Customer Reviews

The Bob Dylan Scrapbook, 1956-1966

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Bob Dylan scrapbook.
This is a wonderful trip down memory lane.

The text of the book
The book basically a narrative of the years from 1956 to 1966. It provides a nice insight to Bob Dylan before the fame up to Blonde on Blonde. Most of it the true Dylan aficionado would already know, but it is very well written. The book is only 64 pages in length and can be read in a couple hours if you don't stop to examine the scraps.

The Scraps.
These are special. The book is heavily laced with reproductions of memorabilia from advertisements for Zimmerman furniture and electric,concert tickets, photos, newspaper clippings taped to the pages to advertisments for shows. My favorite scraps are the reproductions of hand written lyrics for Talking New York, Blowin in the wind, It ain't me babe, Chimes of freedom, Gates of Eden, Like a rolling stone and She's your lover now.

The CD.
This contains about 45 minutes of interviews that are chopped up into short segments. Sometimes you get to hear the interviewers question and sometimes you don't but you can usually figure out what the question might have been based Dylan's answer. On the CD Dylan will ramble on a little but it is all good. During some of the interviews when he speaks it seems like it is the same cadence as Like a rolling stone and other times more in the cadence of MR Tambourine man which is something I never realized until I listened to this CD. Some of the interviews are actual interviews from that time period and some are newer and are of Dylan reflecting on that time period.

Summary:
This is a really interesting to read, look at and listen to. A nice ride on Dylan's magic swirling ship. You will not be disapointed, a five star book all the way.

The Bob Dylan Scrapbook is a gas, a hoot and an adventure to boot. You don't just read this volume -- you experience it. It's like stumbling across Bob's private memento box or riffling through his attic. Amazing stuff indeed.

When I went to the bookstore this week to ask about it, three excited store clerks stormed out from behind the information desk and escorted me to the display. "You've GOT to see this!," they shouted. "It is JUST SO COOL."

The Bob Dylan Scrapbook is just that -- a scrapbook with actual (authentic-looking) bits of memorabilia tucked inside little compartments and taped (by hand) to many of the pages. We're talking newspaper clippings, handwritten lyrics, advertisements, concert tickets, promo flyers, little bits and pieces of every day life -- starting way back in Hibbing, Minnesota, and continuing right up through Bob's explosive rise on the world music scene. What a classy bit of history -- all bound up in hard cover with its own special slipbox and a CD full of condensed radio interviews (plus movie notes about Martin Scorsese new flick, "No Direction Home.").

The text by Robert Santelli, whom I believe worked on the exhibit called "Bob Dylan's American Journey" at the Experience Music Project in Seattle, is mostly straightforward narrative without a lot of deep insights or analysis. That's OK -- there's plenty of complicated Dylanology out there for those who want it.

Bottom Line -- Even if you don't particularly like Bob Dylan, or don't "get" the whole fuss about his music and lyrics, you'll really enjoy reading this new book, if only as a cultural experience. Only one thing is missing: Winter photos of northern Minnesota (Duluth and Hibbing), where 18 inches of new snow is called "a light dusting." (I lived there for a while.)For a hint of that blizzardy childhood, listen to Bob's wonderful song "Winterlude" from his 1970 "New Morning" album.

Because Scorsese's documentary stops at 1966, this is not the comprehensive Dylan book (even Dylan's own book isn't THE comprehensive Dylan book, but I think out of respect for his kids he's kept that story via song), but this is great for the people who have gotten into Bob's more recent CDs and want to know about the early days, but more so for the people who remember him as the folkie turned rocker whose motorcycle accident is still surrounded by myth.

The book isn't out to dispel myth, but is what it is, a scrapbook with stories. I had an Elvis book similar to this, and this one seemed to be filled with more "scraps", reproductions of concert tickets, articles, album covers, lyrics, concert programmes, and promotional photos as well as a store promo and an interview CD. I was surprised that the book was not more expensive the way the layout is.

The downside (which there really is none)is that there seems to be a bit too much promotional material surrounding the documentary, between the Gaslight CD, the 6 song concert EP that some stores are selling, the soundtrack, the DVD, and that's without even mentioning the PBS broadcast.

