'Dylan Goes Electric!' is the book behind Timothée Chalamet's new Bob Dylan biopic

Summary

NPR's Book of the Day: "Dylan Goes Electric!"

Episode Title: 'Dylan Goes Electric!' is the book behind Timothée Chalamet's new Bob Dylan biopic
Release Date: December 23, 2024
Host: Andrew Limbong
Guest: Elijah Wald, Author of Dylan Goes Electric
Guest: Arun Roth

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Introduction

In this episode of NPR's Book of the Day, host Andrew Limbong delves into Elijah Wald's compelling new work, Dylan Goes Electric. The book explores the pivotal moment in music history when Bob Dylan shocked the folk music community by performing with an electric guitar at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965. This performance has not only been immortalized in Wald's book but has also inspired a new biopic starring Timothée Chalamet.

Exploring Dylan Goes Electric

Elijah Wald, renowned for his insightful analyses of music history, provides a detailed account of Bob Dylan's transformative performance. Wald contextualizes the event within the broader political and cultural landscape of the mid-1960s, emphasizing its significance beyond just a musical shift.

Notable Quote:

Elijah Wald (03:05): "Easier said than done in the early 1960s, folk music scenes were blossoming all over the country, and the Newport Folk Festival was their confluence."

The Electric Shock at Newport

Bob Dylan's decision to play an electric guitar at Newport was seen as a radical departure from his folk roots. This move not only surprised fans but also marked a significant turning point in Dylan's career and the evolution of modern music.

Notable Quote:

Elijah Wald (03:05): "In the middle of the decade, the reigning king was a young Bob Dylan. But on this very day, 50 years ago, Bob Dylan did the unthinkable, the unforgivable. He plugged in an electric guitar and he rocked hard."

Dylan's electrification was not merely a stylistic change but a statement that resonated deeply within the folk community. The shift challenged the authenticity and purity that fans associated with folk music, leading to mixed reactions.

Cultural and Political Context of 1965

The mid-1960s were a tumultuous time in America, marked by significant political unrest and cultural shifts. The Vietnam War was escalating, the civil rights movement was undergoing transformations, and the overall societal mood was one of questioning and rebellion. In this charged environment, Dylan's move to electric was both a reflection of and a catalyst for change.

Notable Quote:

Arun Roth (06:09): "The civil rights movement was falling apart. Sncc, which was the group that had brought all the kids down for the Freedom Summer the previous year, now was throwing the white members out. And the new chant was Black Power."

Dylan had been a voice for change, penning anthems that became synonymous with the freedom movement. However, by 1965, the weight of expectation and the desire for genuine progress were beginning to weigh on him.

Reactions and Aftermath at Newport

The audience's reaction to Dylan's electric set was intense and, in many ways, tumultuous. The traditional folk enthusiasts felt betrayed, leading to vocal protests and heated exchanges on stage.

Notable Quotes:

Arun Roth (08:12): "There are people yelling, 'Bring back cousin Emmy,' who was the hillbilly singer who had sung just before him. 'I don't like your band,' and 'Throw away that electric guitar. Bring back Pete Seeger.'"

These reactions underscored the divide between purist folk fans and those open to the evolving sounds of the era. The controversy highlighted the broader cultural tensions and the challenges of maintaining authenticity in a rapidly changing musical landscape.

Significance Fifty Years Later

Reflecting on the event half a century later, Wald emphasizes its lasting impact on both music and American culture. The Newport incident serves as a marker between the optimistic first half of the 1960s and the more radical and fragmented latter half.

Notable Quote:

Arun Roth (09:49): "When I called this book 'The Night that Split the 60s,' it's very easy to forget that all of the things that we normally think of when we say the word '60s' happen after 1965."

Dylan's electrification is not solely responsible for the cultural shifts that followed, but it undeniably symbolizes the end of an era and the beginning of new societal dynamics.

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Elijah Wald (03:05): "Easier said than done in the early 1960s, folk music scenes were blossoming all over the country, and the Newport Folk Festival was their confluence."

• Elijah Wald (03:40): "I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more."

• Arun Roth (06:09): "He wasn't a movement kind of guy. I mean, I'm not going to say he didn't want to be a pop star. But he was not a joiner. He was not good with organizations."

• Arun Roth (08:12): "There are people yelling, 'Bring back cousin Emmy,' who was the hillbilly singer who had sung just before him. 'I don't like your band,' and 'Throw away that electric guitar. Bring back Pete Seeger.'"

