The Time Bob Dylan Was Denied Entry to His Own Concert

Without stage lights and a backing band, Bob Dylan out in the wild doesn’t exactly scream celebrity, which would explain why the legendary singer-songwriter was once unable to get into his own concert. This certainly isn’t the first or last time that security personnel didn’t recognize the star of the show as they attempted to enter the concert venue.

Indeed, it wasn’t even the first time for Dylan. Years earlier, he was almost kicked out of a star-studded backyard barbecue for the same reason. Ironically, the party host and fellow celebrity didn’t know who he was.

Bob Dylan Was Denied Entry to His Own Concert

In the midst of the 2001 leg of Bob Dylan’s aptly named “Never Ending” tour, 9/11 happened. After the harrowing terrorist attack, security measures were understandably at the forefront of the American psyche. Dylan was no different, implementing stricter security guidelines for his shows as he continued his cross-country tour in October and November of that year.

Of course, the only problem with those stricter measures was that not everyone could recognize Bob Dylan in the flesh. With his wild hair, unassuming wardrobe, and generally quiet, non-flashy demeanor, Dylan could just as easily be a random stranger on the street, which is what his security detail thought when he tried to go through a checkpoint at the Jackson County Expo Center in Oregon.

In a 2001 interview with The Guardian, venue manager Chris Borovansky said Dylan’s instructions were clear: no one passes through the checkpoint without proper credentials. “He said no exceptions. Absolutely none.” Thus, when Dylan showed up without proof of his identity, two security guards attempted to block his entry. It didn’t take long for the head of security to notice and right the mistake, but not until after Dylan angrily fired the personnel from their post.

“We prefer the term ‘relocated,’” Borovansky said. “But he said he later told the guards they did a ‘great job.’”

Elton John Almost Did The Same Thing

Considering the stress and anxiety over highly attended events post-911, the minor gaff by the Expo Center’s security team seems a little more understandable. Considering this wasn’t the first time someone almost threw Bob Dylan out of a venue because they didn’t recognize him, the 2001 hiccup at his concert seems downright expected.

Indeed, Dylan has always been a master of disguise, even in the 1980s. In Elton John’s biography Me, he recalled a party he threw in his Los Angeles backyard in the late 1980s. “By the middle of the evening, I was flying, absolutely out of my mind,” John wrote, “when a scruffy-looking guy I didn’t recognize wandered into the party. Who the hell was he? It must be one of the staff, a gardener. I loudly demanded to know what the gardener was doing helping himself to a drink.”

John’s assistant, Bob Halley, broke the palpable silence that fell across the party. “Elton, that’s not the f***ing gardener,” Halley said. “It’s Bob Dylan.” Oops.

At the very least, the security guards who denied Bob Dylan entry to his own concert can rest assured that they are in good, star-studded company with their mistake.

Photo by Nagel – Sportbild/ullstein bild via Getty Images