Dylan’s new art show: magnificent

Dylan’s new art show was unveiled to the world’s press (and the Editor of The Dylan Daily) yesterday morning.

I spent a couple of hours marvelling at the inspiring art on display. Four floors. Almost a hundred original canvases, many finished in several different versions. Twenty-nine Limited Edition signed prints. Lovely art. And so much of it – an entire building devoted to Dylan! And his signature on every piece.

I don’t know much about art, blah, blah … . But I adored this collection. Women, men, portraits, life studies, places - odd places, on the margins, and everyday objects. Drawn, printed, then painted in vivid colours. Echoes of German Abstract Expressionism, I’m told. Dylan’s draughtsmanship might be stylistically naïve, but all the pieces evoke emotion. And his use of colour is remarkable.

As you’d expect, the collection displays a distinctive artistic vision. And yes, there are reminders of the Dylan worldview familiar from the songbook.

Would we be making so much of this show if the artist wasn’t Dylan? Who knows? Who cares? It’s Dylan’s art. And it’s inspiring.

Dylan Daily readers who can make it the Halcyon Gallery in London by 13 July owe it to themselves to see this magnificent show: it’s a big Dylan event, and it’s worth a long trip.

Drawn Blank opens Saturday and runs for a month. Be warned, though: they’ll probably be queueing round the block – so you’re strongly advised to book a timed visit, online (see below).

And if you were thinking of buying one of the originals, you’ll need big bucks – for the few original paintings not already sold.



TOMORROW ON THE DYLAN DAILY: Preview of the Drawn Blank Limited Edition exhibition and sale.





Gerry Smith



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Here are the two Halcyon Gallery press releases:


Halcyon Gallery holds first gallery exhibition of Bob Dylan art

The Drawn Blank Series launches in London on 14 June 2008

Location: Halcyon Gallery, 24 Bruton Street, London, W1J 6QQ
Exhibition opens: 14th June 2008
Exhibition closes: 13th July 2008
Opening hours: Monday - Sunday: 10am - 6pm. Last admission: 5pm
Nearest tube: Bond Street or Green Park
Visitor information: 020 7659 7640
Website: www.halcyongallery.com
Booking information: For details on how to book free timed tickets to the exhibition, visit www.halcyongallery.com - booking fees will apply

Mayfair's Halcyon Gallery presents the first ever gallery exhibition of Bob Dylan's artwork, The Drawn Blank Series. This new exhibition of paintings is the most comprehensive and authoritative collection of Bob Dylan's art ever assembled. While Dylan has been a committed visual artist for more than four decades, The Drawn Blank Series casts a vibrant new light on the creativity of one of the world's most important and influential cultural figures.

The paintings in The Drawn Blank Series visually echo the stylistic hallmarks of Dylan's prose, poetry and music. Just as Dylan's songs are constantly reinvigorated and rediscovered through his live performances, so these paintings revisit images and scenes which were captured in all their immediacy by the artist.


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Halcyon Gallery to hold first gallery exhibition of Bob Dylan art
The Drawn Blank Series launches in London on 14 June 2008

One of London's most prestigious galleries, Halcyon Gallery in Mayfair, will present the first ever gallery exhibition of Bob Dylan's artwork, beginning 14 June 2008. The Drawn Blank Series exhibition is the most comprehensive and authoritative collection of Bob Dylan's art ever assembled. While Dylan has been a committed visual artist for more than four decades, The Drawn Blank Series will cast a vibrant new light on the singular creativity of one of the world's most important and influential cultural figures.

Based on drawings and sketches made by Dylan while on the road during the period of 1989 through 1992, the paintings in The Drawn Blank Series visually echo the stylistic hallmarks of Dylan's prose, poetry and music. Just as Dylan's songs are constantly reinvigorated and rediscovered through his live performances, so these paintings revisit images and scenes which were captured in all their immediacy by the artist.

The Drawn Blank Series has resulted in a collection which is at once a significant independent achievement and a fascinating extrapolation of themes and images which haunt his music.

Accompanying the originals exhibition at Halcyon Gallery, a unique and impressive collection of limited edition graphics, signed by the artist, will be available through selected galleries throughout the UK from 14 June 2008.

Paul Green, President of the Halcyon Gallery, commented, "This is an incredible opportunity for viewing this powerful body of work which gives an insight into the artists' soul; and which have already been the subject of widespread critical acclaim. Halcyon Gallery is privileged to be hosting this unique exhibition."

Bob Dylan is one of the world's most popular and acclaimed songwriters, musicians and performers, having sold more than 110 million albums and performed literally thousands of shows around the world in a career spanning five decades. His most recent album, Modern Times - lauded by critics around the world and selling more than 2.5 million copies to date -- entered the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart at #1, as well as debuting within the Top Five in 21 other countries.

Bob Dylan was recently awarded a special Pulitzer Prize for "his profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power." In 2001, he received a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for best song from a motion picture for "Things Have Changed" from the movie Wonder Boys. Dylan's Chronicles - Volume I, his recent memoirs released in October, 2004, was a world-wide best seller, spending 19 weeks on The New York Times Bestseller List. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 and the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 1982.

Situated in the heart of Mayfair, London, Halcyon Gallery is one of Europe's leading art galleries, representing some of the finest contemporary painters and sculptors working today. Halcyon Gallery is committed to supporting and nurturing outstanding living artists, as well as specialising in fine art and masters original paintings, drawings and sculpture.

2008 marks the 25th anniversary of Halcyon Gallery and the opening of a magnificent new flagship gallery at 24 Bruton Street. This elegant Georgian building has been renovated to create a stunning exhibition space suitable for the finest art and joins Halcyon Gallery's existing space at 29 New Bond Street.

For further information about the exhibition of the original Dylan works at Halcyon Gallery please visit www.halcyongallery.com

Dylan’s new art show: your 10-second primer

1. Dylan’s new art show, The Drawn Blank Series, opens at London’s Halcyon Gallery on Saturday. I’ve just got back from the preview and will be reviewing it here tomorrow morning. Sneak preview: it’s magnificent. (And free.)

2. A smaller exhibition of Limited Edition prints also opens in London and at 40+ galleries nationwide, including Smart Gallery in Batley, West Yorks, and online, from Saturday. Previewed here on Wednesday.

3. The Halcyon Gallery catalogue is a striking coffee table hardback, priced at £39. Reviewed here on Thursday.

4. It’s different to the handsome Prestel book produced for the earlier Chemnitz show.

5. The artwork has been created from Dylan’s drawings originally published in a third book, Drawn Blank, published in 1994

6. The Times newspaper, heavily involved in promoting the London show, published a collectible 16pp supplement on Saturday.

7. The Times also published a collectible T2 section, complete with Dylan cover and wide-ranging interview, on Friday.

8. You probably already own a reproduction of a Dylan painting – the cover of Self Portrait.

9. And another – Planet Waves. And maybe a third - Music from The Big Pink.

10. If you’re a book collector, you’ll almost certainly have Dylan’s debut as a visual artist – Writings And Drawings, the first lyrics book.


The Dylan Daily will be focusing on Bob Dylan: Painter all week. Make sure you keep coming back.



Gerry Smith

Special 16-page Dylan supplement in Saturday’s Times

Following today’s collectable Dylan cover interview in The Times Section 2 (T2), tomorrow’s Times (Saturday 7 June) promises a special 16-page Dylan supplement, promoting the Drawn Blank exhibition(s) in London and nationwide, and the sale of Limited Edition prints.

A must-buy – The Times, that is! Maybe a print or two, too?




Gerry Smith

Major new Dylan interview/video promoting Drawn Blank exhibitions

Dylan has done a full-length interview for The Times (Friday 6 June) to promote several imminent UK Drawn Blank exhibitions - the original artwork and Limited Edition prints in London’s Halcyon Gallery, and prints in several provincial galleries such as Smart Gallery, Batley and Harrogate (Yorkshire):

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/visual_arts/article4074327.ece

Make sure you also catch the five minute video on The Times website, in which the Halcyon President introduces seven of the key paintings from the show.


And keep watching The Dylan Daily – I’ll be attending and reviewing these very important exhibitions. Barring a surprise UK tour, Drawn Blank is the biggest Dylan event in England in 2008.

www.halcyongallery.com

www.smartgallery.co.uk




Gerry Smith

Original new book analyses Dylan the musician

My bookshelves groan under the weight of well over 120 Dylan books, covering every conceivable aspect of the man and his art.

Every aspect, that is, except one: music. You could read Dylan books non-stop for weeks – books about his poetry, his life, his recordings, films, bootlegs, live tours, handling of stardom… . And enjoy his paintings and innumerable collections of iconic photos.

But you’d rarely encounter words like “melody”, “harmony”, “rhythm”, “dynamics” or “sonic texture”.

Apart from Wilfrid Mellers’ A Darker Shade Of Pale: A Backdrop To Bob Dylan (Faber, 1984, but long out of print), you simply won’t find a book-length study of Dylan the musician.

Strange, that, because music is Bob Dylan’s life.

So Dylan Daily readers will welcome a fine new book plugging this enormous gap.

Bob Dylan is a new small-format paperback, in which author Keith Negus, of London University’s Goldsmiths College, provides an expert analysis of the music – Dylan’s voice, his playing of guitar, piano and mouth harp, his arrangements, as well as the different musical styles of his massive songbook.

Negus’ 43-page chapter, Chronologies, a perceptive run-through of Dylan’s catalogue, is the centerpiece. His revisionist thinking on the John Wesley Harding/Nashville Skyline/Self Portrait and Oh Mercy/TOOM periods are particularly acute.

He’s unafraid of challenging conventional wisdom – Subterranean Homesick Blues as the first hip-hop song? Not at all, avers Negus - like many a spikey prof, he relishes intellectual fisticuffs.

Negus’ chapter entitled Traditions places Dylan’s ever-changing styles in their musical context. He dismisses rock-ist interpretations of Dylan’s work, arguing convincingly that he’s primarily a bluesman, tempered by country influences.

Unlike most writing by music academics, Negus’ Bob Dylan is readily understandable by the average reader, even those with limited musical knowledge (like me). Its footnotes and references add to the book, opening up a new body of unfamiliar writing. By extensive quotation from the Dylan literature, the author summarises the party line about Bob the musician, but he frequently takes issue with his sources.

Keith Negus’ new book is an indispensable primer on Dylan’s art. It’s original, smart, finely written, and concise (but not slight). Highly recommended.


Bob Dylan, by Keith Negus (Icons Of Pop Music series, Equinox Publishing Ltd, 2008, 172pp, paperback, £10.99).


www.equinoxpub.com





Gerry Smith

Bo Diddley: influence on Dylan?

Several readers have suggested a Dylan-focussed obit for Bo Diddley, who died yesterday.

While I share the general sadness at Bo’s death and acknowledge his massive influence on 1950/60s r‘n’b, notably via Buddy Holly and the Rolling Stones, I’m not aware of him having had much direct influence on Dylan.

If you know how the great Bo might have influenced The Mighty Zim, The Dylan Daily would love to hear from you.



Gerry Smith

New French biography: a challenging read

Bob Dylan: une biographie, the new French-language study by Francois Bon (Editions Albin Michel, 2007, 486pp, paperback, 22 euros) is a bit of a challenge.

