Bob Dylan to Play Seven Shows
After an October 20th appearance on Saturday Night Live, Bob Dylan is set to return to the stage for a seven-night stand at San Francisco’s 2200-seat Warfield Theater. Promoter Bill Graham, who is presenting the concerts, said he thought the early-November shows would mark the beginning of a U.S. tour for Dylan, but a spokesman for the singer’s management company, Jerry Weintraub’s Management III in Los Angeles, said no further dates were planned for this year.
Dylan had reportedly booked a fall tour of the U.S. but then canceled all but the San Francisco dates. Tickets for one show — on October 18th in Houston — went on sale but were then withdrawn. A rumor had spread that the show was canceled because of lack of ticket sales. A spokesman for Concerts West, the booking arm of Management III, denied the rumor and said the concert was canceled because it conflicted with Dylan’s Saturday Night Live performance. The spokesman added that the tour was being rescheduled for next spring.
According to Graham, Dylan will perform at the Warfield with an eleven-piece band, including backup vocalists. Dylan’s management said he was still rehearsing the band at press time and had not determined the final lineup.
The San Francisco shows will take place on November 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th, 7th and 8th, with a possibility of added concerts on the 9th and 10th.
This story is from the November 15th, 1979 issue of Rolling Stone.