The Many Faces of Bob Dylan

by Nik Dobrinsky
March 19th, 2017

Bob Dylan is an artist who, throughout his now over 55-year-long career, has undergone many transformations and inhabited numerous different personas and creative identities, both through his music as well as publicly through news and entertainment media. He's used his position of celebrity to supplement his art, continually reinventing his image and creating a picture of himself as complex and chameleonlike—thus adding to his mystery and appeal as a multifaceted entertainer, performer, and artist. In addition to the consistently high quality of his songwriting, it's this characteristic of Dylan's—the continual metamorphosis in the style, sound, and content of his music, as well as of his physical appearance and character—that has contributed to his long-term success and resulted in countless analyses and interpretations of his work.

Foremost amongst Dylan's creative personas are: The Folk Singer/Protest Singer, The Poet/Writer, The Rock Star, The Cultural Icon (or Countercultural Icon), The Family Man, The Country and Western Singer, The Born Again Christian, The Media Trickster, and The Outlaw/Rebel/Underdog. Aspects of each of these have often overlapped or existed simultaneously, but this last persona—his creative muse—is continually present in his songs no matter which other incarnation may be the prevailing one at the moment. This character is usually an outcast of sorts; an exiled revolutionary banished from his homeland, a moral person unjustly persecuted in an immoral land. Sometimes Dylan sings from a first person perspective as this character, and sometimes in third person, as a storyteller, a narrator witnessing the character's plight. Often Dylan's protagonists are antiheroes of his own invention, as in "Drifter's Escape" (1968), the story of a man who doesn’t know what he's on trial for, or as in "Isis" (1976), a cryptic tale of an adventurer whose travelling companion dies while on their quest for treasure. But sometimes this outlaw character is an actual real person, as in "Hurricane" (1976), the true story of professional boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter who was framed in the 1960s for murder, for racist reasons, or as in "John Wesley Harding" (1968), another true tale, about a gunslinging outlaw of the Old West who was wanted by The Law but whom Dylan sings about as a "friend to the poor". Dylan also presents slain mafia man Joey Gallo as an honourable figure in "Joey" (1976), and in "Lenny Bruce" (1981) he pays tribute to the groundbreaking, controversial comedian, singing "He was an outlaw, that's for sure / More of an outlaw than you ever were". Dylan's ongoing identification with the downtrodden, underground, and ostracized has in large part resulted in the manifestation of another of his major personas, and his status, as a counterculture icon.

Dylan's interest in stories of the disenfranchised became evident right at the beginning of his career, when, as a young man in the early 1960s he embodied his first creative persona of The Folk Singer, or Protest Singer. As a solo artist armed with an acoustic guitar and harmonica, he epitomized many elements of classic American folk music. This young Dylan sang about the labour and union movement and hardships of the poor, songs championing a cause or protesting an injustice of some kind, such as antiwar and antiracism songs. This incarnation is evidenced clearly on songs such as "Blowin' in the Wind" (1963) and "Masters of War" (1963).

By the time he'd released his first two albums (1962, 1963) Dylan had gained considerable fame within the folk music scene as a serious young man with a talent for "protest songs", emulating the sensibilities of such legendary American folk, roots, and blues musicians as Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, and Leadbelly. But at the same time he rejected the political spokesman role thrust upon him, and around 1964 he considered giving up music to become a novelist because he wanted to be taken more seriously as a writer. This desire can be clearly seen with the shift that occurred in his songwriting at the time, as his songs turned more personal and poetic. They were less in protest of any particular issues, less in support of any clear causes—though still political and sometimes cynical. Instead Dylan's work became more abstract and mysterious. Songs like "Mr. Tambourine Man" (1965) typify this incarnation of Dylan as The Poet/Writer, and although the excellent quality of the songs remained, the new direction alienated some folk music fans and colleagues who had come to love the earlier Dylan.

