MORE ON BOB DYLAN, JOHN LENNON AND GOD Here’s a taster: “… Lennon drew on Victorian and Edwardian imperial tropes familiar from the English literature and popular culture of his formative years… Dylan's perspective had more in common with nineteenth-century North American transcendentalism…”

DYLAN, LENNON… AND GOD A deep dive, comparing their wordviews. The God in the title earns his keep, but Karl Marx’s walk-on part hardly warrants star billing. Recommended for the thinking fan, but be warned - it’s a demanding read, a million miles from conventional celeb biography.

DYLAN BOOKS MONTHLY - NEW, SEPTEMBER, ISSUE NOW ON SUBSTACK Click here to read: dylanbooks.substack.com Covers Country Bob, Dylan/Beatles, top Dylan eBooks, why Dylan really matters and four more exciting new books. Subscribe on Substack. You’ll receive DYLAN BOOKS Monthly as a free email.

COUNTRY BOB - YET ANOTHER PROMISING NEW DYLAN BOOK COMING SOON Dylan clearly loves country. But, Doggett apart, you’ll struggle to find a detailed study of the country in Dylan’s records and gigs. I’m eagerly awaiting Country Bob, due 15 Oct from Univ Press of Mississippi. Review to follow.

“BOB DYLAN WAS NOT INFLUENCED BY THE BEATLES!” - DISCUSS That was my assumption. Windolf changes my opinion. Original insights… a clever idea, well executed… stylish writing. Dylan fans who are also into the Fab Four - I realise there are millions - will find this book enriching and enjoyable.

NEW DYLAN BOOKS - ANOTHER TWO PROMISING TITLES COMING SOON This is a Golden Age for high quality Dylan books - important new titles just keep on coming. These two are due on 15 September: >I’m Glad I’m Not Me: Bob Dylan On Film, by Ethan Warren. >Dylan in Cincinnati, by Graley Herren.

REFRESHING NEW BOOK INVITES YOU TO THINK AGAIN ABOUT DYLAN Bob Dylan — Don't Think Twice: Another Side of Interpretation is a refeshingly original reappraisal of Dylan’s songbook. It invites you to think deeply about the work. Scarlet Rivera endorses it in her Foreword.

PROMISING NEW SEAN WILENTZ BOOK - COMING SOON I’m looking forward to reading Bob Dylan Through the Open Window (1956–1963), by Sean Wilentz, due 15 Oct from Abrams. According to Abrams, it’s a “substantial expansion of Wilentz’s liner notes to Dylan’s bootleg album box set of the same name”.

Dylan REALLY matters because of his: 1/ Writing - he’s the top songwriter of the last 100 years. 2/ Recording - Dylan’s catalogue dominates rockpop. 3/ Live performance - thousands of gigs Richard F Thomas’ fine book should be in every Dylan collection - you just need to disregard its title

I’m looking forward to reading Gary Browning’s new book, Don't Think Twice - Another Side of Interpretation, to be published on 1 Sept. It will “take Dylan himself to be a good guide to how he is to be taken. He is neither a philosopher nor, despite the Nobel Prize, primarily a literary figure.”

EXCEPTIONAL NEW BOB DYLAN BOOK According to the Nobel Prize winner himself, there’s “a gazillion” Dylan books. Not many are as important as the newest, How Many Roads: A Life of Bob Dylan by Scott Peeples (Reaktion Books, 1 Aug UK, 12 Oct USA). A contender for best Dylan biography?

NEW DYLAN BOOKS - COMING SOON I’m looking forward to reading and reviewing these three new Dylan books, all slated for publication soon… intrinsically interesting topics… authoritative authors… respected publishers… . All three promise to be key additions to the Dylan bookshelves.

NEW - BOB DYLAN: UNCUT GREATS #6 - A BEGINNER’S GUIDE This handsome new one-off from Uncut mag briefly covers the life and legacy. It hits the spot. It’s photo-heavy, text-lite and runs to 66pp. As a Dylan book collector, I’m pleased to have it. I’ll learn little, but I’m not the target.

THE CUTTING EDGE, 1965-1966: TOP BOB DYLAN BOOKS HIDING ON YOUR RECORD SHELVES #2 Bootleg Series Vol 12 deluxe, a Columbia gem, has two very desirable books - the liner notes and the separate Mixing Up The Medicine, a 120 page photo album. The new, reduced price makes it a very attractive buy.

