I
photographed Bob Dylan for The Friends of Traditional Music at Centennial Hall in Tucson in the mid-'80s.
Dylan was in his Christian phase and performed with three black women who were gospel singers.
Born in 1941, he changed his name from Robert Allen Zimmerman to Bob Dylan in 1959 while living and performing folk music in the Dinkeytown district of Minneapolis at the Ten O'Clock Scholar coffeehouse. The name change was to honor the poet Dylan Thomas, who, he said, had affected the writing of his music. Thomas was a Welsh poet (writing exclusively in English) who made four tours of America between 1950 and 1953.
At first, Bob Dylan was into rock & roll, but changed to folk music because he said that rock might have great rhythms, driving pulses and catch-phrases, but it didn't reflect life in a realistic way like folk music.
He not only changed his name from Robert Allen Zimmerman to Bob Dylan reflecting how the poet Dylan Thomas affected the writing of his music, but he also changed his home. With Ramblin' Jack Elliott as a performing partner, Dylan left Dinkytown for New York City in 1969, hoping to meet his music idol Woody Guthrie.
As with most performers I've photographed, when you meet them they're working and aren't up for much chatter. I only talked to Dylan for a few seconds backstage during intermission. As he was walking offstage past me I simply said "Good show, Bob." His response was "Don't call me Bob. Friends call me Zimmy."
You can purchase a copy of Zimmy at my web store.
Dylan was in his Christian phase and performed with three black women who were gospel singers.
Born in 1941, he changed his name from Robert Allen Zimmerman to Bob Dylan in 1959 while living and performing folk music in the Dinkeytown district of Minneapolis at the Ten O'Clock Scholar coffeehouse. The name change was to honor the poet Dylan Thomas, who, he said, had affected the writing of his music. Thomas was a Welsh poet (writing exclusively in English) who made four tours of America between 1950 and 1953.
At first, Bob Dylan was into rock & roll, but changed to folk music because he said that rock might have great rhythms, driving pulses and catch-phrases, but it didn't reflect life in a realistic way like folk music.
He not only changed his name from Robert Allen Zimmerman to Bob Dylan reflecting how the poet Dylan Thomas affected the writing of his music, but he also changed his home. With Ramblin' Jack Elliott as a performing partner, Dylan left Dinkytown for New York City in 1969, hoping to meet his music idol Woody Guthrie.
As with most performers I've photographed, when you meet them they're working and aren't up for much chatter. I only talked to Dylan for a few seconds backstage during intermission. As he was walking offstage past me I simply said "Good show, Bob." His response was "Don't call me Bob. Friends call me Zimmy."
You can purchase a copy of Zimmy at my web store.
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