This is a slightly updated version of the first ever Definitely Dylan episode, which aired on Resonance.FM in January of 2018. You can find a version with the full length songs over on Patreon, where I will also be revisiting other radio episodes in the future, so follow along if you're interested in hearing more! In this episode: 1. Forever Young …

Today’s episode is a story. Songs that appear in the episode: “When I Paint My Masterpiece” (More Greatest Hits) “When I Paint My Masterpiece” (demo, Another Self Portrait) “When I Paint My Masterpiece” - The Band (Cahoots) “When I Paint My Masterpiece” (demo, Another Self Portrait) “When I Paint My Masterpiece” (Live at Harvard Square Theatre, Cam…

Photo by Hedi Slimane for Celine Homme, 2023 “Life is short even on its longest days”, Bob Dylan sang in Indianapolis, covering John Cougar Mellencamp. But a year is pretty long, so I invited Rebecca Slaman to do a recap with me. We talk about the releases, live shows, and our general highlights of 2023. Check out Rebecca’s PhilosopHER of Modern So…

In this episode, Laura talks to the one and only Chan Marshall (Cat Power) about her project of recreating Bob Dylan’s iconic 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert. In our conversation about art, love, and resilience, she shares stories about meeting Bob Dylan, how she first got into his music, and which song makes her feel empowered. Cat Power Sings Dyla…

LESE/BACKGRID In this episode, Laura talks to Mark Davidson and Parker Fishel, the authors of Mixing Up the Medicine, the 600 page “inside-out biography” that tells the story of Bob Dylan’s career through pieces from the Bob Dylan Archive. Buy the book at your local bookshop (or check it out at your local library – it’s unfortunately pretty pricey)…

In this episode Laura talks to writer and friend of the pod Rebecca Slaman about Bob Dylan’s surprise appearance at this year’s Farm Aid, where we played a short set with the Heartbreakers. Here’s a fun fact I only figured out after the episode was finished: the song that preceded Dylan’s remarks about American farmers during Live Aid was in fact T…

In this episode, Laura welcomes back Harry Hew for a conversation about Sinéad O’Connor’s open letters to Bob Dylan. A quick note – after converting to Islam in 2018, she adopted the name Shuhada’ Sadaquat, but since she continued to work under her birth name, we refer to her as Sinéad O’Connor in this episode. Head over here to read all the letter…

In the light of Robbie Robertson's recent passing, I really wanted to have a conversation about this artist whose life not just ran alongside Dylan's a decade, but converged for crucial periods of both their careers. So I asked the biggest The Band fan I know, my Canadian friend Harry Hew, to jump on a call and talk to me. One note: I make a refere…

In this episode, Laura talks to writer Rebecca Slaman about the ladies, babies, mamas, girls, and many many queens that inhabit Bob Dylan’s songs. Subscribe to Rebecca’s Substack, and watch her Tulsa paper here. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan.…

Guardian/Observer staff photographer Sarah Lee first watched Dont Look Back whilst perched on a crowded bed in a Camden flat with a struggling rock combo called Coldplay. As she’s now a BAFTA photographer, Sarah checks plenty of other names in this episode, including Idris Elba, Tom Hiddleston, Austin Butler and Cate Blanchett. On celebrity photogr…

TW: murder, suicide, racial violence When Bob Dylan began his career, murder ballads were having a bit of a moment. In this episode, we’ll look into the influence these songs had on the young artist, and how they inspired a particular subset of his own early songs. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoff…

Rebecca Slaman, writer and social media guru, is a fan of Bob Dylan’s “perfect random meme humour.” Twitter? “Girls lust after him! But I’ve seen some pretty egregious stuff. Old people don’t understand the platform.” Dylan’s 1987 film Hearts of Fire? “He cannot act. How can he not act? He’s been acting his whole life. So bad - but so entertaining!…

In the 61st year of her singing career, five-time Grammy nominee Bettye LaVette warns us that our chat will be “straight, no chaser”. And she lives up to that promise. Bettye describes her surprise backstage meeting with Bob Dylan: “He kissed me on the mouth. It was no big deal. I’ve kissed Otis Redding and David Ruffin”. Working with Keith Richard…

