A couple of years ago, sitting beneath shade trees in Saratoga Springs, New York, I had a two-hour conversation with Bob Dylan that touched on Malcolm X, the French Revolution, Franklin Roosevelt and The Second World War. At one juncture, he asked me what I understood about the Sand Creek Massacre of1864 When I answered, “Inadequate,” he got up from his folding chair, climbed up into his trip bus and came back 5 minutes later on with photocopies describing how United States soldiers had actually butchered numerous peaceful Cheyenne and Arapahoe in southeastern Colorado.
Given the nature of our relationship, I felt comfy reaching out to him in April after, in the middle of the coronavirus crisis, he suddenly launched his epic, 17- minute tune “Murder Many Foul,” about the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Although he hadn’t done a major interview beyond his own website because winning the Nobel Reward in literature in 2016, he agreed to a phone chat from his Malibu, California, house, which turned out to be his only interview before the release Friday of “Rough and Rowdy Ways,” his very first album of original tunes because “Tempest” in2012
Bob Dylan in New York,1963 In an uncommon interview, the Nobel Prize winner goes over mortality, drawing motivation from the past, and his new album: “Rough and Rowdy Ways.” (William C. Eckenberg/The New York City Times).
” Maybe at some point he’ll compose a tune or paint a picture to honour George Floyd. Were those prose notes for an essay, or were you hoping to write a tune like “Murder Many Foul” for a long time?A: I’m not mindful of ever desiring to write a tune about JFK. That only uses to individuals of a specific age like me and you, Doug.
Bob Dylan is granted the Governmental Medal of Flexibility by President Barack Obama in the White Home in Washington, Might 29,2012 In an uncommon interview, the Nobel Prize winner talks about mortality, drawing inspiration from the past, and his brand-new album: “Rough and Rowdy Ways.” (Luke Sharrett/The New York City Times).
In his day, his songs must have puzzled individuals. Is there another person you ‘d like to write a ballad for?A: Those kinds of songs for me just come out of the blue, out of thin air. The folk tradition has a long history of songs about people.