• Arun Roth (09:49): "When I called this book 'The Night that Split the 60s,' it's very easy to forget that all of the things that we normally think of when we say the word '60s' happen after 1965."

Conclusion

"Dylan Goes Electric" by Elijah Wald offers a profound exploration of a defining moment in music history and its broader cultural implications. Through insightful analysis and engaging storytelling, Wald captures the essence of Bob Dylan's audacious move and its ripple effects across society. This episode of NPR's Book of the Day not only highlights the significance of Dylan's performance but also underscores the enduring relevance of understanding pivotal cultural shifts.

For those intrigued by the intersection of music, culture, and history, Dylan Goes Electric provides a compelling read that sheds light on how a single night's performance can echo through decades of societal change.

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This summary encapsulates the key discussions and insights from the episode, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven't listened. Notable quotes are included with proper attribution and timestamps to highlight significant moments in the conversation.

Transcript

[Andrew Limbong]

Hey, it's Andrew Limbong. Before we start the show, 2024 is coming to a close and our team is looking back at all of the great books we have been able to tell you about this year thanks to you. We've explored books by politicians to bring you context during a crazy election year. We've tempted you with delicious new cookbooks. We recommended reads to get cozy with on the couch to broaden your horizons, to surprise and delight and inspire you. And it's all because listeners like you step up to support our work, either by giving to your local station or by joining npr. Now, NPR has grown a lot this year, and we want to say an extra special thank you to those supporters right now. You know who you are. We see you if you don't know what I'm talking about. NPR is a sweet way to support the independent public media you rely on from NPR when you sign up for a simple recurring donation. You support our mission of creating a more informed public. And you get special perks for more than 25 NPR podcasts like sponsor free listening, bonus episodes and even exclusive and discounted items at the NPR Shop and the NPR Wine Club. When you donate. Today, you join a community of supporters united by curiosity and eagerness to seek out different perspectives in books and in the real world. So join us on the plus side today at plus.npr.org thanks so much. Hey, it's NPR's Book of the Day. I'm Andrew Limbong. I've been inundated by Timothee Chalamet's press tour for his new movie, a Complete Unknown, but if you haven't, I can fill you in. It's a biopic of Bob Dylan, and it's Based on the 2015 book Dylan Goes Electric by Elijah Wald. That book details the run up to Dylan's performance at the Newport Folk Festival, where he did the radical act of playing an electric guitar. Okay, I'm being a little cheeky here, but wald spoke to NPR's Arun Roth back when the book came out, and Wald lays out how, yeah, this was a radical act if you take into account the political context of the moment. That's coming up.

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[Elijah Wald]

Easier said done in the early 1960s, folk music scenes were blossoming all over the country, and the Newport Folk Festival was their confluence. In the middle of the decade, the reigning king was a young Bob Dylan. But on this very day 50 years ago, Bob Dylan did the unthinkable, the unforgivable. He plugged in an electric guitar and he rocked hard.

[Andrew Limbong]

I ain't gonna work on Maggie's farm no more.

[Elijah Wald]

The crowd was stunned. The folk faithful were betrayed by the man they considered the rightful heir to Woody Guthrie. That's the mythology, at least. But without question, that night proved to be a major turning point in music history. Elijah Wood has written a new book about that performance. It's called Dylan Goes Electric. He says the crowd at Newport 65 might not have been so shocked had they known Dylan's listening habits. As a kid in Hibbing, Minnesota, he.

[Arun Roth]

Was an R and B fan. It's interesting. He was actually listening to a record program. It was his favorite program that was beamed out of Shreveport, Louisiana, and that was specializing in, you know, B.B. king, Bo Diddley, Chuck Berry.

[Andrew Limbong]

I bought a brand new air mobile.

[Arun Roth]

Little Richard, incidentally, was his hero. That was. He pounded piano and shouted like Little Richard and did the falsetto whoops and all of that.

[Elijah Wald]

And you write about Bob Dylan when he arrived in New York, the kind of scene in Greenwich Village. It's almost like he's trying on different Personas. Like, you never know what Bob Dylan might show up.

[Arun Roth]

Oh, yeah. I mean, people who knew Bob Dylan back in Hibbing, Minnesota, say he was already trying on Personas. But, you know, that's not very unusual.

[Elijah Wald]

He was young.

