at a glance...

Hometown: Duluth, MN
First Recordings: 1962

Notes:
Born Robert Allen Zimmerman, raised from the age of six in Hibbing, MN. While studying art at the University of Minnesota, he began to perform folk music at local coffehouses as Bob Dylan, a name he reputedly borrowed from poet Dylan Thomas. In January 1961, he relocated to New York, quickly making a name for himself on the folk circuit as a disciple of his idol, Woodie Guthrie. An opening gig for John Lee Hooker brought him to the attention of Columbia Records talent scout John Hammond, who recorded Dylan's debut, which consisted of only two originals surrounded by folk and blues standards. In 1963, Dylan released his breakthrough collection of original compositions The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, the beginning of a career marked by a devotion to his own vision and craft that continues to this day, with an excellent new release, Time Out Of Mind.

Sure, Highway 61 Revisited is considered a milestone in modern music nowadays, but when it was released in 1965, all was not well for Bob Dylan. He was in full-swing with the whole electric guitar thing, which wasn't going over very well with much of his core audience. In fact, Highway 61 was recorded amidst cries that he had abandoned his folk roots and had sold out to base rock 'n' roll. Dylan responded to these accusations by releasing a deeply existential album, focussing on his own and other's interactions with the world. The result is probably one of the best albums Dylan ever recorded, and features some of the most vivid and poetic lyrics ever inscribed on vinyl.

It's also easy to forget that the album's opening track changed pop music. Before "Like a Rolling Stone," hit singles were universally three minutes or less in running time. At a hefty 6:13, "Rolling Stone" smashed this perception and is now rightfully remembered as one of the greatest rock 'n' roll songs ever recorded. Furthermore, Highway 61's introspective subject matter was hardly the norm in rock music. Dylan had plumbed the murky depths of the mind before, but in the more forgiving realm of folk. With this album, Dylan proved "rock music as poetry" actually worked could appeal to a wide audience.

The album's title has a special significance as well. As you may or may not know, Highway 61 stretches north to south from Minnesota (Bob's homeland) down through the Mississippi Delta. Throughout the album Dylan musically revisits both his Minnesotan roots and Mississippi-styled Blues music.

Highway 61 stands as one yet another one of Dylan's towering achievements. It directly proceeded Blonde On Blonde, which many people consider his greatest album. However, the groundwork for that album was laid with Highway 61, and it certainly wouldn't have been as universally accepted without it. It's a treasure everyone should experience.

If you like Bob Dylan, check out:
Bob Dylan Blonde On Blonde
Bob Dylan The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan Blood on the Tracks
Bob Dylan The Bootleg Series
Bob Dylan Infidels
Bob Dylan Desire
Woody Guthrie ...Sings Folk Songs
The Band Music From Big Pink
Flying Burrito Brothers Hot Burritos!
The Charlatans Tellin' Stories
Van Morrison Astral Weeks
The Byrds Sweetheart Of The Rodeo
Joe Henry Trampoline
Elvis Costello King Of America

-- Jesse Ducker