Definitely Dylan

Being a Bob Dylan fan is a spectrum –whether you identify as a casual enjoyer if his music or a die-hard Bobcat, the umbrella is large and leaves room for multitudes.  Over the past year, many Definitely Dylan episodes have circled around the relationship between artist and audience, how Bob Dylan presents himself and how he is perceived. In the final conversation of 2025 (which you’re hearin...

Recently the founder of The Daily Dylan was asked to leave a Bob Dylan concert, apparently for having shared illegally recorded concert videos. Today we’re talking about the relationship between Bob Dylan and his fans, particularly their ideas of how his music should be engaged with are at odds with the artist’s own. Find more Rebecca Slaman on her Substack and Twitter . Book a Walking Tour of Bob...

Bob Dylan – the myth, the legend, the enigma? In this episode I revisit an old radio episode on Bob Dylan the Stranger. Get your Definitely Dylan baseball cap here . You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan .

Just over a week after I published a whole episode about how Bob Dylan doesn’t want to be filmed or photographed, he appeared as part of the 40th Farm Aid benefit concert, which was broadcast and live streamed, giving us rare good quality footage of a present day Bob Dylan set! I invited friends of the pod Rebecca Slaman and Britt Eisnor to discuss the occasion with me. The discussion of the actua...

At the most recent Outlaw shows, Bob Dylan has been shielding himself from view and it’s become a pretty popular talking point last week. I’ve been thinking about that as well as the upcoming Bootleg Series, filtered it through a 90 year old essay on art and technology and this is the result. 🧡 Get your Definitely Dylan baseball cap here. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-...

An episode about twins, doubles & duality from the radio archives. Get your Definitely Dylan baseball cap here. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan.

Legend has it that Bob Dylan once left his iPod behind and someone copied the contents. With Canadian musician and songwriter (and future Bob Dylan podcaster) Tim Swaddling). Find the Spotify playlist “Bob Dylan’s iPod” here . Get your Definitely Dylan baseball cap here. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan. Fred Bals’ blog on M...

Laura revisits a radio episode from the archives about April anniversaries, some good, many disastrous. And there’s a little side quest about Bob Dylan and Modernist poetry. One note – I forgot to mention that the performance of “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” is by Betty Carter. Get your Definitely Dylan baseball cap here . You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off do...

Laura is joined by Britt and Rebecca to talk about A Complete Unknown , the new Bob Dylan biopic directed by James Mangold, starring Timothée Chalamet, Edward Norton, Elle Fanning, and Monica Barbaro.  We talk about letting go of the pressure to be chill about the film, biopics as acts of translation, and the sexual tension between Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. Rebecca would like to add that she...

It’s taken over five years, but the new Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown (directed by James Mangold and starring Timothée Chalamet) is finally hitting cinemas. So… is it good? I called up Chicago-based filmmaker Michael Glover Smith to talk about the film, what it gets right, what it gets wrong, and how it compares to other films like I’m Not There . You can watch Michael’s short film Handle Wi...

Bob Dylan has been tweeting and it’s high time we talk about it. In this conversation with Rebecca and Britt we cover what’s been going on the World of Bob, including his social media presence and the TWO biopics he’s involved in this year! Follow Rebecca on Twitter and Britt on Instagram or Twitter . Theme music by Robert Chaney You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donati...

Ray and I sit down in the garden of the Troubadour to talk about the final shows of Bob Dylan’s Rough and Rowdy Ways World Wide Tour (2021-24) at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Subscribe to Ray’s Substack, Flagging Down the Double E (but get the paid membership if you can), and buy his book Pledging My Time: Conversations with Bob Dylan Band Members . Music that appears in this episode: All Along the...

A conversation with Ren Harvieu after seeing night two of Bob Dylan’s three night stay at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Ren Harvieu is on Patreon , Instagram , and her music is available on all streaming platforms. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan .

In this episode, Laura revisits a radio episode from September of 2018, all about Bob Dylan's relationship to the truth, and his different attempts to define, grasp, or circumscribe it. You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan .

A conversation with Britt Eisnor about the recent Outlaw Festival shows and more. Follow Britt on Instagram . You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeacoffee.com/definitelydylan . Songs that appear in the episode: “Desolation Row” (Buffalo, NY, 17 September, 2024) “Love Sick” (Mountain View, CA, 3 August, 2024) “Cold, Cold Heart” (Hank Williams cover, Alphare...

A new podcast reconsiders the legacy of female singer songwriters that have all at one point been dubbed “the Female Bob Dylan”. Laura talks to its creators, Sophie Abramowitz, Sarah Bachman, and Emily Hilliard. Find The Female Bob Dylan on the podcast app of your choice, and follow them on Instagram and Twitter/X . You can support Definitely Dylan on Patreon or with a one-off donation at buymeaco...

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 2. Subterranean Homesick Blues 3. It’s Alright M...

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, Cambridge, MA, 20 November, 1975) “When I Paint My Mas...

“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 Song series on her Substack . Find the extended version of our conversation on Patreon! You can s...

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 Dylan: The 1966 Royal Albert Hall Concert is out now o...

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). Music by Robert Chaney. You can listen to the full Beatles boo...

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 The Ballad of Hollis Brown! I erroneously said that...

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 letters Sinéad O’Connor wrote to Bob Dylan. Thank you to...

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 reference to "Dominique", and thought I should clarify t...

In this episode, Laura and Rebecca talk 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.