Author Bon appears to set himself the task of understanding Dylan through his poetry. That – and the achingly beautiful design - had me opening my moth-eaten wallet.

But I soon began to harbour doubts. I was disappointed to realize that the title’s a bit misleading: the book only covers the first ten years of Dylan’s creative life.

My French is just about good enough to get through a book of this length, but I fear the struggle might not be worth it. I suspect that the book might be more about the author’s response than the subject’s art. And that it could turn out to be yet another absolutely avoidable analysis of the 1960s and 1970s: I wouldn’t waste time reading an English-language analysis of late 20thC society (or anything else) by a rock writer, so I’m hardly going to try reading such stuff in French.

Before embarking on a difficult read, I’d welcome the reaction of any Francophone reader to Bon’s strikingly handsome new book. I’m willing to make the effort, but would it be worthwhile? What does Bon add to our understanding of Dylan’s art?




Gerry Smith

Theme Time Radio Hour: confusing schedules

Like most Anglo readers of the Dylan Daily, I’m delighted that BBC Radio bought both series of the magnificent Theme Time Radio Hour – so delighted that I’ve listened to all 60-odd broadcasts so far.

And I appreciate BBC policy in using TTRH to persuade new listeners to sample its 6 Music digital station – it certainly worked with me – before reaching out to a much bigger audience on Radio 2.

But I’m less impressed by the way BBC have relentlessly shifted the stations/slots on which they broadcast Uncle Bob’s lovely series.

This week’s schedules, for example:

Thurs 29 May
2300 Theme Time Radio Hour with Bob Dylan (Series 1 - Devil) – BBC Radio 2

Fri 30 May
2100 Theme Time Radio Hour with Bob Dylan (Series 2 – Dreams) – BBC 6 Music

Sun 1 June
2400 Theme Time Radio Hour with Bob Dylan (Series 2 - ??) – BBC 6 Music

Bewildered? So am I. Keep missing broadcasts? Me too.

And I’ll be disappointed if the Sunday midnight graveyard slot is the permanent new home on 6 Music: thanks to DJ Zim, Friday night had become music night, all over again.




Gerry Smith

BOBMANIA #20-23: Lots of Bob bashes – Donegal, California, NH, India

Lots of Bob bashes to mark Dylan’s 67th birthday:


* Thanks to Teresa Conboy:

“Thought you would like to read the review:

http://www.easyreadernews.com/story.php?StoryID=20033509


* Thanks to Patrick in DC:

“Dave Cox has done it again: 2 hours of amazing Dylan cuts played on New Hampshire radio in celebration of Bob's bday.

“Fans can stream it here:

http://www.wunh.org/index.php?menutype=Schedule/Listen&page=listen.php&day=6¤thour=10&hours=2


* Thanks to Gerry McLaughlin:

“Stuck Inside of Moville - Ireland's only DylanFest - is on again this year - bigger and better.

“Details are here:
www.CraicOn.com/Moville

and some of the bands can be heard here

www.MySpace.com/DylanFest2008


* And thanks to Bob Munro, in Christchurch, NZ:

http://de.youtube.com/watch?v=aYf32E06zUU







Gerry Smith

Iceland show: “scorching”

Thanks to José M. Tirado:

“I saw Dylan here last night, the fifth time in 34 years, and this may have been the best show ever.

“While his voice was scratchy at times, on songs like “Netti Moore”, “Spirit on the Water” and especially, “When the Deal Goes Down”, there was a poignancy in his delivery usually not seen.

“I was right upfront, on the security railing and got a chance to see all his cues with the band (who were tighter than the Band was in 1974) and the smiling asides and mugging Dylan occasionally did. He entered the stage with what appeared to be a slight limp and spent some time adjusting the back of his pants – I suspected he had a back brace of some kind.

“Still he was energetic, sincere and the rocking numbers (”"Rollin and Tumblin”, “The Levee´s Gonna Break” and “Highway 61 Revisited”) were raucous and well-received. It was touching to see him after all these years (I last saw him with Tom Petty in Japan around 1986-87) but I´d say all in all this band are beyond dynamite and if he keeps working with them we will be seeing years of great music ahead.

“And scorching live shows!

Euro 08 tour starts in Iceland

No reviews received by Dylan Daily so far, but the setlist on Bill Pagel’s boblinks.com site suggests predictions made here last week were more or less correct.

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Europe 2008 – NET preview

Dylan starts the Europe 2008 leg of his Never Ending Tour (NET) next Monday, in Iceland. He plays 15 countries – eastern, northern and southern Europe, but not the Bobfan heartland in NW Europe, Germany, Benelux, N France or England - finishing in Portugal on 11 July.

It marks the twentieth anniversary of the tour, which started in Concord, California in June 1988.

The short warm-up tour now finishing in NE US/Maritime Provinces gives an idea of what to expect:

· same band as in recent years, with Dylan on keyboards, not guitar
· similar rotating setlist of 17 songs (from about 50), played over about 90 minutes, and almost equally split between promoting the last three albums and revisiting classic repertoire
· multi-generational audience, with teens/twenties as numerous as ageing greybeards.

Sounds wonderful to me – just wish I was going. If you’re lucky enough to see a gig, please remember to send The Dylan Daily a brief review/setlist.


Gerry Smith

Dylan & The Dead: energising, engaging

We celebrated Zimday, 24 May, by travelling to see tribute band Back Pages in a Norfolk pub. Enjoyable gig, Mr Bamford, thanks again. To help pass a tedious five hour return drive through the agro-industrial badlands, we played some of the official live releases.

As always, Hard Rain blew my socks off. Never fails. Punk before punk.

Before The Flood was a thoroughly engaging shout-athon. No change there, then.

But the albums which draw most flak were just as enjoyable. Real Live, with its quaint stadium rock aesthetic, inspired a gutsy community sing-along in the BMW as it cruised effortlessly back through the North Norfolk night, disturbing the sleep only of the 2008 sugar beet crop.

The highlight, though, was Dylan & The Dead. The critical consensus chalked it as a failure. Wrong call: as driving music, Dylan & The Dead is a blast.

The shuffling Dead-beats energise the vocal performances. The hypnotic version of Queen Jane Approximately has to be one of the highlights of all Dylan’s live recordings. The rest is pretty engaging, too, with the ill-advised Joey the only weakness. If only Dylan & The Dead were twice as long.

Rave on that 67–year old. Welcome, once again, to Europe.




Gerry Smith

A Darker Shade Of Pale: A Backdrop To Bob Dylan - writer Wilfrid Mellers dies

I was saddened to read this week of the death of composer/writer/academic Wilfrid Mellers, latterly Professor Of Music at York University.

The best known of his 20-odd books are celebrations of Bach and Beethoven, but A Darker Shade Of Pale: A Backdrop To Bob Dylan (Faber, 1984, 255pp, long out of print) is the Mellers book with which I’m most familiar.

It’s arranged in two parts. The first is a masterly outline of the range of American musics which inspired Zim; the second is a thoughtful dissection of the first twenty years of Dylan albums. I’ve bought most Dylan books over the years; I missed Mellers’ A Darker Shade Of Pale: big mistake.

Uniquely among the music academics I’ve encountered, Mellers was passionately interested all musics, not just the European art variety. He wrote accessibly - for those beyond, as well as within, the conservatoire. And he contextualised his musician subjects by explaining the times and societies from which they sprang.

May he rest in peace.



Gerry Smith

Europe 2008 – NET preview

Dylan starts the Europe 2008 leg of his Never Ending Tour (NET) next Monday, in Iceland. He plays 15 countries – eastern, northern and southern Europe, but not the Bobfan heartland in NW Europe, Germany, Benelux, N France or England - finishing in Portugal on 11 July.

It marks the twentieth anniversary of the tour, which started in Concord, California in June 1988.

The short warm-up tour now finishing in NE US/Maritime Provinces gives an idea of what to expect:

· same band as in recent years, with Dylan on keyboards, not guitar
· similar rotating setlist of 17 songs (from about 50), played over about 90 minutes, and almost equally split between promoting the last three albums and revisiting classic repertoire
· multi-generational audience, with teens/twenties as numerous as ageing greybeards.

Sounds wonderful to me – just wish I was going. If you’re lucky enough to see a gig, please remember to send The Dylan Daily a brief review/setlist.


Gerry Smith

Don't Look Back Deluxe Edition: Dylan product @ bargain prices #1

Thanks to Liam Mogan:

“Following the release of the Don't Look Back Deluxe Tour Edition last year I scoured my local outlets looking for one at a reasonable price. They were pretty scarce up here in Yorkshire, with the only one I could find priced at £39.99.

“I was sure the price would fall and it would be available more widely. As you probably know, I was wrong.

“However, today I got my reward for being patient. A newly opened cd/dvd store called Spin has appeared in my home town in the last few weeks. They were offering special prices on dvd boxsets and Don't Look Back Tour Ed was there for £8.00!

“Not only that it, was also a BOGOF offer and I got The Concert for Bangledesh Special Edition box - free! By my reckoning, I have saved about £50.00.

“You can't beat a bargain!”

Alias Bob Dylan/Under The Red Sky

Thanks to Martin Cowan:

Not sure if you have mentioned this new Dylan book:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Alias-Bob-Dylan-Rex-Collections/dp/190528750X

Came across it in my local Waterstone's and it's noteworthy because it includes some fine recent photos of Dylan on stage. Well worth a look.

Also, the latest issue of The Word magazine has a feature on a number of producers talking about their work on seminal albums (including Nick Lowe on "Armed Forces"), and Don Was shares some interesting insights into his work with Dylan on "Under The Red Sky".

Dylan’s art exhibition in London: a looming culture clash?

When the Drawn Blank Series of Dylan paintings had its debut in Chemnitz, Germany, The Dylan Daily raved about the exhibition and the accompanying coffee table hardback catalogue (see below).

As predicted, the exhibition is now set to open in a rather more important art centre, London, next month.

The Drawn Blank Series opens in The Halcyon Gallery, Mayfair, on 14 June. For readers unfamiliar with the city, Mayfair is London HQ for Brit old money and the global super-rich. It’s a village dedicated to exclusive designer fashion outlets, private art galleries, auction houses, toff drinking/gambling dens and the like. Joe Public makes only fleeting appearances on its streets.

The Halcyon Gallery is in business to sell art to collectors who’d think nothing of investing £100,000 on a picture. It doesn’t operate a public service to promote Dylan to Dylanistas. So I’ll be observing the looming culture clash with interest.

Keep watching The Dylan Daily for news and reviews of this very important exhibition – barring a surprise UK tour, this is the biggest event of 2008.

www.halcyongallery.com



Gerry Smith

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Hurry - Drawn Blank exhibition in Chemnitz closes soon

If you’re planning to catch The Drawn Blank Series, the outstanding exhibition of Dylan artwork at Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz, you’d better hurry, because the show closes on 3 February.

It’s a fine collection. Dylan’s artwork – interiors, urban landscapes, men, women - grabs your attention and demands careful scrutiny. The paintings, in the Expressionist style, would be arresting even if they didn’t carry Dylan’s signature. As you’d expect from its artist, the work is observant, witty and worldly-wise. The surprise is that it’s also technically accomplished – it never fails to evoke an emotional response.

Dylan fans worldwide are indebted to curator Ingrid Mossinger. It’s remarkable that the curator of a city art gallery in a regional centre like Chemnitz should have persuaded Dylan to complete such a substantial body of art, and then made it accessible to a global audience via the striking catalogue, Bob Dylan: The Drawn Blank Series.

