Bob Dylan's songwriting, recordings, and performances in the 1960s are widely recognized as causing a seismic shift in American music and in the youth counterculture. He did not exist in a vacuum, though, and drew deep from the wells represented by songwriter Woody Guthrie, mountain ballad singer Jean Ritchie, and blues musician Robert Johnson, among many others. His meeting with the Beatles and subsequent world tour with the Band caused unforeseen reverberations, such as the Beatles moving into increasingly sophisticated lyrical territory and Aretha Franklin covering a song by the Band. Many artists covered Dylan songs early on (Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, the Byrds, and Sonny and Cher), and many credited Dylan with opening up new avenues of creative expression, including Joni Mitchell, who has been recognized as one of the most inspiring and accomplished singer-songwriters of any era. In this course we will explore (1) the sources of Dylan's art; (2) Dylan's albums, performances, and films throughout his career, with a primary focus on the 1960s; and (3) artists who have been touched by Dylan's legacy, including those outside of North America. We bypass hero worship in favor of understanding cultural and social currents that enable individuals like Dylan to blossom. In addition to collecting, interpreting, analyzing, and presenting evidence as part of written scholarly arguments, which will be stressed throughout the semester, either the midterm or final project may take the form of a creative work other than a paper. |