Bob Dylan- Pioneer of a Generation

After discussing one of my all-time favorite musicians this past week in class, Bob Dylan, I decided to look into an area of study that I wrote a research paper on my sophmore year: Anti-war music during the Vietnam War. This topic is relevant to Bob Dylan because as many people know, he is one of the most influential artists of this generation of musicians.

Dylan was heavily influenced in his childhood by early rock stars Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Little Richard. However, as he began his music career, he actually strayed away from traditional rock and towards the folk-like rock music. Unlike other folk singers of the time, such as Woody Guthrie and Joan Baez, Dylan opened his audience not just to the traditional folk music audience but to the college students. But how? Dylan's musical (and poetic) style is as if he is telling a story in his music, and when he would speak his message on stage, people would listen. His lyrics offered the public an awareness of what was going on with the world and not just to entertain the audience, which certainly appealed to youngsters nationwide.

As the Vietnam War began, Dylan broadened his focus from simply folk music to music that included Vietnam; he also tailored his songs to demonstrate the message he chose to follow, which was the anti-war movement. With his album The Times They Are A-Changin', Dylan established himself as the leading icon of the protest movement. It is pretty incredible to me how Dylan appealed to so many people, but when everyone is on the same page and all agree on the same cause, it is easy to see how an icon such as Dylan could emerge like this. For the very first time, the popular music in a generation was regarding a war, or in this case, disregarding it.

One of Dylan's best and most influential songs, Blowin in the Wind, shows his unique insight on the war, how the answer is right in front of us, but is still "blowin in the wind." Looking on this song on paper and listening to the song can really change one's view of the song, so below are the lyrics as well as a video of Dylan performing it:

How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man ?
How many seas must a white dove sail
Before she sleeps in the sand ?
Yes, how many times must the cannon balls fly
Before they're forever banned ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many years can a mountain exist
Before it's washed to the sea ?
Yes, how many years can some people exist
Before they're allowed to be free ?
Yes, how many times can a man turn his head
Pretending he just doesn't see ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Yes, how many times must a man look up
Before he can see the sky ?
Yes, how many ears must one man have
Before he can hear people cry ?
Yes, how many deaths will it take till he knows
That too many people have died ?
The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind
The answer is blowin' in the wind.

Sources:
http://library.thinkquest.org/11847/gather/3b.html
http://www.biography.com/articles/Bob-Dylan-9283052?part=0