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Bob DylanBob Dylan is one of the most influential artists in American popular music, renowned for his poetic lyrics and adventurous career. He's considered a major figure in the history of rock 'n' roll, credited with bringing a literary sensibility to the genre. As a result, he is the second songwriter to win the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Despite never recording a chart-topping song, Dylan has sold over 100 million records. His works have also been widely recorded, with hundreds of artists—including Jimi Hendrix, the Byrds, and Adele—releasing their own versions of his songs.
Dylan's constant reinventions and commitment to his artistic vision helped define the rock star archetype. To this day, his songbook continues to influence new generations of artists.Explore Bob Dylan
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Why is Bob Dylan on Patreon?The singer's notorious for his inscrutability, but his venture into the content subscription website might be one of his stranger choices, especially given the posted content that resembles AI-generated material. Pitchfork's Nina Corcoran surveys the site and tries to make sense. PitchforkBob Dylan deeply admires Willie NelsonThe Nobel Prize-winning songwriter is a big fan of the country troubadour. When Dylan was asked for his thoughts on Nelson for a New Yorker profile, he offered a poetic monologue not unlike his lyrics, including a comparison to "the invisible air." ConsequenceBob Dylan asked Patti Smith to perform in his place at the Nobel Prize ceremonyDylan didn't attend the ceremony, citing "other commitments," and asked Patti Smith, the legendary poet and punk pioneer, to perform in his place. Smith sang "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall," accompanied by an orchestra, though she had to request to restart one verse after stumbling over Dylan's dense lyrics. Nobel PrizeBob Dylan often reworks his vocal melodies, even for his classic songsBob Dylan is an unpredictable live artist willing to reinvent his classics as they age. This analysis by Steven Rings, a music professor, breaks down the evolution of the singing style in "A Hard Rain’s A‐Gonna Fall," which transformed in one 1994 performance and then continued growing. Flagging Down the Double E'sBob Dylan's 'Never Ending Tour' has racked up close to 3,000 datesSince 1987, Bob Dylan and his band (featuring a range of rotating members) have toured venues of various sizes on what fans have come to call "The Never Ending Tour." This is thanks to the legendary artist's abundance of dates and lack of demarcation between one tour and the next. Paste MagazineAn exploration of Bob Dylan's early lifeBob Dylan's "Chronicles: Volume One" is part memoir and part novel, a book that intentionally blurs the line between Dylan's factual biography and the self-mythologizing he's done for over six decades in the public eye. This podcast walks listeners through the book, treating Dylan less like an artist and more like a thought leader. Founders PodcastBob Dylan, explainedBob Dylan has never had a Billboard No. 1 hit—but his influence on music is unmatched. This overview looks at his early protest songs, his shift to electric rock, and the cultural impact of his lyrics, performances, and legacy across generations. 1440The time Bob Dylan was accused of plagiarizing ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’“Blowin’ in the Wind” is a defining song of the Civil Rights Movement, one that Dylan openly acknowledged was based on a traditional African spiritual. But when Newsweek accused Dylan of stealing the song in 1963, they weren’t talking about influence. They suggested he’d jacked the tune from a helpless high school student. This article breaks down the falsehood and why it was given so much attention while Dylan was becoming a household name. American Songwriter 80 artists on their favorite Bob Dylan songsListen to any rock music from the past century and you’ll likely hear some trace of Dylan’s influence. This massive list, released back on Dylan’s 80th birthday, offers objective data to back that up. Its 80 participants include David Byrne, Michael McDonald, and dozens more. The best part? The article also includes a playlist, so you can listen to the songs while you read about their impact. StereogumA comprehensive list of the best Bob Dylan coversBob Dylan’s songwriting quickly became part of the great American songbook, thanks in large part to many major artists of the '60s popularizing their own versions of his songs. As this list proves, though, that tradition continued all the way to today. Learn about essential covers of Dylan songs by Adele, Guns N’ Roses, The