Dylan.FM

The Bob Dylan portrayed in A Complete Unknown finds those incredible songs pouring out of him—a characterization we’ve often heard about Dylan. While the blistering pace at which they emerged is astonishing, it’s important to understand the influences, borrowing, and creative remaking that played a huge role in this period of his life. Far from diminishing his achievements, understanding these factors only deepens the sense of awe. One of the most compelling aspects of Song & Dance Man is how it illustrates Dylan’s process of learning from—and transforming—the folk traditions, rock music, literature, The Bible, and the blues that shaped him. These aren’t really revealed as the building blocks of his genius; they are more like nutrients that sustained and enriched him, or tools that he sometimes used, sometimes reshaped, and sometimes ignored to suit his unique vision. The result is utterly fascinating and endlessly instructive. In a happy coincidence, A Complete Unknown focuses on folk music and so does the very first Chapter of Song & Dance Man. It’s an excellent place to start exploring Dylan’s influences and abilities beyond those you can hear by simply listening. We published an excerpt from this chapter today, and in this podcast we talk with Micheal about the way folk music taught and fed Dylan and what he then did with those lessons and that fuel. Not Completely Unknown This episode is the third in an ongoing series offering a guided tour of Bob Dylan's work to new Dylan fans and anyone interested in better understanding his music. Companion posts and bonus materials are published on our blog. Links Song & Dance Man: The Art of Bob Dylan (Vol.1) - Amazon FREE Excerpt from Chapter 1 Michael Gray Website SEVEN DAYS - Our Free Weekly Bob Dylan Email Newsletter. SIGN UP Dylan.FM is a proud member of The FM Podcast Network QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Drop us a note at [email protected].

Just 10 months after he arrived in New York City, Bob Dylan found himself at Columbia Records recording his first record. This episode tells the story of what was then considered a rather unspectacular debut. This is the first episode of Dylan Revisited, a new podcast by Colm Larkin that grew out of his Twitter/Bluesky thread posts. Not Completely Unknown This episode is the second in an ongoing series offering a guided tour of Bob Dylan's work to new Dylan fans and anyone interested in better understanding his music. Companion posts and bonus materials are published on our blog. Dylan.FM is a proud member of The FM Podcast Network SEVEN DAYS - Our Free Weekly Bob Dylan Email Newsletter. SIGN UP QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Drop us a note at [email protected].

Before television, a boy was born in springtime Minnesota. 25 years later he was the most beloved, and most reviled – pop star on the planet. A Bob Dylan Primer is a series that tells the story of the work and life of Bob Dylan. Over the course of 16 episodes it covers the time period from Dylan’s youth in Minnesota and early days in New York City up to the release of Dylan’s Time Out Of Mind in 1997. Not Completely Unknown This episode is the first in an ongoing series offering a guided tour of Bob Dylan's work to new Dylan fans and anyone interested in better understanding his music. Companion posts and bonus materials are published on our blog. Links: Greenwich Village Folk Riot – 1961 Greenwich Village During the Beat-Nik Era Folkies Kingston Trio – Tom Dooley – 1958 Bob Dylan – Remember Me – East Orange, NJ – 1961 Dylan – First recorded concert – May 6, 1961 Bob Dylan on Oscar Brand Radio Show – November 1961 We're a proud member of The FM Podcast Network SEVEN DAYS - Our Free Weekly Bob Dylan Email Newsletter. SIGN UP QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Drop us a note at [email protected].

We're kicking off a new series on Dylan.FM called “Not Completely Unknown” focused on helping new Dylan fans learn more about the guy they met in the film, or the musician that they've never taken the time to get to know well. This will be an ongoing series of podcasts, blog posts, and social media chirps (primarily on Bluesky @dylan.thefm.club). Three sources will frame the series: A Bob Dylan Primer: This is a 16 part series that walks through Bob Dylan’s career one phase at a time. It was created and produced by Michael Hacker, who has revised and updated the series for this presentation. One episode of this series will be released each week. Dylan Revisited: What began as a series of Tweet Threads which exquisitely condensed and presented key albums and events in Dylan’s life, later became a series of blog posts. and is now a podcast - all by writer Colm Larkin. A new episode and associated blog post will appear every week or two. Song & Dance Man: The Art of Bob Dylan: The first and many still believe best serious critical analysis of Dylan’s work comes from Michael Gray in his Song & Dance Man books. New excerpts from the book and recut versions of our chapter-by-chapter talks with Michael will be released throughout this series. To get the posts and bonus material that accompany this series: Sign Up for Our Substack : The free level will include most of the series; there will be bonus material for paid supporters. ——————————————————————— We're a proud member of The FM Podcast Network QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? Drop us a note at [email protected].