The Ballad Of A Thin Man With Earphones

Hey, I've added some new friends to Noah's Friends on the sidebar, yay! (does happy dance) One of the new blogs is from a newcomer fellow KBOO volunteer named Steve Casburn, who has a great new blog titled "Taylor Street Purple" (Impressions of Life in the Rose City). You can find his fun lil' blog here! :)

Steve Casburn's Impressions of Life in the Rose City

I was just glancing through his fun lil' blog and came across his new postings on the new Martin Scorsese documentary "No Direction Home", which features real life footage of Bob Dylan in the early days, focusing primarily on 1961-1966, and how he evolves during those five years, which each appearance at the Newport Folk Festival details sooooooo very well, from when he first was seen as a folk hero and Woody Guthrie apostle, to later being seen as a traitor, or "Judas", when he decided to amp up for a more edgier rock and roll barstool blues sound. The film also features exclusive interview footage of him now, along with interview footage from Joan Baez, Pete Seeger, Allen Ginsberg before his passing in the mid-90's, and others.



Martin Scorsese was interviewed after the three-and-a-half hour film by Charlie Rose, where he said he hoped young people would get out of the film the understanding of seeing history from another perspective, emotionally through others and their experiences, which is indeed most applicable today.



What especially enthralled me about the film was all the mischieviousness among press conference after press conference, reporter after reporter, Pete Seeger after Pete Seeger. In one scene, we see someone asking Bob how many other protest singers exist, and after pretending to ponder the question, he says, "About 136!", then, with nothing but dead air, the reporter asks, "You say about 136 -- or exactly 136?" and Bob replies, "Either 136 or 142," (giggles) What'd you know, maybe the answer to the universe, life and everything really is 42! Oh mercy!

In another piece of footage, a reporter asks Bob Dylan, "Suck on a corner of your glasses." Then he says, "You want me to suck on my glasses?" and his photographer advises, "Just suck your glasses!" and Dylan asks the photpgrapher, "Do you want to suck my glasses?", who does lick them, and Bob exlaims "Anyone else?" (giggles) If all monocles and glasses were sorghum molasses, we'd all have happy hour at the Cracker Barrel, eh? LOL!

In YET ANOTHER scene, a young woman goes crediting Dylan for a song he never wrote ("Eve of Destruction") and then Dylan asks him where he read it, and she responds, "In a movie magazine!" (does giggy-jiggy giggle)

And, inconceivably in yet another most amusing, hysterical scene, one reporter asks if he considers himself "the ultimate betanik", where Dylan ricochets what HE thought, and that same reporter said he couldn't comment because he never ever heard Dylan sing, with Dylan responding, "You've never heard me sing and yet you want to sit there and ask me these questions?" (giggles) Oh, right, THAT Dylan, Dylan Thomas! LOL!



I personally really enjoyed seeing Joan Baez in the film and honestly admitting how Dylan refusing to return the favor and allow her to sing with him on tour hurt her deep inside. Baez was who called him on her stage in the beginning when he was a unknown at the time and from touring with her gained great publicity. It was especially entertaining to hear, after Dylan chose to distance himself from the "civil rights movement anthem" label with songs like "Mr. Tambourine Man", how many were shouting their disappointment at Dylan and crying out, "Bob Dylan will come to perform at the peace rally, won't he?" and Baez screamed then, "When has Dylan ever performed at a rally of any sort, what makes you believe he will come?" (giggles) She still has the spirit and sass in her! :)



Bob Dylan deserves to and will always be legendary. I respect him most of all then for having his own feelings, but not wanting to have to feel he had to embody all the feelings of a generation. Indeed his protest songs are my favorite recordings of his, and it would have been nice to hear him continue to show that side of him today, rather than promoting "Love Sick" for Victoria's Secret's "Angels in Venice" ad campaign and selling songs to car commericals.



But Dylan's legacy will forever shine on, and his songs will forever be an inspiration in my heart. You don't really see that playful, quirky kid in his body in the recent interviews he's done, but the empathy can be felt so easily, and if you feel it well enough, you can indeed make out the smile reflecting in his eyes.

Hats off to the thin man who's not as thin now but will always stand spiritally thin! Kudos to Martin Scorsese too for yet another production to remember. You may not have won an Academy Award yet, but you have won my heart among millions and millions of others!



By the way, Mr. Dylan, my guess to the question regarding the number of protests singers worldwide is 4,289,744,653, but that's just an educated guess! (giggles) A vast majority of them certainly were influenced by you, my freewheelin' friend!

Love,
Noah Eaton
(Mistletoe Angel)
(Emmanuel Endorphin)