Bob Dylan Launches 2026 Tour With Breakout & Cover Debut In Omaha

Bob Dylan launched his Rough And Rowdy Ways Tour 2026 on Saturday at the Orpheum Theater in Omaha, Nebraska. The legendary singer-songwriter offered the live debut of a cover from rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Eddie Cochran and dusted off an original tune.

Eddie Cochran’s influence on rock is massive and includes classics such as “Summertime Blues” and “Twenty Flight Rock.” It was the latter that a young Paul McCartney chose to perform in an audition for John Lennon's skiffle group the Quarrymen, later to become The Beatles.

Cochran was also on the cutting edge of recording at the time, using overdubs, distortion and multi-track. Eddie Cochran died in a tragic car accident in 1960. He was just 21 years old.

While recorded in 1958, Cochran’s song “Nervous Breakdown” was released posthumously in the early 1960s, around the same time a young Bob Dylan was making his rise. Dylan and Cochran also both hail from Minnesota. Bob chose “Nervous Breakdown” to debut as the penultimate song of his set in Omaha on Saturday.

Dylan opened the concert with the oldie “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight.” He then delivered “Man In The Long Black Coat,” his first performance of the track from his 1989 album Oh Mercy since 2013. Dylan also offered standouts from his most recent studio album Rough And Rowdy Ways along with older favorites such as “When I Paint My Masterpiece” and “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.”

Listen to the full tour opener in Omaha below via YouTube user ben m: