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Bob Dylan Will Return To Forest Hills Stadium For First Time In 51 Years
By
Jen Carlson
Published Mar 7, 2016
Modified Mar 7, 2016
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Mar 7, 2016
Modified Mar 7, 2016
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Bob Dylan in 1965. (Getty)
Forest Hills Stadium saw a lot of legends-in-the-making back in the day—The Beatles ('64), The Rolling Stones ('66), Jimi Hendrix ('67)—and this year some of them are returning. Last month it was announced that hometown boy Paul Simon will play the stadium again this summer, and this morning it was announced that Bob Dylan will return as well.
Dylan and his band, along with guest opener Mavis Staples, will play the Queens stadium on July 8th (tickets go on sale March 19th). This will be his first time playing there since 1965, when he performed at the stadium following his famous electric set at Newport Folk Festival. From the press release:
Dylan’s last Forest Hills Stadium performance on August 28, 1965, backed by a band that included Robbie Robertson, Levon Helm, Al Kooper and Harvey Brooks, is remembered as one of the three that made up his famed “electric summer” (Newport Folk Festival, Forest Hills Stadium and Hollywood Bowl). Taking place just weeks after his Newport Folk Festival appearance, where he surprised an unsuspecting audience with amplification before cutting his set short after 17 minutes of boos and jeers, Dylan came to Forest Hills intending to please fans both new and old. Splitting his show in half, Dylan performed his beloved folk material first, with no accompaniment, before welcoming his now legendary band to the stage to assist in his new electric exploration.
Here's a look back at the Forest Hills show with bassist Harvey Brooks, where the audience also turned on him when he plugged in:
The lineup so far this summer is Forest Hills Stadium's best in decades—so much better than Mumford & Sons.
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bob dylan
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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