White Stripes, and others. VarietyIn the '60s, Bob Dylan often trolled the media, mocking its focus on celebrityThis 1965 press conference, just before the release of the landmark "Bringing It All Back Home," illustrates how fed up he'd become, laughing at inane questions and offering snide responses. When asked if he thinks of himself more as a singer or as a poet, he responds, "I think of myself more as a song and dance man." YouTubeIn 2016, Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize for his lyricsRock legend Bob Dylan’s 2016 Nobel Prize was a surprise in the literary world. A rock lyricist had never been awarded the distinction. Dylan explains his affection for literary giants like Herman Melville and Homer, connecting his writing, and the rock ‘n’ roll of his youth, to the literary tradition. Nobel PrizeSome allege that Dylan plagiarized his Nobel Prize lectureThe speech bore striking similarities to entries on SparkNotes, a summary site that's often used by students looking to skip assigned reading. Neither Dylan nor his management commented on the matter, though some critics suggested it was just another part of Dylan's career-long performance. the GuardianRevisiting the milieu of the Greenwich Village music sceneFew neighborhoods of the world stand out as more productive of a robust music scene than New York City's Greenwich Village, the bohemian launchpad of Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, and other folk artists of the 1960s and '70s. Expert David Browne discusses why it became so significant in this episode of "Sound Opinions." Sound OpinionsLenny Bruce was arrested for obscenity seven times The first was in 1961, after performing at the Jazz Workshop in San Francisco. Subsequent arrests were in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. He died of a morphine overdose in 1966, a year and a half after being found guilty of his New York charge. UMKC School of LawDylan's political songs were often abstractDylan's protest songs weren't always explicit; sometimes, his dense lyrics only suggested political themes. "Hard Rain," for example, features Biblical allusions, charged images, and what would become generational axioms. It's a perfect encapsulation of what his early records could offer and a thrilling preview for what would come later. BobDylanVEVODylan's early records were socially conscious folk songsDylan's early records were modeled after his heroes Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, meaning they were often acoustic numbers filled with lyrical wordplay and political themes. "Masters of War," from 1963's "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan," is a perfect example of the form, railing against politicians and war profiteers. BobDylanVEVOA high schooler accused Dylan of stealing the songNewsweek once claimed he bought it from a high school student for $1,000. The story was false—Dylan wrote it in 10 minutes. Years later, the student admitted he had taken credit to impress his classmates. 1440In the 2000s, Dylan began hosting a weekly radio showBob Dylan remained unpredictable, even 40 years into his career. Look no further than his satellite radio show from the 2000s, which found the legendary singer-songwriter riffing on a different theme every week. In this episode that theme is “Nothing.” He talks about Dr. Dre’s “Nuthin’ but a G Thang,” quotes several lines from Shakespeare, and speaks at length about his love for the musical “Porgy and Bess.” It’s a wild, unpredictable ride, just like the rest of his career. YouTubeIn the late '80s, Dylan formed the Traveling Wilburys with other rock legendsThe word “supergroup” gets tossed around plenty in rock ‘n’ roll, but it’s never been more apt than with the Traveling Wilburys, a late '80s band featuring Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, George Harrison, Roy Orbison, and Jeff Lynne. At the time, Dylan was feeling creatively adrift and far removed from the passion of his earlier work. The winking alter-egos of the Wilburys reinvigorated him, leading to a great record and a renaissance in Dylan’s solo career. The Traveling WilburysIn 1984, Dylan began experimenting with punkWhen Bob Dylan was asked to appear on David Letterman’s relatively new late-night show, he decided to call an audible. He’d been intrigued by LA’s exploding post-punk scene and had spent time jamming with one of its bands, the Plugz, whom he decided to bring to Letterman as his backing band. The appearance sounds unlike anything else in his catalog and is one of his more fascinating creative reinventions in a career loaded with them. LettermanIn 1988, Bruce Springsteen inducted Dylan into the Rock & Roll Hall of FameBob Dylan was one of the