Bob Dylan Adds Another Member to Revolving Door of Touring Guitarists

Bob Dylan‘s uncharacteristic revolving door of touring guitarists spun again Friday as the singer brought in another new arrival at his Cincinnati show.

At that gig at the PNC Pavilion, Memphis-based guitarist Jad Tariq made his debut in Dylan’s band while stepping in for recent addition Julian Lage, who in turn replaced guitarist Doug Lancio in Dylan’s touring unit.

Since joining Dylan’s band, Lage has missed a handful of shows due to previous touring commitments, leaving fellow new Dylan guitarist Joel Paterson — who joined after the exit of Bob Britt in late June — to handle guitar duties on his own. 

While Lage rejoined the unit for their July 6 show in Minnesota, he was absent for the July 10 concert — Lage had a pair of previously scheduled Europe shows this weekend — and rather than have Paterson go it alone again, Dylan enlisted Tariq to fill the second-guitarist void, and in doing so becoming the 36th guitarist to play with Dylan.

It’s unclear if Tariq is now a member of the touring unit or it was a one-off substitution for Lage, but the opportunity for more Dylan gigs is on the horizon: Dylan is set to embark on a European tour in October, while Lage has North American shows booked at that time.

Dylan is next scheduled to Sunday night at Pittsburgh’s Stage AE; what guitarists will accompany him appears to be a game time decision. Despite all of the lineup changes, Dylan’s set list has remained consistent the past few weeks, performing the same 15 tracks every gig before alternating between “I Shall Be Released” and “Every Grain of Sand” for the finale.