While I am a huge Beatles fan (I friggin' pre-ordered the $230 mono box set and don't regret it fer cryin' out loud), we have also discussed them almost as much as The Three Stooges over the years. Somebody we have not discussed, or barely discussed, is Bob Dylan.
I almost hesitate to post a Dylan thread because I can hear the responses already - he's overrated, he can't sing, he's a good songwriter but other people do his songs better, etc. etc. etc. If that's the way you feel, fine, but I'm wondering if anybody else has other opinions.
His influence on rock is as big as The Beatles. If it weren't for Dylan, there's a good chance The Beatles would be writing love songs their entire career (not that there's anything wrong with that, but their entire body of work would not be as interesting). HIGHWAY 61 REVISITED, which pre-dates RUBBER SOUL, is probably the first rock album to include both good rock music with intelligent lyrics.
My relationship with Dylan's music is not as instant as with The Beatles. With Bob, he's somebody I appreciate slowly. I like him more this year than I did last year, and I'll probably like him even more next year. The Dylan Mono box is numero uno on my Christmas list.
Anybody else have any Bob thoughts?