DYLAN in Wood

20 1/2” x 29 1/2” x 1 1/4”

Basswood & artist oils

I was twelve when I first taped this famous poster on my bedroom wall. It was an insert in Dylan’s Greatest Hits LP in 1967. It’s likely any Dylan fan of my era is familiar with it. The original painting was done by Milton Glaser and resides in the Museum Of Modern Art. Sentimental reasons played a key role in my decision to carve it. It took me back to my youth, and heard his songs while cutting his hair. Grateful!

Dylan aficionados know that he started the ball rolling when he went electric in Newport in the summer of 65. The folksy crowd actually booed. Little did they know then what we know now. Dylan has few peers as a song writer. His big bang moment in Newport continues to push the edge of the musical universe to this day. He never got 5 stars for his vocals but it mattered little. It was the message and the depth of his lyrics that matched the time, and had people talking.

Few bands perform his songs as well as the Grateful Dead members and all the subsets did, and still do. If Dylan didn’t have so many talented singers covering his songs he may not have been so famous. It’s generally accepted that the Dead covered 39 Dylan songs over the years starting in the 80s. One 1973 cover of It Takes A Lot To Laugh and A Train To Cry s he exception. There are Dylan days in the Barn!