Danke schon Chemnitz! Danke schon Frau Mossinger!

The exhibition catalogue is a sumptuous stand-alone coffee table hardback book of 170 striking watercolour/gouache paintings that Dylan recently worked up from drawings originally sketched between 1989 and 1992.

It’s an unusual, beautiful, colourful artefact: aficionados need it - it’s one of the Dylan highlights of recent years, far more important than that new film that’s getting all the media attention.




Gerry Smith

Postings switched to master site in week commencing Monday 12 May

I won’t be adding any new articles to this blog site in the week commencing Monday 12 May, during some behind-the-scenes work on my small portfolio of web sites.

New articles will continue to be posted for much of the week on the master site, dylandaily.com, so please take a look there:

www.dylandaily.com

I’ll be posting daily here again from Monday 19 May, so please make a note to return then!

Sorry for any inconvenience.



Gerry Smith, Editor

Writer Tom Grasty on his new Dylan-inspired crime novel

Thanks to Tom Grasty:

“The LA Festival of Books went fantastic! I sold out all the books I brought. Many people told me they had seen the blurb on DylanDaily.com. So here's another exciting announcement for your legions of fans …

“I will be interviewed about BLOOD ON THE TRACKS this Saturday, May 10 at 11:00 am (West Coast US) on KPOO FM San Francisco. I should be "spilling my guts" for around 30 minutes or so. Your readers can listen to the interview live by going to

www.ustream.tv/kpooradio

Or if they want to check out the interview later after I post it on my blog at

http://blood-onthe-tracks.blogspot.com/

“You certainly know the novel's premise by now, but your readers might want a recap. Here's a quick synopsis: BLOOD ON THE TRACKS is a murder-mystery set against the world of rock ‘n' roll. But not just any rock star is knocking on heaven's door. The murdered rock legend is none other than Bob Dorian, a thinly veiled, well, you can guess which Bob it is …

“Suspects? Tons of them. The only problem is they're all characters in Bob's songs. Not to mention they all hold a grudge.”

Eat The Document - rare screening in LA

Thanks to Dorothy Rand for details of yet more Dylan delights at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.

In addition to the fine continuing exhibition, there are several films, a tour and a teen open-microphone event.

The highlight of the programme is a rare public outing for the wonderful, hardly-seen 1966 documentary, Eat The Document, on 29 May. The Skirball’s compelling season demands the attention of Dylan Daily readers in Southern California; I only wish I lived near enough!

www.skirball.org


The Skirball Cultural Center’s press release:

* EXHIBITION: BOB DYLAN’S AMERICAN JOURNEY, 1956–1966
February 8–June 8: At the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, CA. Featuring more than 160 artifacts and rare audio and video footage, this acclaimed exhibition follows Bob Dylan from his Minnesota roots to his growing fame as a rock star.

* TOUR: SPECIAL GUEST WALKTHOUGH WITH JOSH KUN
Sunday, June 1, 2:30 p.m. Gain unique insight into the Dylan exhibition on a tour with music writer, cultural critic, and USC communications professor Josh Kun.

* FILM SERIES: WATCHING DYLAN
A documentary film series revealing how Bob Dylan’s artistic genius translates from music to film. Upcoming films in this series include: Dont Look Back, (showing May 7) which chronicles Dylan’s 1965 England tour, and his last as an acoustic performer; and Eat The Document (showing May 29), a rarely-screened film directed by Dylan about his 1966 European tour.

* CLASSIC FILMS: IMAGINING DYLAN
Mid-century films about youth culture and rock ‘n’ roll, including The Girl Can't Help It (May 13), King Creole (May 27), Jailhouse Rock (June 3), and Muscle Beach Party (June 10).

* TEEN PROGRAM: CAFÉ WHA? TEEN OPEN-MIC
Sunday, May 18, 1:00–4:00 p.m. This program gives teens an opportunity to perform their own music and poetry in a relaxed coffeehouse setting.



Gerry Smith

I'm Not There: Europe ignored again?

The DVD of I'm Not There was released in the USA yesterday; the two disc Collector’s Edition, packed with extras, looks particularly desirable.

But the European (inc UK) release isn’t due for ages (14 July if you can believe the retailers). And it looks like we’ll only be offered the single DVD version, without the extras.

Europe ignored again?

Sony is slipping up here. There was similar issue for European DVD consumers last year with the wonderful Don’t Look Back box: securing a Region 2 copy at a reasonable price was hassle-laden.

These are great products. I normally have a high regard for Columbia, but these DVD issues are irritating: I might just embark on my own one-man buyer’s strike.



Gerry Smith







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I'm Not There - DVD extras

The eagerly awaited I'm Not There DVD release is being variously advertised as 6 May (US) and 9 June and 14 July (UK).

Thanks to Bernard McGuinn for supplying this list of the DVD Extras. They’re welcome, though such an impressive movie hardly needs extras – it’d fly off the shelves without them anyway:

- Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary
- Audio Commentary with Director Todd Haynes
- Premiere Featurette
- The Making Of I'm Not There
- Subterranean Homesick Blues Music Video
- Audition Tapes - Ben Whishaw and Marcus Carl Franklin
- Gag Reel
- Conversation with Todd Haynes
- Making of the Soundtrack
- Dylan Filmography
- Dylan Discography
- New York Times Article on the Film, by Robert Sullivan
- Lyrics




Gerry Smith

BOBMANIA #18: Bob Dylan's 50th Birthday Convention

Thanks to Mel Prussack:

“When Bob turned 50 years old a convention was held in New York City. This is a video of the updated song that I performed at that event. To access it go to "youtube" and search for "dylanshrine". The video is called "Bob Dylan's 50th Birthday Convention".

“You should also check out my most popular video, called "Dylan Presley & Me". See my videos at:

www.youtube.com/dylanshrine

“I hope you enjoy them!


“And you can hear my Dylan podcast at:

http://dylanshrine.podOmatic.com

The Top 20 Dylan albums - encore

Thanks to Marcel Levesque:

“Nice site you have there, always worth a click.

“Interesting results, in some cases. The top 3 are hard to argue with and the drop-off is understandable as well, as those records set the bar high.

“Bones of Contention: if you're including Live 66 in your analysis (and I'm guessing many people may not have) then it should rank considerably closer to the top by virtue of Hwy61 and BoB being there. Of course the respondents may just have a different opinion of 'live' music.

“I think the last 3 albums are slightly overrated in this sampling, due primarily to their relative newness and the non-stop touring that showcases 2 of them to excess. TooM deservedly ranks top amongst them but is perhaps a little high on the list.

“Freewheelin' deserves to be higher...no less than #4. This record is truly a masterpiece even if some of the songs are now dated or overexposed. Hard Rain, Think Twice, GotNC, Blowin' and Masters... tough to top that for what was ostensibly a 'coming out' album.

“Of course, ask me again tomorrow and I'll think differently.

“Thanks for your work on this.”

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The Top 20 Dylan albums – new ranking, by the experts

Blonde On Blonde is the most popular Dylan album among the experts – the fans - comfortably ahead of Blood On The Tracks and Highway 61 Revisited.

And these three are more popular by a considerable margin than any other Dylan album.

Readers of The Dylan Daily and an associated website were asked to submit a list of their top 5 Dylan albums, in a competition to win a copy of the new Rough Guide to Bob Dylan. Many thousands of readers visited the web pages outlining the competition; and almost 100 submitted their top 5 list. Thanks to everyone who entered.

The submissions were processed to create a definitive new list of The Top 20 Dylan Albums:


The Top 20 Dylan Albums

1. Blonde On Blonde (1966) 100 (index)
2. Blood On the Tracks (1975) 84
3. Highway 61 Revisited (1965) 74
4. Bringing It All Back Home (‘65) 43
5. Time Out Of Mind (1997) 21

6. "Love And Theft" (2001) 18
7. The Freewheelin’ (1963) 17
8. John Wesley Harding (1967) 14
9. Desire (1976) 12
10. Another Side Of Bob Dylan (‘64) 11

11. Oh Mercy (1989) 10
12. Modern Times (2006)
13. Street-Legal (1978)
14. Slow Train Coming (1979)
15. Infidels (1983)

16. Live 1966 (1998) 2
17. No Direction Home (2005)
18. Planet Waves (1974)
19. New Morning (1970)
20. The Times They Are A'-Changin’(‘64) 1

(The index figure at the end of each line has been calculated to indicate popularity relative to Blonde On Blonde.)

The new Top 20 raises numerous intriguing points for discussion by Dylan aficionados. My analysis to follow; your reactions will be especially welcome: please email your comments with the subject line “Top 20” to gerrysmith@dylandaily.com.


Gerry Smith

Positively Main Street – a welcome new edition

I stumbled across Positively Main Street: Bob Dylan’s Minnesota in bizarre circumstances. One cold February evening in a North London post office in the mid-‘70s, I chanced upon it in one of those revolving wire racks which used to display pulp literature – trashy cowboy thrillers and sanitized romances.

I hadn’t heard of Positively Main Street before, but, intrigued, I read the thin little curio in a single sitting, before bedtime, savouring every nuance of its enthralling search for the essence of Dylan.

Toby Thompson, its youthful author, had travelled Minnesota in search of Dylan and managed to interview some mighty important witnesses – Echo Helstrom, the Girl Of The North Country, as well as most of Bob’s family.

The book shed new light on Dylan. And its affecting gonzo style – “Wow! Here’s me, in Hibbing - Dylan would have walked down this very sidewalk…“ - captured the breathless excitement that any fan would have felt so close to the hero.

So, I’ll be buying the new edition, just published by Univ of Minnesota Press, especially as it contains an interview with Thompson, previously unpublished photographs and a new preface.



Gerry Smith

The Top 20 Dylan albums

Thanks to Jon Sells, latest in a long line of readers asking whether The Dylan Daily has ever compiled a reader survey of the Top 20 Dylan albums.

Yes! Here’s the list.


Gerry Smith

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The Top 20 Dylan albums – new ranking, by the experts

Blonde On Blonde is the most popular Dylan album among the experts – the fans - comfortably ahead of Blood On The Tracks and Highway 61 Revisited.

And these three are more popular by a considerable margin than any other Dylan album.

Readers of The Dylan Daily and an associated website were asked to submit a list of their top 5 Dylan albums, in a competition to win a copy of the new Rough Guide to Bob Dylan. Many thousands of readers visited the web pages outlining the competition; and almost 100 submitted their top 5 list. Thanks to everyone who entered.

The submissions were processed to create a definitive new list of The Top 20 Dylan Albums:


The Top 20 Dylan Albums

1. Blonde On Blonde (1966) 100 (index)
2. Blood On the Tracks (1975) 84
3. Highway 61 Revisited (1965) 74
4. Bringing It All Back Home (‘65) 43
5. Time Out Of Mind (1997) 21

6. "Love And Theft" (2001) 18
7. The Freewheelin’ (1963) 17
8. John Wesley Harding (1967) 14
9. Desire (1976) 12
10. Another Side Of Bob Dylan (‘64) 11

11. Oh Mercy (1989) 10
12. Modern Times (2006)
13. Street-Legal (1978)
14. Slow Train Coming (1979)
15. Infidels (1983)

16. Live 1966 (1998) 2
17. No Direction Home (2005)
18. Planet Waves (1974)
19. New Morning (1970)
20. The Times They Are A'-Changin’(‘64) 1

(The index figure at the end of each line has been calculated to indicate popularity relative to Blonde On Blonde.)