earliest inductees to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, joining the third class in 1988. A Dylan devotee (and eventual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee), Bruce Springsteen, did the honors of inducting the legendary musician, offering a tribute that makes the case for Dylan as the catalyst for decades of innovative music. Rock & Roll Hall of FameIn 2004, he starred in a Victoria's Secret adYou read that right. By 2004, Dylan was already known as a wild card, but even his most ardent devotees were confused by the sight of their artistic hero, by then in his 60s, appearing in a lingerie commercial. Was it a cynical cash grab or just another example of Dylan’s never-ending meta-commentary on stardom? YouTubeIn the late '70s, Dylan started a trilogy of Christian rock albumsAcross his six decades making music, Bob Dylan’s gone through numerous artistic eras and reinventions, but among the most polarizing (and, for some, the most perplexing) is Dylan’s Christian period in the late '70s and early '80s. InsideHookDylan's raucous 1976 tour was one piece of an ongoing reinventionIn the mid-70s, Dylan assembled a ragtag group of musicians and poets—including Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, and Allen Ginsberg—he called the Rolling Thunder Revue. Rather than playing stadiums in major markets, they played smaller venues in smaller cities for a more intimate experience. The tour yielded some of the most exuberant versions of Dylan songs, captured in this 1976 performance in Fort Collins, which originally aired on NBC as “Hard Rain.” YouTubeIn 1966, Dylan was in a motorcycle accidentAt the height of his popularity, Bob Dylan disappeared. The press reported it was due to a near-fatal motorcycle accident, though specifics were never provided. When he returned some time later, with a new album and sound, Dylan fans treated the accident as a pivotal moment in the legendary artist’s career. But there’s ample proof the accident never happened and, at its core, was little more than a cover story for a burnt-out rock star. DisgracelandDylan's 1965 electric set at the Newport Folk Festival was viewed by some as a betrayalIt's considered a watershed moment in his career and rock ‘n’ roll history, mostly because the audience allegedly booed Dylan’s new electrified songs, believing he had abandoned politically minded folk music for pop stardom. MonotoneDylan was called 'the voice of his generation,' but rejected the titleBy the mid-60s, Dylan made it clear he had no desire to be a spokesman for anyone but himself. He found the title stifling and believed it would prevent him from creating authentic art. NPRDylan opened for Martin Luther King Jr. at the March on WashingtonThe apex of Dylan’s era as a “protest singer” was his appearance, alongside collaborator and sometimes-lover Joan Baez, at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It was the same demonstration where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Dylan performed four songs, including a scathing version of “Only a Pawn in Their Game,” a ballad about Medgar Evers, an activist who was murdered at his home in Mississippi by a white supremacist. YouTube'Blowin' in the Wind' became a rallying cry for the Civil Rights MovementThe song is based on a spiritual titled "Many Thousand Gone," whose melody Dylan reworked. The result was popularized by the folk trio Peter, Paul, and Mary and from there became an anthem for the growing Civil Rights Movement, culminating in Dylan's appearance at the March on Washington. Bob Dylan CenterDylan was born Robert ZimmermanThe name change was just one facet of his self-created myth. From the moment he arrived in Greenwich Village’s folk scene, he was crafting tall tales about his life, including a claim that he'd spent the previous six years working for a carnival. Far Out MagazineDylan influenced many of his contemporariesDylan’s groundbreaking approach to songwriting didn’t just change his career; it changed the trajectory of American popular music. This podcast from the National Association of Music Merchants’ oral history project features interviews with several Dylan compatriots and fans–including Pete Seeger, Emmylou Harris, and Robbie Robertson–who detail how Dylan changed their careers and how they viewed songwriting. The Music History ProjectTour the iconic Sun Studio in MemphisSun Studio is responsible for hundreds of hours of American music history, despite its rather modest setup. This tour of the one-room studio is not unlike the tour visitors take, with anecdotes about Elvis, U2, and a pious Bob Dylan, who quickly popped in to pay his respects. The A.V. Club
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