As his parting note in the 1959 Hibbing High School Yearbook, Robert Zimmerman summarized his ambition thusly: "To join Little Richard."
In 1960, Dylan shared a small bill with the Smothers Brothers in Denver. When he began playing obscure songs, the headliners asked the manager to remove him, as they claimed he sounded and looked homeless.
Dylan was only 20 when he first signed to Columbia Records, and was considered a minor at the time. To circumvent having his parents co-sign the contract, the young songwriter claimed he was an orphan.
Joni Mitchell is not a fan. "Bob is not authentic at all. He's a plagiarist, and his name and voice are fake," Mitchell told the LA Times in 2010. "Everything about Bob is a deception. We are like night and day, he and I."
In May of 1963, an unknown Dylan was set to play "Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues" on the world's most popular entertainment program. But when a CBS censor fearing a lawsuit informed him he couldn't play the track on air, Dylan refused to go on.
"I once traded an Andy Warhol 'Elvis Presley' painting for a sofa, which was a stupid thing to do," he told Spin in 1985. "I always wanted to tell Andy what a stupid thing I done, and if he had another painting he would give me, I'd never do it again.". "I like to restore old cars, ride horses and sail boats, and I'm learning how to cook and can do some gardening," he said in 2011. He's also a
He didn't speak or a week after Elvis died. When he was informed of the King's passing, Dylan reportedly "went over my whole life. I went over my whole childhood. I didn't talk to anyone for a week after Elvis died. If it wasn't for Elvis and Hank Williams, I couldn't be doing what I do today."
After appearing at Live Aid, Dylan opined that he hoped some of the money would help American farmers in danger of losing their land through mortgage debt. Willie Nelson heard the offhand comment and was inspired to organize Farm Aid.
The supergroup of Tom Petty, Roy Orbison, George Harrison and Jeff Lynne recorded Harrison B-side "Handle with Care" at Dylan's California home. The session went so well, they decided to continue recording together. The Traveling Wilburys were born.
Atop his songwriting, Dylan has interests in several endeavours. "I like to restore old cars, ride horses and sail boats, and I'm learning how to cook and can do some gardening," he said in 2011. He's also a prolific painter.
. "I like to restore old cars, ride horses and sail boats, and I'm learning how to cook and can do some gardening," he said in 2011. He's also a
Dylan appeared on the reality TV series Pawn Stars in 2010 when one of the pawn shop employees tracked him down for an autograph.
Though he's known as a era-defining poet, Dylan's first attempt at songcraft was a love song for the French actress, Brigitte Bardot. "The first song I wrote was a song to Brigitte Bardot," he told Playboy in 1978. "I don't recall too much of it. It had only one chord. Well, it is all in the heart."
Culled from CBC Music