# Bob Dylan World Tour 1978

The Bob Dylan World Tour 1978 was a concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. In 1978, Dylan embarked on a year-long world tour, performing 114 shows in Asia, Oceania, North America and Europe, to a total audience of two million people.

## Background

For the tour, Dylan assembled an eight piece band, and was also accompanied by three backing singers. Highlights of the European leg of the tour were Dylan's first concerts in West Germany where he had never wanted to play because of the Jews' persecution by the Nazis. However, after concerts at Dortmund and West Berlin, he performed on July 1 on the Zeppelinfeld at Nuremberg for 80,000 people. Promoter Fritz Rau had convinced him to perform in West Germany. It was the spot where Adolf Hitler had appeared prominently on his "Reichsparteitage", the party convention of the NSDAP. Dylan's stage was placed opposite to the rostrum where Hitler had given his speeches. After the concert, Bob Dylan said that it was a very special event for him, which he had marked by appearing in normal street clothes instead of the usual stage clothes. Eric Clapton, who also appeared at Nuremberg, joined him for two songs at the end of the concert. As a live album had been recorded at Budokan Hall, Tokyo, the Nuremberg concert recording was never officially released but only appeared on Bootleg recordings. Two weeks later, both artists performed again at a mass festival at the Blackbushe Aerodrome in England.
When Dylan brought the tour to the United States in September 1978, he was dismayed the press described the look and sound of the show as a 'Las Vegas Tour', as the European concerts had been a great success. His performances at Madison Square Garden were given a good review by Rolling Stone. The 1978 tour grossed more than $20 million, and Dylan acknowledged to the Los Angeles Times that he had some debts to pay off because "I had a couple of bad years. I put a lot of money into the movie, built a big house ... and it costs a lot to get divorced in California." It was during the later stages of this tour that Dylan experienced a "born-again" conversion to Christianity, which would become the overriding thematic preoccupation in his music for the next couple of years, such as on the albums Slow Train Coming (1979) and Saved (1980).

## Releases

Concerts in Tokyo in February and March were recorded and released as the live double album, Bob Dylan at Budokan. Reviews were mixed. Robert Christgau awarded the album a C+ rating, giving the album a derisory review, while Janet Maslin defended it in Rolling Stone, writing: "These latest live versions of his old songs have the effect of liberating Bob Dylan from the originals."

## Set list

This set list is representative of the performance on November 15, 1978 in Inglewood, California. It does not represent the set list at all concerts for the duration of the tour.
* "My Back Pages"
* "She’s Love Crazy" Tampa Red
* "Mr. Tambourine Man"
* "Shelter from the Storm"
* "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue"
* "Tangled Up in Blue"
* "Ballad of a Thin Man"
* "Maggie's Farm"
* "I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Have Met)"
* "Like a Rolling Stone"
* "I Shall Be Released"
* "Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)"
* "The Times They Are a-Changin'"
* "Rainy Day Women ♯12 & 35"
* "It Ain't Me Babe"
* "Am I Your Stepchild?"
* "One More Cup Of Coffee (Valley Below)"
* "Blowin' in the Wind"
* "Girl from the North Country"
* "We Better Talk This Over"
* "Masters of War"
* "Just Like a Woman"
* "To Ramona"
* "All Along the Watchtower"
* "All I Really Want to Do"
* "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)"
* "Forever Young"

### Encore

* "Changing of the Guards"

