Michael Gray

Handlebars twisting in his hands, the bike fishtails, rubber screaming against asphalt.

The ground rushes up to meet him as the motorcycle slides out from under his legs.

In this single, violent moment, the pace of his life finally catches up with him.

Precisely what happens when Dylan falls off his motorcycle remains shrouded in mystery.

Some report he is rendered unconscious with a broken neck, others that he emerges relatively unscathed.

Dylan himself claims he suffers several broken vertebrae.

Whatever the truth, after the accident he withdraws somewhat from public life, retreating to a more private existence with his wife and young family.

During the late 60s, he and Sarah have three more children, Anna, Samuel, and Jacob.

For Dylan, it is a necessary period of rest and respite.

It's during this period that he turns to making relaxed, informal music at home, jamming with his bandmates, experimenting with melodies, and improvising nonsensical lyrics to old favorites.

Characterized by their intimate, earthy sound, the resulting recordings are collected together in a series called The Basement Tapes.

Circulating initially in the burgeoning bootleg market, they become prized by collectors and are officially released as an album in 1975.

Returning to the studio in 1967, Dylan now leans into a gentler, more country-influenced sound to produce John Wesley Harding.

The album includes All Along the Watchtower, a song that gains wider fame after Jimi Hendrix covers it the next year.

Yet even as he attempts to withdraw from public life, he is not left alone.

Obsessive fans continue to pursue him, such as A.J.

Weberman, a self-styled Dylanologist who is notorious for rifling through the star's garbage.

A quiet life proves elusive, and Dylan finds he can't step out of the limelight forever.

For a long time, his output is uneven and he remains reclusive.

1974, though, sees him embark on his first major tour in more than seven years.