The new Top 20 raises numerous intriguing points for discussion by Dylan aficionados. My analysis to follow; your reactions will be especially welcome: please email your comments with the subject line “Top 20” to gerrysmith@dylandaily.com.


Gerry Smith

"Tell him it was a good picture…" - Bob Dylan

Thanks to photographer Paul Till for news of his show opening in Toronto tomorrow:


MEDIA RELEASE:

FIRST 3 SONGS (NO FLASH)
LARGE MANIPULATED CONCERT PHOTOGRAPHS BY PAUL TILL

From May 1 to May 31, 2008 at Industrial Storm, 1099 Queen Street West, Toronto, Paul Till announces the opening of his exhibition First 3 Songs (no flash), as part of the Contact Photography Festival. Opening reception 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., Thursday, May 1.

Perhaps best known as Bob Dylan's photographer for the record jacket for Blood on the Tracks, Paul Till has been photographing live music concerts since 1974. "First 3 Songs (no flash) refers to the standard instructions given to concert photographers about how much time they have to get their shots.

David Byrne, De La Soul, Prince, Gang of Four, Dinosaur Jr., Iggy Pop, The Spice Girls, Nick Cave, The Boredoms, The Rolling Stones and Bob Dylan are some of the performers making their photographic appearance at Industrial Storm this month. "I have powerful images of famous performers, as well as those whom fame has eluded. Rather than choosing motion, I am depicting performance as frozen moments in time, petrified like flies in amber or painterly tableaus."

"The combining of images started out because I'd have a great photo with a big empty area that ruined it but could be fixed by putting a bit of another photo in it. Often it was an opportunity to include another band member. But as time wore on, other things started to happen. I'd put three photos of the same person, I'd include members of the audience, I'd throw in whatever seemed to make the images work."

The prints are a mixture of traditional black and white silver prints and both colour and black and white giclee prints, with image sizes ranging from about 22" x 22" to 20" by 50". All are multiple images, some physically collaged, some collaged and photoshopped, and some whose history is entirely in the digital realm. The techniques used are a continuity of result that predates digital photography. Till's aim is not to trick people but to show dynamic evidence that these are in fact multiple and manipulated images. This is proven through use of physical artifacts and imagery - sandwiching negatives, obvious tears and gluing of collages, multiple appearances of the same performer in a single print.

Till's photo of Bob Dylan, which was used for the cover of Blood on the Tracks after much darkroom and hand colouring manipulation, was from the first live music concert he ever photographed, using his Dad's then 40 year old Leica camera and a borrowed lens. As Till's success continued, he photographed over 1000 bands, using every combination of film, cameras and technique that he could get his hands on.

Tilll's solo exhibition history began with "new/gods/sing", a show of rock and roll photography in the early 80's. Since then he has had numerous shows, from the infrared photography of "One More River to Cross - Boats and Monuments", the colour xerography of "Some Neat Stuff" to his recent series of more formal black and white work in "Buildings, Gardens and Statues". He has exhibited widely in Canada as well as internationally. His most recent overseas exhibition was as part of "The Official Bob Dylan Exhibition" at the Proud Galleries in London, England.

The Show -- May 1 to May 31, 2008, Opening Reception 6 pm to 9 pm, Thursday, May 1, 2008
Industrial Storm - 1099 Queen Street West, Toronto

www.paultill.com

Exciting new exhibition of Barry Feinstein’s Dylan photographs

Birmingham’s innovative Snap Galleries is hosting an exciting new exhibition of Barry Feinstein’s photographs of Dylan, 1963-1974, including the iconic shots used on the covers of both The Times They Are A-Changin’ and No Direction Home.

Opening this Saturday, 3 May, the show coincides with the publication of the photographer’s new book, Real Moments: Bob Dylan by Barry Feinstein.

You can see and download the beautiful free exhibition catalogue from:

www.snapgalleries.com

Snap Galleries Limited, Unit 7 - Ground Floor, Fort Dunlop, Fort Parkway, Birmingham B24 9FD. Tel 0121 748 3408




Gerry Smith

New DVD box set, Live Transmissions, is a must-buy

I didn’t fancy it at all. The cheap packaging design made it look like a bootleg; it carried no indication of the source of the video material; and it was clearly linked to the Transmissions CD/book which received very faint praise from a Dylan Daily reader.

On the other hand, it was on sale at Borders, so it couldn’t be a full-on bootleg. And it offered three DVDs for £5.99.

Fully expecting it to consist of a few crappy film clips, filled out by interviews with tedious D-list ‘60s survivors, to be endured once and then binned, I bought it. Reluctantly.

Lordy, oh Lordy. Don’t judge a DVD box by its cover!

Bob Dylan: Live Transmissions Collectors Special Edition, 3DVD box released Jan 2008 by Edgehill Publishing, is a real find. It compiles US TV broadcasts from 1979’s Saturday Night Live to 1994’s Woodstock 2. Its 37 tracks – most of which were new to me (though I’m not a collector) - contain many a heart-stopping Dylan performance.

I particularly liked the Gospel stuff, but the highlights are the duets with McGuinn on Mr Tambourine Man and My Back Pages, from the 1990 Roy Orbison Tribute and the 30th Anniversary Bobfest respectively. Some of the more recherché songs – Heartland, Pancho And Lefty, Hard Times – are reminders of the depth of Dylan’s live repertoire.

If you’re a Bobvid collector, you’ll probably already have most of these clips. If not, Live Transmissions is a must-buy. It’s a revelation.

If you see one for £5.99 at Borders, don’t even think about not buying it! Even at the typical £12 online price, it’s highly recommended.



Gerry Smith

Dylan on film: Top 10 - encore

Thanks to Pete Shore:

“Thanks for highlighting Dylan’s growing legacy on film. You invited comment - ‘Am I on the money? Barking up the wrong tree? Or just barking?’ – so here goes.

“Most of your judgments coincide with mine, so I have to conclude that you’re mainly on the money!

“But your ranking at 4 of Masked And Anonymous, and your call for careful re-evaluation of Renaldo and Clara suggest that you might be barking after all. These two films were dire projects: if they hadn’t involved Dylan they’d have been long forgotten.

“Many thanks for Dylan Daily: you always stimulate my Dylan juices.”

Dylan on film: Top 10

The imminent DVD release of the masterly I’m Not There, hot on the heels of the magnificent pair of Dont (sic) Look Back and The Other Side Of The Mirror, could well lead to a re-evaluation of Dylan’s appearances on film.

The perception of Dylan’s screen appearances could change - from a mixed collection of odds and sods to a coherent body of important work.

I already rate highly most of Dylan’s screen appearances.

Here’s my Top 10:

1. Dont Look Back
2. The Other Side Of The Mirror: Dylan at Newport 1963-65
3. Hard Rain
4. Masked And Anonymous
5. No Direction Home
6. Eat The Document
7. Pat Garrett and Billy The Kid
8. Last Waltz
9. I’m Not There
10. Highway 61 (BBC Arena 1993)


Six other appearances cry out for careful re-evaluation:

* Sydney, with Tom Petty
* Unplugged
* Renaldo and Clara
* Concert For Bangladesh
* Bob Dylan: American Troubador (Biography Channel, 2001?)
* Getting To Dylan (BBC Omnibus 1987)


But I doubt I’ll ever like:

* Live Aid
* Hearts Of Fire
* Madhouse On Castle St


What do you think? Am I on the money? Barking up the wrong tree? Or just plain barking?



Gerry Smith

Dylan’s Euro 2008 tour: neglecting major markets?

Reader Tom Church is unhappy about Dylan’s Euro 2008 tour schedule – “what on earth has possessed him to miss out his major North West European markets – England, N France, Benelux and Germany? They’re the home of the real fan base!”

I share Tom’s disappointment to some degree, but it’s pleasing that, as with the recent tour of Latin America, Dylan is taking the NET to places it doesn’t usually touch – the former Communist countries of eastern Europe. He can’t play everywhere and we’ve had a fair share in recent years.

But the tour is Hispano-centrically skewed: 10 shows in Spain looks excessive - I wonder if all the venues will sell out?



Gerry Smith

Writer signing new Dylan-themed crime novel

Thanks to novelist Tom Grasty:

“I wanted to apprise your readers in the Los Angeles area that I will be signing my new novel, BLOOD ON THE TRACKS, at the LA Festival of Books this Saturday, 4/26/08.

“I'll be in booth 409 (the Skirball Center booth; I am signing in conjunction with their "Dylan American Journey, 1956-66" exhibit).

“Very quickly, the novel is a murder mystery set in the rock world. But not just any rock superstar is knocking on heaven's door. The murdered rock legend is none other than Bob Dorian, an enigmatic, obtuse, inscrutable, well, you get the picture...

“Suspects? Tons of them. The only problem is they're all characters in Bob's songs.

“I hope to see some Los Angelenos there. And those who can't make it, Amazon is only a click away. Or to learn more about the book go "behind the tracks" at:

www.bloodonthetracksnovel.com

I'm Not There - DVD extras

The eagerly awaited I'm Not There DVD release is being variously advertised as 6 May (US) and 9 June and 14 July (UK).

Thanks to Bernard McGuinn for supplying this list of the DVD Extras. They’re welcome, though such an impressive movie hardly needs extras – it’d fly off the shelves without them anyway:

- Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary
- Audio Commentary with Director Todd Haynes
- Premiere Featurette
- The Making Of I'm Not There
- Subterranean Homesick Blues Music Video
- Audition Tapes - Ben Whishaw and Marcus Carl Franklin
- Gag Reel
- Conversation with Todd Haynes
- Making of the Soundtrack
- Dylan Filmography
- Dylan Discography
- New York Times Article on the Film, by Robert Sullivan
- Lyrics




Gerry Smith

Dylan interviews box discounted

For the Dylan fan who has everything (else)?

Bob Dylan Interview Box is a repackaged version of a trio of Chrome Dreams single CD releases, covering Zim interviews from late 1965 and 1981 and a Weberman tape. HMV Oxford Circus recently had it discounted to £10.


Gerry Smith

Bob Book News: Suze Rotolo’s Memoir and the Dylan Encyclopedia

Publishers Random House are advertising Suze Rotolo’s must-buy A Freewheelin' Time - A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties with a 13 May release date.

Here’s the official promo copy:

“A Freewheelin' Time - A Memoir of Greenwich Village in the Sixties. Written by Suze Rotolo. Format: eBook, 240 pages. On Sale: May 13, 2008. Price: $17.95. ISBN: 978-0-7679-2912-7 (0-7679-2912-8). Also available as a hardcover. Published by Broadway

“A Freewheelin’ Time is Suze Rotolo’s firsthand, eyewitness, participant-observer account of the immensely creative and fertile years of the 1960s, just before the circus was in full swing and Bob Dylan became the anointed ringmaster. It chronicles the back-story of Greenwich Village in the early days of the folk music explosion, when Dylan was honing his skills and she was in the ring with him.