## Tour dates

| Date | City | Country | Venue | Attendance | Box Office |
| Asia ||||||
| February 20, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| February 21, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| February 23, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| February 24, 1978 | Osaka | Japan | Matsushita Denki Taiikukan | — | — |
| February 25, 1978 | Osaka | Japan | Matsushita Denki Taiikukan | — | — |
| February 26, 1978 | Osaka | Japan | Matsushita Denki Taiikukan | — | — |
| February 28, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| March 1, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| March 2, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| March 3, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| March 4, 1978 | Tokyo | Japan | Nippon Budokan | — | — |
| Oceania ||||||
| March 9, 1978 | Auckland | New Zealand | Western Springs Stadium | — | — |
| March 12, 1978 | Brisbane | Australia | Brisbane Festival Hall | — | — |
| March 13, 1978 | Brisbane | Australia | Brisbane Festival Hall | — | — |
| March 14, 1978 | Brisbane | Australia | Brisbane Festival Hall | — | — |
| March 15, 1978 | Brisbane | Australia | Brisbane Festival Hall | — | — |
| March 18, 1978 | Adelaide | Australia | Westlake Stadium | — | — |
| March 20, 1978 | Melbourne | Australia | Sidney Myer Music Bowl | — | — |
| March 21, 1978 | Melbourne | Australia | Sidney Myer Music Bowl | — | — |
| March 22, 1978 | Melbourne | Australia | Sidney Myer Music Bowl | — | — |
| March 25, 1978 | Perth | Australia | Perth Entertainment Centre | — | — |
| March 27, 1978 | Perth | Australia | Perth Entertainment Centre | — | — |
| April 1, 1978 | Sydney | Australia | Sydney Show Ground | — | — |
| North America ||||||
| June 1, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 2, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 3, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 4, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 5, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 6, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| June 7, 1978 | Los Angeles | United States | Universal Amphitheatre | 36,750 / 36,750 | $459,375 |
| Europe ||||||
| June 15, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 16, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 17, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 18, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 19, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 20, 1978 | London | England | Earls Court Exhibition Centre | — | — |
| June 23, 1978 | Rotterdam | Netherlands | Feijenoord Stadion | — | — |
| June 26, 1978 | Dortmund | West Germany | Westfalenhallen | — | — |
| June 27, 1978 | Dortmund | West Germany | Westfalenhallen | — | — |
| June 29, 1978 | West Berlin | West Germany | Deutschlandhalle | — | — |
| July 1, 1978 | Nuremberg | West Germany | Zeppelinfeld | — | — |
| July 3, 1978 | Paris | France | Pavillon de Paris | — | — |
| July 4, 1978 | Paris | France | Pavillon de Paris | — | — |
| July 5, 1978 | Paris | France | Pavillon de Paris | — | — |
| July 6, 1978 | Paris | France | Pavillon de Paris | — | — |
| July 8, 1978 | Paris | France | Pavillon de Paris | — | — |
| July 11, 1978 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Scandinavium | — | — |
| July 12, 1978 | Gothenburg | Sweden | Scandinavium | — | — |
| July 15, 1978 | Camberley | England | Blackbushe Aerodrome | — | — |
| North America ||||||
| September 15, 1978 | Augusta | United States | Augusta Civic Center | — | — |
| September 16, 1978 | Portland | United States | Cumberland County Civic Center | — | — |
| September 17, 1978 | New Haven | United States | New Haven Coliseum | — | — |
| September 19, 1978 | Montreal | Canada | Montreal Forum | — | — |
| September 20, 1978 | Boston | United States | Boston Garden | — | — |
| September 22, 1978 | Syracuse | United States | Onondaga County War Memorial | — | — |
| September 23, 1978 | Rochester | United States | War Memorial Auditorium | — | — |
| September 24, 1978 | Binghamton | United States | Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena | — | — |
| September 26, 1978 | Springfield | United States | Springfield Civic Center | — | — |
| September 27, 1978 | Uniondale | United States | Nassau Coliseum | — | — |
| September 29, 1978 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden | — | — |
