Jonathan Cott – Dylan on Dylan (2006)
Music – 440 pages – borrowed from fellow student of Dylanology, Jay
- 3 nods
Music – 440 pages – borrowed from fellow student of Dylanology, Jay
- 3 nods
Who, these days, can oppose themselves against a man such as Bob Dylan? The true hero of the 1960s, when other bands and figures remain divisive (think Mick Jagger, think Paul "Macca" McCartney, think Herman’s Hermits) Dylan remains a living legend. His 1960s period is one now widely acknowledged as "super cool", of untouchable songs and lyrics – whilst the modern Bob continues to reap the plaudits on recent albums such as Time Out of Mind. If Michael Jackson was the King of Pop, Bob Dylan is surely the Caesar of all Songwriters.
Jonathan Cott’s book upon Dylan is a succession of articles, taken from the 1960s to the modern day. It shows Dylan’s progression from unknown folkie, to leader of a movement, his shying away from the limelight, his surprise Christian revivial, the awkward eighties to eventual consolidation as the Man of the 60s.
However, many of the articles are a simply waste of good reading time. There are Dylan’s web of ridiculous lies – which is mouth was prone to spout when hitting the big time in 1965-1966 – coupled with sycophantic writers praising Bob as the son of God (the Worm realises his own sycophantic praises…but the Worm is not a rock biographer). Yet despite this, there are some real gems and treats in store for the Dylan fan, none more so than A.J. Weberman’s psychotic meeting with the man in the early 1970s. Weberman, self-proclaimed ‘Dylanologist and Minister of Defence of the Dylan Liberation Front’, accuses Bob of betraying his counter-culture roots.
Other highlights include Nat Hentoff’s 1964 interview, in which we catch a glimpse of (perhaps) the true Bob during the recording of Another Side of Bob Dylan; as are the eighties interviews with Rolling Stone and Esquire, showing Dylan on the road to his current comfortable status in 2010. For the truly laughable, however, all the reader must do is turn to Dylan’s religious period (1979-1982); no words can do justice to the songwriter’s warped and confused mindset.
Cott’s collection of articles is one for bookcases of all Dylan fans – and, of course, Dylanologists. A book that can be dipped into from time to time, to quote and muse over; without ever seriously competing with Dylan’s actual recordings.
