Bob Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture for more than 50 years. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s, when songs such as ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ and ‘The Times They Are a-Changin’’ became anthems for the civil rights and anti-war movements. Hailed as the Shakespeare of his generation, Dylan sold tens of millions of albums, wrote more than 500 songs recorded by more than 2,000 artists, performed all over the world, and set the standard for lyric writing. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016, writes RAY CLEERE.
On May 24th, Bob Dylan was 80. In his 60 year career he has released 39 studio albums, including 11 Platinum and 11 Gold; 95 singles, 12 live albums, 26 notable extended plays, 52 music videos, 15 albums comprising ‘The Bootleg Series’, 20 compilation albums, 16 box sets, 7 soundtracks as main contributor, 5 music home videos and 2 non-music home videos.
Dylan is a prolific and highly influential American singer, songwriter, musician, author and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for six decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from 1960s with ‘Highway 61 Revisited’, ‘Blonde on Blonde’, ‘John Wesley Harding’, ‘Nashville Skyline’ and countless other albums.
Perhaps his most famous song is the 1965 classic six-minute single ‘Like a Rolling Stone’. The song is now 56 years old.
A number of his earlier songs became anthems – ‘Blowin In The Wind’ and ‘The Times They Are A Changin’ became anthems for the U.S. civil rights and anti-war movements. The American folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary’s version of ‘Blowin In The Wind’ was a million seller in 1961.
In 2001, 40 years later, Dylan’s album ‘Love and Theft’ reached the top five in the American and British charts. On August 29th, 2006, his album ‘Made in Times’ was released. It became his first number one album in America in 30 years and made him the oldest living chart topper in history at the age of 65.
Exactly 40 years previously on August 29th, 1966, the Beatles gave their last ever live performance at Candlestick Park, in San Francisco.
On April 6th, 2011, Bob Dylan made his long-awaited China debut. He performed in the Workers Gymnasium in central Beijing, before doing another show in Shanghai and two more in Hong Kong, which commemorated his first major performance 50 years previously on April 11, 1961, in New York.
