Richard Thomas Why Bob Dylan Matters

Good Afternoon and welcome to another edition of the Avid Reader. Today our guest is Richard Thomas, author of Why Bob Dylan Matters, published by Dey Street Books in November of this year. Dr. Thomas is a professor of the classics at Harvard. He is also, curiously, a preeminent Dylan scholar who has published extensively about him and the literary tradition that surrounds him and in most cases predates him. He teaches a seminar at Harvard titled “Bob Dylan”.

Bob Dylan has been a part of my life since I was 12 years old and first heard Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.

That’s over half a century ago. I have followed somewhat faithfully Dylan’s career since, most closed tied to his earlier work up to and including The Rolling Thunder Revue which I saw at Florida Field in 1970 something, along with Kinky Friedman Mick Ronson and Joan Baez, who at the end of the concert rather archly announced “There will be no encore!” I thought that was mean and unnecessary, but be that as it may.

Dr. Thomas’s book explores Dylan’s past extensively as well as the massive oeuvre of his work and how cleverly and stealthily Dylan has borrow from the truly classical works of Virgil, Catullus (ca toll us), Rimbaud and many others.