Bob Dylan Plays 'Not Dark Yet' Live for First Time in Seven Years
Bob Dylan performed "Not Dark Yet" live on 27 October at Mitsubishi Electric Hall in Düsseldorf, Germany. Rolling Stone reported that it was the song's first live performance in seven years.
The track is from Dylan's 1997 album Time Out of Mind, which won the Grammy for Album of the Year. Before the Düsseldorf show, the song had been played live 191 times over the previous three decades, according to the same report. Some of those earlier performances are listed on Dylan's official site, including a 1999 show in Eugene, Oregon and a 2019 date in Mankato, Minnesota.
The Düsseldorf version runs 4 minutes 30 seconds. The 1997 studio recording is about two minutes longer, but the live take includes all of the verses. Rolling Stone also noted a slight reggae touch in the new arrangement, which takes away much of the original's sombre mood.
The show was the sixth on Dylan's Lights of Autumn tour of Europe. At recent stops he has also introduced new arrangements of "Trying to Get to Heaven" and "Million Miles." Those songs are older Dylan material, so the reworkings give longtime listeners something to compare.
The song has a backstory of its own. Dylan was hospitalised with a serious heart infection a few months before Time Out of Mind came out, and the album was made in a period of illness and uncertainty for him. In April 2026, the singer and songwriter Justin Vernon shared rehearsal audio of "Not Dark Yet" as part of a cover band project called Bon Dylan. Dylan's official site also says an early version of the song, recorded on 11 January 1997 at Criteria Studios, will appear on Fragments – Time Out of Mind Sessions (1996–1997), part of his Bootleg Series of unreleased recordings. The site does not give a release date.
The tour continues this week. Dylan is scheduled to play Lotto Arena in Antwerp, Belgium, on 29 October, and Rockhal in Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg, on 30 October. The European leg runs through Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, Austria and Germany in early and mid-November, with stops in Munich on 15 November and Frankfurt on 22 November.
The tour then moves to Britain. Dylan is listed for shows in Bournemouth, Birmingham, Sheffield and Blackpool in late November, and five nights at the Royal Festival Hall in London between 3 and 8 December. Ticket prices and availability for each date are set by the individual venues and promoters, so fans should check the official tour page for current information.
