Writing Dylan: The Songs of a Lonesome Traveler

by Larry David Smith

Overview

This study of Dylan's mission-driven music reveals a functional approach to art that not only sustained his 60-year career but forever changed an art form.

The second edition of Writing Dylan: The Songs of a Lonesome Traveler examines Nobel Laureate Bob Dylan's historic career, yielding unique insights into a distinctively American artist's creative world. The book opens with a short biography and description of Dylan's artistic method before diving into the seven missions of his life's work. Chapters are supported by song lyrics, of which the author's license agreement with Bob Dylan Music enables a definitive presentation.

Since the release of the first edition in 2005, the laureate has produced three albums of original material as well as three widely praised albums of American standards. Columbia Records has issued multiple boxed sets chronicling specific periods of Dylan's career, and several films have been made about him. Dylan himself has also given numerous speeches and interviews, often while accepting prestigious awards. This second edition not only features these new materials but draws on them to recast the first edition, presenting Dylan's music as an indelible art form.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798216169109
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	11/02/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	600
File size:	1 MB
Age Range:	7 - 17 Years

About the Author

Larry David Smith, PhD, is an independent writer and lecturer. He received his doctorate from Ohio State University.
Larry David Smith, PhD, is an independent writer and lecturer. He received his doctorate from Ohio State University.

Table of Contents

Preface
The Nobel
Bob's Story
Bob's Way
The Missions: A Playbill
Mission One: Discovery
Mission Two: Rebellion
Mission Three: Recovery
Mission Four: Reorientation
Mission Five: Service
Mission Six: Reorientation II
Mission Seven: Service II
The Show: 1988–2018
Writing Dylan, Revisited
References
Copyrights
Index

Editorial Reviews

Drawing on a wide range of secondary sources and from Dylan's recent, and fascinating, autobiography Chronicles—and quoting from scores of Dylan's songs—the author provides detailed analyses and interpretations of seemingly the entire corpus of Dylan's songs, both those on his dozens of albums and those in numerous concerts and films…. Lower-/upper-division undergraduates and above.” —Choice

“Writing Dylan: The Songs Of A Lonesome Traveler by Larry David Smith, distinguishes itself from other studies by making the case that the public performer Bob Dylan is actually a series of characters created by the very private Robert Zimmerman of Hibbing. Minnesota. Smith analyzes the seven periods of Dylan's career from his arrival in Greenwich Village in 1960 to his post-Christian persona of the 1990s, Jack Fate, and blends biography with a close look at his lyrics, philosophies, and movie roles. Although he praises the poetry in Dylan's songs, Smith's treatment is no dry literary deconstruction; rather it's a mix of rollicking postmodernism and gonzo rock journalism.” —C&RL News

“In this new contribution to Dylan scholarship, Smith explores the convergence of biography, artistic philosophy and musical style in Dylan's work. Arguing that Bob Dylan is a persona carefully crafted by its maker, the former Robert Zimmerman of Hibbing, Minnesota, Smith reveals the artist's mission-oriented approach to art. Smith interprets Dylan's narratives, characters, plots and values throughout his career and considers Dylan's cultural significance and song craft.” —Reference & Research Book News

“Writing Dylan: The Songs Of A Lonesome Traveler provides a comprehensive, college-level study of Dylan's work, blending biography with music history and style analysis to consider how the image of Dylan was crafted by the real Bob Zimmerman. Both Dylan fans and students of modern music culture will find Writing Dylan more analytical and serious than most, using a song-by-song analysis to explore the lasting social and cultural implications of Dylan's works.” —MBR Internet Bookwatch

“This massive volume is a definitive guide to Dylan's work. Having been granted unprecedented use of Dylan's lyrics in his analysis, the author interprets the narratives, characters, plots, and values Dylan's songs. In doing so he reveals the artist's mission oriented approach to art….[p]rovides deep insight into Dylan's artistic phiolsophy while tracing his evolution as a song craftsman, and a voice for humanity….Few artists in popular music have had as long a career or so strong an influence on social causes. This book is a comprehensive, authoritative portrait of Dylan—artist, philospher, activist and persona.” —Metro LA

“For those who just can't get enough, try Larry David Smith's Writing Dylan, The Songs of a Lonesome Traveler, an epic journey into the man's writing….[S]mith effectively, and impressively, turns the work inside out to convincingly make a case for his subject as one of the best, most influential poets of the 20th century….[S]mith succeeds at providing a cogent analysis of the work of a man whose writing deserves being looked at from every angle possible.” —The Toledo Blade

“[A] well-researched, in-depth analysis of Dylan's work, from his song lyrics to his movie roles” —The Times Union

From the Publisher