Trying to distinguish Bob Dylan’s motivations for doing anything are a fool’s errand. He’s a deeply private person who loves nothing more than to confound his fans with unexpected twists and turns. Why did he largely stop playing guitar on stage two decades ago? What are his current religious beliefs? Was he 100 percent serious about his Christmas album? We have no idea.
But it seems like a pretty big coincidence that he re-released “A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall” on his live show Sunday night, just 11 days after the trailer for “A Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall” was released. Totally unknownTimothée Chalamet's rendition of the song is the soundtrack to the entire trailer, marking the first time fans have had the chance to hear Dylan's voice. It is the only song featured in the trailer, which has been viewed more than 4 million times.
And as well Totally unknown Director James Mangold said, rolling stoneDylan was in the film. “The first time I sat down with him,” Mangold says, “Bob said, ‘Jim, what is this movie?’ I said, ‘It’s about a guy who chokes to death in Minnesota, leaves all his friends and family behind, reinvents himself in a whole new place, makes new friends, starts a new family, becomes incredibly successful, starts choking to death again—and runs away.’” Bob smiled and said to Mangold, “I like that.”
Dylan performed “A Hard Rain’s a-Gonna Fall” at the Toyota Amphitheater in Welland, California, on Sunday night. He hasn’t played it since 2017, and his setlist has been flat since the second show of his Outlaw Tour in late June. Here’s a fan-shot video of the moment. (The video isn’t great. Click here for the audio version.)
He also brought back “Scarlet Town” for the first time since the opening night of the Outlaw Tour on June 21. To make room for the two additions, he dropped “Can't Wait” and “I'll be Your Baby Tonight.” At the previous show in Mountain View, California, he welcomed guitarist Elvis Bishop to the stage for a performance of “Early Roman Kings” and “Can't Wait.”
The tour continues Wednesday night at the Fort Idaho Center in Boise, Idaho. It ends on September 20 at the NH Bank Pavilion in Guilford, New Hampshire. The following month, Dylan heads to Europe in October for a long run of shows. The tour ends on November 14 at the Royal Albert Hall in London. That means he will be back in America when the tour wraps up. Totally unknown The film hits theaters in December. It's hard to imagine him attending the premiere and posing on the red carpet with Chalamet, but he's surprised us a few times before.
