Legend Credentials:

It’s a sign of Bob Dylan’s significance in the history of music that when he plugged in his guitar and ‘went electric’ folk fans would come to his gigs to boo and jeer ‘Judas’ at him.

Dylan was not only at the forefront of the most exciting music revolution, but also saw himself adopted as a (somewhat reluctant) figurehead of cultural and political upheaval.

Born Robert Zimmerman in 1941, he made his name as a singer-songwriter in the cutting edge New York folk clubs in the early 1960s. Yet he made his actual name by adopting a new surname, taking inspiration from the poet Dylan Thomas. This was particularly apt as his early lyrics incorporated political, social, philosophical and literary influences. At the time his political songwriting broke all existing pop music rules and made Dylan the idol of America’s emerging counter-culture. A number of his songs became anthems of the civils rights movements, including classics ‘Blowin' in the Wind’ and ‘The Times They Are a-Changin'’.

Dylan’s shift in the mid 60s from folk into rock would change music forever. The albums ‘Highway 61 Revisited’ (1965) and ‘Blonde On Blonde’ (1966) brought his unique combination of sounds to the broadest audience and would become constant fixtures in critics’ top ten albums polls.

Bob Dylan is still making vital music today. His most recent studio album ‘Modern Times’ entered the U.S. album chart at number one in 2006 and was named Album of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine.

The original Song:

Included in his controversial electric live set from 1965, ‘Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat’

was to become a key track on the landmark album ‘Blonde on Blonde’.

The song had a difficult birth: in January 1966 Dylan and The Band went into Columbia recording studios in New York City, and despite eight takes, none were deemed satisfactory. Relocating the recording to Nashville, a further 13 takes were rejected by Dylan, until finally success was achieved in the early hours of March 10. It was certainly worth the effort, and Dylan’s persistence marks out the importance this track has for him. 42 years on, that recording responsibility has been passed to Beck.

Classic Clip:

This 1966 clip of Dylan performing live sounds edgy and exciting today – giving a glimpse of the frenzy that surrounded Dylan at the time.