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Key developments
Julian Lage returns after five Dylan dates
Rolling Stone Australia and Associated Press report that guitarist Julian Lage returned to Bob Dylan’s Never Ending Tour on July 6 at Mystic Lake Amphitheater in Shakopee, Minnesota, after missing five shows. Joel Paterson, who first joined Dylan’s band at the June 29 Moody Amphitheater show in Austin, also remained, making Shakopee the first reported date with Paterson sharing guitar duties. The reports place the change amid a shifting summer lineup following Doug Lancio’s departure and Bob Britt’s exit.
Why it matters
Dylan’s current tour band is still in flux, and the two-guitar configuration may affect arrangements for the remaining U.S. dates.
Sources & driving stories
ROLLING STONE AUSTRALIA · Neil Griffiths
Rolling Stone Australia coverageASSOCIATED PRESS
Associated Press coverageDylan plays cryptic Mystic Lake amphitheater set
Jared Kaufman of Inforum reviewed Dylan’s July 6 performance at the new Mystic Lake Amphitheater in Shakopee, describing a 16-song show heavy on Rough and Rowdy Ways and reorganized older material. Dylan, performing his 48th concert of the year across 26 states, did not speak between songs and led a four-piece band while wearing a zip-up hoodie. Kaufman singled out a swing-and-Spanish-rumba-styled “When I Paint My Masterpiece” and a closing “I Shall Be Released”; Racket also characterized the show as relaxed, bluesy and low on spectacle.
Why it matters
The reviews document how Dylan’s 2026 tour is presenting familiar material through restrained staging and continuing rearrangement rather than nostalgia-driven performance.
Sources & driving stories
INFORUM · Jared Kaufman
Inforum coverageRACKET
Racket coverageWorth noting
WORTH NOTING
Dylan-Dead RFK run reassessed
Jesse Jarnow’s latest Flagging Down installment revisits the final 1986 RFK Stadium Dylan-and-the-Dead shows as a 40-years-later test-run for the following summer’s collaboration.
WORTH NOTING
Setlist closer appears to be shifting
Tour reports note that “All Along the Watchtower” has recently been dropped and that “I Shall Be Released” has often served as the closer, including at Mystic Lake.
Still unclear
OPEN QUESTION
Will Lage stay through the U.S. leg?
Reported July 11 and July 12 commitments for Lage could determine whether Dylan continues with two guitarists or reverts to another touring configuration.
OPEN QUESTION
Is the closer change permanent?
The repeated use of “I Shall Be Released” after dropping “All Along the Watchtower” may signal a broader mid-tour recalibration of the show’s emotional endpoint.