Neverending Tour

Bob Dylan's Neverending Tour is a popular term for the rock legend's seemingly breakless performing schedule since the late 1980s. Attention is often given to his seasoned (but rotating) backing band, which he finally displayed on record with the 2001 album "Love and Theft".

Impact on Recordings

The tour is also noteworthy for coinciding with a resurgance in Dylan's album work. He had been recieved negatively and toured sparsely since releasing Street Legal in 1978. Critics began to pay attention again with the album Oh Mercy in 1989, a year after the infamous Neverending Tour went underway.

1992's accoustic folk album Good as I Been to You was favorably compared to the accoustic sets Dylan usually performed during each show on the tour. Finally, 2001's Theft was seen by critics as a fair representation of the eclectic music that Dylan and his recent bands had become famous for in concert.

Evolution of Old Songs

The tour's sets are infamous for progressive reworkings of classic Dylan songs such "The Times They Are A-Changin'" and "Like a Rolling Stone" - in which rhythms, genres and even lyrics are often completely altered. It's a practice the singer-songwriter experimented with since the 1960s, but is now found thoughout entire concerts.

The Title

Though the tour's name was cemented in a 1988 Dylan interview with Q Magazine. He has since dismissed the title, particularly in a 2001 Australian press interview with Thomas Zeidler.

Releases, Broadcast & Books

The only officially released live document from the period covered by The Neverending Tour was a solo set for MTV Unplugged in 1995. Amazon.com, however, broadcast a 2005 live performance on their homepage.

Andrew Muir authored the book The Razor's Edge: Bob Dylan and the Neverending Tour in September, 2001. The book attempts to chronicle the first decade and a half, while exploring Dylan's possible motivation for the extended touring.