On This Day, Oct. 20. 1979: Bob Dylan is the musical guest on ‘Saturday Night Live’

<figure><img src=”https://s3.amazonaws.com/syndication.abcaudio.com/files/2025-10-20/ABCAudio_ThisDayInHistory_v03_ag.jpg” alt=””></figure><p class=”p1″><span class=”s1″>On This Day, Oct. 20, 1979…</span></p><p class=”p1″><span class=”s1″><strong>Bob Dylan</strong>&nbsp;made&nbsp;his first and only appearance as musical guest on </span><em><span class=”s1″>Saturday Night Live</span></em><span class=”s1″>.</span></p><p class=”p1″><span class=”s1″>The rocker treated the audience to three songs from </span><em><span class=”s1″>Slow Train Coming</span></em><span class=”s1″>, his 19th studio album, and his first since converting to Christianity. He performed the live debuts of “Gotta Serve Somebody,” “I Believe in You” and “When You Gonna Wake Up?”</span></p><p class=”p1″><span class=”s1″>While Dylan never performed on the show again,&nbsp;<strong>Timothée Chalamet</strong>, who played Dylan in the movie </span><em><span class=”s1″>A Complete Unknown</span></em><span class=”s1″>, performed Dylan tunes on the Jan. 25, 2025, episode where he was host and musical guest.&nbsp;He performed a medley of “Outlaw Blues” and “Three Angels” with <strong>James Blake</strong>, as well as “Tomorrow Is a Long Time.”</span></p><p>Copyright © 2025, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.</p>