But one of the most controversial transformations in Dylan's evolution occurred in 1965 when he formed a rock and roll band and began to play electric guitar, moving from folk songwriter to rock star. By today's standards it doesn’t seem that radical of a shift, but in those days musical genres were different, more segregated; folk music was considered something very pure and "for the people" whereas rock was viewed as something belonging to mainstream culture, as a kind of pop music. So when Dylan released his album Bringing It All Back Home (1965) and started performing concerts with a loud rock and roll band, many people were outraged. Former fans viewed Dylan as having sold out; he was frequently booed, and called "Judas". But at the same time that Dylan was confounding many former fans with this new identity of The Rock Star, he was gaining even more new ones, many of whom were hearing of him for the first time. The songs were louder, faster, more upbeat, and of course, electric. His records were played on widespread mainstream radio and selling more copies than ever before. He toured extensively, gave interviews, and recorded three full-length albums in less than two years. In this period (1965-1966) Dylan rocketed to superstardom. His physical appearance changed, too; previously he was a clean-cut kid with short, tousled hair who dressed in plain clothes, work shirts and blue jeans, etc. But now his hair was long and unruly, he wore dark sunglasses day or night, constantly smoked cigarettes, and frequently dressed all in black. He was labeled "The Voice of a Generation"—a title he once again spurned. Nonetheless, he was elevated to near Christ-like status, as millions of people thought it uncanny how many of his lyrics seemed to be speaking directly, personally, to them.

Then suddenly, at the height of his fame in 1966, Dylan dropped out of the spotlight. He was in a motorcycle accident whom some speculated wasn't as bad as it was later made out to be, that Dylan was using the accident as an excuse to protect himself from the effects of his rapid rise to superstardom which had come to threaten his privacy and peace of mind. He shunned interviews, didn't tour again for nearly eight years, and recorded fewer albums. This was the time of his Family Man persona. He had three young children and a wife, whom he would often refer to in his songs, particularly on the album New Morning (1970), with lyrics such as "Build me a cabin in Utah / Marry me a wife, catch rainbow trout / Have a bunch of kids who call me 'Pa' / That must be what it's all about" from the song "Sign on the Window".

This period coincided with his Country and Western singer persona, which emerged in the late 1960s upon his return to recorded music after two-and-a-half years of absence. This was a time of heightened political unrest in America, and the world at large; the Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement, continuous mass protests, assassinations, etc. In popular music and culture, psychedelic rock reigned, and with the arrival of Nashville Skyline (1969) Dylan again alienated some critics and former fans while simultaneously gaining new supporters. Although country music was popular in its own right, no one expected the former electric guitar-wielding, sunglasses-wearing rock and roll Dylan to become one of its leading figures. He had grown a beard and wore a cowboy hat, playing light novelty country songs and singing with the strange voice of a smooth country crooner.

In the late 1970s Dylan once again confused many of his former fans when he—born and raised Jewish—converted to Christianity. Between 1979 and 1982 he released three albums of Christian-themed folk-rock and gospel music before eventually giving up his born again exploration and returning to more familiar Dylan styles. In a 1997 New York Times article, interviewer Jon Pareles claimed, "Dylan says he now prescribes to no organized religion" (par. 29), and later that same year in Newsweek article "Dylan Revisited", Dylan claimed that his songs were his religion (Gates, par. 5).

In addition to these several different identities that Bob Dylan has embodied throughout his career, another recurring character that has coexisted with his other personas is that of the Media Trickster. This character has emerged at various times, beginning with his Folk Singer persona and existing still today as an aspect of Dylan’s current incarnations as the Distinguished Elder Music Man, Rock Legend, American Music Historian, etc. Dylan the Media Trickster has left people baffled, and sometimes angered, as to the meaning of his enigmatic acts or statements. This includes blatantly lying in interviews and making up stories about his past, wearing masks and wigs, appearing in strange attire, and in "whiteface" makeup. He also, bizarrely, appeared in a commercial advertisement for lingerie company Victoria's Secret, featuring his song "Love Sick" (1997). This outraged some Dylan fans, once again calling him a sellout, and left others simply perplexed and asking "why?" While many have speculated on any number of reasons why Dylan, and Victoria's Secret for that matter, would want to do such a thing, some have interpreted the commercial as a decades-in-the-making practical joke on Dylan's part; in a 1965 interview, Dylan was asked if he would ever sell out to a major company, and if so, what it would be—he answered, with a chuckle, "Probably women's undergarments". And over thirty years later it came to be. Dylan also once made the odd claim that Motown singer Smokey Robinson was his favourite poet. When reminded of this over a decade later in another interview, Dylan replied that he'd meant to say Arthur Rimbaud (in the early 2000s I saw a Smokey Robinson concert tour promotion poster bearing the Bob Dylan quote "My favourite poet").

