On July 29, 1966, Bob Dylan was kill in a motorcycle accident on a road near his home in Woodstock, New York. What if he had survived?
DBWI: Bob Dylan survived motorcycle accident in 1966
- Thread starter Historyman 14
- Start date
Dylan's OTL death is largely poetic as anything he would have written himself; it was a man who was declared the voice of his generation and treated like a messiah by fans but who was just a man and wanted to only be a man, and who was increasingly burned by fame and his treatment by the audience (see the "Electric Judas"). Dylan's existence was spiraling into a fair bit of chaos, as you can tell per the recordings of the 1966 World Tour, and his death came at the end of all that. And his death marked the end of an era. Not so stark as had he died when he was purely the folk singer hero (although he died young enough as it was), but nonetheless there is a stark divide between music before 1966 and after 1966, and Dylan's death is the most stark divider; historians like simplistic dividers.
After that is when you really had the whole psychedelic sound, which I couldn't see Dylan going in for. I couldn't see Dylan going all whacky named and dressed in costume and colors like the Beatles during that period, playing sitars and backmasked harpsichords. The soul of Dylan's music, even if not always the sound, was one of American Folk. I'm not sure exactly what he could do during those years. In the years after the psychedelic fad in music, artists did get back to basics and many got very much to the sort of sound or spirit that Dylan and other artists had. I'm not sure how Dylan would survive the gap, though.
And there is the question of if Dylan could survive artistically through the 70s and on. He's as much an icon as Buddy Holly or Johnny Cash for dying before his time, but there's the issue of if he could still continue musically or if he'd burn out.
After that is when you really had the whole psychedelic sound, which I couldn't see Dylan going in for. I couldn't see Dylan going all whacky named and dressed in costume and colors like the Beatles during that period, playing sitars and backmasked harpsichords. The soul of Dylan's music, even if not always the sound, was one of American Folk. I'm not sure exactly what he could do during those years. In the years after the psychedelic fad in music, artists did get back to basics and many got very much to the sort of sound or spirit that Dylan and other artists had. I'm not sure how Dylan would survive the gap, though.
And there is the question of if Dylan could survive artistically through the 70s and on. He's as much an icon as Buddy Holly or Johnny Cash for dying before his time, but there's the issue of if he could still continue musically or if he'd burn out.
Nazi Space Spy
Banned
You have never heard of Bob Dylan? Blowing in the Wind? Don't Think Twice, It's Alright? Blonde on Blonde? The man ranks with the Beatles and Buddy Holly. Its a shame he died in that crash! Can you imagine the stuff he could have produced? "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands", his final song from his final album Blonde on Blonde is not just the greatest song ever written, it might have been the greatest poem ever written.
There was that really touching memorial concert in 1967, with the Beatles singing "The Times They are A-Changin'," Jimi Hendrix singing "Subterranean Homesick Blue," (and of course ripping down his guitar), and of course, The Band's powerful rendition of "Blowing in the Wind."
Had he lived, I would assume he would continue to write some really incredible songs. However, if they go on for too long, most artists lose steam. Maybe Dylan might have eventually declined as the decades went on.
Had he lived, I would assume he would continue to write some really incredible songs. However, if they go on for too long, most artists lose steam. Maybe Dylan might have eventually declined as the decades went on.
Nazi Space Spy
Banned
I wonder if The Band would have grown to the level they did without that concert? While they had some exposure as The Hawks, it was that concert that really brought them to the forefront. Dylan at the Last Waltz would have been incredible.
OOC: I am insanely into Bob Dylan and The Band, so forgive me for puffing them up a bit
.I don't think Dylan ever did heavy drugs. Marijuana, yes. I don't think he even tried LSD, though.
What's with all the conspiracy theories? I mean, he died in an motorcycle accident. I don't think there was much else. I think the government would find better ways to kill him. Plus, when he died, he became a maytr, so his influence and myth grew, so killing him wouldn't have achieved anything.
OOC:
Btw, with Dylan dead, bootleg recordings takes a huge hit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_White_Wonder
It was that, and the Get Back/Let it Be session recordings that really created Rock bootlegs. Rock bootlegs thereafter lead to "oh, people want to hear other takes of the songs", leading to official bootleg releases, things like the Beatles' "Anthology" series, Dylan's own bootleg series, and so on.
Btw, with Dylan dead, bootleg recordings takes a huge hit.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_White_Wonder
It was that, and the Get Back/Let it Be session recordings that really created Rock bootlegs. Rock bootlegs thereafter lead to "oh, people want to hear other takes of the songs", leading to official bootleg releases, things like the Beatles' "Anthology" series, Dylan's own bootleg series, and so on.
Wow...imagine the 1992 election without Phil Ochs' big comeback..."The Ballad of Ricky Ray Rector" and "Thinking About Tomorrow."