"Charlie Sexton"
bar:BB2 text: "Billy Burnette"
bar:FK text:"Freddy Koella"
bar:SK text:"Stu Kimball"
bar:DF text:"Denny Freeman"
bar:DR text:"Duke Robillard"
bar:CL text:"Colin Linden"
bar:BB3 text:"Bob Britt"
bar:DL text:"Doug Lancio"
bar:KA text:"Kenny Aaronson"
bar:TG text:"Tony Garnier"
bar:BB text:"Bucky Baxter"
bar:DH text:"Donnie Herron"
bar:CP text:"Christopher Parker"
bar:IW text:"Ian Wallace"
bar:CQ text:"Charlie Quintana"
bar:WW text:"Winston Watson"
bar:DK text:"David Kemper"
bar:JK text:"Jim Keltner"
bar:GR text:"George Receli"
bar:MC text:"Matt Chamberlain"
bar:CDr text:"Charley Drayton"
bar:JP text:"Jerry Pentecost"
bar:AF text:"Anton Fig"
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bar:BD from:start till:end color:vocals width:11
bar:BD from:start till:30/06/2003 color:guitar width:3
bar:BD from:01/03/2007 till:21/10/2012 color:guitar width:7
bar:BD from:02/02/2000 till:30/06/2003 color:keys width:7
bar:BD from:30/06/2003 till:end color:keys width:3
bar:BD from:18/11/2019 till:end color:guitar width:7
bar:GS from:start till:19/10/1990 color:guitar width:11
bar:BB3 from:01/01/2019 till:end color:guitar width:11
bar:KA from:start till:02/06/1989 color:bass width:11
bar:CP from:start till:18/11/1990 color:drums width:11
bar:TG from:03/06/1989 till:end color:bass width:11
bar:CD from:21/10/1990 till:03/02/1991 color:guitar width:11
bar:JS from:21/10/1990 till:18/11/1990 color:guitar width:11
bar:JJ from:28/01/1991 till:24/02/1997 color:guitar width:11
bar:IW from:28/01/1991 till:15/11/1992 color:drums width:11
bar:BB from:18/03/1992 till:02/05/1999 color:string width:11
bar:BB from:18/03/1992 till:02/05/1999 color:guitar width:3
bar:CQ from:27/04/1992 till:05/09/1992 color:drums width:11
bar:WW from:06/09/1992 till:04/08/1996 color:drums width:11
bar:DK from:17/10/1996 till:24/11/2001 color:drums width:11
bar:LC from:31/03/1997 till:03/05/1999 color:guitar width:11
bar:LC from:03/05/1999 till:21/11/2004 color:string width:11
bar:LC from:03/05/1999 till:21/11/2004 color:guitar width:3
bar:CS from:05/06/1999 till:15/12/2002 color:guitar width:11
bar:CS from:04/10/2009 till:21/12/2012 color:guitar width:11
bar:CS from:02/07/2013 till:14/07/2013 color:guitar width:11
bar:CS from:26/07/2013 till:31/07/2013 color:guitar width:11
bar:CS from:10/10/2013 till:08/12/2019 color:guitar width:11
bar:GR from:31/01/2002 till:01/01/2019 color:drums width:11
bar:JK from:21/04/2002 till:12/05/2002 color:drums width:11
bar:JK from:21/07/2024 till:17/09/2024 color:drums width:11
bar:MC from:01/01/2019 till:01/09/2021 color:drums width:11
bar:CDr from:02/11/2021 till:07/11/2022 color:drums width:11
bar:JP from:06/04/2023 till:06/06/2024 color:drums width:11
bar:BB2 from:06/02/2003 till:26/02/2003 color:guitar width:11
bar:FK from:18/04/2003 till:04/04/2004 color:guitar width:11
bar:SK from:04/06/2004 till:28/08/2018 color:guitar width:11
bar:DF from:07/03/2005 till:16/08/2009 color:guitar width:11
bar:DH from:07/03/2005 till:06/06/2024 color:string width:11
bar:DR from:05/04/2013 till:30/06/2013 color:guitar width:11
bar:CL from:15/07/2013 till:24/07/2013 color:guitar width:11
bar:CL from:28/07/2013 till:04/08/2013 color:guitar width:11
bar:DL from:02/11/2021 till:end color:guitar width:11
bar:JK from:07/06/2024 till:31/12/2024 color:drums width:11
bar:AF from:31/12/2024 till:end color:drums width:11
}}
Tours
{{col-start}}
{{col-5}}
;1980s
{{col-5}}
;1990s
{{col-5}}
;2000s
{{col-5}}
;2010s
{{col-5}}
;2020s
| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center;"
