Dylan wins Nobel Prize in Literature

Whoops, how did I forget Elvis?   Presley, not Costello.

Inna like Johnny Cash, he understands and is able to relate to people. I think that’s what mostly matters and his style and technique are just a means to that end.  Also both are true to themselves and come across as humble.   It all adds up.

Freewheelin Bob Dylan
Highway 65 Revisited
Blonde on Blonde
Blood on the Tracks
Infidels
Oh Mercy
Together Through Life
Tempest
Love and Theft
Time Out of Mind

These represent better received ones overall. Most others worthwhile as well. Depends on what one is looking for and might enjoy. You can start with the more recent ones and go backwards or vice versa. Personally I like the musical variety shown in his more recent works but the older ones are still consdiered teh classics after many years.

Geof from what I've read I suspect one thing we would agree on is admiration for Bob Dylan.

You probably need to watch Don't Look Back again.

Why is that?

Jealous?

Now "Neighborhood Bully" author gets his due.

bd nice assessment and hard to disagree with.  his impact is huge perhaps the biggest artistic impact on the world over his time.

My biggest hope is that teh accolades Dylan receives while still with us leads to a revival of content in American popular music.   Pendulums do swing you know.

Dylan
Ellington
Davis
Cash
Springsteen
Billie Holiday
Robert Johnson
Mahalia Jackson
Michael Jackson

Based on total influence and impact, these are the contenders in my mind for greatest American individual musical artists of the last 100 years.

Czar, many others around the world as well I am sure, but well, I live in America, so I am certainly not qualified to judge other countries artistic icons, nor who qualifies most for an international award. I can only speak for my guys, and Dylan is one of those. Apparently others overseas feel the same.

Frogman, thanks for that. Hope I didn’t mangle my choices too much. :^)

My son is doing overseas studies in St. Petersburg Russia this semester.  I'm looking forward to asking him what he may have observed about such things from that perspective when he returns.

If you read the criteria for winning a Nobel Prize, Dylan fits it perfectly. Him putting his words into music is the icing on the cake that makes the totallity of his impact even more obvious. Being a musician brought his wordws to more people than it would otherwise I would say though. Perhaps an unfair advantage, but certainly not against the rules. Maybe other Nobel hopefuls should learn to play a guitar or piano.

If you read up on Dylan, nobody will say he is a great musician or a great vocalist. What he is is a great artist with more tools than most, although he has also demonstrated his dedication to what he does by touring almost contantly over the years and continuing to produce music that is appealing. He learned to hire other good musicians and use them in his band to help convey his message, which changes at his whim.

The facts speak for themself. He is brilliant, a genius, a machine,totally deserving of any accolade given him. He knows how to make things work when it comes to delivering his message to his audience which only continues to grow as the years pass.  He is also the gold standard by which many an aspiring musician has been compared to over the years and that many aspire to be able to equal or exceed.   

When I am asked if on a desert island and I had to listen to just one musical act,  My answer is Johnny Cash.  He is the only other American musician that I think can match Dylan in scope and impact.    I can relate to both a lot, but I think Johnny just a tad more. 

Speaking of Dylan and Cash. 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1qaym4_bob-dylan-johnny-cash-girl-from-the-north-country_music

Vinyl yes I tettered on adding Armstrong but not sure why I did not. My fault. 

Any one not sure about Dylan or the importance of Johnny Cash should read what Dylan wrote when Cash died. 

http://www.frankgrizzard.info/public_html/cash.html

Apparently they just liked Dylan best.   Just like we get to pick the audio products we like best based on their merits as we see them.  Others will see something different most likely.  It's an art not a science.  So I guess you'll never please everyone.  

So your saying those who choose the winner do not understand literature?   

Very good point onhwy61.

Guessing you are a Dylan fan from moniker?

I was going to compare it to a beauty contest. I think its an even better analogy to demonstrate that its merely another popularity contest with a few simple rules in a totally different realm.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion.

Dylan is great because of the words he writes, nothing else. That’s literature. People can read the words to his songs without the music and have the same experiences as reading any other comparable short work.

There are also many to read, quantity as well as quality.

I understand the argument that putting the words to music provides an advantage. Perhaps an unfair one assuming certain rules that apparently do not exist. But one can also argue that the music makes the words even more powerful and hence of greater impact which is what I think the Nobel is mostly about.

Its an interesting development for sure. I can understand why traditional writers might not be happy. The game was just upped in a sense.

Well, there was a lot less competition in Dante’s day. That’s for sure, eh?

Also I read Dante was significant for breaking with the tradition of writing in Latin, which only a few could read , but rather writing in teh vernacular which was accessible to more.

Hmm,  Kinda sounds like the same story with Dylan,  putting lyrics to music rather than merely writing poetry that few might read or know.

Maybe the two have more in common than we can even imagine.

Hmm well Dylan silent about this so far.    Might not even accept it.  That kinda solves the problem.