4 Shows In, Still No Anwers: Julian Lage Plays 2 More Concerts With Bob Dylan

Julian Lage has now played four straight full shows with Bob Dylan, but the question of whether the virtuoso guitarist has permanently replaced Doug Lancio remains unanswered.

After sitting in for the entire concerts on June 17 in Santa Barbara and June 18 in Highland, Lage was back on stage for Dylan’s shows on Saturday, June 20 at Acrisure Arena in Thousand Palms, and Sunday, June 21 at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego. In each case, the guitarist handled the full set, continuing the run that began when he first stepped in for Lancio last week.

Despite the streak, there has been no official announcement from Dylan’s camp regarding the lineup change. A spokesman for Bob Dylan previously told the Los Angeles Times that they had “no word on whether Lage was a permanent addition to the band,” and that status has not been updated as of press time.

Lancio has been a member of Dylan’s touring band for nearly five years. The rest of the current ensemble features Tony Garnier on bass, Bob Britt on acoustic guitar and Anton Fig on drums.

Setlists over the weekend have largely tracked the core of the Long Hot Summer Tour ’26 show, with minor tweaks from night to night and no obvious tailoring to Lage’s presence. On Saturday, Dylan swapped “Watching The River Flow” in for “To Be Alone With You” to open, while Sunday’s setlist saw the latter return to the leadoff position. Sadly, all three Basement Tapes songs Dylan dusted off earlier this run went missing over the weekend.

For now, Lage’s schedule still shows his next solo date on June 29 in Brooklyn, while Dylan’s tour continues through August 1. Whether Lage will remain with Dylan beyond that run, split time between both projects, or wrap up this fill-in stint remains to be seen.

Two fan-shot videos from Bob Dylan’s show in San Diego have surfaced and can be viewed below:

An audience recording of Lage’s first full show with Bob Dylan has also entered circulation. Stream the complete Santa Barbara concert: