From Powells.com
Our favorite books of the year.
Staff Pick
I thought I'd read and heard everything about Dylan's performance at Newport in 1965, until I read Elijah Wald's great book. There's so much more in here than just Dylan and his band plugging in to play "Maggie's Farm." Wald tells a fascinating story about Pete Seeger, as well as the Newport Folk Festival. There are countless interviews and perspectives from that Sunday night in 1965 that revolutionized the music industry. Recommended By Jeffrey J., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
On the evening of July 25, 1965, Bob Dylan took the stage at the Newport Folk Festival backed by an electric band and roared into a blistering version of "Maggie's Farm," followed by his new rock single, "Like a Rolling Stone." The audience of committed folk purists and political activists who had hailed him as their acoustic prophet reacted with a mix of shock, booing, and scattered cheers. It was the shot heard round the world — Dylan's declaration of musical independence, the end of the folk revival, and the birth of rock as the voice of a generation — and one of the defining moments in twentieth-century music.
In Dylan Goes Electric! Elijah Wald explores the cultural, political, and historical context of this seminal event. He delves deep into the folk revival and its intersections with the civil rights movement, the rise of rock, and the tensions between traditional and groundbreaking music to provide new insights into Dylan's artistic evolution, his special affinity to blues, his complex relationship to the folk establishment and his sometime mentor Pete Seeger, and the ways he reshaped popular music forever. Breaking new ground on a story we think we know, Dylan Goes Electric! is a thoughtful, sharp appraisal of the controversial event at Newport and a nuanced, provocative, analysis of why it matters.
Review
“Elijah Wald's book reflects the many directions in which America's music scene evolved in those extraordinary years, 1963-1970 — I can't recommend it enough.” George Wein, Founder of the Newport Folk Festival
Review
“Easily the definitive account of Newport ‘65.” CounterPunch Magazine
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“It is a great work of scholarship, brimming with insight among the best music books I have ever read.” The Guardian
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“Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic....An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism.” Kirkus Reviews
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“Anyone interested in Dylan, folk music, or rock and roll will adore this volume. It might not resolve the questions of what really happened in Newport in 1965, but it comes very close.” Library Journal
About the Author
Elijah Wald is a writer and musician whose books include Escaping the Delta: Robert Johnson and the Invention of the Blues and How the Beatles Destroyed Rock 'n' Roll: An Alternative History of American Popular Music. A respected expert on the folk revival, he collaborated with Dave Van Ronk on The Mayor of MacDougal Street, the inspiration for the Coen Brothers' film Inside Llewyn Davis. His awards include a 2002 Grammy, and he has taught blues history at UCLA and lectured widely on American, Mexican, and world music. He currently lives in Medford, Massachusetts.