A Definitely Dylan Deep Dive into Bob Dylan's Most Covered Song No other Bob Dylan song has provoked such a diverse range of responses as "Make You Feel My Love". Initially dismissed by reviewers as a failure, it has since grown into a wildly successful pop hit. It's the song that's loved by the masses, but hated by Dylan purists. Perhaps what's at…

Like his main man Bob Dylan, comedian Simon Munnery knows a few things about heckles: aside from being arrested in Edinburgh for heckling Arthur Smith, he met his future wife when she heckled him in Australia. When not on the road, Simon joins his local Morris Men in Bedfordshire pubs, serenading fellow drinkers with his version of Blind Willie McT…

Journalist Helen Barrett was lullabied to sleep as her mother sang Mr. Tambourine Man; she had it played at her mother’s funeral (“the Dylan version, not the Byrds cover”). To top it off, Baby, Stop Crying was the soundtrack to her Dylan-loving parents’ divorce. Helen analyses Dylan’s clothes (“John Lennon wasn’t given to copying people, but he cop…

Laura and James A. Smith from The Popular Show have a late night conversation about the Bootleg Series and Time Out of Mind Watch the video of our conversation on Patreon, where you can also show your support for the podcast, or you can make a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan. Consider supporting The Popular Show at patreon.com/…

Laura and Robert talk about Bob Dylan's new Bootleg Series, what it tells us about Time Out of Mind, and whether or not accordions can be sexy You can purchase the new Bootleg Series in various formats here. Listen to the interview with Mark Howard on the Dylan.fm podcast here. Graley Herren’s book Dreams and Dialogues in Dylan's "Time Out of Mind"…

Michael Bonner, editor of music magazine Uncut, takes on Dylan’s 2022 UK concerts, as well as The Philosophy of Modern Song (“Dylan mimicking the critical noise around Dylan”). Other topics include an in-depth dissection of Key West (“ambient, amniotic and immersive”), Dylan’s “thing that he has about dual guitarists” and a couple of unfortunate Do…

Comedian and columnist Stewart Lee remains “grateful to the people who brainwashed me into listening to Bob Dylan during a period of emotional and physical weakness.” He remembers seeing Dylan live at Hyde Park with his kids (“one of the greatest nights of my life”) as well as the time he alienated the audience at a Teenage Cancer Trust Benefit. “I…

Writer Matt Rowland Hill is well placed to comment on Dylan’s ‘Property of Jesus’ years: “the kind of fire-and-brimstone Christianity that I grew up with was exactly the kind that Dylan converted into. He was ripe to be captured”. At the age of 17, Matt wangled his way past security in London, hoping to accost his hero, only to told by members of D…

Jeff Hanna, founder member of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, is a team player. He has played with Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash, Jackson Browne, John Prine, Levon Helm, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Rosanne Cash, Linda Ronstadt and Matraca Berg. Oh, and Roger McGuinn, Jason Isbell, Rodney Crowell, Jerry Douglas, Sam Bush, Larry Campbell an…

Australian singer/songwriter Emma Swift's highly acclaimed Blonde On The Tracks album, with guitar backing by life partner (and former podcast guest) Robyn Hitchcock, was her breakthrough recording. Emma swears that "singing Dylan's songs is like wearing a magical cape. Suddenly you have special powers. My job is to give each song a different emoti…

Stories, myths, and narratives – as the Bob Dylan Center opened this May, another Bob Dylan exhibition was coming to a close. What stories are these two Dylan museums telling & what do they reveal about how Bob Dylan wants to be seen? In part two of this series on the crafting of Bob Dylan's legacy, we take a look at the stories told by two very di…

Prize-winning poet and playwright Caroline Bird reminds us that “we’re all poets when we’re asleep. Writing is trying to find a way to dream while we’re awake”. On Bob Dylan: “You always hear him choosing the dark side of the road”; “What I love is that his songs are full of denial. Whenever the emotion gets too real, he runs away” and “He’s so naï…

Patti Smith Group guitarist and author Lenny Kaye reminds us that “Bob Dylan is still experimenting, seeing who he might be, putting on the weirdest shows ever, upending barriers”. Almost in one breath, Lenny gives forth on working with or listening to Suzanne Vega, John Coltrane, Gayle, The Stooges, Brian Eno, The Byrds, Bing Crosby and Janis Jopl…