“A shy girl from Queens, Suze Rotolo was the daughter of Italian working-class Communists. Growing up at the start of the Cold War and during McCarthyism, she inevitably became an outsider in her neighborhood and at school. Her childhood was turbulent, but Suze found solace in poetry, art, and music. In Washington Square Park, in Greenwich Village, she encountered like-minded friends who were also politically active.

“Then one hot day in July 1961, Suze met Bob Dylan, a rising young musician, at a folk concert at Riverside Church. She was seventeen, he was twenty; they were young, curious, and inseparable. During the years they were together, Dylan was transformed from an obscure folk singer into an uneasy spokesperson for a generation.

“Suze Rotolo’s story is rich in character and setting, filled with vivid memories of those tumultuous years of dramatic change and poignantly rising expectations when art, culture, and politics all seemed to be conspiring to bring our country a better, freer, richer, and more equitable life.

“She writes of her involvement with the civil rights movement and describes the sometimes frustrating experience of being a woman in a male-dominated culture, before women’s liberation changed the rules for the better. And she tells the wonderfully romantic story of her sweet but sometimes wrenching love affair and its eventual collapse under the pressures of growing fame.

“A Freewheelin’ Time is a vibrant, moving memoir of a hopeful time and place and of a vital subculture at its most creative. It communicates the excitement of youth, the heartbreak of young love, and the struggles for a brighter future.”

Thanks to Bernard McGuinn for the link


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And thanks to Terry Kelly for his tip that Continuum have delayed the UK publication of the paperback edition of Michael Gray's Bob Dylan Encyclopedia - it was due to be published in the US and UK on Tuesday.



Gerry Smith

Forever Young with pics – Dylan takes on the pre-school market

The lyrics of Dylan’s masterpiece from Planet Waves are to be used as the text of Forever Young, a new children’s book to be published by Simon and Schuster on 23 September (US)/6 October (UK).

The 40 page hardback, priced at £12 by amazon.co.uk, will feature illustrations by Paul Rogers.

Films, paintings, memoirs, lyrics, radio shows, albums, tours … and now Uncle Bob takes on the pre-school market … is there no limit for the Pulitzer prizewinner?


Gerry Smith

BOBMANIA #17: Hibbing bash to celebrate Dylan’s birthday

Thanks to Nelson T. French:

“Tickets are now on sale for the 2008 Dylan Days Benefit Concert featuring Ramblin' Jack Elliott, Spider John Koerner and Tony Glover. Order Tickets To This Historic Event Online With NO FEE!

http://www.ticketworks.com/cgi-bin/order2/ticketworks/pages/event.php?Event=4370

“This is a show worthy of the Hibbing High School Auditorium – world-class artists performing on the HHS stage - a genuine class act!

http://www.irontrail.org/attractions/historic/hibbing-high/

“Join us on the Iron Range for Dylan Days: May 22-25, 2008.

http://www.dylandays.com/





Gerry Smith

Paperback edition of Bob Dylan Encyclopedia is out tomorrow

Continuum publishes the paperback edition of Michael Gray's Bob Dylan Encyclopedia tomorrow, in both London and New York. The text has been updated by new entries and amendments to many of the entries in the hardback.

In order for the paperback to sell at a lower price than the hardback, the new edition doesn’t include a CD-ROM.


* New entries:

Blues [2006]
Bob Dylan: The Collection [2006]
Bob Dylan: The Drawn Blank Series [2007]
Carthy, Martin
Dennis-Dylan, Desiree [1986 - ]
Dylan [2007]
Dylan, last solo concert by [1965]
Haynes, Todd [1961 - ]
I'm Not There [film, 2007]
Lerner, Murray [192? - ]
Man Without Papers, The [TV drama, 1965]
Modern Times [2006]
Other Side Of The Mirror, The [film, 2007]
Paradise Cove [film, 1999]
Ronson, Mark
65 Revisited [film, 2006]
21st Century Dylan songs written for films
White, Jack


* Updated entries:

Alk, Howard
Alvin, Dave
'Am I Your Stepchild?'
American Civil War in World Gone Wrong, the
Animals, the
'Angelina'
Aufray, Hugues
Ball, Gordon
Barker, Derek & Tracy
Baudelaire
Berry, Chuck
Betts, Dickey
Blowin' In the Wind
blues, external signals of Dylan's interest in
Bob Dylan Greatest Hits
Bob Dylan Greatest Hits Vol. II
Bootleg Series Vol.5
Bridge, The
Bringing It All Back Home
Brown, Richard Rabbit
'Brownsville Girl'
Bruce, Jack
Bruton, Stephen
Campbell, Larry
Campbell, Mike
Carmichael, Hoagy
Charles, Larry
Chronicles Volume One
Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem
Clapton, Eric
Cohen, John
co-option of real music by advertising, the
Cross, Billy
Dennis, Carolyn
Diaz, Cesar
'Dignity'
Domino, Fats
Don't Look Back
Drawn Blank [1994]
Dunn, Tim
Dylan [1973]
earliest extant recordings, Dylan's
Elliott, Ramblin' Jack
Epstein, Howie
Estes, Sleepy John
folk music, American, black
Freeman, Denny
Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, The: withdrawn early version
Fremerman, Elana
Fuller, Blind Boy
Garnier, Tony
Gleason, Ralph J.
Goldberg, Barry
Goldstein, Harvey
Grateful Dead, the
'The Groom's Still Waiting at the Altar'
guitars, Bob Dylan's acoustic
Guthrie, Woody
Haggard, Merle
Hammond, John
Hammond, John Jr.
Harrison, George
Helm, Levon
Hendrix, Jimi
Herdman, John
Herron, Donnie
Hibbing rock'n'rollers
Highway 61 Revisited
Hinton, Nigel
Horowitz, David
Howlin' Wolf
Humphries, Patrick
Hunter, Robert
Ian & Sylvia
'In Search of Little Sadie'/'Little Sadie'
Jackson, John
James, Elana
Jean, Wyclef
Johnnie & Jack
Jones, Mickey
Jones, Norah
Kalb, Danny
Kegan, Larry
Kershaw, Doug
Kimball, Stuary
King, Clydie
Kooper, Al
Kramer, Daniel
Kweskin, Jim
LaFarge, Pete
Lesh, Phil
Levy, Dan
Lightfoot, Gordon
Lightnin' Hopkins
Like A Rolling Stone
Lomax, Alan
'Love Henry'
McTell, Blind Willie
Madhouse On Castle Street, the
Marcus, Greil
Marsalis, Wynton
Masterpieces
Mayall, John
Maymudes, Victor [1935 - 2001]
Memphis Minnie
Meyers, Augie
Mitchell, Joni
Muddy Waters
Muir, Andrew
Muldaur, Maria
Murphy, Elliott
musical accompanists to Dylan, other
Nelson, Paul
Neville, Aaron
nursery rhyme on Under the Red Sky
Pagel, Bill
Pennebaker, D.A.
'People Get Ready'
Petty, Tom
Presley, Elvis
Poe, Edgar Allan
Quintana, Charlie
Raney, Wayne
Ray, Dave
Receli, George
Richards, Keith
Ricks, Christopher
Rimbaud, Arthur
Rinzler, Ralph
Rivera, Scarlet
Rosen, Jeff
Rotolo, Suze
Sahm, Doug
Savakus, Russ
Scaduto, Anthony
Schatzberg, Jerry
Scheff, Jerry
Sedgwick, Edie
Self Portrait
Sexton, Charlie
Sinatra, Frank
Smith, Warren
Spoelstra, Mark
Springs, Helena
Stanley Brothers, the
Stanley, Ralph
Stewart, Dave
'Tangled Up In Blue'
Taylor, Mick
Tedeschi, David
Tench, Benmont
Time Out Of Mind
Thompson, Toby
U2



Gerry Smith

Theme Time Radio Hour – series 2 on BBC radio tonight

In case you missed it (as I almost did), Theme Time Radio Hour series 2 started on BBC 6Music last Friday, with programme 1, Hello. It continues tonight at 9pm. Apparently, 6Music had also been finishing off series 1 for the previous few weeks.

Bonus: UK listeners (only) can listen again via the web for 7 days after broadcast.

BBC is funded by a compulsory household tax (? £135 pa). Most of it goes on dumb TV programmes - game shows, reality toss, property porn series, as well as wall-to-wall mainstream pap I wouldn’t inflict on my dog.

So it’s pleasing that BBC has used a tiny proportion of its outrageous levy to buy series 2, after broadcasting the wonderful first series.

If only they’d stop confusing Dylan fans by switching Uncle Bob’s masterful show between 6 Music and Radio 2. And start providing adequate, helpful information about the programmes in their print (Radio Times) and web listings.



Gerry Smith

Theme Time Radio Hour: a must-read analysis in May Vanity Fair

Theme Time Radio Hour is analysed by writer Duff McDonald in a must-read feature in the May issue of Vanity Fair magazine.

Inside Dylan’s Brain, a collectable two-page spread, lists everything from the artists Dylan has played, to the poets, movies and television shows he’s referenced, to the jokes (good and bad) he’s told and the recipes he’s shared.

The full text of this fine article and a beautifully designed double page spread is here:

http://www.vanityfair.com/ontheweb/blogs/daily/2008/04/dylan.html

BOBMANIA #15/16: dylanshrine video and comic book characters

Thanks to Mel Prussack:

“My newest video is now online - go to YouTube, search for "dylanshrine" (must be one word) and find my video called Dylan, Elvis & Me.

“I hope you enjoy it!”


And to Michael Bowman:

“Here's an interesting post about comic books based on characters from Dylan songs:

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2008/04/07/top-five-bob-dylan-song-characters-who-would-make-for-great-comic-books/





Gerry Smith

Dylan’s Pulitzer Prize: at last!

Yesterday’s announcement of the award to Dylan of a Pulitzer Price Special Citation provoked a simple response here at The Dylan Daily: at last!

Dylan’s citation is for “his profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power”.

It’s long overdue – Dylan’s writing has had more impact on more people than the other 21 2008 prize recipients combined.

Pulitzer Prizes, organized by New York’s prestigious Columbia University, are for achievement in “Journalism, Letters, Drama and Music”. To this literary non-American, “Pulitzer” is an elite badge of honour - it represents the highest achievement for a writer.

Dylan is the first “rock” musician to be honoured.

The awards will be presented at Columbia on 29 May – when Dylan will be somewhere between Odense, Denmark and Stavanger, Norway at the start of his European tour.



Gerry Smith

I’m Not There – artful, enjoyable, stimulating

I hadn’t really fancied I’m Not There, probably as a reaction to the incessant wall of hype greeting the film’s release.

And half an hour into yesterday’s showing at my local art-house cinema, I felt vindicated.

Harrumph! Woody, the tiresomely precocious young black version of Dylan, had me gritting my teeth. Hollywood does it again, I was thinking - manages to turn gold into lead. Why was I wasting my time in a cinema on a fine spring Sunday?

Then some new characters were introduced – notably Rimbaud and Ms Blanchett – and I’m Not There took wing and eventually started soaring. And the next 90 minutes was riveting.

Ideas were bursting from the screen so quickly that you had to concentrate hard to pick up all the references, catch all the quotations.

But it was more than a sterile intellectual exercise – it was emotionally engaging, too. You were regularly moved by the script and the performances. The chaos of something approaching Dylan’s world was beautifully evoked. And the use of Dylan’s music was spellbinding.