Dylan's multifaceted, shifting identity and media antics aren't limited to his interviews and performances, but indeed expand into other creative arenas, such as cinema. He appeared in Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid (1973) as a knife-throwing outlaw of the Old West named "Alias". Then Dylan cowrote and directed the nearly four-hour-long Renaldo and Clara (1978), which blended concert footage, documentary interviews, and fictional vignettes. He played Renaldo and his real-life wife at the time, Sara, played Clara, while two other actors played "Bob Dylan" and "Mrs. Dylan". Dylan also cowrote and starred in the film Masked and Anonymous (2003), an appropriately entitled movie in which he plays an alternate universe version of himself as protagonist Jack Fate, an aging rock legend who is released from prison to perform a benefit concert intended to save the dystopian world depicted. Dylan pulled another weird little publicity stunt during the film's promotion, inexplicably appearing in a blonde wig and tuque at the film's debut for the Sundance Film Festival. Another movie, I'm Not There (2007), explores numerous aspects of Dylan's identities in interesting ways. While Dylan wasn't directly involved, the movie takes its name from an early song of his, and he's alternately portrayed by a black boy, a white woman, and several other actors inhabiting various Dylan incarnations.

These are but a few examples from countless instances of peculiar Dylan behaviour in the media, that when juxtaposed with the content of his music add a somewhat metafictional, mindbending aspect to his body of work, and earn consideration for the possibly overlooked quality of Bob Dylan as a performance artist. Dylan's Media Trickster persona has garnered numerous interpretations, but it's clear that he's at the very least making some interesting commentary on the concepts of identity, fame, art, and media itself, and the effect each has on the other.

Throughout his path as a shapeshifting entertainer, a celebrity superstar who has embodied many personas, many identities, and a variety of characters in his evolution as an artist, a pattern has emerged. This pattern is a series of apparent recurring attempts by Bob Dylan to debunk his own self-mythology, to relegate himself from iconic status, and to reinvent his image as something contrary or perhaps complementary to each of his previous incarnations. Ironically, in the long-term, this has only broadened his fan base and contributed to his position as the subject of admiration, reverence, and regard as one of the most significant artists of all time. Or perhaps this was his intention all along.

WORKS CITED

Dylan, Bob. Bob Dylan. CBS, 1962.

---. "Blowin’ in the Wind." The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Sony, 1963.

---. "Masters of War." The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan. Sony, 1963.

---. The Times They Are a-Changin’. CBS, 1964.

---. Another Side of Bob Dylan. CBS, 1964.

---. Bringing it All Back Home. CBS, 1965.

---. "Mr. Tambourine Man." Bringing it all back Home. CBS, 1965.

---. Highway 61 Revisited. CBS, 1965.

---. Blonde on Blonde. CBS, 1966.

---. "Drifter’s Escape." John Wesley Harding. CBS, 1968.

---. "John Wesley Harding." John Wesley Harding. CBS, 1968.

---. Nashville Skyline. CBS, 1969.

---. New Morning. Sony, 1970.

---. "Sign on the Window." New Morning. Sony, 1970.

---. "Hurricane." Desire. Sony, 1976.

---. "Isis." Desire. Sony, 1976.

---. "Joey." Desire. Sony, 1976.

---. Slow Train Coming. CBS, 1979.

---. Saved. CBS, 1980.

---. Shot of Love. CBS, 1981.

---. "Lenny Bruce." Shot of Love. CBS, 1981.

---. "Love Sick." Time Out of Mind. Columbia, 1997.

Gates, David. "Dylan Revisited." Newsweek. 6 Oct. 1997.  <http://www.newsweek.com/dylan-revisited-174056>

I'm Not There. Dir. Todd Haynes. With Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Heath Ledger, and Ben Whishaw. The Weinstein Company, 2007.

Masked and Anonymous. Dir. Larry Charles. With Bob Dylan, John Goodman, Jeff Bridges, Angela Bassett, Penelope Cruz, Jessica Lange, and Luke Wilson. Sony Pictures Classic, 2003.

Pareles, Jon. "A Wiser voice blowin’ in the autumn Wind." The New York Times. 28 Sep. 1997. <http://www.nytimes.com/1997/09/28/arts/pop-jazz-a-wiser-voice-blowin-in-the-autumn-wind.html>     

Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid. Dir. Sam Peckinpah. With James Coburn, Kris Kristofferson, and Bob Dylan. MGM, 1973.

Renaldo and Clara. Dir. Bob Dylan. With Bob Dylan, Sara Dylan, Joan Baez, Ronnie Hawkins, Ronee Blakely, and Allen Ginsberg.  Circuit Films, 1978.