Bob Dylan at 75 – From Protest to Plugging In

Early Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan, one of the most iconic American artists of the 20th century, just turned 75 this May. Jim and Greg examine the extraordinary career of the music legend in the first of a two-part series. This week, they explore Dylan's folk days to the moment he went electric.

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Bob Dylan at 75: Folk Days to Newport

Dylan in the studio

Don’t Look Back, the classic Bob Dylan documentary instructs us. But as the American music icon just turned 75 on May 24th, Jim and Greg can't help saying happy birthday by revisiting our multi-part special on his life and career. In our first installment, we focus on Dylan's early years as a folkie and protest singer in New York. Dylan moved from Minnesota to Greenwich Village in 1961 at age 19. Within just a few years, he was signed to Columbia Records, teamed up with manager  Albert Grossman, released four albums, and become "the voice of a generation." Jim and Greg spoke to Dylan expert  Clinton Heylin in 2009 about the singer's influences during those years and his growth as a songwriter and performer. Clinton explored Dylan's entire song catalog in two companion books, Revolution in the Air and Still on the Road.

Never one to be pigeonholed, Dylan abandoned categories just as soon as he was assigned them. At his headlining set at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island on July 25, 1965, Dylan went electric by playing with a full rock band. Jim and Greg get a first-hand account of the infamous concert from musician, songwriter and A&R man Al Kooper. Al performed with Dylan onstage at Newport, and he dispels a half-century's worth of myths about the "boos" that allegedly came from the crowd.

Next week, we conclude our Dylan celebration with a look at Blonde on Blonde and Dylan's "Modern Times."

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