I’m Not There is not, as I had suspected, an exploitation biopic. No, it’s a major movie in its own right, an artful rumination on Dylan’s genius, and an appropriately masterful contribution to our perception of who he really is (or might be).

I’ll be buying the DVD, partly to max on the enjoyment, partly to try unravelling the complexities of a richly layered piece of art.

If you haven’t yet seen I’m Not There, you’re in for a treat – it’s enjoyable and endlessly stimulating.



Gerry Smith

Uncut magazine’s Dylan covers #2

Thanks to Kai-Anders Nilsson in Sweden, and Hanns Peter Bushoff in Munich.


* Kai-Anders Nilsson:

I'm counting to nine Dylan covers on the Uncut magazine:

August 1997: The Ted Russell photos of the pre-fame period in the Village. (Never before published, a scoop I guess).
June 2001: A 1965 Daniel Kramer cover.
June 2002: Two different covers – one from ‘62 and one from ‘66.
September/October 03: A Dylan-only issue.
January 2005: Two different covers – one from Blood… and one from Rolling Thunder.
December 2006: With a photo from around Modern Times.
August 2007: A ‘66 photo selling their 10th anniversary issue.
February 08: Nashville Skyline cover

I wonder how many copies these magazines really sell? 40,000? More?

I suppose that when you put Bob on the cover there are about half a million (at the most) potential buyers round the world, the diehard Dylan fans. Don't think there’s more, do you? If 10% buy the issue the editors are home free. Obviously there are more U2 fans in the world so why not more U2 covers? Probably because they're not so dedicated.

Dylan covers must be playing it safe for magazines like Uncut, Mojo and The Word.



* Hanns Peter Bushoff

Here's a list of all Uncut issues with Dylan cover stories:

Uncut UK Aug 97
Uncut UK Dec 06
Uncut UK Feb 06
Uncut UK Jan 05
Uncut UK Jun 01
Uncut UK Jun 02 two different covers
Uncut UK Aug 07
Uncut UK Feb 08

Uncut magazine’s Dylan covers #1

Thanks to Francois in France and Renaud in Brussels for reminding me of this excellent web site reproducing Dylan covers from mags published around the world, including the missing Uncut list:

http://pagesperso-orange.fr/michel.pomarede/CW&C/pages/mags_fichiers/magazines.htm



Gerry Smith

Dylan on the covers of MOJO, The Word and Uncut

If you were responsible for the content of a rockpop magazine, you’d feel compelled to run a Dylan cover every couple of years.

That’s certainly been the policy of the trio of Anglo nostalgia rock monthlies - MOJO, The Word and UNCUT.

* Since its launch in 1993, MOJO has run no fewer than eight Dylan covers:

No 1 - Nov 1993
51 - Feb 98
60 – Nov 98
84 – Nov 2000 (US edition)
109 - Dec 02
121 - Dec 03
142 – Sept 05
158 – Jan 07

* In its much shorter life, The Word has run 2 Dylan covers, March 04 and Jan 06. Surprisingly, in the same period, it’s also run two covers of several lesser dadrock faves, notably Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell.

* UNCUT doesn’t provide a covers archive on its web site, so I can’t check its Dylan covers, but I’ve collected 5 issues.

I’d be grateful if any Dylan Daily reader who’s managed to collect all the UNCUT Dylan covers would kindly supply a list for publication.



Gerry Smith

Morrissey – a post-Punk Dylan? Encore

Thanks to Peter Jonas:

“Interesting comparison of Morrissey and Dylan. Like many younger Dylan fans, I’m indifferent, verging on hostile, to Bob’s contemporary musicians – boring old farts like ‘60s rockers Neil Young, Mick Jagger, Van Morrison, Led Zep etc. They should all be encouraged to retire gracefully.

“Funny thing, though - Dylan’s stature, the magnitude of his achievement, sets him apart from the crowd of superannuated nostalgia merchants.

“I and many of my contemporaries only listen to rockpop from alternative/modern artists – Beck, White Stripes, Smiths, Stone Roses, Bjork etc – but we still revere Dylan as the main man.

“You’re right – Morrissey is the only young pretender to Dylan’s crown. And, though I love Mozza’s stuff, I admit that he can’t hold a candle to Bob. But, then, neither can anyone else.”

Morrissey – a post-Punk Dylan?

A couple of weeks before a Morrissey gig, a thirty-something friend had defined Mozza as “a post-Punk Dylan”.

Though a recent convert, I’m a great admirer of Morrissey (and The Smiths). I went to see Mozza solo at his enthralling recent London Roundhouse gig with the challenging Dylan comparison in mind – it had had me ruminating for days.

Morrissey, ex-front man of English post-Punk indie pioneers The Smiths and a solo artist for over twenty years, is certainly the nearest musician there is to a Dylan for a younger generation.

Like Dylan, Morrissey’s main strength is as a writer: he’s a superior pop lyricist to anyone of his generation. Like Dylan, Morrissey is revered by a large, loyal fanbase. Like Dylan, Morrissey/Smiths had a profound impact on the direction of popular music. And, like Dylan, Morrissey has a charismatic stage presence.

But comparisons stop there.

Dylan has far more depth and breadth than the Mozz. His writing and music draws on far more sources than Morrissey’s. Both his artistic canvas and his palette are far richer than Mozza’s.

In a nutshell, Dylan is a great artist with universal resonance: he explores what it is to be human. Morrissey is a great entertainer with a narrower focus: he explores what it is to be Morrissey.



Gerry Smith

I’m Not There – a change of heart

Despite glowing reports from several Dylan Daily readers, I’d decided to wait for I’m Not There to make it to TV, or buy the DVD, whichever came first.

(I curtailed a lifelong cinema-going habit a few years ago, after traipsing to see Wild Strawberries again, and realising afterwards that I could have bought the DVD (and a reasonable DVD player) for less than the cost of the tickets and transport.)

But when I saw I’m Not There advertised for a local showing on Sunday 6 April, I had no hesitation in booking.

I can walk to the cinema from home; it’s conveniently on at mid-day, so the evening isn’t taken up; the local municipally-run art-house cinema deserves support. And, the clincher for a cheapskate: two seats cost me a total of £8.50.

Rave on, Ms Blanchett! Rave on Mr Haynes!



Gerry Smith

Sinead O’Connor remembers the 30th Anniversary Concert

Thanks to the (anon) reader who forwarded this timely new link to an article from The Age (Melbourne), in which Sinead O’Connor remembers her role in the 30th Anniversary Concert:


http://www.theage.com.au/news/gig-previews--reviews/sinead-oconnor/2008/03/25/1206207070747.html




Gerry Smith

Dylan product @ bargain prices: #2 Highway 61 Revisited

Thanks to Peter Bonor:

“Zavvi in London’s Oxford St (former Virgin Megastore) had the new Flametree paperback edition of Highway 61 Revisited (Legendary Sessions) by Colin Irwin at £5 (down from about £12) a couple of weeks ago.

“They also had piles of the companion volume by Alan Clayson on the Rolling Stones’ Beggars Banquet.”

Celebrating Dylan in LA: unmissable Sunday and Wednesday gigs

If I happened to be in Southern California this weekend, I’d be heading for the Dylanfest at LA’s Skirball Cultural Center.

Detailed reports from lucky Angelenos attending the unmissable Sunday and Wednesday gigs will be welcomed!

www.skirball.org


* SYMPOSIUM: DEFINING DYLAN
March 30, 9:30-5:00 p.m.
Learn about Bob Dylan, his music, and early influences at this one-day symposium featuring Dylan scholars and experts. $15-35.


* LECTURE/CONCERT: BOB DYLAN: HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT: Ben Sidran
Wednesday, April 2, 7:30 pm
In this concert with commentary, National Public Radio "Jazz Alive" host and music historian Ben Sidran recounts stories from Dylan's life, explores his impact upon American history, and illuminates how his art speaks to his Jewish roots. $8-15.




Gerry Smith


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EARLIER, RELATED ARTICLES:


Celebrating Dylan in Los Angeles

Thanks to Dorothy Rand for more information on the remarkable Dylan programme now running at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles:

"Perhaps of most interest to your readers would be a symposium we'll be holding on March 30 called Defining Dylan, which features presentations and a panel discussion by Dylan experts and music scholars.

"And on March 20 we'll be hosting one of the last Beat poets, Michael McClure, who will read his work and share his memories and experiences with Bob Dylan.

"Then on April 2, we present National Public Radio host Ben Sidran who will play music and provide commentary on Dylan's impact on American history. More details on each of these programs is below.


* EXHIBITION: BOB DYLAN'S AMERICAN JOURNEY, 1956-1966
February 8-June 8
At the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, CA
Featuring more than 160 artifacts and rare audio and video footage, his acclaimed exhibition follows Bob Dylan from his Minnesota roots to his growing fame as a rock star. $5-10.


* SYMPOSIUM: DEFINING DYLAN
March 30, 9:30-5:00 p.m.
Learn about Bob Dylan, his music, and early influences at this one-day symposium featuring Dylan scholars and experts. $15-35.


* LECTURE: AN EVENING WITH MICHAEL MCCLURE
Thursday, March 20, 8:00 p.m.
Join this prolific, award-winning writer-one of the last living Beat poets and a longtime friend of Bob Dylan-as he reads from his work and comments upon the 1960s artist community. $6-10.


* LECTURE/CONCERT: BOB DYLAN: HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT: Ben Sidran
Wednesday, April 2, 7:30 pm
In this concert with commentary, National Public Radio "Jazz Alive" host and music historian Ben Sidran recounts stories from Dylan's life, explores his impact upon American history, and illuminates how his art speaks to his Jewish roots. $8-15.



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EARLIER RELATED ARTICLE:

LA to be fifth stop for travelling Dylan exhibition

Bob Dylan's American Journey, 1956-1966, organized by Experience Music Project (EMP), moves to LA's Skirball Cultural Center from 8 February to 8 June.

Bob Dylan's American Journey, 1956-1966 showcases photographs, recordings, performance, interview footage and historical artefacts - from Bruce Langhorne's tambourine to Dylan's copy of Woody Guthrie's Bound for Glory and a letter from Dylan to Joan Baez's mother!

The exhibition opened at Seattle's Experience Music Project, before moving to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Cleveland), Morgan Library (New York) and the Weisman Art Museum (Minneapolis).

The ancillary Skirball programmes includes:

· John Cohen and Daniel Kramer on photographing Dylan;
· poetry by Michael McClure, and
· Greil Marcus and other Dylan writers.

Looks absorbing - I'm keenly anticipating it coming to London!

If you've already seen the exhibition - in Seattle, Cleveland, New York or Minneapolis, or plan to go to the LA gig, Gerry@dylandaily.com is keen to hear from you and publish your impressions.


www.skirball.org



Gerry Smith

Scrapbook also in HMV at £10

Thanks to Andrew Kelly:

“I was in HMV at Oxford Circus over the Bank Holiday, where the Dylan scrapbook is currently selling for £10. It doesn't appear to be a special offer and there were about 5 copies.

“Additionally the Zavvi shop (formerly Virgin) opposite the Dominion at Tottenham Ct Rd is offering "No Direction Home" for £4 if you spend £20.

“Thought Mr Dylan was in arch form on R2 last night.”

Dylan product @ bargain prices: #1 Bob Dylan Scrapbook

Fellow consumers of Dylan product with an eye for a bargain will be pleased to hear that The Bob Dylan Scrapbook (Simon & Schuster, 2005), which has stubbornly resisted discounting from its (absurd) £30 list price, is now being heavily discounted.