[Arun Roth]

Yeah, exactly. Guitar player, singer, 18, 19, 20 years old. It's very typical that you'll pick up a record and sound just like that record for weeks, and then you pick up another record and sound like that record for a while.

[Elijah Wald]

The folk scene that you write about back then, it's a lot more Diverse than I realized. And they're even, well, factions in a way.

[Arun Roth]

There always was friction on the folk scene. Between the people who really believed that this music should be done authentically. Should be done right. And people who just thought, you know, this is fun music. Let's do it however we want. Let's do it in ways that's fun. But there were a lot of people on the purist side. Who thought the pop folkies Were simply taking great music and turning it into tripe.

[Elijah Wald]

There's a point that you return to in this book a number of times that Bob Dylan. It wasn't like he wanted to lead the folk revolution. He didn't want to lead the A movement.

[Arun Roth]

He wasn't a movement kind of guy. I mean, I'm not going to say he didn't want to be a pop star. But he was not a joiner. He was not good with organizations. There was this feeling that it was all about. We're going to make a movement that's going to change the world. He was the man who had written one of the anthems of the freedom movement. And one of the people who was holding it all together. This new youth movement that would change the world. And by 1965, that role was feeling, I think, constricting to him. But also frightening to him. You know, the fact that people were looking to him for answers. It was a very tricky time right then. Anyway, that was the weekend that Lyndon Johnson fully committed the United States to Vietnam. The civil rights movement was falling apart. Sncc, which was the group that had brought all the kids down for the Freedom Summer the previous year. Now was throwing the white members out. And the new chant was Black Power. You know, that communal feeling of the first half of the 60s. Was getting harder and harder to feel like that was all going to work. And the world was going to be a better place. And Dylan was someone a lot of people were looking to. To hold that together. And instead he comes out there with an electric band. Doesn't say a word to them. Dylan was always somebody who'd been very sort of cheerful, friendly, chatting with the audience. Doesn't say a word. And is playing the loudest music they've ever heard. And screaming, how does it feel to be on your own?

[Elijah Wald]

So you say that the scene was not like, you know, veneer riot. Maybe some people described it as being. Or the way that it's been come down in mythology. How intense was the reaction?

[Arun Roth]

The reaction was very intense. How much booing there was, it's hard to say. Because the fact is, they turned the microphones on stage way down because the band was so loud. So suddenly you can't hear the crowd during the electric set very much. But there are people yelling, bring back cousin Emmy, who was the hillbilly singer who had sung just before him. And I don't like your band. And throw away that electric guitar. And bring back Pete Seeger. We want the old Dylan. You can also hear people yelling, beatles. Play the Beatles or cancel the rest of the show. Stay all night. You know, so there was all of this feeling that the folk festival was turning into something else. Maybe a pop festival or maybe just, you know, a place where people went to get famous. Rather than a place where they went to share music. And in order to fight against that, the Newport Festival carefully, was not giving anyone star treatment. So everyone who played that night was supposed to just play 12 minutes. And they put Dylan on partway through the first half. And he sang three songs and he left. And that's when the place went completely nuts.

[Elijah Wald]

Beyond the moment itself, that night took on cultural baggage pretty much right away. You know, being taken as a defining moment for something. You could argue about what it was, but now we actually have, you know, a nice, tidy 50 years of distance from this maybe some real perspective. So what did that moment mean for music or for American culture?

[Arun Roth]

You know, when I called this book the Night that split the 60s, you know, it's very easy to forget that all of the things that we normally think of when we say the word 60s happen after 1965. I mean, the Vietnam War, the hippies, the drugs. The Beatles had not yet, much less Sergeant Pepper. They hadn't even yet done Rubber Sole. They were still a fun pop group. And all of that stuff, that's really the break that happens right at this time. And I'm not saying at all that it happened because Dylan went electric. But it's a real good marker for the divide between what had been the first half of the 60s and what was coming.

[Andrew Limbong]

Try my best to be just like I am but everybody wants you to be just like them they say sing while you slave I just get bored I ain't gonna work on maggots Farm.

[Elijah Wald]

Tom Elijah Wald, he's the author of a new book, Dylan Goes Electric. Bob Dylan's disruptive electric performance at the Newport Folk Festival happened on this day 50 years ago. Elijah Wald, great speaking with you. Thank you.

[Arun Roth]

Thank you very much for having me.

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