|+ class="nowrap" | 2020 |
| width="150"|Date
!width="150"|City !width="150"|Country !width="250"|Venue !width="100"|Support act(s) !width="100"|Reason for cancellation |
|---|
| colspan="6" style="background:#DFDFDF;"|Asia{{cite web |last1=VanderWiel |first1=Emily |title=Bob Dylan Announces April 2020 Japan Tour |url=https://liveforlivemusic.com/news/bob-dylan-japan-april-2020/ |website=Live for Live Music |date=8 November 2019 |access-date=30 October 2020}} |
| April 1, 2020
|rowspan="5"|Tokyo |rowspan="15"|Japan |rowspan="5"|Zepp DiverCity |rowspan="15" {{n/a}} |rowspan="15"|COVID-19 pandemic{{cite web |title=Bob Dylan Concerts in Japan Canceled as Coronavirus Spreads |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-03-13/bob-dylan-concerts-in-japan-canceled-as-coronavirus-spreads |website=US News |access-date=30 October 2020}} |
| April 2, 2020 |
| April 4, 2020 |
| April 5, 2020 |
| April 6, 2020 |
| April 8, 2020
|rowspan="3"|Osaka |rowspan="3"|Zepp Namba |
| April 9, 2020 |
| April 10, 2020 |
| April 14, 2020
|rowspan="7"|Tokyo |rowspan="2"|Zepp Tokyo |
| April 15, 2020 |
| April 17, 2020
|rowspan="4"|Zepp DiverCity |
| April 19, 2020 |
| April 20, 2020 |
| April 21, 2020 |
| April 24, 2020 |
| colspan="6" style="background:#DFDFDF;"|North America{{cite web |last1=Monroe |first1=Jazz |title=Bob Dylan Announces 2020 U.S. Tour |url=https://pitchfork.com/news/bob-dylan-announces-2020-us-tour/ |website=Pitchfork |date=9 March 2020 |publisher=Pitchfork Media |access-date=30 October 2020}} |
| June 4, 2020
|Bend |rowspan="26"|United States |Les Schwab Amphitheatre |rowspan="26"|Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, The Hot Club of Cowtown |
| June 6, 2020 |
| June 7, 2020 |
| June 9, 2020 |
| June 12, 2020
|Harveys Outdoor Amphitheatre |
| June 13, 2020
|rowspan="2"|Berkeley |rowspan="2"|Hearst Greek Theatre |
| June 14, 2020 |
| June 17, 2020 |
| June 18, 2020 |
| June 20, 2020 |
| June 21, 2020 |
| June 23, 2020 |
| June 24, 2020 |
| June 26, 2020 |
| June 27, 2020 |
| June 28, 2020 |
| June 30, 2020
|Southaven Amphitheatre |
| July 2, 2020 |
| July 3, 2020 |
| July 5, 2020 |
| July 7, 2020 |
| July 8, 2020 |
| July 9, 2020 |
| July 11, 2020
|The Champlain Valley Expo |
| July 12, 2020 |
| July 14, 2020 |
{{col-end}}
Notes
{{reflist|2}}
References
- {{cite book|first=Michael|last=Gray|title=The Bob Dylan Encyclopedia|publisher=Continuum International|year=2006|isbn=978-0-8264-6933-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/bobdylanencyclop00gray}}
- {{cite book|first=Andrew|last=Muir|title=Razor's Edge: Bob Dylan & the Never Ending Tour|publisher=Helter Skelter|year=2001|isbn=978-1-900924-13-9}}
- {{Cite book|first=Andrew|last=Muir|title=One More Night: Bob Dylan's Never Ending Tour|publisher=Andrew Muir|year=2013|isbn=978-1-48263-2361}}
- {{Cite book|first=Christof|last=Graf|title=Bob Dylan – On The Road – Never Ending Tour 1988 – 2021|publisher=COD Büroservice|year=2022|isbn=978-3-945329-14-6}}
External links
{{wikiquote-inline}}
{{commons-inline}}
- [http://www.boblinks.com/dates.html BobLinks] – Comprehensive log of concerts and set lists with categorized link collection
- [http://www.bjorner.com/still.htm Bjorner's Still on the Road] – Information on all known recording sessions and performances by Dylan
- [http://www.le-cartographe.net/index.php/fr/dossiers-carto/monde/144-bob-dylan-cartographie-de-la-never-ending-tour Le-cartographe.net]/ Maps of the Never Ending Tour
{{Bob Dylan}}