I came across a pile a couple of weeks ago at Soho’s Original Bookshop, priced at £9.95. The shop’s in Charing Cross Road, across the side street from Foyle’s, and opposite Borders.

The Scrapbook’s an evocative collection of memorabilia – photographs, facsimile ticket stubs and festival posters.

Soho’s Original Bookshop also had discounted copies of Gilbert’s Forever Young: Portraits of Bob Dylan (£7.99), and a full–priced Drawn Blank (£33).

If you see some Dylan product @ bargain prices – CDs, DVDs, books, memorabilia - please let me know: bargains@dylandaily.com


Gerry Smith

Rare Dylan recordings, 1990-2008

The new (“April”) issue of Record Collector has the final article in Evan Marshall (inadvertently called “Evan Hunter” in the sub-head!)’s fine three-part survey of Dylan’s officially released rarities. Part Three covers the ‘90s and beyond.

Apart from the invaluable detailed listing, author Marshall discusses Dylan's current musical direction through his use of standalone contributions to film soundtracks and tribute records. As he says, “There really are a lot of hidden nuggets in the ‘90s and ‘00s period which show him getting back onto top form and fine-tuning his new sound”.

Collectors are indebted to Marshall for this prime piece of archaeological digging. Most will agree with him that “there really is some astonishing work that has been released by Dylan without any attention being drawn to it … “

I’ll be raising a glass to Evan Marshall this Easter.



Gerry Smith

Dylan’s Europe summer tour, 2008

Following the adventurous swing through Latin America, Dylan’s annual summer tour of Europe also takes in locations usually ignored – from Reykjavik, Iceland to St. Petersburg, Russia; Brno, Czech Republic to Warsaw, Poland. Plus France. Unconfirmed gigs include Ljubljana, Slovenia, and several Italian and Spanish stop-overs.

But there’s still a UK/Germany/Benelux-shaped hole in the schedule, from mid-July (or in May, before Iceland).

Bill Pagel’s boblinks site tracks new dates, as announced:

www.boblinks.com




Gerry Smith

Dylan in Buenos Aires

Thanks to Gonzalo Barreiros for his review of Dylan at Estadio Vélez Sársfield, Buenos Aires, Argentina on Saturday 15 March:

"Well, the concert was really great. The first song was "Rainy day women", Bobby playing the Fender Stratocaster with the band sounding powerful and steady. Then they played "Lay lady lay", when I took my cell phone and I called to my son so he could listen to it ...

"Then it was a never-ending flow of old hits and new songs, the new ones hard and sometimes sad, the old ones performed in a fresh way, almost impossible to recognize them until you hear the chorus lines. This is a wonderful feature that Dylan has explored since the beginning: playing the old songs in a new way and even changing the verses or adding some new lines. This is what I call an artist, someone who doesn't repeat himself but rather changes and keeps creating beauty.

"I can't remember the full list of songs but these are some he played last night:

* Blowing in the wind,
* All along the watchtower,
* Watching the river flow,
* Just like a woman (a version with the taste of the original recorded version, that sweet and subtle guitar arrangement for the intro),
* Times have changed (he won an Oscar in 2000 with this song),
* Masters of war (wow, a deep and dark version!),
* When the deal goes down (here the band sounded like and old jazz band, nice arrangement too, I love this song),
* Like a rolling stone (I thought that this would be the final song ... but I was wrong!
* All along the watchtower, the last chord - a minor chord - was changed into a major chord to give the song the power of a closing, lasting sound.

"...well there were more songs but I can't remember exactly as I was really touched under a bright crescent moon and a fresh breeze, holding my girlfriend's hand ...

"We all knew that Dylan barely speaks on stage and he never plays a bonus song ... but this time he played two hours non-stop, standing while he played the keyboard, so everyone was really happy. And he played three extra songs ... I missed him playing more guitar than he did, but it's ok after all. It was a great show, maybe the last time we can enjoy him here ... who knows ... . Thanks a lot!"

BOBMANIA #13/14: Dylan Days 2008 and Dyl-Time Theme Radio Hour

Thanks to Nelson French for news of Dylan Days 2008:

“Ramblin’ Jack Elliott to headline 2008 Dylan Days Benefit Concert, Saturday 24 May. Spider John Koerner and Tony Glover to open at the historic Hibbing High School auditorium. Dylan Days: 22-25 May 2008.”

www.dylandays.com


And thanks to Mel Prussack:

“Volume 7 of Series 2 of Dyl-Time Theme Radio Hour is now online. The theme this month is 2007. Listeners who usually just listen to the audio of my show should make an attempt to watch it on iTunes, as I have some great stills to go with this episode”

http://dylanshrine.podOmatic.com



Gerry Smith

30th Anniversary Concert – an eye-witness report

Thanks to a 30th Anniversary Concert eye-witness who wishes to remain anonymous:

“It's funny just how divergent different views of the same event can be sometimes. I attended the 30 Year Tribute and I found Sophie B Hawkins one of the low points in the evening's proceedings - all that weaving around added nothing to the song.

“The event was more to celebrate Dylan's music than Dylan and she had no obvious relevance to his music. I'm no expert on Hawkins but had she recorded any Dylan songs before the event and has she recorded any since? I suspect not. Maybe she was just put there because it was a high profile event.

“Sinead O'Connor had a touch more relevance, at least, but I must say that a place the size of Madison Square Garden could hardly be filled solely with music biz types, even in New York and even with execs coming in from the coast. There were a lot of ordinary folk present, like me.

“As for the booing, it was certainly nowhere near the whole audience who did this; if that had happened, the roof would have lifted off. Some booed, some supported her and some just waited for her to get on with the song.

“What annoyed me about her appearance was that, on more than one occasion, her band struck up the intended song (‘I Believe In You’) only to have her gesture to them, with her right arm, to stop.

“Had she allowed them to continue and had she started to sing the song (especially with that early line about intolerance), she could have faced down the booers, made her point forcefully and probably got a cheer from her supporters into the bargain.

“Worse than letting the booing carry on first, when she did start to sing, it was a non-Dylan song, which went against the whole point of the evening.”

Bob v Neil and 30th Anniversary Concert

Thanks to Martin Cowan:

“Further to the recent discussion about Bob versus Neil, readers may be interested in following this link:

www.thrasherswheat.org/jammin/dylan.htm


“And further to comments about the Dylan audience booing Sinead O'Connor, I seem to remember from John Bauldie's coverage of the event at the time that the audience was made up of record company suits, showbiz types and corporate guests - I believe it likely there were very few ‘real’ Dylan fans present ... “

Sophie B. Hawkins – also missing from 30th Anniversary Concert

Thanks to Jon Talbot:

“It's unfortunate that 'I Want You', performed by Sophie B. Hawkins, is missing on the DVD and the CD. When PBS showed it, she was included. It was a powerful, passionate, dramatic rendering.

“Anyone know why she's missing?”

Sinead O’Connor - missing from 30th Anniversary Concert

Thanks to Wilson Smith:

“Of course ‘Sinead O'Connor's searing rendition of Bob Marley's ‘War’ is also missing from this track list.’

“After enduring booing from the audience, she finally relented and sang nothing. I always thought this was disgraceful; an audience full of fans of Bob Dylan — an artist that always spoke his mind — effectively "censoring" another artist because she had a week earlier torn up a picture of the Pope at a Saturday Night Live rehearsal.”


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EARLIER RELATED ARTICLE:

New - 30th Anniversary Concert on DVD: encore

Thanks to Martin Cowan:

“And of course the 29 song list omits Dylan's opener, ‘Song To Woody’, due to "technical problems", although there didn't seem to be too much wrong with it when it was broadcast on national television in the UK.

2And Sinead O'Connor's searing rendition of Bob Marley's ‘War’ is also missing from this track list.

“Would agree with you that Neil Young was compelling, but also the Pearl Jam boys' ‘Masters of War’, Richie Havens' ‘Just Like A Woman’ and Willie Nelson's ‘What was it you wanted’ are worthy of mention.”

Yes - Neil Young IS upstaging Dylan

Thanks to Dave Dingle:

“Neil Young upstaging Bob? You better believe it!

“Having seen Bob over 100 times (an amateur compared to some, I know), I was struck last week by Neil doing a full one hour acoustic set, the like of which we haven’t seen from Bob since the 1960s, and a storming electric set ... active, prowling the stage, playing his own lead …

“I was left with the feeling that going to see Neil was an altogether more satisfying experience than Bob in recent years, stuck behind the piano, or even doing his few guitar songs.

“Sad to say, my conclusion is that Bob will never undergo the kind of renaissance that Neil obviously has!”


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Neil Young upstaging Dylan?

Neil Young’s current London shows, with long setlists drawn from across his catalogue, have been getting rave reviews.

According to Martin Cowan:

“Interesting to compare Neil Young's 23/24 song sets from his current tour with the 17 that Dylan serves up these days.

“I have been pondering lately on Dylan set lists (further to my last email) and concluded that if he cut short some of the instrumental "noodling", he could play a few more songs and perhaps be a little more generous with that superlative song book. Just a thought.”


Here’s a sample of Young’s ever-changing setlist, from 8 March at Hammersmith Apollo, courtesy of Bad News Beat:

01. From Hank To Hendrix
02. Ambulance Blues
03. Sad Movies
04. A Man Needs A Maid
05. Flying On The Ground Is Wrong (grand piano)
06. On The Way Home (grand piano)
07. Harvest
08. Journey Through The Past (upright piano)
09. Love In Mind (upright piano)
10. Mellow My Mind
11. Love Art Blues
12. Love Is A Rose
13. Heart Of Gold
14. Old Man
---
15. Mr. Soul
16. Dirty Old Man
17. Spirit Road
18. Down By The River
19. Hey Hey, My My
20. Too Far Gone
21. Oh, Lonesome Me
22. Winterlong
23. Powderfinger
24. No Hidden Path
---
25. Roll Another Number



Gerry Smith

Neil Young upstaging Dylan?

Neil Young’s current London shows, with long setlists drawn from across his catalogue, have been getting rave reviews.

According to Martin Cowan:

“Interesting to compare Neil Young's 23/24 song sets from his current tour with the 17 that Dylan serves up these days.

“I have been pondering lately on Dylan set lists (further to my last email) and concluded that if he cut short some of the instrumental "noodling", he could play a few more songs and perhaps be a little more generous with that superlative song book. Just a thought.”


Here’s a sample of Young’s ever-changing setlist, from 8 March at Hammersmith Apollo, courtesy of Bad News Beat:

01. From Hank To Hendrix
02. Ambulance Blues
03. Sad Movies
04. A Man Needs A Maid
05. Flying On The Ground Is Wrong (grand piano)
06. On The Way Home (grand piano)
07. Harvest
08. Journey Through The Past (upright piano)
09. Love In Mind (upright piano)
10. Mellow My Mind
11. Love Art Blues
12. Love Is A Rose
13. Heart Of Gold
14. Old Man
---
15. Mr. Soul
16. Dirty Old Man
17. Spirit Road
18. Down By The River
19. Hey Hey, My My
20. Too Far Gone
21. Oh, Lonesome Me
22. Winterlong
23. Powderfinger
24. No Hidden Path
---
25. Roll Another Number



Gerry Smith

Eye-witness account of Dylan at the Troubadour, London, 18 Dec 1962

Thanks to Kevin Jackson in Dublin:

“At a recent funeral for a long-time Dylan fan, I met traditional Irish musician Johnny Moynihan (he played with several groups, including De Dannan and Planxty).

