Bob Dylan covered Eddie Cochran’s ‘Nervous Breakdown’ for the first time ever at his first ‘Rough And Rowdy Ways’ 2026 show.
The legendary singer-songwriter has been playing shows on the tour since November 2021 and the most recent leg kicked off at the Orpheum Theatre in Omaha, Nebraska on Saturday night (March 21).
As noted by Rolling Stone, the set saw Dylan make adjustments to the familiar setlist and stage setup from previous legs of the tour, including a switch to acoustic guitars over electric and a keyboard over his usual grand piano.
He also played Cochran’s 1958 rock’n’roll classic ‘Nervous Breakdown’ for the first time in his career, and while phones were banned for those in the audience, audio of the performance has emerged online. Listen here, alongside Cochran’s original:
Elsewhere in the show, Dylan also covered Bo Diddley’s ‘I Can Tell’, and pulled out 1989 track ‘Man In The Long Black Coat’ for the first time in 13 years.
Bob Dylan played:
‘I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight’
‘Man In The Long Black Coat’
‘All Along The Watchtower’
‘I Contain Multitudes’
‘False Prophet’
‘Black Rider’
‘Love Sick’
‘Key West (Philosopher Pirate)’
‘I Can Tell’
‘I’ve Made Up My Mind To Give Myself To You’
‘Crossing The Rubicon’
‘When I Paint My Masterpiece’
‘Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right’
‘Soon After Midnight’
‘Nervous Breakdown’
‘Every Grain Of Sand’
The ‘Rough And Rowdy Ways’ tour continues in Sioux Falls, South Dakota tonight (March 22) and will continue until the final announced show in Abilene, Texas on May 1. By that point, the tour will have consisted of over 300 shows.
Elsewhere, Dylan paid tribute to Shane MacGowan with a cover of ‘A Rainy Night In Soho’ in Dublin in November, while at another show in Ireland he performed a traditional folk ballad for the first time in 34 years.
Earlier on the tour, the operator of a Dylan fan site claimed he was asked to leave the venue in Glasgow, after being told he was an “unwanted person”. He said he was removed from the gig because he had been recirculating live photos and footage from Dylan’s tour – which prohibits the use of video cameras and mobile phones.
It was also reported last year that Dylan had been working on new music with “members of his band” in Albany, New York. He has also contributed to Willie Nelson’s new album ‘Dream Chaser’, which is out in May.