| September 30, 1978 | New York City | United States | Madison Square Garden | — | — |
| October 3, 1978 | Norfolk | United States | Norfolk Scope | — | — |
| October 4, 1978 | Baltimore | United States | Baltimore Civic Center | 9,613 / 9,613 | $89,999 |
| October 5, 1978 | Largo | United States | Capital Centre | — | — |
| October 6, 1978 | Philadelphia | United States | The Spectrum | 18,800 / 18,800 | $164,772 |
| October 7, 1978 | Providence | United States | Providence Civic Center | — | — |
| October 9, 1978 | Buffalo | United States | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | — | — |
| October 12, 1978 | Toronto | Canada | Maple Leaf Gardens | — | — |
| October 13, 1978 | Detroit | United States | Detroit Olympia | — | — |
| October 14, 1978 | Terre Haute | United States | Hulman Civic University Center | — | — |
| October 15, 1978 | Cincinnati | United States | Riverfront Coliseum | — | — |
| October 17, 1978 | Chicago | United States | Chicago Stadium | — | — |
| October 18, 1978 | Chicago | United States | Chicago Stadium | — | — |
| October 20, 1978 | Richfield | United States | Richfield Coliseum | — | — |
| October 21, 1978 | Toledo | United States | Centennial Hall | — | — |
| October 22, 1978 | Dayton | United States | University of Dayton Arena | — | — |
| October 24, 1978 | Louisville | United States | Freedom Hall | — | — |
| October 25, 1978 | Indianapolis | United States | Market Square Arena | — | — |
| October 27, 1978 | Kalamazoo | United States | Wings Stadium | — | — |
| October 28, 1978 | Carbondale | United States | SIU Arena | — | — |
| October 29, 1978 | St. Louis | United States | Checkerdome | — | — |
| October 31, 1978 | Saint Paul | United States | St. Paul Civic Center | — | — |
| November 1, 1978 | Madison | United States | Dane County Memorial Coliseum | — | — |
| November 3, 1978 | Kansas City | United States | Kemper Arena | — | — |
| November 4, 1978 | Omaha | United States | Omaha Civic Auditorium | — | — |
| November 6, 1978 | Denver | United States | McNichols Sports Arena | — | — |
| November 9, 1978 | Portland | United States | Memorial Coliseum | — | — |
| November 10, 1978 | Seattle | United States | Hec Edmundson Pavilion | — | — |
| November 11, 1978 | Vancouver | Canada | Pacific Coliseum | — | — |
| November 13, 1978 | Oakland | United States | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 26,790 / 26,790 | $237,561 |
| November 14, 1978 | Oakland | United States | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena | 26,790 / 26,790 | $237,561 |
| November 15, 1978 | Inglewood | United States | The Forum | — | — |
| November 17, 1978 | San Diego | United States | San Diego Sports Arena | — | — |
| November 18, 1978 | Tempe | United States | ASU Activity Center | — | — |
| November 19, 1978 | Tucson | United States | McKale Memorial Center | — | — |
| November 21, 1978 | El Paso | United States | Special Events Center | — | — |
| November 23, 1978 | Norman | United States | Lloyd Noble Center | — | — |
| November 24, 1978 | Fort Worth | United States | Tarrant County Convention Center | — | — |
| November 25, 1978 | Austin | United States | Special Events Center | — | — |
| November 26, 1978 | Houston | United States | The Summit | — | — |
| November 28, 1978 | Jackson | United States | Mississippi Coliseum | — | — |
| November 29, 1978 | Baton Rouge | United States | LSU Assembly Center | — | — |
| December 1, 1978 | Memphis | United States | Mid-South Coliseum | 11,868 / 11,868 | $104,774 |
| December 2, 1978 | Nashville | United States | Nashville Municipal Auditorium | 9,459 / 9,459 | $87,985 |
| December 3, 1978 | Birmingham | United States | BJCC Coliseum | — | — |
| December 5, 1978 | Mobile | United States | Mobile Civic Center | — | — |
| December 7, 1978 | Greensboro | United States | Greensboro Coliseum | — | — |
| December 8, 1978 | Savannah | United States | Savannah Civic Center | — | — |
| December 9, 1978 | Columbia | United States | Carolina Coliseum | — | — |
| December 10, 1978 | Charlotte | United States | Charlotte Coliseum | — | — |
| December 12, 1978 | Atlanta | United States | Omni Coliseum | 14,660 / 15,962 | $127,239 |
| December 13, 1978 | Jacksonville | United States | Jacksonville Coliseum | — | — |
| December 15, 1978 | Lakeland | United States | Lakeland Civic Center | — | — |
| December 16, 1978 | Pembroke Pines | United States | Hollywood Sportatorium | — | — |