Bob Dylan played his very first concert in China yesterday and agreed to only sing certain songs before taking to the stage.
The protest singer/songwriter agreed not to sing peace anthems like The Times They Are A-Changin' - so as not to offend the nation's Communist regime.
But the absence of a handful of songs failed to dampen the spirits of fans at the Beijing show, where Dylan was given a standing ovation as he stepped out onstage at the sold out Worker's Gymnasium.
He did perform many of his classics like All Along the Watchtower, and returned for a rare encore of Like a Rolling Stone.
Proposed Dylan concerts in China were halted last year because Culture Ministry officials refused to approve the shows.
They only relented this year under the agreement that they would be able to select songs the folk icon would not sing.
It's not the first time international superstars have been ordered to doctor their sets to avoid upsetting Chinese sensibilities - the Rolling Stones had to promise not to play Let's Spend the Night Together, among other songs, during their 2006 dates in China - because cultural censors felt the lyrics were too risque.
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