Fans of star Bob Dylan are keeping their fingers crossed for the iconic musician to perform songs he “still hates” on his forthcoming tour.
The Nobel laureate is set to hit the road later this year alongside fellow esteemed musician Willie Nelson, sparking hopes of rare song performances.
Dylan, who toured his 2020 album Rough and Rowdy Ways from 2021 to 2024, seldom altered the line-up of songs from one show to the next, save for an occasional cover of works by the likes of the Grateful Dead and Johnny Cash.
However, fans are optimistic about changes to the setlist on the latest tour following a supposed leak of the playing order – which includes a track from one of Dylan’s less popular albums.
A recent article had Dylan aficionados discussing omissions from his live performances, particularly the overlooked gem Street-Legal. Tracks from the 1978 release have rarely, if ever, been played live, leading fans to believe he “still hates” the album.
A snippet read: “With the exception of ‘Senor’ and a single one-off instance of ‘We Better Talk This Over,’ he would never again perform any songs from the record after 1978.”
Dylan devotees took to Twitter /X to discuss the disdain for his underrated 1978 album, with one posting: “This is how much Bob Dylan hated (still hates) Street-Legal.”
Another wrote: “I mean I knew that but that’s still an insane thing to read. You think about all the songs that came and went over decades of the Never Ending Tour.”
Dylan aficionados are abuzz with anticipation to hear Street-Legal tunes at his forthcoming Alpharetta gig. The rarely played track Joey, which echoed live just 69 times since ’88 and last in 2012, is also on the wishlist of many.
But not all fans are enthused about the prospect of its live rendition. One comment on a fictitious setlist post read: “If Dylan played Joey I think half the crowd would take a toilet break.”
Although Desire released in 1976, the album’s tracks are infrequent guests on The Never Ending Tour, Dylan’s relentless roving show that only paused in 2020 when the Covid pandemic brought the world to a standstill.