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I my opinion Dylan, in one day, destroyed the hootenanny folk scene. As the old New York Times article points out music from islands off the South Carolina coast and from Louisiana's swamplands was being highlighted at Newport. This festival was a focal point of a vital coffee house scene in cities such as New York and Toronto.
As the New York Times article in the August 1, 1965 issue, linked above says: "Bob Dylan, who seems unable to sneeze without causing controversy, introduced yery unpersuasively his new fusion of folk and rock 'n' roll." I am not persuaded. As today's article (linked above) said: "He was booed by some in the crowd — a topic of endless debate ever since — and a rift was torn in the folk continuum, leaving turbulence and ambiguity behind, and an uncertain road ahead."
To my mind there was nothing wrong with a "do it yourself" music. I remember my father of blessed memory would pick up a guitar after work on warm summer evenings and teach himself songs. All that the songs needed was a singer and a guitar, often the same person. This may have had weird results when the singer had no voice, meaning if I sang, or Bob Dylan sang but I digress. Electrifying this simple, inexpensive music took the industry down the road of ultra-expensive productions. Eventually the expense wound up stifling creativity. Record companies made billions, then crashed.
I can't blame this all on Bob Dylan, obviously. But a lot was lost.
He didn't make folk music go elecric. Most folk is still non electic. Only the crossover stuff had it added. Real folk is still very much strings and vibration.
He didn't make folk music go elecric. Most folk is still non electic. Only the crossover stuff had it added. Real folk is still very much strings and vibration.
From what I remember he turned the coffeehouse scene from vibrancy and optimism to, at best, nostalgia. When I started going to NYC on my own in 1975 Greenwich Village was a shell of what it was in the early 1960's.
From what I remember he turned the coffeehouse scene from vibrancy and optimism to, at best, nostalgia. When I started going to NYC on my own in 1975 Greenwich Village was a shell of what it was in the early 1960's.
I'm just going by the music I see at cons and done by locals. I don't consider the stuff which is electified to be 'folk'. Folk Rock was the next wave back then and its fine, just not folk.
My taste is more Stan Rogers, Pete Seeger, Fred Small or Dahm the Bard
As a 15 year old only being able to afford an album a month in 1965 I remember that article in the newspaper regarding Bob Dylan going electric.It was maybe two years previous I bought my first lp-Jan and Dean's "Drag City." Funny IIRC it was around the same time the Dylan controversy was coming that I bought my first Dylan single-"Subterranean Homesick Blues" from May of 1965. Thinking back over the early 60's, folk music certainly was represented on the top 50 and I would imagine Peter, Paul, and Mary had more top 20 songs on the survey sheets than anyone else. Then there was "Hooteneanny" on the tube.
Maybe three months after its release, I remember buying Bob Dylan's 2 lp set masterpiece--"Blonde On Blonde." And his albums later? Whew! Finally around late '68/early '69 I got caught up on his back catalog--"Another Side," "Freewheelin'", and the self titled first lp, and I was really appreciating his work. "Nashville Skyline" comes out in the Summer of '69. It was the only 8 track by Dylan I bought.
Without a doubt, there was a radical change with Dylan's work on the folk music scene. But he just went to town from there. I remember the accident he had when the "John Wesley Harding" lp came out, and after that he was cranking it out yearly for decade after decade after decade.
He has had an illustrious career. And has had an amazing career. There's no debating THAT!
I'm just going by the music I see at cons and done by locals. I don't consider the stuff which is electified to be 'folk'. Folk Rock was the next wave back then and its fine, just not folk.
My taste is more Stan Rogers, Pete Seeger, Fred Small or Dahm the Bard
You're one of the few other non-Canadians to know of and like Stan Rogers. He's one of my favorites. I would add to the mix Joni Mitchell, Eric Anderson and John Denver, even though they mixed in other instruments a bit. Unlike Bob Dylan they did not go to pure Rock & Roll.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DOUBLE H
As a 15 year old only being able to afford an album a month in 1965 I remember that article in the newspaper regarding Bob Dylan going electric.It was maybe two years previous I bought my first lp-Jan and Dean's "Drag City." Funny IIRC it was around the same time the Dylan controversy was coming that I bought my first Dylan single-"Subterranean Homesick Blues" from May of 1965. Thinking back over the early 60's, folk music certainly was represented on the top 50 and I would imagine Peter, Paul, and Mary had more top 20 songs on the survey sheets than anyone else. Then there was "Hooteneanny" on the tube.
Wasn't the Dylan single-"Subterranean Homesick Blues" from May of 1965 an electric song, and didn't it precede the Newport debacle?
Quote:
Originally Posted by DOUBLE H
Maybe three months after its release, I remember buying Bob Dylan's 2 lp set masterpiece--"Blonde On Blonde." And his albums later? Whew! Finally around late '68/early '69 I got caught up on his back catalog--"Another Side," "Freewheelin'", and the self titled first lp, and I was really appreciating his work. "Nashville Skyline" comes out in the Summer of '69. It was the only 8 track by Dylan I bought.
I particularly treasure his five-song set at Concert for BanglaDesh:
Hard Rain's Gonna Fall
It Takes a Lot to Laugh - It Takes a Train to Cry
Blowin' in the Wind
Mr. Tambourine Man
Just Like a Woman
Dylan himself was acoustic but George Harrison, Eric Clapton and others provided some soft electrical accompaniment.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DOUBLE H
Without a doubt, there was a radical change with Dylan's work on the folk music scene. But he just went to town from there. I remember the accident he had when the "John Wesley Harding" lp came out, and after that he was cranking it out yearly for decade after decade after decade.
He has had an illustrious career. And has had an amazing career. There's no debating THAT!
My peeve is that he did a lot of damage to the rest of the folk music movement in the process. Some of his work post-electric was brilliant; other work very affected and fake. And some bizarre.
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