Bob Dylan Essay -- essays research papers

Bob Dylan, born Robert Zimmerman on May 24th, 1941, has perhaps been one of the most influential singer songwriters of all time. Young Dylan lived the first five or six years of his life in Duluth, Minnesota, until his father became ill with polio and lost his job. The family then moved to Hibbing, Minnesota, where they slept in the living room of his fathers parents house for about two years. As a boy he started listening to late night rhythm and blues stations from Chicago. He pestered the local record store for the newest singles from Hank Williams, Chuck Barry, Howlin' Wolf , and John Lee Hooker, just to name a few. These early influences played, and still play, a big role in Dylan’s unique musical style. Somewhere around the age of ten, Dylan realized that he wanted to be a guitarist and a singer. Soon he formed his own bands, The Golden Chords, The Shadow Blasters, and Elston Gunn & The Rock Boppers. His fellow students were shocked to hear such a voice come from the small kid, when he sang at a high school talent show. After high school graduation in 1959, Dylan enrolled in the University of Minnesota, but never graduated. Instead, he started playing in nearby coffeehouses, and was quickly taken in by the artistic community. There he was introduced to rural folk music of artist like Big Bill Broonzy, Leadbelly, Roscoe Holocomb, and the great Woody Guthrie. Throughout his life, Dylan will blend these three (blues, rock 'n' roll, and folk) mus...