Summary:
A commentary on the historical significance of legendary singer Bob Dylan.
The Voice Of A Generation
As one gradually makes their way through the exclusive pantheon of Rock & Roll, they will cross paths with such deities as Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry, be exposed to the unparalleled mastery of Jimi Hendrix and absorb the raw emotion of Janis Joplin and Curt Cobain. Eventually, at one point or another, they also must discover Dylan. The 1960s was a fiery decade for the United States, not only due to the fact that this country was engaged in a bloody stalemate in the jungles of Southeast Asia, but because we were gradually transforming into a new, better America back home. Because these tumultuous times were so important in shaping the country, Bob Dylan, a legendary songwriter, became the voice of an entire generation, and therefore, an unlikely icon amidst the other titans of American history.
Perhaps the most famous man ever born in frosty Minnesota, Robert Zimmerman came into this world on May 24, 1941, in Duluth, the son of Eastern European Jews. Robert's introduction to the world of music came early, and by the time he turned 10, he showed a precocious ability to write poetry and had already learned to play the guitar. Robert spent most of his childhood in Hibbing, Minnesota listening to music on his radio. As powerful, emotional blues and Rock & Roll streamed across the country and out his speakers, Zimmerman was captivated by the performances of Little Richard and Carl Perkins, among others. By the time he enrolled as a freshman at the University of Minnesota in 1959, he had already been drawn away from contemporary rock, and become fixated on American folk music, which was considerably softer and of a more solitary nature. It was soon after, when he became a regular in the Minneapolis folk circuit, that he began introducing himself as "Bob Dylan." Interestingly enough, critics and fans can only speculate as to what influenced this name change. The most widely accepted theory is that this was a tribute to one of his idols, poet Dylan Thomas.
Dylan dropped out after his freshman year and began developing a unique voice and blues/folk style of singing. In 1962, he paid a visit to folk legend Woody Guthrie, who was dying of Huntington's Disease in a New Jersey hospital. Dylan gained much notoriety on the nearby circuit in New York, his breakthrough coinciding with a sparkling review in The New York Times. This review, as well as significant local word-of-mouth, led to his signing with Columbia Records in October 1961. Throughout his long and illustrious career, Dylan has released over 50 albums, including such classics as Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde on Blonde. Since the 1960s, many believed the quality of Dylan's songwriting has deteriorated, but he still remains one of the most active musicians on tour, and one would be hard-pressed to think of an artist who is more respected by his contemporaries than Dylan. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine polled a panel of musicians, critics and industry figures, who in turn named Dylan's "Like A Rolling Stone" the greatest song ever written.
It is no understatement for one to state that Dylan was one of, if not the most influential songwriters of all-time. Robbie Robertson of The Band lends his own experience:
"Bob Dylan and I started out from different sides of the tracks. When I first heard him, I was already in a band, playing rock & roll. I didn't know a lot of folk music. I wasn't up to speed on the difference he was making as a songwriter. I remember somebody playing 'Oxford Town,' from The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, for me. I thought, 'There's something going on here.' His voice seemed interesting to me. But it wasn't until we started playing together that I really understood it. He is a powerful singer and a great musical actor, with many characters in his voice." (Rolling Stone)
Although Dylan has been producing elegant works for the better portion of his life, he will no doubt be most vividly preserved in the memories of music connoisseurs across the globe due to the extraordinary, biting protest songs he wrote in the 1960s. Subjects covered in his music ranged from slamming the Ku Klux Klan in "The Death of Emmett Till" to condemning the John Birchites in "Talkin' John Birch Society Blues." By 1963, Dylan had become increasingly involved in the civil rights movement, performing and making appearances at a number of rallies. "The Times They Are A-Changin," a staple of any Bob Dylan song collection, was released in 1964 less than two months after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and left no doubt in the minds of listeners that Dylan had things on his mind that he wanted everyone to hear. "This is definitely a song with a purpose," Dylan would later testify. "I knew exactly what I wanted to say and who I wanted to say it to."
Perhaps the most emotionally genuine, unmistakably charged anti-war song Bob Dylan ever wrote was a track titled "Masters of War," which appeared in The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in 1963. Searing lyrics such as, "You hide in your mansion as young people's blood flows out of their bodies and is buried in the mud" and "But there's one thing I know, though I'm younger than you, even Jesus would never forgive what you do" effectively put into words the confusion and rage that people across the wide land of the United States of America were feeling as the Vietnam war raged on.
Dylan also revolutionized the way music was written and performed. He issued "Like a Rolling Stone" in 1965 as part of the album Highway 61 Revisited. Looking back at this song 40 years later, Rolling Stone declared, "No other pop song so thoroughly challenged and transformed the commercial laws and artistic conventions of its time." Clocking in at over six minutes, it marked Dylan's switch to electric as well as his increasing feeling of alienation from the leftist folk audience he once felt completely at peace with. Debate has raged on throughout the years as to the true identity of Dylan's unknown subject. Some have speculated that actress/model Edie Sedgwick, a prominent figure in Dylan's music, is who he was referring to when penning the high-voltage lyrics of the song. Many others believe this track was Dylan's attempt to put his emotions about mixed audience reception into words. "'Rolling Stone''s the best song I wrote," Dylan declared when recording had finished. (Rolling Stone) A stroke of genius that forced America to confront it's social diseases of racism, drug abuse and the Vietnam War, this piece was clear testimony regarding the true power of song.
Many historians, lecturers and writers in various academic institutions speak passionately about the historical impact of the Federalist Papers or rave about the personal idiosyncratic nature of Abraham Lincoln, but often overlook or dismiss the significance of American pop culture. Music and media are an integral part of establishing cultural identity, which in turn plays a huge role in how history is written and recorded. Some may feel the urge to dismiss skinny, frizzy-haired Robert Zimmerman as nothing more than an inconsequential musician from a tiny town in Minnesota, but not only are they overlooking the fact that they are lucky enough to be graced with the art of a musical genius and cultural beacon of light, but are short-changing themselves by refusing to acknowledge the possibility that Bob Dylan and other pop culture icons have a rightful place on the same bookshelf alongside McCullough and Zinn. Dylan always has preferred to write about subjects that are very "human" and close to the heart, and he once said, "A hero is someone who understands the responsibility that comes with his freedom." (brainyquote.com) Bob, you are a hero, and heroes are never forgotten by history.
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