secretGeek logowiki.secretGeek

Outbound Links (2 articles…)

Dylan's About Face

dylan

27 May 1963

  • Dylan released "the Free wheelin' Bob Dylan" featuring these absolutely hard-hitting protest folk songs:
    • Blowin' in the Wind
    • Masters of War
    • Hard Rain's a-Gonna Fall

Aug-Oct 1963

  • Dylan records "The Times They Are a-Changin'" album featuring these even more hard-hitting protest songs:
    • The Times They Are a-Changin'
    • With God on Our Side
    • Only a Pawn in Their Game
    • The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll

22 Nov 1963

  • JFK is shot dead.
  • Dylan writes in his diary, "Holy fucking shit. How can I nope out of this protest bullshit before I become a martyr?"

18 Jan 1964

  • The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" suddenly appeared on US charts, and by mid January had vaulted to the top of nearly every top forty music survey across the US

10 Feb 1964

  • Dylan album "The Times they are a changin'" is released
  • Dylan is terrified, upon hearing himself described as "the spokesman of a generation" and redneck quarterly's "Most Shootable Face"
  • Dylan writes in his diary "Fuck me. Oh fuck."

9 Jun 1964

  • Bob Dylan records "Another Side of Bob Dylan" in a single session, notably lacking in protest songs, and finishing with:
    • It ain't me babe
      ...which clearly spells out that he's not the guy you're looking for, and he would rather not be shot for your entertainment.
  • Fans go wild, don't get it, and as much as ever, still think he'd make an excellent martyr.

Jan 1965

  • Bob Dylan records "Bringing it all back home" (side one Electric, side two Acoustic) with no protest songs except "Maggie's Farm" which is almost an anti-protest song. He leans into the poetry, surrealism, and drug loving side of the era, and with his harsh new electric sound, steps away from the folk and protest side of the era.

22 Mar 1965

  • Dylan album "Bringing it all back home" is released
  • An even larger fan base than ever responds to this album, and they notice that it is not a folk album and not a protest album.
  • Dylan writes in his diary "I've done it! I've found a way to be popular with chicks without getting shot by rednecks!"

25 Jul 1965

  • Bob Dylan performs an electric set to close the Newport folk festival.
  • Folk-music fans at this festival are disappointed and boo loudly, because they were really looking forward to cheering him on as a martyr when he was shot.

See also