It all began with my friend Charles Urban. He suggested that I read not just one but two brand-new biographies of Bob Dylan.
The first book, The Double Life of Bob Dylan: A Restless, Hungry Feeling, 1941-1966 is by Clinton Heylin. Known as the world’s foremost expert on His Bobness, Heylin was asked to examine the papers Dylan sold to Tulsa. When he did so, Heylin decided he needed to revise his Dylan biography. This new book is meticulous and exhaustive.
The second book, You Lose Yourself, You Reappear. The Many Voices of Bob Dylan was written by Paul Morley. This book is more stream-of-consciousness, weaving back and forth through the influences on Dylan’s life and personas.
I read the books in tandem and had a blast. Not only did they revise my opinion of Bob Dylan (I loved his music but could take or leave his voice). I vanished into Dylan’s myriad rivers’ flows….
Now I listen with fresh appreciation. And the experience of reading about Dylan somehow inspired me to mix and match my own personal, + cultural, + worldly reference points. I became suddenly – and wildly – prolific. In a week I came up with more than fifty (50!!!) posts. A new blog thread was born, which (and what else did I expect after 2 books on Dylan) is actually two new threads spun together: Today’s Birthday and A Person + Place/Time/Things.
My last major blog thread was The Animal Kingdom, written in honor of another Bob – my dad.
Watch this space. Today’s Birthday and A Person + Place/Time/Things will be debuting soon.
NOTES: © Jadi Campbell 2021. To see Uwe’s photos from our trips go to viewpics.de. PS: And it keeps growing…. The new blog thread currently has 70 posts in the queue. Thanks Charles!
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I really like it and your blog, please visit mine and support if you like it 🙂 <3
Thanks so much! I’ve stopped by and given you a nod!
I have a biography of Bob Dylan’s “Dylan, Text by Johathan Cott (1984) … your article has now started me reading the book again …
Hi Ivor, it’s always fun to hear how we inspire one another to other sources. Charles, the man who suggested I read the Dylan biographies, has over 100 books on Bob Dylan. I will be sure to ask him if he’s read yours!
Wow. .. a 100 Bob Dylan books .. that’s amazing
My friend calls himself a serious Bobcat!
isn’t it interesting how your perspective can shift after learning more about someone or something?
I had a week where I was sick and just lay on the couch reading the 2 books. I’d literally do 50 pages or a couple chapters of one of them, take a break, and then switch books. And that led to one hell of a burst of inspiration !
a fun way to do it –