The Mystery of Apolitical Bob Dylan

Decades of dead-souled, dead music in zombie filled arenas headlined by people like Dylan. Prospero in his cell busy indwelling, might have time to ponder the mystery of the myth that is Bob Dylan. He is concealed behind a dark blue velvet curtain embroidered in gold; Dylan with a megaphone standing on a stool, blown up from Minnesota. Dylan is not a poet. Dylan is a songwriter. If you want to know who should get the plaudits for the early musical political then it is not Dylan – not in the least. It is  Dave Van Ronk and Phil Ochs, names that, for all his attributions, Dylan doesn’t mention quite as often as Elvis and Little Richard. Bodies that he steps over as they sink into the mud. Of course a middle class Jewish boy from Little Hibbing, you would think, would have to be pretty stubborn to traverse the 60’s without ever being truly politicised. For Christ’s sake, how is that even possible? This episode is also available as a blog post: https://arsnotoria.com/2020/06/13/the-mystery-of-apolitical-bob-dylan/

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