Bob Dylan, The Biography Of A Legend

Bob Dylan is one of the most influential musicians of the 20th and 21st centuries. He was also awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016. Nevertheless, this decision by the Swedish Academy has sparked a great deal of controversy.

Anyway, his music is poetic and his poetry, musical. His art form has also given him many successes in popular culture in the United States and around the world. What is certain is that he is today considered an icon of the counter-culture.

First of all, one of the things Bob Dylan held dear in his biographer was to clarify that he had not borrowed his name from the poet Dylan Thomas, as many believe. Tells him that he was in fact inspired by a character from a series of cowboys, Matt Dillon. However, about the namesake poet, he tells us that “ Dylan Thomas’ poetry is for those who are not really satisfied in bed. For those who indulge in male romanticism “.

Bob Dylan’s music is complex and interesting. It draws its roots from rhythms as different as rock, folk, country, blues or even jazz. However, it is his texts that are the most fascinating. Indeed, they explore social, political, literary, philosophical and spiritual themes. This is certainly what gave Bob Dylan a unique personality in the world of music and which won him the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016.

Bob Dylan, a simple boy

Bob Dylan was born in Duluth, Minnesota, United States on May 24, 1941. His real name is Robert Allen Zimmerman. He comes from a Jewish family, of Ukrainian origin, on the side of his paternal family, and Lithuanian, on the side of his maternal family. His family roots are also in Turkey.

Dylan lived in his hometown until the age of 6. There, her father caught polio and the family moved to her mother’s town of Hibbing. It was a place that seemed to have stood still in time. Bob Dylan described it as a place where “ culture is predominantly based on circuses and carnivals, preachers and pilots, lumberjack and comedy shows, musical bands and radio broadcasts .”

His father owned a home appliance store, where young Bob got his first job as a sweeper. In Hibbing, he therefore attended high school and got to know his first girlfriends, Gloria and Encho. They inspired his first lines and poems. It was also there that he learned music and joined his first music groups.

A radical change

First, Dylan did a brief stint at the University of Minnesota. He dropped out at the end of his freshman year and went to New York. It was there that he met his true musical family at heart. He made his first presentations at Café Wha ?. He sang songs by Woody Guthrie, one of his great idols. Basically, it was through Guthrie’s music that Dylan found the strength to make this improbable trip.

Although Bob Dylan does not immediately find success in the strict sense of the word, he does learn a lot during this time. It’s a real sponge. He observes, analyzes, draws conclusions. He wants to know everything. And, he wants to immerse himself in all the rhythms in order to perfect his musical knowledge. He is also a great reader. It devours the works of classical Greek writers, but also those of Kant, Whitman, Ezra Pound, T. S. Eliot, Ginsberg, Shelley, Poe and William Burroughs, and many more.

Then he met John Hammond, a sort of artist head hunter. After talking about Dylan to Albert Grossman, this manager developed a passion for this 20-year-old boy who exuded talent. Over the next 4 years, they helped Bob Dylan write real works and he rose to fame.

A unique artist

In 1965, Bob Dylan met consecration with his song “ Like a Rolling Stone “. It has been listed as the best song of the 20th century by several American trade publications. Dylan has created a unique identity for himself in the 9 albums he produced during this decade.

Bob Dylan completely revolutionized pop music. Indeed, his words are real poems and his music is a clever combination of sounds. He even knew how to approach the theme of religion in his songs and derive unexpected success from it. Finally, he accomplished what few artists have been able to do. Namely, having a loyal following that has followed it for decades. Even today he has many fans of all ages all over the world.

The Nobel Prize for Literature which was awarded to him in 2016 caused a lot of controversy. Indeed, it was the first time that this prize was awarded to a popular musician. Despite everything, many applauded this decision because it is a well-deserved reward. On this subject, Leonard Cohen was able to summarize what many thought:

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