25th April 1980 – Bob Dylan performs at Le Theatre Saint-Denis Montreal, Quebec, Canada on the third leg of his Gospel tour following his conversation to Christianity.
Dylan would recall an incident from his 1978 World Tour as the trigger for his conversion, stating that. someone from the audience throwing a small silver cross on stage during a concert on November 17 in San Diego “towards the end of the show someone out in the crowd … knew I wasn’t feeling too well. I think they could see that. And they threw a silver cross on the stage. Now usually I don’t pick things up in front of the stage … But I looked down at that cross. I said, ‘I gotta pick that up.’ So I picked up the cross and I put it in my pocket … And I brought it backstage and I brought it with me to the next town, which was out in Arizona … I was feeling even worse than I’d felt when I was in San Diego. I said, ‘Well, I need something tonight.’ I didn’t know what it was. I was used to all kinds of things. I said, ‘I need something tonight that I didn’t have before.’ And I looked in my pocket and I had this cross.”
Dylan quickly turned his focus towards his new found Christianity after the ’78 tour going into the Studio and recorded “Slow Train Coming” his first fully Christian album, released on August 20th 1979, Dylan premiered his new material to his fans live via Saturday Night Live. Two weeks later started a 14 day residency at Fox Warfield Theatre, San Francisco followed by a further 12 US dates.1980 saw Dylan return from his Christmas break to go straight back on the road for a further 29 dates, with a break in the middle to record “Saved” Dylan’s second Christian album.
Line up for tonight and the majority of the Third leg of the toru were Bob Dylan (vocal & guitar), Fred Tackett (guitar), Spooner Oldham (keyboards), Tim Drummond (bass), Terry Young (keyboards), Jim Keltner (drums), Clydie King, Gwen Evans, Mary Elizabeth Bridges, Regina McCrary, Mona Lisa Young (background vocals). Set list for tonight was
1. Gotta Serve Somebody
2. I Believe In You
3. When You Gonna Wake Up
4. Ain’t Gonna Go To Hell For Anybody
5. Cover Down, Pray Through
6. Precious Angel
7. Man Gave Names To All The Animals
8. Slow Train
Mary Elizabeth Bridges: Walk Around Heaven All Day (Cassietta George)
Gwen Evans: Lord Don’t Move That Mountain (David Ackers, Mahalia Jackson)
9. Do Right To Me Baby (Do Unto Others)
10. Solid Rock
11. Saving Grace
12. Saved (Bob Dylan/Tim Drummond)
13. What Can I Do For You?
14. In The Garden
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15. Are You Ready?
16. Pressing On