“At the graveside, Johnny joined other musicians in accompanying the singing of 'Every Grain of Sand'. Chatting afterwards, he mentioned casually that his first meeting with Dylan had been in The Troubadour, in 1962.

“Johnny was playing there on December 18 of that year. Martin Carthy arrived, accompanied by ‘an unknown young American guy’. When the American guy (Dylan) sang, Johnny's memory was that everyone was blown away. ‘Very impressive’ were the words he used to describe it.

By the way, a YouTube search for 'Johnny Moynihan' will turn up videos of him playing, usually with Planxty or De Dannan. Now in his 70s, he is still plays an active role in the traditional music scene in Ireland. Lately, he plays a lot of ‘Old Timey’ Americana material.”

New - 30th Anniversary Concert on DVD

Thanks to K Lewis for notification that “the dylan 30th anniversary concert dvd will be released on 7 April”, and for a link to one of the suppliers, Spin:

http://www.spincds.com/product.asp?id=9015526


The (confusing) detail on the Spin site indicates that the double DVD will have fewer tracks than the original CD release, 30th Anniversary Concert Celebartion – 19 tracks instead of 29.

Dylan Daily readers will differ on the 30th Anniversary Concert, held in Madison Square Garden in 1992. Some found it tiresome, exposing the bankruptcy of rock in the early 1990s.

Dylan was hardly compelling, the rest missable. Apart, that is, from Roger McGuinn and Neil Young. Young, who stole the show, with rousing versions of Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues and All Along The Watchtower, is missing from Spin’s tracklist for the new DVD.

Original CD version tracklist:

1. Like A Rolling Stone - Mellencamp, John Cougar
2. Leopard Skin Pillbox Hat - Mellencamp, John Cougar
3. Introduction - Kristofferson, Kris
4. Blowin' In The Wind - Wonder, Stevie
5. Masters Of War - Vedder, Eddie/Mike McCready
6. Foot Of Pride - Reed, Lou
7. Times They Are A Changin' - Chapman, Tracy
8. It Ain't Me Babe - Carter, June & Johnny Cash
9. What Was It You Wanted - Nelson, Willie
10. I'll Be Your Baby Tonight - Kristofferson, Kris
11. Seven Days - Winter, Johnny
12. Highway 61 - Winter, Johnny
13. Just Like A Woman - Havens, Richie
14. Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues - Young, Neil
15. All Along The Watchtower - Young, Neil
16. When The Ship Comes In - Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem
17. I Shall Be Released - Hynde, Chrissie
18. Don't Think Twice It's Alright - Clapton, Eric
19. Emotionally Yours - O'Jays
20. When I Paint My Masterpiece - Band
21. You Ain't Goin' Nowhere - Cash, Rosanne & Mary Chapin-Carpenter/Shawn Colvin
22. Absolutely Sweet Marie - Harrison, George
23. Licence To Kill - Petty, Tom & The Heartbreakers
24. Rainy Day Women 12 And 35 - Petty, Tom & The Heartbreakers
25. Mr Tambourine Man - McGuinn, Roger
26. It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding) - Dylan, Bob
27. My Back Pages - Dylan, Bob
28. Girl From The North Country - Dylan, Bob
29. Knockin' On Heaven's Door - Dylan, Bob



Gerry Smith

Montreal and London shows in 1962: setlist and photos

* Thanks to Brady Leyser for this extract from his book, Bob Dylan Live in Canada:

“Bob Dylan made his Canadian live debut in 1962. Although virtually unknown outside of New York's Greenwich Village at the time, his first album released only a few months earlier, Mr. Dylan played five straight nights in Montreal.

It was Bob Dylan's debut concert and 2nd, 3rd, & 4th time playing at The Pot-pourri in Montreal and debut concert at The Finjan Club in Montreal.

The Dates
Montreal, QC Thurs., June 28, 1962
Montreal, QC Fri., June 29, 1962
Montreal, QC Sat., June 30, 1962
Montreal, QC Sunday, July 1, 1962
Montreal, QC Mon., July 2, 1962

Only thirteen of the songs Bob Dylan performed are known. Of those, 6 were from albums, 2 were unreleased songs and 5 were cover and/or traditional songs.

Freight Train Blues
Quit Your Low Down Ways
Baby, Let Me Follow You Down
He Was a Friend of Mine
The Death of Emmett Till
Let Me Die in My Footsteps
Stealin'
Two Trains Runnin'
Hiram Hubbard
Ramblin' On My Mind
Blowin' in the Wind
Muleskinner Blues
Rocks and Gravel.”

Details: Bob Dylan Live in Canada: A Concert History, 1962-2005 by Brady J. Leyser and Olof Bjorner. For Dylan Daily review - check out the Archive; cheapest place to buy the book is on chapters.ca


* And to Stewart Grant for a link to a priceless collection of early Dylan photographs:

http://dylanstubs.com/pictures/1962/1962/index.html




Gerry Smith

More on Dylan’s first overseas gig

Whoops!

Observant early birds might have noticed that the headline on yesterday’s article quickly changed from “first gig outside the USA” to “first overseas gig”.

The difference, as I rapidly realized, is important. As Ian Woodward pointed out: “The answer to the question in the headline is Montreal in Canada in June/July 1962.”

And Karl Erik Andersen: “If ‘outside the USA’ was the question, I am thinking The Finjan Club, July 2, 1962.”

It’s the kind of error that drives Canadians to distraction – and rightly so.



Gerry Smith

Where, exactly, did Dylan play his first overseas gig?

London has an important place in the Dylan story: first overseas trip (December 1962/January 1963) and, I think, more gigs than any city except New York – though Dylan Daily readers need no invitation to correct me if that’s wrong.

But where, exactly, did Dylan play his first London gig?

When challenged recently, my (unsure) response was The Pindar of Wakefield pub, near King’s Cross; my Dylan fan companion offered the Troubadour, Kensington. Our interrogator thought it was a pub with a common name, near Charlotte Street in Fitzrovia.

So I checked my Dylan library. Biographers Scaduto, Shelton, Heylin, Sounes and Spitz were helpful, to different degrees, but none is definitive. All three pubs were variously mentioned, but without exact dates. I could find nothing in Gray’s Encyclopedia (though access to the CD-ROM would have been helpful).

After half an hour searching, I eventually found the answer in Nigel Williamson’s Rough Guide: it was, he states, the Troubadour folk club in Kensington, on 18 December 1962, where Dylan played The Ballad Of Hollis Brown.

And then I confirmed it in Derek Barker’s ISIS: A Bob Dylan Anthology. Barker’s short article, One Time In London, was perfect for my needs – he gives a detailed chronology of Dylan’s 1962/63 London trip, confirming that all three of us had been nearly right.

The itinerary was: 18 Dec Troubadour; 22 Dec Pindar Of Wakefield; 23 Dec King & Queen, Foley Street.

Did any Dylan Daily reader catch any of these historic gigs? A million to one against, I’d guess.


Gerry Smith

Celebrating Dylan in Los Angeles

Thanks to Dorothy Rand for more information on the remarkable Dylan programme now running at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles:

“Perhaps of most interest to your readers would be a symposium we’ll be holding on March 30 called Defining Dylan, which features presentations and a panel discussion by Dylan experts and music scholars.

“And on March 20 we’ll be hosting one of the last Beat poets, Michael McClure, who will read his work and share his memories and experiences with Bob Dylan.

“Then on April 2, we present National Public Radio host Ben Sidran who will play music and provide commentary on Dylan’s impact on American history. More details on each of these programs is below.


* EXHIBITION: BOB DYLAN’S AMERICAN JOURNEY, 1956–1966
February 8–June 8
At the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, CA
Featuring more than 160 artifacts and rare audio and video footage, his acclaimed exhibition follows Bob Dylan from his Minnesota roots to his growing fame as a rock star. $5-10.

more info: http://www.skirball.org/index.php?option=com_ccevents&scope=exbt&task=detail&oid=24



* SYMPOSIUM: DEFINING DYLAN
March 30, 9:30–5:00 p.m.
Learn about Bob Dylan, his music, and early influences at this one-day symposium featuring Dylan scholars and experts. $15-35.

more info: http://www.skirball.org/index.php?option=com_ccevents&scope=crse&task=summary&filter=Genre&fid=135#51



* LECTURE: AN EVENING WITH MICHAEL MCCLURE
Thursday, March 20, 8:00 p.m.
Join this prolific, award-winning writer—one of the last living Beat poets and a longtime friend of Bob Dylan—as he reads from his work and comments upon the 1960s artist community. $6-10.

more info: http://www.skirball.org/index.php?option=com_ccevents&scope=prgm&task=summary&filter=Genre&fid=14&ccmenu=d2hhdcdzig9u



* LECTURE/CONCERT: BOB DYLAN: HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT: Ben Sidran
Wednesday, April 2, 7:30 pm
In this concert with commentary, National Public Radio "Jazz Alive" host and music historian Ben Sidran recounts stories from Dylan's life, explores his impact upon American history, and illuminates how his art speaks to his Jewish roots. $8-15.

more info: http://www.skirball.org/index.php?option=com_ccevents&scope=prgm&task=detail&oid=291&ccmenu=d2hhdcdzig9u



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EARLIER RELATED ARTICLE:

LA to be fifth stop for travelling Dylan exhibition

Bob Dylan’s American Journey, 1956–1966, organized by Experience Music Project (EMP), moves to LA’s Skirball Cultural Center from 8 February to 8 June.

Bob Dylan’s American Journey, 1956–1966 showcases photographs, recordings, performance, interview footage and historical artefacts – from Bruce Langhorne’s tambourine to Dylan’s copy of Woody Guthrie’s Bound for Glory and a letter from Dylan to Joan Baez’s mother!

The exhibition opened at Seattle’s Experience Music Project, before moving to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (Cleveland), Morgan Library (New York) and the Weisman Art Museum (Minneapolis).

The ancillary Skirball programmes includes:

· John Cohen and Daniel Kramer on photographing Dylan;
· poetry by Michael McClure, and
· Greil Marcus and other Dylan writers.

Looks absorbing – I’m keenly anticipating it coming to London!

If you’ve already seen the exhibition – in Seattle, Cleveland, New York or Minneapolis, or plan to go to the LA gig, Gerry@dylandaily.com is keen to hear from you and publish your impressions.


www.skirball.org



Gerry Smith

Latest Dylan tour set lists and reviews

Miguel asks why Dylan Daily hasn’t covered the latest show, in Monterrey, Mexico.

Simple, Miguel – because no-one’s sent Dylan Daily a report!

If you’re attending any of the Latin American shows (or any future gigs) I’d love to carry your review/setlist – just email me at tour@dylandaily.com

Dylan Daily gets lots of reports from UK/other European gigs, but not many from the rest of the world. If you can help fill the gap, please do so!

In the absence of reports of current shows on Dylan Daily, you can rely on Bill Pagel’s magnificent website:

www.boblinks.com

You’ll be in good company – over 19 million people have been there in the last twelve and a half years!


Gerry Smith