THE BASEMENT TAPES COMPLETE: TOP BOB DYLAN BOOKS HIDING ON YOUR RECORD SHELVES #1 The Basement Tapes Complete (Vol 11) has two books. The first, liner notes in the 6CD housing, is impressive. The second book, Lo & Behold, is a richly detailed bonus - a 120 page photo album.

I’ve just posted the new, July issue on my DYLAN BOOKS page on Substack. Please click here to read it: substack.com/home/post/p-... And, to ensure you’ll never miss another DYLAN BOOKS post, sign up on Substack to receive every issue of DYLAN BOOKS Monthly as a free email.

UNCUT GREATS - BOB DYLAN: NEW “BOOKAZINE” OUT TODAY I’m looking forward to receiving my copy of Uncut Greats Issue 6: Bob Dylan, which goes on sale today, 26 June. According to the publishers: “The latest Uncut Greats celebrates Bob Dylan, who turns 85 this June…” Eh??? Review to follow…

AND THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY IS… Which biography offers fans the best intro to Dylan’s life and work? I’m interested in Dylan’s work, not his private life - except when it feeds directly into his work. So my pick is Ian Bell’s 2-vol The Lives of Bob Dylan.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? HOWARD SOUNES? Down The Highway by Howard Sounes (2001 and 2011) is probably the top-selling Dylan biography. It focuses on Dylan the man. If your focus is on Dylan the celeb rather than Dylan the artist, Sounes is your best bet.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? CLINTON HEYLIN? The Double Life of Bob Dylan (two vols, 2021 and 2023, 1,356 pp), is the longest, most recent and probably the most discussed of my three contenders for best Dylan biography. Covering the man and the artist in depth, it appeals to the demanding fan.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? IAN BELL? Ian Bell’s is probably the least known of my three contenders for best Bob Dylan biography. His two volumes (2012 and 2013, 1,166 pages), chronicle Dylan’s life and work up to Tempest. He focuses on the work not the private life.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? MY THREE CONTENDERS. AND YOURS? In my opinion, there are three contenders - by Ian Bell, Clinton Heylin and Howard Sounes. All three are blockbusters, Bell and Heylin two vols. I’ll be reviewing them here in my next few posts. Which biography do YOU recommend?

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? THOMPSON - THE THIRD OF THREE CLASSICS A would-be writer treks to Hibbing, MN and interviews nearly everyone who counts. Then writes this delightful, recommended book. Republished in 2008 as Positively Main Street: Bob Dylan in Minnesota, by Uni MN Press.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? SHELTON - THE SECOND OF THREE CLASSICS Robert Shelton’s No Direction Home delivers unparalleled coverage of the first quarter of Dylan’s creative life. He interviewed virtually everyone who mattered. Reel also shows Elizabeth Thomson’s two edited versions.

THE BEST BOB DYLAN BIOGRAPHY? SCADUTO - THE FIRST OF 3 CLASSICS Anthony Scaduto’s Bob Dylan is essential - authoritative, insightful and well-written. Scaduto interviewed Dylan and he critiqued Scaduto’s first draft and generally approved. It confirmed that Dylan was a generational talent.

BOB DYLAN AND THE BEATLES - HAVE YOU READ THE NEW BOOK? Have you read Where The Music Had To Go by Jim Windolf? If so, what do you think of it? I’ve delayed buying this, and before shelling out, I’d value your opinion. Video shows US edition, Simon & Schuster, and UK ed.

THE SIX BOOKS BY BOB DYLAN: TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY? YES - essential: >Lyrics >Chronicles >Philosophy MAYBE - desirable: >Tarantula MAYBE LATER - thin: >Nobel Lecture >Hollywood Foto-Rhetoric

DYLAN REVISITED: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED NEW BOOK Colm Larkin’s new book, Dylan Revisited: Busy Being Born (1960-66), examines the singer’s explosive early creativity via a multiplicity of recordings. It’s highly recommended for recent and long-standing fans alike. #dylanrevisited @dylanrevisited

CHRONICLES: THE MOST HIGHLY REGARDED OF BOB DYLAN’S SIX BOOKS Chronicles, Volume One (Simon & Schuster, 2004, hbk, 293pp) is highly regarded. It burnished Dylan’s literary credentials well beyond the fanbase. It’s not a conventional autobio! What do you think of Chronicles, Volume One?

BOB DYLAN’S SIX BOOKS: THE MONUMENTAL MASTERPIECE Of the six books written by Bob Dylan, Lyrics is the most important. It illustrates just why so many regard Dylan as a towering creative genius. Every Dylan home should have one. File next to The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare.