This month, the What'cha Readin' Book Club spends time with the world's all-time greatest songwriter, Bob Dylan. There, I loaded that sentence up nicely but I can't help how I feel. Feelings are important everyone. All that said, I'm not the only one who would make such a statement and, this month, we delve into the work of another ardent believer.
The Ballad of Bob Dylan was just released in paperback and its author, respected poet and biographer Daniel Mark Epstein, examines Dylan's life and work via four concerts he played in 1963, 1974, 1997 and 2009. It seemed like an arbitrary list of years to me until I started reading the book a couple of days ago and discovered that Epstein actually attended the 1963 concert in Washington D.C., as a young man. I find this to be impressive information.
It's also intriguing to hear Epstein describe the mysterious emergence of Dylan's self-titled debut in record stores. When he finally bought one of the first copies in limited circulation, Epstein was less than impressed with Dylan. It was as if the voice didn't quite match the face on the cover. But, based on what I've read thus far, it stands to reason that Epstein ended up seeing Dylan live again on at least three more occasions, so something about him stuck. I can relate.
Are there any artists you've seen live at different points in their career? If so, who and how would you describe the distinctions between the shows? Are you a fan of Bob Dylan? Are you excited about reading The Ballad of Bob Dylan?
I have more copies to offer to people (not employed by the CBC) who share a cool story about an artist they've seen multiple times at different aspects of their carreer. I’ll let you know if your story was deemed a winner (you can only win once, BTW) so check back here for a response. If you do win, please send your name (real and blog), mailing address and winning answer to rock@cbc.ca with “The Ballad of Bob Dylan” in the subject line.
Related:
What'cha Readin'? Goodbye Lightfoot, hello Dylan
What’cha Readin’? Thoughts on Writing Gordon Lightfoot by Dave Bidini
Obama awards Bob Dylan with Presidential Medal of Freedom
A concert for Levon Helm, tonight on Canada Live
THE LIST: Five Sides of Bob Dylan
Single Songs: Bob Dylan's 'To Ramona'
From Digital to Analog: Bob Dylan, Talking Heads, Drive Like Jehu
posted by
Vish Khanna
on Jun 01, 2012