Expecting Rain

Does anyone have any particular pieces of writing about Bob going electric that they'd recommend? I'm writing an essay to answer the question ''The Significance of Bob Dylan's 1965 Newport performance has been overstated' Do you agree with this assessment?

All 'pop culture' stuff is overstated, it's just pop culture. It doesn't change the world.

Did Beatlemania not have quite a wide-reaching impact socially and politically? What about the Rock-n-Roll boom and the creation of a teenage commercial market?

I do think it is overrated - not in terms of some of the art / music that followed, but rather when thinking about the alternative. What good would it have done anyone if Dylan had been a good boy and continued writing and strumming protest songs? It's not like he was a regular at marches or otherwise actively involved in trying to bring on any changes in society, other that, say, Joan Baez. It was mostly all finger-pointing and no action.
Also of course, you know all about Dylan playing electric in high school, recording with a band early in his career (Mixed Up Confusion), his fascination with The Beatles, and the criticism of his '64 acoustic set at Newport (no protest but all "inner directed" songs).

I don't recall what exactly Paul Williams (Performing Artist Vol.1) or CP Lee (Like The Night) say about Newport '65, but both should be worth checking out.

I'm a pessimist - I don't feel it did. Working conditions, standard of living, outlook on life hasn't improved because of what happened in the 1960s. I'm talking about the UK here. It's getting worse for working people as we speak. Dylan, the Beatles et al. were just pawn's in the massive game. As Shakespeare (apparently) said - the World's A Stage. I love Dylan - but he was bought a long, long time ago for culture creation.

The teenage commercial market destroyed the family (because people wanted to stay perpetually as youths, rather than have responsibilities - we're still seeing it today), and made us youth-orientated, and consequently relegated the older people to nothing more than silly old grandpa's and grandma's. We lost respect for age and experience ever since the 1960s happened. The 1960s was the most regrettable decade - aging became a curse, and people fear it now.

You said that pop culture 'doesn't change the world' then went on to say that the popular culture of of the 1960s caused a lack of respect for age and experience - ergo, according to your own words, popular culture changed the world.

Ok, sorry you're right. But it didn't change things for the better, or how most people want to see it gibson. As i see it, most people think the 60s was about women's and youth empowerment - all positives. Unfortunately, it all worked out as set of negatives for 90% of the world's population.

Newport was a load of old duffers getting hot under the collar about something that was already old hat - surely they were aware of 'like a rolling stone''s massive success? Like Custer whinging about the Injuns not playing fair at little big horn, much ado about nothing.

Wasn't Newport before the release of Rolling Stone? Maybe I'm wrong. But yeah I broadly agree.

Fun essay! Not an article but there's some good stuff on that subject in this doc. I watched last night.
http://dylantube.com/down-in-the-flood/

Someone from Rolling Stone magazine say something like... Whatever epithet you want to chose is fine.. it cannot be underestimated.
Can we read it when you are done?

Truth be told, The way Bob Dylan wrote songs changed things more than his "plugging in"
still:

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainmen ... ure/62654/

I guess Gibby's already acquired this book, but I've heard that Mike Marqusee's Wicked Messenger : Bob Dylan and the 1960s is a resolutely fine read.