Having been a Bob Dylan fan/enthusiast for over 40 years, this scrapbook was a wonderful surprise! I was expecting a fairly simple book... it is anything but. I love the way it is put together. It's an actual "scrapbook", filled with many items of fun and informative memorabilia... very creatively done.

For the most part I have been only a collector of the songs of Bob Dylan... the music and the lyrics. All I needed to know about the man was, and still is, in his songs. However, since the realease of 'Chronicles Vol I' and the Martin Scorsese Documentary, 'No Direction Home' I have been searching for more. This scrapbook... what a treat!

"The Bob Dylan Scrapbook, 1956-1966" has been described as a companion volume to "No Direction Home", and it is - but it is also so much more. While the Scorsese documentary is now being shown on PBS, this scrapbook is a hands-on readable documentary of the Dylan experience. It chronicles his early days in Minnesota, then his drifting off to the folk clubs and coffee houses of the New York City scene, the friendships with Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie and others, and those subsequent hits recorded by him and by Peter, Paul and Mary - "Blowin' In the Wind", "Don't Think Twice", "The Times They Are A-Changin'" - and finally Dylan's decision to go electric - no doubt inspired by the Beatles, the Byrds who took his songs and made Folk-Rock classics with them, but also by a young Scot who sounded very much like Dylan and had already added electric guitars to his folk sound, namely Donovan Leitch. The book, like the film, ends with Dylan's controversal decision to go electric with a bunch of guys from Canada and Arkansas - the famous Band, the performance at Newport and the tour of Britain, and the impact of Dylan's changing sound ("Like A Rolling Stone", "Rainy Day Women 12 & 35")on the not-so-happy folk purists as well as the enthused rock and rollers.

Throughout the pages Dylan emerges as a complex man and musician, but surprisingly human - humorous, quite funny and not as political or serious as he has been portrayed as in the past.

I am disappointed just a bit by the altogether brief mention of the Byrds in this scrapbook - one or two pages, and not even the famous photo of Dylan onstage with them at Ciro's as "Mr. Tambourine Man" became a monster hit, but this is more than compensated by the pullout lyrics, the imagery, and the flaps chronicling those wonderous times. This book is a coffee table gem for the Dylan admirer.

This book is an excellent compliment to the No Direction Home documentary that was recently released. The book is impossible to put down and includes page after page of one of kind memorabilia. There are reproductions of lyric sheets, promo materials, and historical concert tickets and photos. For Dylan fans this is a real collectors item. It is beautifully put together and packaged--a great gift for music lovers.

I am a young Bob Dylan fan and I absolutely love this book. It's not only a good read, but it's also fun to look at. The handwritten lyrics, ticket stub, and even stickers are amazing.There is even a miniature cardboard standup of Bob. Some of the lyrics don't even look like reproductions, they look like an original. This book is hardcover and very high quality. I saw this for 45 dollars at a bookstore and I couldn't believe the price on Amazon! Plus it has free shippping! This is a must buy for anyone who likes Bob Dylan. I saw No Direction Home the other day and it is AMAZING. That is also a must have. Don't Look Back is no longer the greatest rock documentary ever. Every Bob Dylan fan has to have these! You won't be sorry. Just look at how many 5 star reviews it has gotten.

This is a really well put together collector's edition. Lives up to Dylan standards and is executed with love, care and respect for the audience. Reproductions of original documents and notes are well done - like holding the original.

This book is fantastic! If you lived through the late fifties and early sixties, or if you are simply a lover of pop culture and music, this volume is for you. There are so many detailed and scholarly books out there on Dylan and his musical contribution. With its entertaining text and its many treasures taped or glued to the pages, this is part history, part virtual tour through the life and times of a legend. I'm torn between leaving the items in the book or displaying them to enjoy all the time. I love the reproduction of the Dylan cut-out advertising stand. Stickers are actually reproduced as stickers you could peel off and use if you like. It's incredible. I have several siblings who have everything; this book will make a great Christmas gift. My seventeen year old has already claimed the one I ordered, so I've ordered a second. This is well worth the money.

The book shows a truly unique view of Dylans past and his rise to fame. It is done in a very intimate way and is full of surprizes. The book is very good at making the past come alive with Ticket stubs, autographed album covers, passes to MLK speeches and many other items. Truly a unique book.